Sunday Times 4449 (4 Sep 2011)

Author   daveperryPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
Solving time: 52:23

A little on the tricky side, I thought, but a lot of really rather neat clues. 6a, 19 & 22 were all good, and 21 raised a smile, but 27 was the best of the lot for me and therefore my COD. So quite tough in places, but well worth the effort.

cd = cryptic def., dd = double def., rev = reversal, homophones are written in quotes, anagrams as (–)*, and removals like this

Across
1 BLUE-CHIP = (CLUB)* about E + HIP
6 GRE(AS)Y – nicely-disguised wordplay
9 FARO = (FOR A)*
10 LOCOMOTION = “LOW COMMOTION”
11 HIDE + HIt – A classic BBC sitcom from the 1980s written by Jimmy Perry & David Croft.
12 SEMI + NARY
14 DIN + IN + GROOM
16 pITCH
18 BY + River Dance – William is the composer. I didn’t know of him, but the wordplay is pretty clear.
19 APP(AREN’T)LY – another piece of well-disguised wordplay.
21 MUNCH + KIN
23 A + U(TUM)N
25 G(LITTER + AT)I
27 AXIS = SIX + Across rev – great piece of wordplay posing as a reference to another clue.
28 SiTE + RE + O
29 LEThAL + ONE
Down
2 L + I + ABILITY
3 EV(OK)E
4 HOLDING BACK – dd
5 PICASSO – hidden
6 GYM = G + MY rev
7 EXTENSION = (IS NEXT ONE)*
8 S + POOR
13 MEMORIALIST = (IMMORTALISE)* – an &lit
15 INDIC(A)T + Observe Rain
17 COLUM(BIAs)N
20 PINT + AIL – My last in was a guess, as I didn’t know the duck.
22 UN LIT = French for ‘a bed’. Another neat clue.
24 T(R)AIL
26 ErGO

5 comments on “Sunday Times 4449 (4 Sep 2011)”

  1. I also found this one hard but it was probably not wise of me to tackle it in the middle of the night during the change-overs Murray vs Lopez. At 20dn a pint of water may not be a huge amount but it could be life or death to some poor bloke.
  2. This took me about 15 minutes: I wish it had taken longer. It is an absolutely superb puzzle. I worried a bit about whether RAFO might be a card game but FARO looked much more likely. Many COD candidates but MUNCHKIN is my favourite.
    Thanks Anax!
  3. Good morning friends.
    Many thanks to Dave for the review and for the comments – shame there aren’t many but I suppose I can take some comfort from the fact that it suggests no contentious points.
    Best wishes, and see you again (puzzle-wise) in a couple of weeks.
    1. Yes, it was a very enjoyable one, anax. I often feel sorry for setters and bloggers of prize puzzles including Jumbos because their hard work tends to get a bit overlooked as a result the time-lapse between solving and opening of the blog discussion. My comment about 20dn was not a criticism btw but the clue reminded of the old Hancock show.

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