Times 27232 – when things are not clear

Author   glhPosted on Categories Daily Cryptic
Solving time: 9:01. I got in a bit of a fuddle near the end since I was utterly convinced that my answer at 6 down was correct but it didn’t work with the obvious answer at 10 across. Finally figured out it was a cryptic definition, which is often my downfall in crosswords. Well that and fat fingers, poor spellchecking and all round not being that bright.

Greetings from Melbourne! Visiting family here so I won’t be checking up on this – if you have questions, check the comments.

The first definition in each clue is underlined.

Away we go…

Across
1 Suitor with style enthralling new society types (4,5)
BEAU MONDE – BEAU(suitor) and MODE(style) containing N(new)
6 Better class of religion found in Tyrrhenian location (5)
CAPRI – CAP(better, beat) then RI(Religious Instruction)
9 Single mothers becoming learned theologians (5)
IMAMS – I(single), MAMS(mothers)
10 Hired privately, plotted to capture the monarch (9)
CHARTERED – CHARTED(plotted) containing ER
11 Main connection linking stars to conservation group (7)
HYDRANT – the constellation HYDRA with NT(National Trust) and a nice definition
12 Cross appearing in church with Tempter going about? (7)
LURCHER – CH(church) with LURER(tempter) surrounding it. A cross breed of dog
13 Perhaps Chuck senior has grizzle, eschewing hotel booze (10,4)
ELDERBERRY WINE – Good Golly Miss Molly it’s Chuck BERRY the ELDER then WHINE(grizzle) missing H(hotel)
17 I won’t mean solid somehow, being shallow (3-11)
TWO-DIMENSIONAL – anagram of I,WON’T,MEAN,SOLID
21 Privileged member holding office, socialist is backed (7)
INSIDER – IN(holding office), then RED(socialist) IS all reversed
23 Guts failing to save second artist (7)
VISCERA – VICE(failing) containing S(second), then RA(artist)
25 Change examination to accommodate current leader (9)
EDITORIAL – EDIT(change), ORAL(examination) containin I(current)
26 Greek island in which Corinthians curtailed amusement (5)
CORFU – COR(Corinthians) then FUN (amusement) missing the last letter
27 Investor for show one might be recording (5)
ANGEL – double definition, since there is a RECORDING ANGEL keeping a book of misdeeds. Probably a very very long book.
28 Ely with Labour turning a shade Conservative? (5,4)
ROYAL BLUE – anagram of ELY and LABOUR

Down
1 Wretch born on boat (8)
BLIGHTER – B(born), LIGHTER(boat)
2 Hostilities interrupting commercial settlement (5)
AWARD – WAR(hostilities) inside AD(commercial) – court settlemtent
3 Man turning religious is butchered (9)
MASSACRED – the man is SAM, then SACRED reversed
4 Showing audacity before match, one can get knotted (7)
NECKTIE – NECK(audacity) then TIE(match)
5 Atelier designed for one who’d make a net profit? (1-6)
E-TAILER – anagram of ATELIER, and a profit over the net
6 Ensure provision is made to do the dishes? (5)
CATER – cryptic definition. I was sure this was CLEAR as a double definition
7 Catch up with female working in temple (9)
PARTHENON – TRAP (catch) reversed, then HEN(female) ON(working)
8 Popular physicist short with a certain Gandhi (6)
INDIRA – IN(popular) then the physicist missing the last letter is Paul DIRAC
14 Consumes some chicken in trend towards recession? (9)
DOWNSWING – DOWNS(consumes), WING(some chicken)
15 Mischievous, tailless cat, not accepted in stage show (9)
WHIMSICAL – WHIP(cat) missing the last letter, then no U(accepted) in MUSICAL(stage show)
16 Satisfaction guaranteed with request (8)
PLEASURE – SURE(guaranteed) and PLEA(request)
18 Male dog slipping lead is more carefree (7)
MERRIER – M(male) and TERRIER(dog) missing the fist letter
19 Literary work ends in tragedy, prompting curiosity (7)
NOVELTY – NOVEL(literary work) and T(raged)Y
20 Modern art medicine man exhibits (6)
CINEMA – hidden inside mediCINE MAn
22 Strangely amusing nobleman lifted line (5)
DROLL – LORD(nobleman) reversed, then L(line)
24 Revolutionary wisdom gathered about new recruit (5)
ENROL – reverse LORE(wisdom) and insert N(new)

44 comments on “Times 27232 – when things are not clear”

