Perhaps a little on the easier side than average and with plenty of pleasing surfaces. The few unknowns could be manoeuvred around without too much trouble.
Definitions are underlined, {} = omission, * = anagram, dd = double definition
| Across | |
| 1 | Posh girl joins school committee initially (4-5) |
| HIGH-CLASS – HIGH (school) + C (committee initially) + LASS (girl) | |
| 6 | Fish finger — half portion — enjoyed with bread near harbour (6,7) |
| FINNAN HADDOCK – FIN{ger} (finger – half portion) + NAN (bread) + HAD (enjoyed) + DOCK (harbour). A type of smoked haddock from Scotland, with a surface perhaps a tribute to the humble fish finger bap. | |
| 13 | Endless selection of food and drink (5) |
| LATTE – {p}LATTE{r} (Endless selection of food) | |
| 14 | Quality prizes? The reverse (3,6) |
| TOP DRAWER – reversal of REWARD and POT (prizes) | |
| 15 | I worry about young man’s sexual adventure (7) |
| LIAISON – reversal of I + AIL (worry), + SON (young man) | |
| 16 | Reveals the benefits of soaking both feet and scoots (5,1,5,4,2,5) |
| SHOWS A CLEAN PAIR OF HEELS – literal interpretation | |
| 18 | Current Times new editor placed on list (8) |
| ITEMISED – I (Current) + TIMES* + ED (editor) | |
| 20 | Insect trap bound to have food stuck in (8) |
| FLYPAPER – FLYER (bound – Chambers has “A flying leap (informal)” for flyer) around PAP (food) | |
| 21 | Liking head of sculpture in London gallery (5) |
| TASTE – S{culpture} in TATE (London gallery) | |
| 23 | Army volunteers successfully attacked island — one in the Pacific (6) |
| TAHITI – TA (Army volunteers) + HIT (successfully attacked) + I (island), with the “one” in the definition referring back to “island” | |
| 24 | Stomach health resort, meal without starters (6) |
| PAUNCH – {s}PA (health resort) + {l}UNCH (meal) | |
| 25 | Not many are inclined to shelter on coast (9) |
| FREEWHEEL – FEW (Not many) + HEEL (are inclined) around RE (on) | |
| 28 | Awesome story about soldiers mentioned in dispatches at the front (10) |
| FORMIDABLE – FABLE (story), around OR (soldiers) + M{entioned} + I{n} + D{ispatches} | |
| 29 | Old sailing vessel‘s journey on a river (4) |
| ARGO – A + R (river) + GO (journey) | |
| 30 | Talk excitedly and giggle, drinking whisky (7) |
| TWITTER – TITTER (giggle) around W (whisky – in the “NATO alphabet”) | |
| 32 | Notes expert in police state (7) |
| COPLAND – a police state might be a COP LAND. The definition refers to American composer Aaron Copland, of Fanfare for the Common Man fame. | |
| 34 | Complaint rejected in umpteen cases (4) |
| ACNE – hidden reversed in umpteEN CAses | |
| 35 | Shuns bands, we hear, no longer in fashion (7,3) |
| FREEZES OUT – homophone of FRIEZES (bands), + OUT (no longer in fashion) | |
| 38 | Nun, peaceful-sounding type (9) |
| CARMELITE – homophone of CALM, + ELITE (type – it’s a size of typewriter type) | |
| 39 | Archdeacon enters see regularly (6) |
| EVENLY – VEN (Archdeacon) in ELY (see) | |
| 40 | Display in Edinburgh, and middle of country as well (6) |
| TATTOO – {s}TAT{e} (middle of country) + TOO (as well). For non-Brits, this is a reference to the Edinburgh Tattoo, an annual military musical performance. | |
| 43 | Cheats, untrustworthy types needing no introduction (5) |
| ROOKS – {c}ROOKS (untrustworthy types needing no introduction) | |
| 45 | Buzzer briefly drowns high-pitched noise in dance (8) |
| HORNPIPE – HORNE{t} (Buzzer briefly) around PIP (high-pitched noise) | |
| 47 | Friendliness in most of Bohemia? No, wrong (8) |
| BONHOMIE – (BOHEMI{a} + NO)* | |
| 49 | With energy and movement, a large fairground ride creates many different feelings? (9,13) |
| EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER – E (energy) + MOTION (movement) + A + L (large) + ROLLERCOASTER (fairground ride) | |
| 52 | More agile bird, very lost, beyond mountain in Scotland (7) |
| BENDIER – BEN (mountain in Scotland) + DI{v}ER (bird, very lost) | |
| 53 | Fool stuck in one end of building likely to catch fire (9) |
| IGNITABLE – NIT (Fool) in I (one) + GABLE (end of building) | |
| 54 | Young man welcomes Irish landowner (5) |
| LAIRD – LAD (Young man) around IR (Irish) | |
| 55 | False report about the tennis fiasco in part of Europe (13) |
| LIECHTENSTEIN – LIE (False report) + C (about) + (THE TENNIS)* | |
| 56 | Look, article having been placed last by mainly right-wing publication (9) |
