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24.33, so not so easy for me, not least because on blogging night I had to be reasonably sure that all was in place and understood, and then this was no connected solve, answers going in haphazardly. Most of the top of the grid was the kind of Times-y, sedate stuff we’re used to: colloquialisms with a safe antiquity, some Latin and bits of French and Italian, arty stuff from the C19, but towards the end, especially in the down clues, some of the stuff we may have to get used to with the Down with the Kids’ version. I was lucky, in that none of it was unfamiliar, but I’m sure there will be answers in all categories which will flummox some of our company.
Definitions underlined in italics, letters missing from abbreviations and such shown by [], everything else take your chances.
| Across | |
| 1 | Suffer, with quite pained expression (5) |
| ALLOW – Rather an antique version of suffer, best seen perhaps in “suffer the children to come unto me”. Quite gives ALL via completely, altogether, plus OW as your pained expression | |
| 4 | Briefly had success — they are about to retire (3,3,3) |
| HIT THE HAY – The syntax is tricky. Briefly HA[D], with success: HIT and THEY both (hence are) about (it). | |
| 9 | End of camping? Love to stop at home! (9) |
| INTENTION – Camping is IN TENT (tee hee) and O for love stops, is stuffed into IN for home. | |
| 10 | Tend to back employees running shows (5) |
| NURSE – Reverse hidden (back…shows) in employeES RUNning. | |
| 11 | Taking off: one’s mass movement in art (13) |
| IMPRESSIONISM – Taking off gives IMPRESSION plus I’S M[ass] | |
| 14 | Monarch no longer to block vote against old tyrant (4) |
| NERO – Our late, lamented ER blocks, is stuck into, NO for a vote against. | |
| 15 | Make early sporting exit, but not be “distressed” (4,3,3) |
| MISS THE CUT – From golf, I think, where after a couple of rounds only the lowest scores go on the further rounds. Hilariously, you don’t get your hair/tress cut. | |
| 18 | “Ta God” is, er a translation? (3,7) |
| DEO GRATIAS – Latin for God be thanked, and an anagram (translation) of the first five words. Perhaps slightly forced, perhaps rather clever, &lit. | |
| 19 | Book with education essentials? It’s fresh! (4) |
| BRRR – B[ook] with the three Rs of basic education, Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic. Don’t blame me. | |
| 21 | One refusing to change out of uniform into elaborate stitched mink (5-2-3-3) |
| STICK-IN-THE-MUD – Formed out of U[niform] in an anagram (elaborate) of STITCHED MINK. | |
| 24 | Are Wanderers after quiet sort of tournament? (3-2) |
| PRO-AM – More golf, usually, where professionals and amateurs (usually famous for other reasons) are paired. (They) are wanderers – (they) ROAM after P for quiet. | |
| 25 | Female porter maybe cross with artist (9) |
| ALEXANDRA – Porter is a kind of ALE, add X for cross and R[oyal] A[cademician] for artist. | |
| 27 | Is earlier pressure one exerts moving Society? (3-6) |
| PRE-EXISTS – P[ressure] plus anagram of I (one) EXERTS plus S[ociety] | |
| 28 | Lack, for the most part, somewhere peaceful (5) |
| HAVEN – Most of HAVEN'[T], (you) lack. | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Fan of a fine old company performing song and dance (10) |
| AFICIONADO – Tried to make it some sort of air conditioning, but its A F[ine] old company: ICI, performing: ON (stage, etc) song and dance ADO. | |
| 2 | Many failing to finish: a policeman’s not happy? (3) |
| LOT – Many: LOT[S]. The rest of the clue references Gilbert and Sullivan’s “A policeman’s lot is not a happy one” from Pirates of Penzance. | |
| 3 | Jan’s in this women’s team in Italy (6) |
| WINTER – The abbreviated month. W[omen’s] team in Italy, that’ll be INTER Milan. Legend has it my excellent Mother in Law danced with every team member thereof when on holiday in Italy. | |
| 4 | Rough for one to wear one? Right (4,5) |
| HAIR SHIRT – Okay, so HARSH for rough plus I (one) wears another I, in this case rather as a medallion in the middle plus R[igh]T. &lit | |
| 5 | After function, leave for dance (5) |
| TANGO – The function is TAN[gent], add GO for leave. | |
| 6 | Unusual thing to have bloke close to union at? (3,5) |
| HEN NIGHT – A third &lit, if you will. An anagram (unusual) of THING, with HE for bloke and the end/close of [unio]N. Obviously, a bloke coming up to marriage/union would more likely be at the stag do getting tied to a lamppost on Bodmin Moor. | |
| 7 | Rash — with smell — concealing a strange mark (5-6) |
| HARUM-SCARUM – Smell gives you the colloquial HUM, and A strange: RUM, and mark: SCAR are interposed. | |
| 8 | He’s French, or would be indeed, if not very (4) |
| YVES – A common enough French male. If V[ery] were not included, he would be YES, or indeed. | |
| 12 | The end perhaps of Turkey’s objections recounted by ministers (7,4) |
| PARSONS NOSE – Just in case you don’t know, this is “the fleshy protuberance visible at the posterior end of a bird (most commonly a chicken or turkey) that has been dressed for cooking.” In my experience, always claimed by the Granny at Christmas lunch, without much competition as it’s proximity to the turkey’s a*senal is off-putting for everyone else. Oh, the sound of (recounted) NOES for objections from PARSONS for ministers. | |
| 13 | Men raised Deutschmarks in tax: something for a rainy day? (5,5) |
| STORM DRAIN – Men gives O[ther] R[anks]’, add the reverse (raised) of D[eutsch]M[arks], place both in STRAIN for tax. | |
| 16 | Go out more? Missing Yankee’s not spotted (9) |
| STAINLESS – Go out more and you STAY IN LESS. Remove the Y[ankee] | |
| 17 | One’s not sincere, on reflection, in thanks for snack (5,3) |
| TRAIL MIX – A confection of coconut and dried fruit. One’s not sincere gives I’M LIAR, which is reversed (on reflection) withing TX for thanks – perhaps the thin end of the wedge of the Sign of the Times setting up camp in our hallowed fogeydom. | |
| 20 | Area quiet after 5-hour party (6) |
| THRASH – The wedge thickens? If you refer back to 5d, you’ll see it’s TANGO, NATO for T. Add H[ou]R, A[rea] and SH for quiet. | |
| 22 | One addressing autumn ending of off-peak fare (5) |
| KEATS – And now the thin end of the TLS wedge: To Autumn (you probably know the opening line, “Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness”) is by this chap, made up of the end of [off-pea]K and EATS for fare. | |
| 23 | Each smartphone download potentially interrupted by ring (1,3) |
| A POP – Another fairly recent synonym. APP is a download, stick in a ring, which looks like O. | |
| 26 | For silly short film turned to Sky (3) |
| DIV – And another. A short film, or VID[eo} is turned skywards. | |
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