Another delight of entertaining words from the hidden corners of the dictionary and inventive wordplay that we have come to expect. I got all the way through the across clues and then up to 5D before I got my first answer and finished with 25A. It took me about 1 1/4 hours in total. Lots of fun along the away, especially 26A, 15D, 22D and, my favourite, 19D. Thank-you clever setter!
Definitions underlined in bold italics, (Abc)* indicating anagram of Abc, {deletions} and [] other indicators.
| Across | |
| 1 | Derision of WI cheat stops one without manners (6) |
| PICONG – CON (cheat) in PIG (one without manners). WI here is West Indies not Women’s Institute. | |
| 4 | Express pleasure in bets, flipping gold coin (4-4) |
| SPUR-RYAL – PURR (express pleasure) in LAYS (bets) [flipping] -> SYAL. | |
| 10 | Heading away from Slough (initially in Slough), waved from Waverley? (9) |
| WAMPISHED – Lose first letter from {s}WAMP (slough), [initially] In, SHED (slough). | |
| 11 | The way to follow something like a nocturnal seabird (5) |
| CAHOW – CA (circa; something like) HOW (the way to). The endangered national bird of Bermuda. | |
| 12 | Universal image distorted in mass materials (14) |
| EVANGELIARIUMS – (Universal image)* [distorted]. Nice word. | |
| 14 | Hickory stick, tip first, is behind pressure (5) |
| PECAN – P (pressure), CANE (stick) putting the last letter first -> ECAN. | |
| 16 | No more trivial banter, outwardly banal: maybe skate around it (9) |
| FRIBBLISH – FISH (maybe skate), around RIB (banter) and outer letters of BanaL. I’ll have to remember this one and try to revive its usage. | |
| 18 | Scandinavian rounds stuffed with Greek character’s herb (9) |
| FINNOCHIO – FINN (Scandinavian), O O (rounds) outside CHI (Greek character). | |
| 20 | Noble husband blocks former spouse (5) |
| PHEER – H (husband) in PEER (noble). | |
| 21 | When over front, northern spring breaking possible flight for bird found in Georgia (7-7) |
| SAVANNA-SPARROW – AS (when) [over] -> SA, VAN (front), N (northern) and SPA (spring), in ARROW (possible flight). | |
| 25 | Trumpeter’s third note beyond range (5) |
| AGAMI – AGA (range) MI (third note of the do-re-mi scale). I tried in vain to make something of U as trumpeter’s third. My LOI. | |
| 26 | Dec’s follower interrupts attempt to gulp down chilli sauce (9) |
| GOCHUJANG – JAN (Dec’s follower) in GO (attempt) CHUG (gulp down). One of the handful of words in the puzzle that I’d heard of. Great surface! | |
| 27 | I’ll leave with a dashing air like a demon (8) |
| RAKSHASA – RAK{i}SH (with a dashing air) without the I [I’ll leave], AS A (like a). | |
| 28 | Football team touring US hostels closed walkways for exercising (6) |
| XYSTOI – XI (eleven; football team), outside YS (Youth Hostels in the US) TO (closed, like a door). What a great word! | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Something in compact disc’s intro, doubtful vocalisation in Wham! turned up very loud (6,4) |
| POWDER PUFF – Disc [‘s intro] ER (doubtful vocalisation), in POW (Wham!) UP reversed -> PU, FF (very loud). Nice surface and wordplay with neat deception in having to separate “compact disc”. | |
| 2 | Minute interval when pacifist introduces extreme combat sport (5) |
| COMMA – CO (conscientious objector; pacifist) MMA (abbreviation for Mixed Martial Arts; extreme combat sport). I came across this when reading about the tuning of gamelan’s after a gamelan ensemble concert I attended last year. | |
| 3 | To bother with last of plumbing sister grips power tool (4,3) |
| NAIL GUN – AIL (bother) [last of] plumbinG, in NUN (sister). | |
| 5 | Lotus position and difficult Mountain asana for beginners (5) |
| PADMA – Initial letters of Position And Difficult Mountain Asana. | |
| 6 | Do a new scaling of play area extension (7) |
| RECLIMB – REC (play area) LIMB (extension). | |
| 7 | Unknown person typically hugging the man with two-way attraction produces aphrodisiac (9) |
| YOHIMBINE – Y (unknown) ONE (person typically), outside HIM (the man) BI (with two-way attraction). | |
| 8 | Did you ever walk out? (4) |
| LAWK – (walk)* [out]. | |
| 9 | Senussi leader or king, one occupying one of two parts of the Muslim era (8) |
| KHALIFAH – K (king), I (one) in HALF (one of two parts), AH, anno Hegirae (Latin), in the year of Hegira (i.e. from the flight of Mohammed on 13 September in 622AD; of the Muslim era). | |
| 13 | During long nap, a naked, private and deliberate incongruity (10) |
| SHARAWAGGI – A RAW (naked), in SHAG (long pile of a carpet; long nap), GI (private in US Army). | |
| 15 | A wand’ring minstrel, I have skill to check trio after Nanki-Poo’s head (9) |
| CANTABANK – CAN (have skill) TAB (check; bill) NANKi-Poo [the three letters after the first one]. In Gilbert & Sullivan’s The Mikado, Nanki-Poo is, and sings, A Wand’ring Minstrel, I. Lovely. | |
| 17 | Because of corrosion, leaky cork is in crumbs (4-4) |
| IRON-SICK – (cork is in)* [crumbs]. | |
| 19 | Shortest book of Ring opera mounted for the insiders in Bayreuth (7) |
| OBADIAH – My favourite. O (ring) with the central letters of BayreutH replaced by AIDA (opera) reversed, [mounting], -> BADIAH. Obadiah is the shortest book of the bible. | |
| 20 | Reverse flow in freedom of movement, not going through normal channels (7) |
| PLANURY – RUN (flow) reversed -> NUR, in PLAY (freedom of movement. The discharge of urine through an abnormal passage… not going through normal channels. Ha ha. | |
| 22 | What’s notable in vegan omelette but not energy drinks? (5) |
| NOGGS – Another clever one. A Vegan omelette, if you could imagine such a thing, would have NO eGGS. Lose the E (energy). And, of course, you have to split “energy drinks” | |
| 23 | Not all areas that produce Arbroath smokies? (5) |
| REAST – Hidden in aREAS That. Another source of smoked fish (albeit herring rather than haddock) is Craster, where I’m going on holiday in a few weeks time. Kippers for breakfast? Yes, please! | |
| 24 | Mate in India or Burma, not the first to skip New Mexico (4) |
| YAAR – Another ingenious one to finish with. Burma is now called {M}YA{nm}AR. Lose the first letter and skip the NM (New Mexico). | |
Again, an enjoyable puzzle, where seemingly impossible words come together as long as you do what it says on the tin. (CHUG has a rather different meaning in Scots slang.) Thanks for the blog.
Not the hardest this year by a long way but 1 hour 15 minutes is an impressive time. It took me 3 hours and 38 minutes. I love the word sharawaggi and I must try and use it in conversation!
Hello Geoffrey. Thanks for dropping by… and congratulations on the win!
Thanks. I’ve been trying to win it for a few years now. I love the Monthly Club Special, it’s much better than the Mephisto IMHO. I love the ingenious clue constructions; they must have taken quite a while to come up with. Each clue seems to be perfectly crafted and several clues show a lot of innovative thought. Arriving at the answer is only a small part of the solving; it is unpicking how all of the clue works which provides the greatest entertainment. My compliments to the setters!