  1. I biffed 13ac–had no idea who Chuck was, and DNK ‘grizzled’–from a couple of checkers; the Chuck penny dropped after I’d submitted. Also biffed 17ac, from the L and a vague sense that it was an anagram, but put in ONE- instead of TWO-; DOWNSWING finally fixed that. ‘Mischievous’ struck me as an odd definition for WHIMSICAL. My LOI was CINEMA, where yet again I failed to see the hidden. I liked CAPRI, EDITORIAL, and (with the above qualification) WHIMSICAL.
    1. Me too. I actually put it in based on checkers and then deleted it because of the definition.
  3. A pleasant and straightforward offering, less than half yesterday’s time.
    At 17 confidently biffed one-dimensional from a quick glance at the fodder, and wondered if the setter was putting on his/her broadest cod-Aussie accent for 14: DINESWING.
    2. I did exactly the same with ONE-DIMENSIONAL but fortunately I noticed almost immediately that I had a W to account for.
  4. …..such jokes as ‘Chuck senior’ = Elder Berry. But I’m just miffed that it took me so long to spot that it was my LOI!
    If you want a good example of Chuck’s art just check out this from Dave Edmunds https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIIoWFnsc6w

    I did like the construction of PARTHENON but WHIMSICAL was really good.
    25m 30s

  5. A welcome respite after yesterday. Finished in just under 50 minutes with ‘Chuck’ holding out longest. Another ‘one’ for TWO at 17 and I didn’t get the ‘recording’ bit of 27a.

    A clear COD to LURCHER.

    Thanks to setter and our blogger – hope you’re enjoying (though that’s probably the wrong word) Melbourne’s 36 degree day.

  6. 10:40. Quite a lot of biffing for me this evening.
    I never knew a LURCHER was a cross-breed. I’ve known a few of them in my time: they have a lovely temperament around humans but I wouldn’t let one off the lead in Richmond Park.
  7. I didn’t know exactly what a LURCHER was, but that’s what the wordplay spelled, so that was my Penultimate One In. But LOI was EDITORIAL, of all things—ample proof that I am not working this week.
  8. 18:15. And another who had ONE-DIMENSIONAL at first, failing to check the anagrist. Bottom half completed first then NW and finally NE corners. CATER mu LOI. I never knew a LURCHER was a cross. CAPRI my COD.
  9. About 30 mins pre brekker.
    I enjoyed it. Mostly I liked Lurcher and Elder Berry.
    I would have been happy with 17ac stopping after the ‘somehow’ as a great &Lit.
    Thanks setter and G.
  10. A slightly curious experience as I came to this after completing in a second session yesterday’s bonus blockbuster of a jumbo in which there was a distinct lack of gimmes. It took a while to adapt to this more pleasant, conventional style. Loved the Elder Berry (his magnificent opening riff for Johnny B Good is my ringtone, never heard a better). Never tempted by ONE DIMENSIONAL, couldn’t quite see the wordplay for INSIDER (not that it was difficult).
    Good to have the reference to Paul Dirac, who accounts for most of the holes in my understanding of quantum physics.
    17.31, pleasant times (except for the ever hateful E-TAILER, urgh), and thanks to George (even if he doesn’t see it from Down Under).
      1. Mine is “Bad to the Bone”. Certainly wakes everyone up on the rare occasions somebody calls me.
  11. Brain not in what passes for gear these days for this one solved very slowly over 3 sessions, but I was pleased to complete it without reference to aids. DK the scientist at 8dn (no change there then!) and thought the ‘a’ came from ‘with a’ in the clue so I was looking for a scientist DIR?
    1. Goodness me Jack. Paul Dirac is to quantum mechanics what Beethoven is to the development of romantic classical music!
      1. Yes, I know, but I live in ignorance of such things as quantum mechanics. I see Dirac’s name has featured before and I got him on the most recent occasion before today because of friendly wordplay, but I had no reason to remember him. As for Beethoven, he was needed to get to what came later but I don’t listen to his music through choice.
    2. He popped up back in January; luckily I’m vaguely a physics fan and he (and Higgs of Higgs Boson fame) went to school around here, so I get occasional reminders of them as the local “newspaper” (more a Twitter aggregator at this point) crowbars this local knowledge into any vaguely-related story. As do I, apparently 😀

      Edited at 2018-12-27 09:56 am (UTC)

  12. 24 minutes with LOI LURCHER, which shows I’m off the boil today, having spent yesterday afternoon with my niece in the company of a very friendly specimen of that ilk, called Toddy, who’s waiting to be re-homed. “Mister Santa, if you would, Send him someone oh so good.” All the cats will wanna dance with him. I hadn’t been totally convinced by CATER until then. COD to VISCERA. A nice puzzle. Thank you George and setter.
  13. Steady top to bottom solve. Never considered one-dimensional and knew LURCHER as a cross breed. Liked Berry Senior.
  14. One of those where I took ages to get started, finally setting off with 21a INSIDER, but then pieced everything together from there and was never much at a loss as long as I had a crosser or three. Finally finished up with the unknown 1a BEAU MONDE followed by the more obvious 16d PLEASURE which I saw pretty quickly on my return to the SE corner.

