I was a long way away from the wordplay in many clues, and so found this one very difficult.
First definitions are underlined in the clues.
Somehow an incomplete blog got posted intitially, I have a feeling I may have fallen asleep while writing it and thought I had finished it. Back now to give it a proper stab, sorry about that.
Away we go…
| Across | |
| 2 | Haughtiness a playwright is showing in London museum (9) |
| BASHAWISM – A SHAW(playwright), IS inside BM(British museum) | |
| 11 | Detestable patient is ’ell to deal with (12) |
| PESTILENTIAL – anagram of PATIENT,IS,ELL | |
| 12 | Cut in old-fashioned allowance reported (6) |
| INCISE – IN, then sounds like SIZE(allowance) | |
| 13 | Boat may be so ancient with its prow missing (4) |
| OARY – HOARY(ancient) missing the first letter | |
| 14 | Slap down local prisoners returning (4) |
| SWOP – POWS(prisoners) reversed | |
| 15 | Place for animals — a couple used their teeth, said Spooner (7, two words) |
| BEARPIT – Spoonerism of PAIR BITS | |
| 17 | Scratch from pussy left embedded (4) |
| CLAT – CAT(pussy) containing L | |
| 20 | We hear advantage disappeared north of the border (4) |
| GANE – sounds like GAIN | |
| 21 | Sort of mug using old recycled clues (6) |
| OSCULE – O then an anagram of CLUES | |
| 25 | Body parts that whale has enable swimming (6) |
| BALEEN – anagram of ENABLE | |
| 26 | Skill with inner energy brings reward as before (4) |
| ARET – ART(skill) contaiining E(energy) | |
| 27 | The first person meeting the Queen is a Muslim ruler (4) |
| MEER – ME(the first person), ER(the Queen) | |
| 29 | Bad foot? Bandages may be put round one left twisted (7) |
| TALIPES – TAPES(bandages) contianing I,L reversed | |
| 32 | God has half the angels returning (4) |
| ARES – SERA(phim) revesed | |
| 33 | Old school characters in a group (4) |
| OGAM – O(old) GAM(school) | |
| 34 | Observe fast, full of melancholy, as of old (6) |
| DOLENT – if you observe the fast, you DO LENT | |
| 35 | See ham moon in a true drama dreadfully rendered (12, two words) |
| RADIOAMATEUR – IO(moon) inside an anagram of A,RUE,DRAMA | |
| 36 | Valuable material, as before, penned by yesteryear’s left-winger? (9) |
| BENTONITE – well I think this is the answer from the definition, but I’m totally stuck on wordplay. Thanks to commenters – TO inside BENNITE (follower of Tony Benn). BENNITE doesn’t seem to be in my Chambers | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Solitary poet, suffering in letters (12) |
| EPISTOLATORY -anagram of SOLITARY,POET | |
| 3 | Article fine, no longer distorted (7) |
| ASCONCE – A(article), SCONCE(no longer distorted) | |
| 4 | Stalk as one nasty pest going about (5) |
| STIPE – I(one) inside an anagram of PEST | |
| 5 | Silence of one studying the past briefly (4) |
| HIST – short version of HISTorian | |
| 6 | I and others hugging old lover may display old-style passion (4) |
| WEXE – WE(I and others) containing EX(old lover) | |
| 7 | Trendy soul cheers, embracing husband in African movement (7) |
| INKATHA – IN(trendy), KA(soul) an TA(cheers) containing H(husband) | |
| 8 | English patron saint getting rid of smoking brute finally gets affection (6) |
|
STORGE – ST GEORGE(English paron saint) missing |
|
| 9 | In India, European is very much at home — gosh! (8) |
| FARINGEE – FAR(alternating, then IN(at home), GEE(gosh) | |
| 10 | Greek princess who could be calm yet stern (12) |
| CLYTEMNESTRA – anagram of CALM,YET,STERN | |
| 16 | Silver in starry decorative feature (8) |
| ASTRAGAL – AG(silver) in ASTRAL(starry) | |
| 18 | Old-style lesson in Latin before (4) |
| LERE – L(Latin), ERE(before) | |
| 19 | Priest and bishop in Lincoln (4) |
| ABBE – B(bishop) in ABE Lincoln | |
| 22 | Famous person tackling a politician is able to provide some illumination (7) |
| LAMPION – LION(famous person) containing A, MP(politician) | |
| 23 | European beset by ruefulness may offer welcome again (7) |
| REGREET – E surrounded by REGRET(ruefulness) | |
| 24 | This writer’s housed in filthy places endlessly — an impossible situation? (6) |
|
STIMIE – I’M(this writer) inside STIE |
|
| 28 | Dish with some herbal titbits (5) |
| BALTI – hidden in baLTI TIdidest | |
| 30 | State has set up gallery on many sites (4) |
| ETAT – TATE(gallery that has many locations) reversed | |
| 31 | Unanswerable question in holy book putting rector off (4) |
| KOAN – KORAN(holy book) missing R(rector) | |
The good news is that I finished it in around half an hour, marking 14 clues up to be checked this morning.
The bad news is that “lolent” was too careless at 34A.
George : isn’t 20A GAIN rather than GONE ?
Thanks for the blog, and to Don for a fair challenge.
Thanks, but did you accidentally post a draft rather than completed post?
20a I think you mean ‘sounds like GAIN’
36a I parsed it as TO (as before) in BENNITE (a follower of Tony Benn).
As for your missing downs… (did you just accidentally overlook these?)
10d is (calm yet stern)*
22d is A MP (politician) in LION (famous person)
23d E (European) in REGRET (ruefulness)
24d I’M in STIE{s} (filthy places)
31d KO{r}AN (holy book losing R for rector).
I didn’t find this too hard, taking just over an hour. Maybe I’m getting used to Don’s style.
Edited at 2018-11-18 07:37 am (UTC)
I found this to be of no more than average difficulty
I was hoping for a theme as it appeared on the 11th of November but couldn’t spot one
Can anyone explain why an ‘oscule’ can be defined as ‘mug’? Fortunately, it was the evident answer.