Greetings, barred-grid fans.
I thought this was a notch easier than the last few Mephistos and I finished it in a single sitting. Fewer unusual terms, though as I come to write this up I am still scratching my head over a few of the parsings, hopefully they will come up soon.
I enjoy the surfaces a lot in Robert Teuton puzzles, and there are some really fun ones here.
Away we go…
| Across | |
| 1 | Dropping lead to investigate sea doing … possibly this? (7) |
| SONDAGE – anagram of SEA,DOING minus the first letter of Investigate | |
| 6 | 1000 pounds a year cover for head (5) |
| KIPPA – KIP(a weight of 1000 points), PA(a year) | |
| 10 | Revised grade (not D) got in a competitive exam (10) |
| AGREGATION – anagram of GRADE,GOT,IN,A minus D | |
| 11 | Dachshund, bloodhound and kelpie ignoring confusion (6) |
| TECKEL – TEC(investigator, bloodhound), and KELPIE minus PIE(confusion) | |
| 12 | Block isolating Yankee prisoner? (6) |
| STALAG – STAY(block) minus Y(Yankee) then LAG(prisoner) with the whole being the definition | |
| 14 | Stream ritual showing baptismal ceremony (5) |
| AMRIT – hidden inside steAM RITual | |
| 15 | I start to get about part of Sussex waterway (7) |
| IGARAPE – I, the first letter of Get, A(about) and RAPE(a division of Sussex) | |
| 19 | Preposterous Beeb broadcast with nil value (12) |
| UNBELIEVABLE – anagram of BEEB, NIL, VALUE | |
| 20 | Be hit with Noel’s cost around beginning of January — giving this? (12, two words) |
| OBJECT LESSON – anagram of BE, NOEL’S COST surrounding the first letter of January | |
| 25 | Day sharing cool spring sojourn (7) |
| INDWELL – D(day) in between IN(cool) and WELL(spring) | |
| 26 | European slalomer maybe avoiding top of icy ridge (5) |
| ESKER – E, SKIER(slalomer, maybe) minus the first letter in Icy | |
| 28 | Dished out grass for feed (6) |
| EDDISH – anagram of DISHED | |
| 29 | Batman delivering one-two, ie in action, POW!? (6) |
| INMATE – anagram of BATMAN minus the first two letters and IE | |
| 30 | Time off to catch fish? Start off with one fish (10, two words) |
| NEON TETRAS – remove T(time) from NET(catch fish), then an anafram of START and ONE | |
| 31 | Edge back from disco dance … (5) |
| TANGO – TANG(edge) and the last letter in discO | |
| 32 | … again choose dance therapy of a sort (7) |
| REELECT – REEL(dance) and ECT(electroconvulsive therapy) | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Moustache’s trimmed, not so much hairy bristle? (4) |
| SETA – anagram of MOUSTACHES minus SO MUCH | |
| 2 | Madonna regularly snubbed? That’s bad for such a versatile entertainer (10, two words) |
| ONE-MAN BAND – anagram of MADONNA and alternating letters in sNuBbEd | |
| 3 | Shellfish lands almost on bottom of ocean (5) |
| NACRE – ACRES(lands) minus the last letter after the last letter in oceaN | |
| 4 | Rocky edge eroded round banks of Rhône (5) |
| ARETE – ATE(eroded) surrounding the external letters in RhonE | |
| 5 | Cavorting idly I get cold (8) |
| GELIDITY – anagram of IDLY,I,GET | |
| 6 | Exercise sequences were in session hinging on spirit (5) |
| KATAS – SAT(were in session) reversed after KA(spirit) | |
| 7 | Russian channel is carrying bitter articles (8) |
| ITAR-TASS – IS containing TART(bitter) and AS(articles) | |
| 8 | A sauce going round with rice dish (5) |
| PILAW – A, LIP(sauce) all reversed, then W(with) | |
| 9 | Guardian’s joke rebuffed LA citizen (8) |
| ANGELENO – ANGEL(guardian) then ONE(joke) reversed | |
| 13 | Academy’s imaginative accepting insensitive person’s “sorry” (10) |
| APOLOGETIC – A(academy), POETIC(imaginative) containing LOG(insensitive person) | |
| 16 | Question variable ten to one ratio (8) |
| QUOTIENT – QU(question) then an anagram of TEN,TO,I(one) | |
| 17 | Film covering port gathering to turn round ship (8) |
| BEESWING – BEE(gathering) then SWING(turn around a ship) | |
| 18 | Bottled lime drunk with a spot of effervescent mineral (8) |
| MELILITE – anagram of LIME, LIT(drunk) and the first letter of Effervescent | |
| 21 | Bill fellow extra charge (5) |
| ADD-ON – AD(bill), DON(fellow) | |
| 22 | Sad Elon Musk oddly rocks around Tesla (5) |
| MESTO – anagram of alternating letters in ElOn MuSk surrounding T(Tesla) | |
| 23 | Kind hereditary factor embodying mother’s or father’s side? (5) |
| GENRE – GENE(hereditary factor) surrounding the last letter of motheR or fatheR | |
| 24 | When entering nobleman denied opening decree (5) |
| UKASE – AS(when) inside DUKE(nobleman) minus the first letter | |
| 27 | Robbed once match official’s heading for tunnel (4) |
| REFT – REF(match official) and the first letter in Tunnel | |
First one I’ve (started and) finished on the Sunday it came out!
I was first acquainted with SONDAGE thru the French usage for a public opinion poll.
When I was growing up, my brother had NEON TETRAS in the aquarium in his room—where he also had a pool table… and one day, the inevitable occurred…
Not so lucky this time. I biffed 8dn as PILAU without giving it another thought. Therein lay my downfall. Another object lesson I would say.
I think this was a nicely-set bear trap. PILAU and PILAF are much more usual. My adage: if you can’t parse it, it ain’t right. (Though I do make the occasional exception when the answer is bleedin’ obvious, but I can’t quite see it.)
Pretty straightforward puzzle, but with some really nice surfaces, which is something I appreciate. Too much meaningless algebra these days.
You’re right on both counts – a bear trap and on the whole straightforward.
I’m going to have to up my game for 2025.
Nice puzzle. I enjoyed it a lot. Thanks Robert and George.