Sorry folks, this should have gone up yesterday morning. Getting behind in my duties at this busy time of the year.
My struggle with the Jumbo continues, this one taking an hour and 14 minutes to complete. At least I got it all right this time, if you accept my plea that SALISBUYY was a typo at 14ac.
Not much to add, other than to thank the setter. Oh, and to mention that I got a PB on today’s Sunday cryptic. Nothing to do with this puzzle, but hey, who else am I going to tell?
Here are my parsings…
Clues are reproduced in blue, with the definition underlined. Anagram indicators are bolded and italicised. Then there’s the answer IN BOLD, followed by the parsing of the wordplay. (ABC)* means ‘anagram of ABC’.
| Across | |
| 1 | Lad losing head in Main Street in Kent area (5-4) |
| SOUTH-EAST – {y}OUTH (lad, losing head) in SEA (main) + ST (street) | |
| 6 | Young mauler taking on copper in library (4,3) |
| LION CUB – ON + CU (copper) in LIB (library) | |
| 10 | Gnarled tree containing a type of fruit (5) |
|
EATER – (TREE)* “containing” A An eater is British informal for an eating apple. Not being British, I didn’t know that. Did you? |
|
| 13 | Defeating words, I end dreadful scrawl covering article (13) |
| INDESCRIBABLE – (I END)* + SCRIBBLE (scrawl) covering A (article) | |
| 14 | Most of Irish city can be contained within for instance English one (9) |
| SALISBURY – LISBUR [most of Lisburn (Irish city)] in SAY (for instance) | |
| 15 | With power secured, hurried to finish weapon (7) |
| TORPEDO – P (power) in TORE (hurried) + DO (finish) | |
| 16 | Share opening section? Not half keen! (7) |
| PARTAKE – PART A (opening section) + KE (not half KEen) | |
| 17 | Late regarding sand, having missed noon (7) |
| OVERDUE – OVER (regarding) + DUE [DUNE (sand) having missed N (noon)] | |
| 18 | Instrument, moral and religious, an organ, principally (7,5) |
| UPRIGHT PIANO – UPRIGHT (moral) + PI (religious) + AN + O (organ, principally) | |
| 20 | Old grazing land about to penetrate edges of the orchard feature (6-4) |
|
ORANGE-TREE – O (old) + RANGE (grazing land) + RE (about) “penetrating” TE (edges of ThE) What’s the hyphen doing there? |
|
| 23 | Accommodation only partly comparable to home, on reflection (5) |
|
HOTEL – Reverse hidden (only partly, on reflection) in comparabLE TO Home Well disguised hidden, I thought, but very biffable. |
|
| 24 | Translation of this page involves conclusion of plot with many strands (9) |
|
SPAGHETTI – (THIS PAGE)* “involves” T (conclusion of plot) What, my code? Never! |
|
| 25 | Cricketer‘s supporters answering back (3,4) |
|
LEG SLIP – LEGS (supporters) + LIP (answering back) A fielding position more commonly deployed back in the day. Sir Garfield was probably the best I ever saw in that position. Currently being used by some canny opponents to target the Australian captain early in his innings. Will be interesting to see how he deals with it. (Ed: Interesting to you Galspray. No-one else cares.) |
|
| 26 | Noblewoman in demonstration is collaring individuals (11) |
| MARCHIONESS – MARCH (demonstration) + IS “collaring” ONES (individuals) | |
| 28 | Angry, being almost prevented from finishing painting? (3,2,6) |
| OUT OF TEMPER – Almost OUT OF TEMPERA (paint) | |
| 30 | I’m to write about small amount of money allocated to soldiers and their baggage (11) |
| IMPEDIMENTA – IM + PEN (write) “about” DIME (small amount of money) + TA (soldiers, Territorial Army) | |
| 32 | One takes issue over the way to get access to education (8,3) |
|
LOLLIPOP MAN – Cryptic def referencing a school crossing guard, taking kids (issue) over the way (street) The “lollipop” refers to the stop / go sign carried by the crossing guard. |
|
| 34 | Fellow, very popular, holding a flower (7) |
| GENTIAN – GENT (fellow) + IN (very popular) holding A | |
| 36 | Train line heading for York, unmistakably (9) |
| EXPRESSLY – EXPRESS (train) + L (line) + Y (heading for York) | |
| 38 | Some paintwork’s simply split (2,3) |
| IN TWO – Hidden (some) in paINTWOrk | |