    My geography let me down as usual with 6a, wondering whether TOPRI could really be a place until the more obvious presented itself. And count me as another who didn’t know a LURCHER was a cross.

    Very enjoyable along the way, which took 52 minutes and seemed like longer.

  16. 15:58 and a relief after yesterday’s battering. I should have been a bit quicker but I lingered on a couple at the top trying for neatness in this grid of two distinct halves. Normally if the answer doesn’t come quickly I move on and wait for my brain to catch up. A lot of rather obvious definitions in this one I thought.
  17. Another shallow one-dimensional person here. I’m rather ashamed to say I have to think before distinguishing Dirac the physicist from Duroc the pig. ELDERBERRY brought back happy memories – I defy anyone not to have to get up and dance to Johnny B Goode. Speaking of Beethoven it was many years before I found out the Beatles weren’t the first ones to tell him to roll over. 15.09
  18. 20’55. I like the refreshing time perspective that has cinema as modern art; also the anagrist for 2-D. Didn’t know e-tailer, didn’t want to, had to be. Can recommend ‘The Strangest Man’, a biography of Dirac, though he was nothing like as strange as say Bobby Fischer. Rather perhaps a curious type of loneliness.
  19. Pleasant solve over the festive bubble & squeak (I have concluded that the best thing about Christmas dinner is actually eating it as breakfast in the subsequent days). E-TAILER isn’t a pleasing word to my ear, but at least it’s not as bad as WEBINAR.
    2. It’s a horrifying thought that people must have (voluntarily or otherwise) attended webinars about e-tailing. Probably while leveraging synergies in a going-forward mode.
  20. A sprightly solve in 14 minutes from SE to NW, ending with 1d. No problem remembering Dirac and unscrambling the anagram to TWO dimensional. Thought CATER was a bit weak, the rest was fun.
  21. also plays full back Dynamo Trabanspor. I had no idea he was into things Parkathian!

    FOI 2dn AWARD

    LOI 8dn E-TAILER (more yuk!)

    COD 15dn WHIMSICAL

    WOD 1dn BLIGHTER

    Time as per jacktt. Taxi for one!

  22. An enjoyable solve after a refreshing night’s sleep and relaxing morning. I awarded myself 2d as a quick starter and popped the unmarried Geordie Mums into 9a shortly afterwards. I wasn’t lured into a one dimensional error as I already gone into a DOWNSWING. Didn’t know LURCHER as a hybrid, but happily rolled along with the wordplay. Chuckled whimsically at ELDERBERRY WINE. Took PLEASURE in completing the SE corner and moving back to the NW to shovel in the holy spade and BEAU MONDE, which allowed my to finish off with BLIGHTER and, finally, HYDRANT. 21:23. Thanks setter and George.
  23. LOI was 6ac, as could not recall just where Tyrrhenia is. 13ac biffed – only remembered the guy after submitting.
  24. ….is my favourite Chuck Berry song (but check out Bob Seger’s excellent version). ELDERBERRY WINE, on the other hand, was one of Elton John’s early efforts.

    Plodded steadily through this despite reservations about the location of CAPRI, which I always just think of as being in the Bay of Naples, and with a biffed LOI.

    FOI CHARTERED
    LOI WHIMSICAL
    COD DOWNSWING
    TIME 11:46

  25. Around 20 minutes. Today’s learning: lurchers are a crossbreed. LOI “downswing” as I initially also had “one” instead of “two”.

    Edited at 2018-12-27 02:16 pm (UTC)

  26. DNF. Bah! All done in 27:46 bottom to top solve with LOI beau monde which needed a bit of an alphabet trawl to get the second word. However, an online solve scuppered by my fat-fingered tomfoolery, with two lumpen forefingers jabbing away at the online keyboard like a couple of pigs in blankets, I managed to put amgel instead of angel at 27ac. Not a mistake I would have made with pen in hand. A nice puzzle though.
  27. Needed to resort to aids for my last three clues. Have never heard (until now) of the “recording angel” – a frightening prospect of which I would have preferred to remain ignorant.
    On the other hand, nice to see a reference to Everton Football Club (28ac).
  28. Well, good lords. A quick scan of all the above tells me that I am the dunce of the class, coming in at 32 minutes. CATER and CAPRI were my LOsI, the latter not helped by my almost complete ignorance of geography. I think I’ve actually been to Capri, which makes it worse.

    Very enjoyable; thanks to setter and blogger both.

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