Jumbo 1154 (posted on behalf of Helen Ougham)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Jumbo Cryptic
…as she’s currently somewhere in France with no Internet access. Over to Helen.

Not too difficult, but including a few uncommon words, such as VIDELICET and FAIENCE, one of which – CONDUCTUS – I’d never come across before. When I spotted HOPE appearing in the second row I wondered if there was a special theme, but I think it’s just coincidence.

As always, * indicates an anagram.

Across
1 SAMBA – daiS, + A MBA
4 RAVAGES – RAGES around A G
8 THINK TANK – TANK (‘tracked vehicle’) after THINK (‘reflection’)
13 OUTWITTED – duo, reversed, around TWITTEr
14 NO-CLAIMS BONUS – cryptic indication
15 OFFICER – OFF ICE, + Relax
16 LARCENY – cryptic indication
17 BUSH TEA – BUS, + (hate)*
18 HAVE ONE’S COLLAR FELT – double indication (‘to be picked up’ here implies ‘by the police’)
21 GRID – dirge, reversed. The definition is ‘this’, i.e. the crossword grid
23 NARROWEST – ARROW in NEST
25 YARDIE – IE after YARD
26 GIRLIE – rig, reversed, + LIE
28 SPOKESPERSON – cryptic indication, referring to bicycle wheels
30 ANTECHAPEL – (palace then)*
33 DENOMINATE – (no dementia)*
34 GO PEAR-SHAPED – definition plus cryptic indication
37 REDONE – RED + ONE (a red ball is worth one point in snooker)
39 BALLAD – BALL + AD
40 CONDUCTUS – CONDUCT US. This word was new to me
42 YURT – YogURT
43 TAKE ME TO YOUR LEADER – cryptic indication
46 RECHECK – double definition, second one referring to chess
47 CHICANE – CA in CHINE
48 CHELSEA – E + LSE (London School of Economics), in CHA
50 CROSS-PURPOSES – CROSS + PURPOSES
51 AQUAPLANE – QUA (‘as’) + P, in A LANE (if you’re ‘on a carriageway’ on a motorway, you’re presumably in a lane)
52 SKYWRITER – cryptic indication
53 DUMBEST – MBE in DUST
54 REMIT – timer, reversed

Down
1 SHOW OF HANDS – double indication
2 MOTIF – fit OM, reversed
3 A PIECE OF ONE’S MIND – double indication
4 RETIREE – RE TIREE
5 VIDELICET – (I’ve l edict)*
6 GENERAL SYNOD – GENERAL’S + signifY + NOD
7 SECRETAIRE – SECRET IRE, around A
8 TOADY – TODAY, with the A moved up one place
9 IMMOBILE – I’M + MOBILE
10 KIBOSH – BOy, in KISH (as ‘kiss’ might be pronounced by someone drunk)
11 AU NATUREL – alternate (even) letters of ‘manual’, around NATURE
12 KISS AND TELL – (install desk)*
19 VIRGOAN – VIRAGO, with the A moved to the bottom, + N
20 FAIENCE – FENCE around AI (a-one, indicated by ‘fine’)
22 LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER – LIGHT, + HOUSEKEEPER (Mrs Danvers was the HOUSEKEEPER in the Daphne du Maurier novel ‘Rebecca’)
24 EXPEND – EX + PEN + D
27 NEURON – EURO in NN
29 RAT RACE – R + A TRACE
31 PUPATED – PATE in PUD
32 HOLD TO RANSOM – HOLD TO, + RANSOM (sounds like [Arthur] Ransome)
33 DIRTY TRICKS – DIRTY, + R in TICKS
35 DISARMAMENT – decideD + (mainstream)*
36 BLUE-RINSED – (undesirable)*. The a of undesirable is struck through to indicate that it has to be removed – this may not be very visible to readers
38 DIRECTORY – O, in DIRECT (‘straight’) + RY (short for railway)
40 COOPERATE – OPERA in COTE
41 BANKRUPT – BANK, + RT around UP
44 RECOUNT – double definition
45 CENSOR – hidden in SaraCENS ORiginally
47 CAPER – CAPE + Reprove
49 SPASM – SPAS + M

6 comments on “Jumbo 1154 (posted on behalf of Helen Ougham)”

  1. So that’s who Mrs. Danvers is! Never read ‘Rebecca’, and was wondering. Other DNKs include, of course,CONDUCTUS, NO-CLAIMS BONUS, and CHICANE in the required meaning. YARDIE I may have come across, here; and I luckily did remember coming across GO PEAR-SHAPED here, although it took all the checkers to jog my memory. But I was stumped by 19d; couldn’t make sense of the clue, couldn’t find anything in running up and down the alphabet, so DNF. CENSOR was very nicely hidden.
  2. Glad to have completed this one.Please explain Virgoan(late summer arrival?)and is AQUAPLANE a verb?Thanks Linxit for blog.(ONG’ARA,NAIROBI)
    1. The Virog star sign is for people born between August 23rd – Sept 22nd, so “late summer arrival” works for me.

      Aquaplaning is when your tyres lose grip in wet weather (probably not so much of a problem in Kenya!)

  4. The answer to 3 down is:
    A PIECE OF ONES MIND

    The clue to 27 down is:
    Perhaps 3 currency in the news (6)
    … to which the answer is NEURON.

    Anyway, here is a clue which was inspired by all this…

    Blacken book three with Queen Charlotte’s first husband (8)

    B _ _ _ I _ _ _

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