Saturday Times 26028 (21st Feb)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
No time this morning to post, but will get to it some time this afternoon eventually! Sorry, a change of plans meant we didn’t get back till late, and I was too tired, but here it is now.

Solved in 10:42, which still seems a bit sluggish compared to some of the times quoted. There were some good clues in there (especially 14ac) but too many write-ins for my liking.

Across
1 What’s to provide opening of dry in river? (9)
COFFERDAM – OFFER (to provide) + D(ry) inside CAM (river), semi-&lit but pretty ungrammatical on the surface!
6 Something extra to produce litter (3-2)
TOP-UP – TO PUP.
9 Fast stream from gash on hill (7)
TORRENT – RENT (gash) next to TOR (hill).
10 Currently present with no prospect of success (7)
NOWHERE – NOW (currently) + HERE (present).
11 Reduced image as first couple go out in matching cardy and jumper (5)
INSET – remove the first couple of letters of TWIN SET (matching cardy and jumper).
13 Complicated procedure to set up male with a part (9)
RIGMAROLE – RIG (set up) + M(ale) + A + ROLE (part).
14 One likely to die around Lido when it’s rough? (9)
GONDOLIER – GONER (one likely to die) around (Lido)*, very good &lit.
16 Enticement to go in without one (4)
BAIT – BAT (to go in – as a batsman in cricket, that is) around I (one).
18 Close relative of the walrus (4)
SEAL – double definition.
19 A plane carrying large load is concerning in agile aircraft (9)
FREIGHTER – RE (concerning) inside FIGHTER (agile aircraft).
22 Get rid of cream containing minimum vitamin aiding vision? (9)
ELIMINATE – ELITE (cream) around MIN(imum) + A (vitamin aiding vision).
24 English following farming pioneer creating fine fabric (5)
TULLE – E(nglish) after TULL (Jethro Tull, inventor of the seed drill).
25 Translated Belgian language (7)
BENGALI – (Belgian)*.
26 A southern European embraces black athlete (7)
ACROBAT – A CROAT (southern European) around B(lack).
28 High year’s score (5)
TALLY – TALL (high) + Y(ear).
29 What Handel used to write revised parts for Partenope? (9)
NOTEPAPER – (Partenope)*. Another semi-&lit. Not an opera I’d ever heard of, but apparently it’s having a bit of a revival recently after not being performed for over 200 years!

Down
1 Wounding article removed from publication (7)
CUTTING – double definition.
2 Almost set light to tree (3)
FIR – FIRE (set light to) minus the last letter.
3 Political event making many people cross (8)
ELECTION – cryptic definition.
4 A little time inside does perhaps discourage (5)
DETER – T(ime) inside DEER (does perhaps).
5 Agree mine is terrible place to keep animals (9)
MENAGERIE – (agree mine)*.
6 On which driver’s dragged to pub, getting around wife (3,3)
TOW BAR – TO + BAR (pub) around W(ife).
7 A pretty cold flying reptile from the past (11)
PTERODACTYL – (a pretty cold)*.
8 Excuse at a time when letters were still awaiting discovery? (7)
PRETEXT – i.e. PRE-TEXT.
12 Amazing Home Counties newspaper widely read around south (11)
SENSATIONAL – SE (Home Counties) + NATIONAL (newspaper widely read) around S(outh).
15 Problem for savers in getting apartment, one working (9)
INFLATION – IN + FLAT (apartment) + I (one) + ON (working).
17 Political activity — needs a good bit for power, with billions spent (8)
AGITPROP – A + G(ood) + BIT + PRO (for) + P(ower), with the B removed (billions spent).
18 Fruity drink prepared without mint, say (7)
SHERBET – SET (prepared) around HERB (mint, say). A drink? To me sherbet will always be a little yellow tube of powder with a liquorice straw!
20 Some screen terminals provide a second input (2-5)
RE-ENTER – hidden in “screen terminals”
21 Illuminated some religious text (6)
LITANY – LIT (illuminated) + ANY (some).
23 Demand and get former partner to do something (5)
EXACT – EX (former partner) + ACT (do something).
27 Add note at the beginning of a piano roll (3)
BAP – B (note) + A P(iano).

12 comments on “Saturday Times 26028 (21st Feb)”

  2. 9 mins. Either I was really on the setter’s wavelength or this was the easiest Prize puzzle for many a moon. COFFERDAM was my LOI despite its appearance in another puzzle very recently, and it only fell into place after I got its first checker from CUTTING, an answer that took me longer to see than it should have done because I initially thought it was a letter exclusion clue, and I could have kicked myself when I finally saw it was a straightforward DD.
  3. [Written before the blog is up]
    I was pleased to attain my 30-minute target (just!) and found this very enjoyable with some excellent clues e.g. 3dn and 14ac. No doubt I’m missing something obvious (again) but I don’t get 8dn.
    1. Ah well, that explains everything! I had PRESENT bunged in on the basis that “letters were still awaiting delivery” i.e. PRE-SENT. Eyesight’s going as well as brain now! Thanks, Kevin.

      Edited at 2015-03-01 06:34 am (UTC)

  5. Definitely easy, especially for a prize puzzle. I agree with Jerry, and I’d add eg 18ac, 21d, 27d. COD perhaps to 4d, although ‘does’ did provoke immediate suspicion.
  6. Another sub-10, so clearly easy for a Saturday. Same experience as Andy B with the 1s being last in. COFFERDAM an easy stand-out clue for me.
  7. Very enjoyable puzzle, particularly liked 14a.

    Nice to see Jethro Tull getting an outing. I look forward to Turnip Townsend also putting in an appearance one day, thus covering the only characters I remember from the otherwise turgid O level history classes regarding the Agrarian Revolution (“which was not a revolution at all: discuss…”).

  8. A time of 8:06 and really neat handwriting would lead me to suspect that this was straightforward for a Saturday, but I’ve done so many puzzles in the interim, I can’t remember much about this one, sorry setter.
    1. But bur isn’t a tree, it’s a feature of the wood of certain trees (according to Chambers anyway).

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