| SPECTATOR – SPECTA (aspect (look) with the a (article) moved to the end) + TOR{y} (mainly right-wing) | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Lad briefly wearing flowing Turkish garment (4,5) |
| HULA SKIRT – LA{d} in TURKISH* | |
| 2 | Twice contact female, about to meet (3,8) |
| GET TOGETHER – GET + GET (Twice contact) + HER (female), about TO | |
| 3 | After check, finally one wins this game (5) |
| CHESS – CH (check) + {on}E + {win}S + {thi}S | |
| 4 | Roasted food eaten by a delinquent youth (8) |
| ATTACKED – TACK (food) in A + TED (delinquent youth) | |
| 5 | Several players notice leader of team training inside (6) |
| SEPTET – SEE (notice) + T{eam}, around PT (training) | |
| 6 | Dismissing rule for troops at the front (6,4) |
| FIRING LINE – FIRING (Dismissing) + LINE (rule) | |
| 7 | Part of America where hip man’s resettled (3,9) |
| NEW HAMPSHIRE – (WHERE HIP MAN’S)* | |
| 8 | Delivery that is dispatched from Scottish town before work (7) |
| AIRDROP – AIRDR{ie} + OP (work) | |
| 9 | He will pop round border at great speed (4,3,7) |
| HELL FOR LEATHER – HELL (He will) + FATHER (pop) around ORLE (border – Chambers: “(heraldry) A border within a shield at a short distance from the edge”). I couldn’t categorically state that I knew the meaning of orle but it didn’t matter when solving as the definition and a few checkers gave me the answer. | |
| 10 | Daughter having ‘smart chap’ put into Italian language (7) |
| DIALECT – D (Daughter), + ALEC (‘smart chap”) in IT (Italian) | |
| 11 | Round entrance to Billingsgate smell of fish about to disappear? (11) |
| OBSOLESCENT – O (Round) + B{illingsgate} + SOLE SCENT (smell of fish) | |
| 12 | Nice day with family members (4) |
| KIND – KIN (family members) + D (day) | |
| 17 | Red wine the Spanish stocked … here? (8) |
| CELLARET – CLARET (Red wine) around EL (the Spanish). Another unfamiliar word but it sounded plausible and the wordplay was helpful. | |
| 19 | Fancy nice tart I cooked? (9) |
| INTRICATE – (NICE TART I)* | |
| 22 | Completely willing to support British sport (4,4) |
| BALL GAME – B (British) + ALL (Completely) + GAME (willing) | |
| 25 | Measure how to waste time introducing sport (4,4) |
| FOOT RULE – FOOTLE (waste time) around RU (sport). Can’t say this expression was familiar but I wasn’t surprised to find it defined as (Collins): “a rigid measure, one foot in length”. | |
| 26 | Gloss over defeat (9) |
| WHITEWASH – dd | |
| 27 | Training that’s made available by Kentish golf club? (8,6) |
| SANDWICH COURSE – literal interpretation, referencing the fact that SANDWICH is a town in Kent hosting various golf COURSEs including Royal St George’s | |
| 28 | Maybe knave fled gutlessly, having pinched snazzy vehicle (4,4) |
| FACE CARD – F{le}D, around ACE (snazzy) + CAR (vehicle) | |
| 31 | Painting style in local church showing lack of restraint (12) |
| INTEMPERANCE – INN (local) + CE (church) around TEMPERA (Painting style) | |
| 33 | Stage show inevitably packed with people (11) |
| PERFORMANCE – PERFORCE (inevitably) around MAN (people – as a verb) | |
| 36 | Tom Potter is trained as an eye specialist (11) |
| OPTOMETRIST – (TOM POTTER IS)* | |
| 37 | Italian‘s explanation resolved missing vote (10) |
| NEAPOLITAN – (E{x}PLANATION)* | |
| 41 | First off, insure traveller, giving some protection in accident? (9) |
| OVERRIDER – {c}OVER (First off, insure) + RIDER (traveller), to give us (Chambers): “An attachment on the bumper of a motor vehicle to prevent another bumper becoming interlocked with it”. Another never-heard-of but also a didn’t-need-to-have-heard-of. | |
| 42 | Real cold on Mediterranean island (8) |
| CONCRETE – C (cold) + ON + CRETE (Mediterranean island) | |
| 44 | Drunken Glaswegian maybe avoids clubs (7) |
| SOTTISH – S{c}OTTISH (Glaswegian maybe avoids clubs) | |
| 46 | Transport managers run over by van drivers regularly (7) |
| ROADIES – R (run) + O (over) + vAn DrIvErS | |
| 48 | Judge ignores jobless milling around in Greek island (6) |
| LESBOS – ({j}OBLESS)* | |
| 50 | Hand out thirty-nine biblical books for Protestants? (5) |
| ALLOT – for Protestants, ALL the OT (Old Testament) would be 39 books (versus 46 for Catholics, 49 for Eastern Orthodox, etc) | |
| 51 | Tag headless murder victim (4) |
| ABEL – {l}ABEL (Tag headless) | |
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