A fairly straightforward offering from Neo, with an appropriate, overtly financial theme.
I liked APPREHENDS – I do love a short definition for a long word – and HEBRIDES which brought a smile of recognition (see below). My only stumble was over SELLABLE, which I’ve explained, and that was down to my stubbornness and Neo’s skill. Thanks to him.
| Across | ||
| 8 | SIMILE | Laugh about one happy as clam for instance (6) |
| SMILE surrounds I. ‘Happy as a clam’ is an instance of a simile. | ||
| 9 | ALL RIGHT | Acceptable to imply nothing left? (3,5) |
| DD. If it’s all ‘right’, then nothing is left | ||
| 10 | OPEC | Exporter round clubs after training (4) |
| The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. O (’round’); then C (clubs) after PE (training) | ||
| 11 | READY MONEY | Funds for immediate use fit one compiler’s pockets (5,5) |
| READY (fit), then ONE ‘pocketed’ by MY, today’s compiler in the possessive first person singular. Hi, Neo. | ||
| 12 | TILL | Cash drawer withdraws it with £2? (4) |
| IT reversed (‘withdraws’) then 2x L(for ‘pound’) | ||
| 13 | APPREHENDS | Gets goal, perhaps spinning about (10) |
| END (‘goal’) in anagram (‘spinning about’) of PERHAPS. | ||
| 17 | PEKE | Sound of top dog (4) |
| Homophone for (‘sound of’) ‘peak’. | ||
| 18 | KARMA | Suffering regular losses, retired farmer backs fate (5) |
| FARMER BACKS read backwards, alternate letters deleted (‘suffering regular losses’). | ||
| 19 | EASE | Stand for artist left out in facility (4) |
| EASEL without the L (for ‘left’). | ||
| 21 | ESCRITOIRE | Desk I found in demolished rectories (10) |
| ‘I’ in anag of RECTORIES. | ||
| 23 | BULL | Speculator and powerful man (4) |
| Double definition. A ‘bull’ dealer is one who speculates on the rise of stocks. | ||
| 24 | ARITHMETIC | Crime that somehow involves one as subject (10) |
| Anagram (‘somehow’) of CRIME THAT, to include ‘I’. | ||
| 28 | TRAD | Some jazz deal not concluded (4) |
| TRADE (‘deal’) with its end cut off, to give us jazz in its purest form, say I. | ||
| 29 | HEBRIDES | Islands men as women wed? (8) |
| He-brides. We always say it thus in our house anyway. She’s Scots, btw. | ||
| 30 | See 7 | |
| Down | ||
| 1 | OIL PRICE | Old and current record on grain barrel’s cost (3,5) |
| O for ‘old’, I for (electric) ‘current’ – still trips me up occasionally, that one – LP for ‘record’ & RICE for ‘grain’. Nice 4-parter. | ||
| 2 | FISCAL YEAR | Financial time that could make a life scary? (6,4) |
| Anagram of (‘could make’) ‘a life scary’ | ||
| 3 | BEAR MARKET | Support former German currency and French where securities fall (4,6) |
| BEAR (support) MARK (former German Currency) & ET (‘and’ in French). In a bear market, a lack of confidence depresses the price of securities in general, oh shut up, you fool, this is the FT. | ||
| 4 | SAGA | Silver in southern area prompts northern narrative (4) |
| AG (silver) in S(outhern) A(rea) gives us, or ‘prompts’ [not quite sure about ‘prompts’ but heigh-ho] our story. | ||
| 5 | PLAY | Maybe gamble fifty to fatten wages (4) |
| L (Latin 50) to ‘fatten’ (interesting word for ‘fill’ or ‘be inserted in’) PAY (wages). All right, I’ll buy it. | ||
| 6 | WINO | Drunk to achieve nothing (4) |
| WIN zero. | ||
| 7, 30, 22 | THREADNEEDLE STREET | Old Lady here to provoke poor setter on Strand (12,6) |
| ‘Poor’ is your anagrind for SETTER = STREET. ‘Strand’ gives THREAD and ‘provoke’, NEEDLE. More complex than it appeared. The Old Lady in question is of course the Bank of England, nicknamed, I read, from the James Gilray cartoon of the 22nd of May 1797. | ||
| 14 | PARSI | Zoroastrian is sent up in European capital (5) |
| IS reversed in PARIS | ||
| 15 | EVANESCENT | Last of the smell under wind sensor fading away (10) |
| Last letter of thE, then SCENT under VANE. | ||
| 16 | EVEN BETTER | A further improvement from one not playing odds? (4,6) |
| DD. One who bets on the even numbers in, say, roulette isn’t playing the ‘odds’. | ||
| 20 | SELLABLE | English student pair in fur, having worth (8) |
| E (English) and 2xL (for Learner) in SABLE. Have to admit this gave me pause: the more common SALEABLE just wouldn’t parse. | ||
| 22 | See 7 | |
| 25 | TYRE | Runner in Phoenician port (4) |
| Double definition. | ||
| 26 | MADE | Crazy European really rich (4) |
| MAD & E. As in “he’s a made man”. | ||
| 27 | TASK | Starter for ten and question for Labour (4) |
| ‘T'(en) & ASK. | ||
*anagram
Either Neo was having a bad day or I was having a good one — but I generally find Neo much more demanding. Some really good clues, nonetheless. Thanks, Neo, for making my day: and GB for being so promptly on the job.
Never done the FT. Is this the usual Tuesday standard?
Hey what up ‘Bro Matt’. It wot I done dis ticular Tuesday, for sho. Glad yo digged it yo. Yo yo yo.
Thanks Grant for your excellent blog, and to Hornbeam for being so generous too.
Thanks Neo and Grant
Firstly welcome to the FT Tuesday spot Grant … and good job !!
Did this on the day, but only checked it off today. Looked as if there was a bit of a money / finance / speculation thing going on with the answers.
A good fun puzzle that didn’t take me as long as it normally does for this setter. Finished in the middle part with APPREHENDS and PARSI the last couple in
Thanks Grant (and welcome) and to Neo for both the puzzle and for dropping in – Yoh!
A suitable theme for the FT and I raced through this, tripped up only for a while by putting BEAR in at 23ac which works equally with the clue but not with 20dn.
Certainly on the easier side for Neo, but thoroughly enjoyable and cleanly clued so thanks again.