I have provided the clues, the definitions therein and the SOLUTIONS, plus such notes as I hope you will find helpful. Merry New Year everone!
Across
1 We’re told the fellow’s going to part of Oxford? (4)
HEEL We start with a homophone, “we’re told”, so he’ll, fellow’s going to becomes an Oxford (a style of shoe) section.
3 One smashing image representing lions and cat without company (10)
ICONOCLAST An anagram, re-presenting LIONS and CAT, placed around CO(mpany). Without can mean outside as in “there is a green hill far away without a city wall”
9 African native bloomer on the banks of one river (7)
GIRAFFE Here’s the bloomer that’s not a flower but a GAFFE, either side of I (one) R(iver)
11 Papers about arrangement for sitar or recorder (7)
DIARIST ID for papers is reversed, and a anagram (arrangement for) of SITAR is added
12 Tenet of millenarianism will have faded, for example (6,7)
FUTURE PERFECT Millenarianism is a belief system (not necessarily religious) which recognises that the state of the world is pretty grotty, but some coming climactic event will usher in a new, more peaceful, prosperous or generally rather nice time either for everyone or for the select few. The word has its roots in the Biblical book of Revelation in which 1000 years is either a time of struggle or a time of bliss, and sometimes both. Hence our answer as a shorthand form, and the example of “will have faded” of the grammatical tense.
14 Different water temperatures crossed by returning river boat (5)
YACHT Conventionally, there are two temperatures for water, C(old) and H(ot). Select a river at random, in this case the TAY, reverse it and set it outside.
15 Endless words to acclaim a hollow rockery’s little flower (9)
TRIBUTARY And here’s our flower that’s not a bloomer but flowing water. Remove the end from TRIBUTe for words to acclaim, add A in plain sight and the outer letters (hollow) of RockerY.
17 Word just in recent science fiction hit (9)
NEWSFLASH Recent is NEW, Science Fiction SF, and hit LASH.
19 It means getting more bread that’s flatter, not soft (5)
RAISE Bred as a euphemism for money. Flatter is PRAISE, leave off the P, soft in music.
21 Rope and anchorage at sea for expert there (13)
OCEANOGRAPHER One of those pretty anagrams (at sea) where the fodder is well connected to the theme, in this case ROPE and ANCHORAGE.
24 Kid catching punch in the gut in English town (7)
SWINDON The kid is a SON, and WIND for punch in the gut is inserted. Swindon, in Wiltshire, has a proud railway history, is the second safest place to live in the UK and “in all its pebbledash and Anaglypta glory, has to be the ugliest, most soul-destroying town in England.”
25 I expect complaint: university with old teacher’s regressing (2,5)
NO DOUBT A reversal clue (regressing) TB for complaint, U for University, O(ld) and DON for teacher.
26 Thought about Hattie’s exterior, with a proudly displayed bust (10)
FIGUREHEAD In its more literal meaning as that carving under a ship’s bowsprit often a bust, and often with a proudly displayed bust. Here’s the Cutty Sark’s since replaced by a more chaste version. The wordplay, simply FIGURED for thought around the outside letters of HattiE, plus A in plain sight.
27 Cardinal, say, is back holding a letter-opener (4)
DEAR…. Yes that sort of letter opener. Cardinal is an example of RED. Reverse it (is back) and insert A, yet again in plain sight.
Down
1 Like top execs, canned following dishonesty (4-6)
HIGH FLYING Canned here has the meaning of drunk, hence HIGH as a kite, then add F(ollowing) and LYING for dishonesty.
2 Unpredictable scoundrel housed in Morecambe? (7)
ERRATIC Seasoned campaigners will see Morecambe and think ERIC for the comedian, Throw in RAT for scoundrel.
4 Queen caught by group of stars and hit artist (9)
CLEOPATRA C(aught) plus LEO the constellation plus PAT for hit and RA for artist, Royal Academician
5 Russian girl after pinching a Republican’s bottom (5)
NADIR the Russian girl is NADIA, though the one that springs to my mind is Romanian. Pinch/remove an A and add R(epublican). The clue’s surface looks like a reversal of more usual practice.
6 French construction line pocketing one juicy cut (13)
CHATEAUBRIAND A French construction is a CHATEAU (which I can’t help translating as cat water). Add BRAND for line and insert I (one)
7 Variety star wanting covers for piece of music (7)
ARIETTA The setter making it easy. Remove the outer letters of variety star and voila! (or should that be ecco!?
8 Bear child, mother’s fifth (4)
TOTE Child is TOT, and the fifth letter of mother is -um- E
10 Jazzy riffs absorbing to guitar person just getting a record? (5,8)
FIRST OFFENDER So it’s an anagram (jazzy) of RIFFS taking in TO, and the guitar person s the immortal Leo FENDER, creator of the Stratocaster (which I expect to see amongst the avatars today).
