42 minutes, the last 10 or so being in the northwest cluster 1,2,3dn and 1,17ac. I struggled a bit with this but, after summarising the clues, I can’t really see why. I found it a little workaday with not much to write about.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | IMPOVERISH – OVER in IMPISH. At first I was in cricket mode and thought “Hang on…OVER isn’t an EXTRA!” then I realised it’s just not cricket! |
| 6 | AT FIRST SIGHT – (T SHIRT AS A GIFT)* a nice easy one in the top row to get you going |
| 14 | CARD,I,AC[-e] |
| 15 | BREAK UP – double def |
| 16 | RAIMENT – AIM in RENT |
| 17 | [co]UPON |
| 18 | ENIGMA – GIN in [-g]AME all reversed |
| 20 | MODIFIED – MO then IF in DIED |
| 24 | INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY – (UP WITH MAYOR REFASHIONING)* I made heavy weather of this one and needed almost all the checkers before the forehead-slapping moment arrived. |
| 25 | NASTIES – ASTI in NES, this being most bridge players (not West) |
| 26 | SCRABBLE – 2 defs |
| 27 | CHERUB – HER in CUB. Cub in this case is a member of the group of boys too young for the Boy Scouts. The cubs were split into teams known as “sixes”, hence “one of six” |
| 29 | BRIGHT AND EARLY – RIGHT (tory) in BAN DEARLY |
| 31 | TEMP[-o],LATE |
| 34 | CONTRACT – double def |
| 36 | RHODE ISLAND RED – (ORDER IS HANDLED)* |
| 39 | AS WELL – A[wesome] + SWELL (“excellent” over the pond). The very minimalist def “too” coming right at the end made me smile. |
| 41 | H,AIRLESS |
| 43 | NETT,LED |
| 46 | HORSE OF A DIFFERENT COLOUR – this week’s made-up expression. The first two pages of a Google search only gives the COLOR variety so I reckon it must be a US thang |
| 47 | HOSEPIPE – HOPE around SEP 1 (start of month) |
| 48 | TENANT – the crossword setter’s 2nd favourite wine (after ASTI) , TENT, contains AN or NA (article put on way or another) |
| 49 | PLUG – another double def |
| 53 | TOU[-r],CANS – “cans” being a slang term for headphones |
| 54 | IMPROVE – I’M PRO + V[aluabl]E |
| 56 | OVER,DUE – this time OVER is the cricketing type |
| 57 | DIESEL ENGINE – (SINGLE NEED)* with IE inserted |
| 58 | PLATE,PLAYER – a person who maintains a railway track. PLATE for HELPING nearly but doesn’t quite work for me. What does the team think? |
|
|
|
| Down | |
| 1 | IN,CAUTION – Incaution somehow doesn’t look like a proper word to me, but it is. A caution can be a suprising person or thing. “Oh you are a caution!” |
| 2 | PARROT FASHION – quite a tricky one to parse this, “look after trapped men in need of a lift”. Look=FASHION after OR (men) in TRAP reversed |
| 3 | VEIN – “VAIN” |
| 4 | RECONNAISANCE – (IS A SCANNER ONCE)* |
| 5 | SUB – double def and a really easy clue that I couldn’t get until I had S_B ! |
| 7 | TAKE – two DDs in a row |
| 8 | IMPROPERLY – IMPLY around REPOR[-t] rev |
| 9 | STRAIGHT – another DD |
| 10 | SAILING SHIP – AILING in SS (crossword cliche for aboard) + HIP (with it) |
| 11 | GLENDOWER – GLOWER around END. Owen Glendower was a Welsh chieftain who led a revolt against Henry IV., eponymous hero of the only Shakespeare book I’ve ever read. Read one, thought it was rubbish, didn’t read any more. |
| 12 | TATI – [s]TATI[on]. Ref Jacques Tati , the French comic film director. Saw Mr Hulot Goes On Holiday, thought it was rubbish, didn’t watch any more. |
| 13 | RETAINER – double def |
| 19 | GLISSADE – IS S[econd] in GLADE. A dance step or a way of skiing down a steep mountain |
| 21 | WRAITH – RA in WITH |
| 22 | QUIBBLED – QUID around B[-i]BLE. Quid is Brit slang for the pound |
| 23 | RYE BREAD – (BY READER)* |
| 28 | WELLINGTON BOOT – WELL IN then G[ood] TON then TOO B[lack] rev. I suspect TON=style only ever gets seen in crosswords these days. |
| 29 | BACK,[-s]ACHE[-t] |
| 30 | ASHCROFT – (FOR CHATS)* ref the actress Dame Peggy Ashcroft |
| 32 | APRIL FOOLS DAY – (IF A LADS POORLY)* |
| 33 | EINSTEIN – ST (way) in rEgIoN twice |
| 35 | ROLLER,SKATE |
| 37 | NOTION – 1 in NOT ON |
| 38 | HAND,SPRING |
| 40 | WAREHOUSE – I think, though it could also be WORKHOUSE. I have no idea how this clue works “Battles with firm about eastern depot” Any offers? |
| 42 | ELECTION – easy but quite clever cryptic definition with a nod to the forthcoming (then) vote. |
| 44 | DE RIGUEUR – (RUDE URGE I)* The first U caught me out with the spelling and I ended up with a blank space |
| 45 | OFF PISTE – F[ast] in (SPITE OF)* |
| 50 | STUD[-ents] |
| 51 | SPA[-I]N |
| 52 | FELL – two defs, one unknown to me so I had to hit and hope using the other one. Fell is the dressed skin of a (usually large) animal |
| 55 | [-h]EEL |
It would be ironic if ‘horse of a different colo(u)r’ were US only (and my instinct tells me it isn’t), given that the coachman in Emerald City in the film ‘Wizard of Oz’ has such a horse, and he (the coachman, not the horse) is a (Hollywood version of a) Cockney.