Saturday Times 24496 (March 27th)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
Solving time 15:05. Very enjoyable puzzle, not too hard but I can’t fault the surface readings and some of the wordplay was top-notch. COD to 12A for the anagram, but I also liked the set of cricket-related clues in the last three downs.

Across
1 WEST INDIAN – AID NITS inside NEW, all reversed.
6 IBIS – ALIBIS, minus A L(ake).
10 SCARF – FRAC(a)S reversed.
11 MARSUPIAL – MARS + UP + 1 + AL(l)
12 TREAD THE BOARDS – (Do Bard’s theatre)*. Great anagram &lit, nice spot by the setter.
14 AMENITY – (Any time)*. I think pretty much the same clue appeared somewhere else recently.
15 SECOMBE – COMB inside SEE. Sir Harry Secombe, Welsh singer and Goon.
17 TALONED – D(aughter) after T(ime) ALONE.
19 CHARLIE – CHAR (daily) + LIE.
20 PROCRASTINATOR – RA inside (cartoon strip)*. The cryptic definition did for me until I had most of the crossing letters. I was looking for somebody formidable rather than somebody who puts things off.
23 POISON OAK – NO inside PO I SOAK. I stuck in POISON IVY at first from the definition “irritating climber” without parsing the clue properly, which made 18 and 19 down harder than they should have been.
24 TORCH – hidden inside DeserT ORCHid. Anyone remember him? Brilliant grey steeplechaser in the 80s/early 90s. Won the King George VI Chase 4 times, a feat matched this year by Kauto Star. I used to work for Ladbrokes back then, and he was always the punters’ favourite. Cost us a fortune!
25 REEK – R(adius) + EEK!
26 BETTERMENT – BETTER + “meant”.

Down
1 WASP – WAS (got played, i.e. Waiting for Godot was at the Theatre Royal this year perhaps? A bit tenuous, but it’s all I can think of)+ P.
2 STAIRWELL – A inside STIR WELL
3 INFLATION-PROOF – INFLATION + PROOF
4 DIMITRY – I TRY underneath DIM. Also the pseudonym of setter John Grimshaw. They’re not allowed to give themselves away though, so this just proves it’s not one of his.
5 AIRLESS – S after 1 in ARLES
7 BRIER – another hasty entry of CIGAR made 6 and 11 the last two I got. I’m sure I’ve heard of Ciga cheese too! (don’t bother checking, I made it up)
8 SELF-SEEKER – S(on) + ELF + SEE + K + ER
9 OUT OF CHARACTER – double definition, one more whimsical than cryptic.
13 WASTE PAPER – cryptic definition
16 MELBOURNE – (elm)* + BORNE around U. Capital of Victoria state in Australia.
18 DISROBE – SR + O.B. inside DIE (german for “the”)
19 CRICKET – RICK (sprain) + ETC, with the C going to the front.
21 OVINE – OVE(r) around IN. Great 19D surface reading and wordplay, but nothing to do with the answer.
22 WHAT – HAT after W(ickets). More 19D, nice little set of three clues to finish.

4 comments on “Saturday Times 24496 (March 27th)”

  1. I think the blog says it all. Pleasant enough without being difficult although one had to exercise care along the way.

    For my generation SECOMBE was a complete give-away – Goon starting S?C can only have one answer. I remember that apart from being very funny a good deal of the appeal came from the fact that my parents thought it most unsuitable. It thus joined Elvis as a must listen to!!

  2. COD to 12A from me too. It has another topical significance – the day this crossword was published (27th March) was World Theatre Day.
    – Shuchi
  3. I lost my print-out of this puzzle so I don’t know my exact time but I remember thinking it was on the easy side for a Saturday puzzle so I must have finished it in around 30 minutes. I never “got” The Goons, Spike Milligan generally nor Secombe even as a singer. Sellers went on to make some very good films and some awful ones.

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