| 39 | It yet will get confused with rival scientific principle (10) |
|
RELATIVITY – (IT YET RIVAL)* Shouldn’t admit this, but I had REVITALITY for quite some time. Something to do with spontaneous generation. Yeah, shouldn’t have admitted it. Relativity, on the other hand, is the theory that explains that Usain Bolt isn’t really that big, he just looks it because he runs so fast. |
|
| 41 | How those of a reflective nature find their place? (4,8) |
| ECHO LOCATION – Cryptic def. Bats and dolphins, for instance, use reflected sounds to determine their location. Why don’t they just look where they’re going? | |
| 45 | State invaded by English party retaliating (7) |
| AVENGER – AVER (state) “invaded by” ENG (English) | |
| 46 | Expression of pilot faced with emergency? (7) |
| GRIMACE – Would be a GRIM ACE | |
| 47 | Regular approach supporting most of Disney cartoon (7) |
| FORMULA – FOR (supporting) + MULA [most of MULAn (Disney cartoon)] | |
| 49 | Garment, much-loved, just right to wrap one about (9) |
|
PETTICOAT – PET (much-loved) + TO A T (just right) “wrapping” I (one) + C (about, as in circa) Harder to parse than to solve. |
|
| 50 | Item of decor not coming to attention of directors? (8-5) |
| SKIRTING-BOARD – Whimsical second def. You could skirt the board of directors to escape their attention. | |
| 52 | Not quite heading off in good time (5) |
| EARLY – {n}EARLY (not quite, heading off) | |
| 53 | Serious attention given to twitcher’s target? (7) |
|
EARNEST – EAR (attention) + NEST (twitcher’s target) A twitcher being a bird watcher. Specifically one who travels a long distance to see a rare bird. A rare bird indeed. |
|
| 54 | Information that’s included about onion (a vegetable) (5,4) |
|
GREEN BEAN – GEN (information) including RE (about) + BEAN (onion) Not sure why bean=onion, so I may have misparsed this. Could just be one of those quirky plant facts that often escape me. On edit: Bean and onion are both slang terms for the head. Thanks Mohn. |
|
| Down | |
| 1 | Massage: it has, unexpectedly, us getting up (7) |
| SHIATSU – (IT HAS)* + SU (us “getting up”) | |
| 2 | Shipbroker referenced by fixer so we hear (11) |
| UNDERWRITER – UNDER (referenced by) WRITER [homophone for RIGHTER (fixer)] | |
| 3 | Be unable to stand, barged into by son in hurry (5) |
| HASTE – HATE (be unable to stand) “barged into by” S (son) | |
| 4 | Bearing left for transport hub (7) |
| AIRPORT – AIR (bearing) + PORT (left) | |
| 5 | Bill to go in is put up (3) |
| TAB – BAT (go in) reversed (put up) | |
| 6 | Year supporting research facility in reducing the perplexity? (9) |
| LABYRINTH – YR (year) “supporting” LAB (research facility) + IN + TH (reducing “THe”) | |
| 7 | Description of certain roads is nothing unusual? Yes (3-3) |
| ONE-WAY – O NEW (zero new, or nothing unusual) + AY (yes) | |
| 8 | Work in active astral sciences? Gee — something like this will be required (10,9) |
|
CASSEGRAIN TELESCOPE – OP (work) in (ASTRAL SCIENCES GEE)* Didn’t know this, but was able to assemble it from wordplay and checkers. |
|
| 9 | Air transport? Entirely in favour (7) |
| BALLOON – ALL (entirely) in BOON (favour) | |
| 10 | Segregate unusual DVD feature? (6,3) |
|
EASTER EGG – (SEGREGATE)* I knew these as undocumented little surprises that are encoded into interactive software applications, to be discovered or chanced upon by the user in the manner of an easter egg hunt. The term seems to be used a bit more broadly now to mean any little “hidden” message that appears in a TV show, movie or computer game. |
|
| 11 | Heavenly sound? Half of them fail to show enough appreciation, it seems (7-4) |
|
THUNDER-CLAP – TH (half of THem) + UNDER-CLAP (fail to show enough appreciation, it seems) Something the Icelanders could never be accused of. |
|
| 12 | What’s first apparent in rip, hip and yip – me? (5) |
|
RHYME – RHY (first letters of Rip, Hip and Yip) + ME &LIT. The first thing apparent in those three words is that they rhyme. |
|
| 16 | Detective routine GI picked up, following GI wearing singlet (7,12) |
| PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR – [ROTA (routine) + GI] all reversed (picked up) following PRIVATE IN VEST (GI wearing singlet) | |
| 19 | Errant fellow held after festivity (7) |
|
GALAHAD – HAD (held) after GALA (festivity) “What is your name, handsome knight?” “Er…Sir Galahad…the Chaste.” “Mine is Zoot. Just Zoot.” So old Galahad wasn’t so errant, but he was a knight-errant, whatever that means. |
|
| 21 | Tongue not working after period of telepathy? (9) |
|
ESPERANTO – (NOT)* after ESP ERA (period of telepathy?) Whatever happened to Esperanto? Glad I never really threw myself into it. |
|
| 22 | Stone to move downhill, say, showing gentle pace (6) |
| STROLL – ST (stone) + ROLL (move downhill, say) | |
| 23 | Excellent example of medic, one that stops craving (9) |
| HUMDINGER – MD (medic) + I (one) “stops” HUNGER (craving) | |
| 24 | Impresario’s quiet wife getting in a state (7) |
| SHOWMAN – SH (quiet) + W (wife) in OMAN (a state) | |
| 25 | In high style, frequently in floral surroundings? (7) |
| LOFTILY – OFT (frequently) surrounded by LILY, ie in floral surroundings | |
| 27 | Seafood is served up around military depot (6) |
| SCAMPI – SI [IS reversed (served up)] around CAMP (military depot) | |
| 29 | A quote about farm animal cropping up in strange stuff (7) |
| EXOTICA – [A + CITE (quote) about OX (farm animal)] reversed (cropping up) | |
| 31 | Garage worker triumphant on What’s My Line? (5,6) |
| PANEL BEATER – What’s My Line was a show on which the objective was to beat a panel of interrogators | |
| 33 | Mark, say, needing slight change to enter University (11) |
|
MATRICULATE – M (mark) + ATRICULATE [ARTICULATE (say) needing slight change] Very unusual clue, asking the solver to make a non-specific alteration to one of the clued elements. No complaints from me, but I don’t recall seeing this before. And now that you mention it, nobody matriculates any more, at least not in Australia. No, they all “graduate” from high school, many in mortar board and tassel, regardless of academic achievement. Don’t get me started. |
|
| 35 | Uprightness in reflecting yet retaining toughness of character (9) |
| INTEGRITY – IN + TEY (reflecting YET) “retaining” GRIT (toughness of character) | |
| 37 | Cleaner is coming in Tuesday, having elevated service (9) |
| EUCHARIST – CHAR (cleaner) + IS in EUT (TUEsday, having elevated) | |
| 40 | Bachelor encountering love in poem of many words (7) |
| VERBOSE – B (bachelor) “encountering” O (love) in VERSE (poem) | |
| 42 | Criminal action of a criminal (7) |
| OFFENCE – OF + FENCE (a criminal) | |
| 43 | London area, mostly tidy, ends in disarray (7) |
| NEASDEN – NEA [mostly NEAt (tidy)] + (ENDS)* | |
| 44 | Insubstantial stuff place offered up — seek redress? (6) |
| TISSUE – TIS [SIT (place) “offered up”] + SUE (seek redress) | |
| 45 | Place for one in a pie? (5) |
|
APPLE – PL (place) instead of I (one) in A PIE Semi-&LIT, I think you would call this. The question mark suggests we’re looking for a certain variety of pie. |
|
| 48 | Flier that’s yellow turned up on container (5) |
| ROBIN – RO [OR (yellow, gold) turned up] + BIN (container) | |
| 51 | Name? Suggestion is to drop name (3) |
| TAG – TANG (suggestion) to drop N (name) | |
Didn’t like 2dn much, a bit laboured, but otherwise a perfectly OK crossword
My parents matriculated, before WWII, by gaining a School Certificate .. no Os, As or GCSEs in those days – but as you say nobody does that any more. Nowadays they graduate; so far as I remember, I just got in to university, nothing more fancy than that… ah well, at least I got a grant for going
Edited at 2016-12-11 03:43 pm (UTC)
I recall being invited to some location to matriculate during my first week at Uni back in the early 70s but I didn’t bother since I didn’t know what matriculation meant and it didn’t seem to prevent me attending lectures, tutorials or exams. Didn’t prevent graduation either so I’m not sure what the point was.
David (Warwick)