13 Printer‘s extremely testy stare maintaining order (10)
TYPEWRITER The outside letters of TestY, plus PEER for stare and WRIT for order included.
16 Current character in Greece, mostly affable Greek princess (9)
IPHIGENIA Today’s candidate for the blank stares of non-classicists, and probably of some classicists too. Trust the wordplay, take I for (electric) current, add PHI (you hope) for the character in Greece and take most od GENIAL for affable on the end until you run out of space. She was a daughter of King Agamemnon and Queen Clytemnestra (I looked it up, you don’t have to).
18 Acting like a hound, seeking romance round female (7)
WOOFING Seeking romance is WOOING, placed found F(emale)
20 Clad like Elizabethan gent seizing uniform, the company’s own (2-5)
IN HOUSE Elizabethan gents wore doublet and HOSE, so IN HOSE with NATO Uniform seized.
22 What I might be in series from television, in theory (5)
NINTH Today’s hidden in televisioN IN THeory. It would have been cute if I was the ninth letter of television, but it’s not, by 1. But it is the ninth letter of the alphabet.
23 A riddle with no conclusion? Pull the other one! (2,2)
AS IF I think turned up recently with the same “definition”. A (for the final time in plain sight) plus SIFT for riddle with its end missing.
55 mins but technically a DNF ‘cos I couldn’t get (didn’t know) I-phone-e-genius, or whatever her name is. So I looked her up.
I liked FUTURE PERFECT, CHATEAUBRIAND (though I’d prefer a claret or a good Rhône to Cloudy bay. Are their reds, Pinot Noirs I believe, up to the steak?) and NEWSFLASH. GOOD STUFF.
Another who had TYPESETTER for a while.
Thank you Z and setter.
Thanks for a really nice blog. It was beautifully set out and was not jumbled up. For some reason my android phone does not display things nicely when using the livejournal app.
I got stuck after half a dozen clues, then found it all fell in place for a time of about 45 mins. The puzzle was hard enough for a relative newbie to make it a satisfying solve. Fortunately the Princess lurked in a deep corner of my memory so i got lucky there.
Thanks z nice blog.
You lot have made it abundantly clear that she’s pretty much in the same category of well-known-ness as Lady Macbeth or Joan of Arc. Lands sakes, there’s Euripedes, Gluck, Wagner’s version thereof, even a raucous play called Iphigenia In Splott.
And I recognise none of this! Like the reverse of that film.where the guy wakes up to find he’s the only person who knows the Beatles.
I shall have to go and spend some Stout Cortez time, staring out on a new horizon, silent on a peak in Darien.
Lots of clever constructions, with plenty of traps to trip up the unwary. I had 15 clues ticked off for approval when I had reviewed upon completion.
Only niggle was 16 d “Iphigenia” where I can only echo Z’s comments in the blog. My knowledge of the Classics doesn’t even extend to the St Leger I’m afraid.
Anyway, as a strangely subdued Hogmanay approaches, thanks to Z for an entertaining blog and to setter for an excellent puzzle to cheer me up!
I got Iphigenia reasonably quickly. A sad tale but at least Clytemnestra ensured her loving? husband got what he deserved!
But I’d have thought the Greek princess would be well-known enough. It’s a memorable name.
Expanding your comment took me to a different page again! Drat!
Edited at 2021-12-30 05:40 pm (UTC)
FOI OCEANOGRAPHER. It took a little time, but was worth it.
Happy to have guessed SWINDON correctly.
I feel that if you’ve seen the name IPHIGENIA once, you’re likely never to forget it, but maybe that’s just me…
Edited at 2021-12-30 05:52 pm (UTC)
Lovely puzzle blog and comments from everyone
My Xmas pressie vinyl of choice to listen to was Joni Mitchell’s live recording of her 1969 Carnegie Hall concert. Recommended. I got it for my daughter and my wife got it for me after I let slip how much my daughter would enjoy it. 🙂
I’m in the “Iphigenia straight in” category as a result of my Greek A Level — at least it turned out to be useful for something
Thanks Setter and Z
Edited at 2021-12-30 08:05 pm (UTC)
Rotten start to this one due to familial shenanighans — only 1 clue fully completed and parsed after 12 minutes. Went to bed to escape the noise, and continued in the morning with no-one around. Zoomed through the remainder apart from the tricky ICONOCLAST, NADIR (foxed somewhat by bunging in FUTURE PRESENT (no idea about either Millenarianism or tenses)) and ARIETTA (like others I’d had CUBE instead of TOTE for some time).
Of course, IPHIGENIA was unfair as there was not enough parsing to have any chance with letters 2 and 4 if one has never heard of her (which 99% of the population won’t have, including me). Naughty setter!