Saturday Times 25341 (8th Dec)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
My last chance for Christmas shopping today so I’ll have to do this later. Much later, as it turned out. I was too tired when I got home yuesterday, but here it is. Solving time 11:46, so another fairly gentle work-out for a Saturday morning.

Across
1 COPECKS – O(ld) + PECK (Gregory, the actor), inside C(offer)S. Russian currency, 1/100th of a rouble. As there’s about 50 roubles to a pound, they’re not worth very much!
5 CLAMPED – C(ar) + LAMPED (slang word meaning hit or punched).
9 RECITATIVES – I (one) + TAT (rubbish) + IVES (Charles, the composer), all after REC (somewhere to play).
10 PIC – EPIC (such as Ben Hur), minus the first letter.
11 RESUME – RE (on) + SUM (problem) + (assistanc)E.
12 INGATHER – (the grain)*
14 PERSIAN CARPET – (certain papers)*
17 INCONSIDERATE – CON (wrongdoer) inside INSIDE (behind bars) + RATE (judge).
21 DEMOCRAT – C(onservative) + RAT (defector), next to DEMO (protest).
23 ATTICA – A + TT (teetotal, dry) + IC(y) (mostly cold) + A(rea).
25 EEL – LEE (shelter from wind) reversed.
26 RAISED BEACH – sounds like “razed beech” (felled tree).
27 SIXTEEN – (E, is next)*, the E being the middle letter of Leeds.
28 MAE WEST – SEW (join) inside TEAM (group of players), all reversed.

Down
1 CURARE – CU (copper) + RARE (uncommon).
2 PICKS UP – S(on) inside PICK-UP (small vehicle).
3 CATAMARAN – TAM(e) (mostly easy to handle) inside A + ARAN (group of islands), all after C(ape).
4 SITE – hidden inside revisited.
5 COVENANTER – COVER (travel) around NANTE(s) (French port briefly).
6 AT SEA – alternate letters of “Artiste was.”
7 POP SHOP – POP’S (father’s) + HOP (bound). Slang for a pawnbroker’s shop.
8 DECORATE – DE (of French) + C(ommune) + ORATE (make speech).
13 LIMITATION – L(earner) + IMITATION (unoriginal work).
15 ADAPTABLE – BAT (flier) + P (piano, gently), reversed inside A DALE (valley).
16 KINDNESS – KIN (relatives) + (send)* + (contribution)S.
18 COMPLEX – double definition.
19 EMIRATE – EMIGRATE (seek new place to settle) without the G (not good).
20 CACHET – CAT (maybe lion) around [C(ute) + HE (male)].
22 CURIE – I(odine) inside CURE (medicinal substance).
24 BEAM – double definition.

5 comments on “Saturday Times 25341 (8th Dec)”

  1. 26 minutes with an error discovered on checking wordplay having put CRAMPED at 5ac.

    I wondered how to explain 18. If it’s two definitions then I think they overlap: “Far from simple” and “Far from simple thing”. But perhaps there’s another way of looking at it?

    Edited at 2012-12-16 10:10 am (UTC)

  2. ‘Easy for a Saturday’, in spades! 18′ for me, probably 1/3 my normal Saturday time. I gather the definition at 27ac is simply ‘square’, ie 4 squared? DNK 26ac (LOI) or 7d. Liked 9ac and 28ac.
  3. Mostly easy for a Saturday.

    Didn’t know the crossing covenanter or recitatives, didn’t know cachet as a seal, missed the aprsing of 15 down with the bat gently soaring, but all guessable.
    Confused by a typo in the clue for 17ac – plural wrongdoers behind bars in The Oz, where it should have been singular wrongdoer’s with the ‘s being is.

    Rob

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