Monthly Club Special No 272

Last month’s Club Special was, once again, full of interesting words and intricate wordplay. Lots of fun, but rather hard – it took me just over 1 1/2 hours. 12D was Clue of the Month, but 18D a close second for the neat trick in the wordplay. Thank-you, once more,  clever setter.

Definitions underlined in bold italics, (Abc)* indicating anagram of Abc, {deletions} and [] other indicators.

Across
1 Old governors of Channel island in retreat, with lots of poetry (8)
WOIWODES – IOW (Isle of Wight; Channel island) reversed -> WOI, W (with) ODES (lots of poetry). Cracking word to start with.
9 Old temple: that’s found empty, and pub, the first now the last one (8)
TEOCALLIT{empl}E (that) [found empty], LOCAL (pub) with first letter moved to the end [the first now the last] -> OCALL, I (one). “That” means use TEMPLE in the wordplay as well as the definition, so the word temple isn’t doing double duty.
10 Problem describing heterosexual relationship when there’s no one right or left (4)
BOYGBOY G{irl} (heterosexual relationship) without the I (one) R (right) L (left).
11 Writing as biographer, I go after something startling said to be expansive (12)
BOSWELLIZINGBO (something startling said) SWELL (be expansive) I ZING (go).
13 Dusky swimmer no longer comes out with energy (6)
SAITHE – The coalfish.  SAITH (says; comes out archaically) E (energy).
14 Perfume ingredient maybe occupying some ladies in the fifties (8)
LINALOOLIN A LOO (occupying some ladies) in L L (fifties). Ho ho. It got me thinking.. “Oh dear what can the matter be…”
15 A very filling meal that’s later grabbed near revolving restaurant (7)
TAVERNAA V (very) and NR (near) [revolving] -> RN,  in [filling] TEA (meal). Easier to biff than to parse!
16 A lot of clever people for one genetically modified idiot (7)
EGGMASSE.G. (for one) GM (genetically modified) ASS (idiot).
20 Furniture maker’s shareware warranted being scaled down (8)
REWAREWA – Hidden in shaREWARE WArranted.
22 Put a dampener on old woman with challenge (6)
MADEFYMA (old woman) DEFY (challenge).
23 Unruly band pillaging area’s left swine out of work! (7,5)
PIGLING BLAND – (B{a}nd pillaging)* [unruly]. The Beatrix Potter character.
25 Coin once passed on, behold sent back (4)
OBOLOB (obit; passed on) LO (behold) [sent back] -> OL.
26 To the west, large area of land Yank mostly used for festival (8)
LUPERCALL (large) ACRE (area of land) PUL{l} (yank) [mostly] all reversed -> LUPERCAL.
27 Form of disease found in spruce, regrettably, earlier (8)
ALASTRIMALAS (regrettably) TRIM (spruce).
Down
2 Looking up a mild oath, formerly something unacceptable in native language (8)
ONONDAGA -A GAD (mild oath formerly) NO-NO (something unacceptable) -> ONONDAGA.
3 Clock northern comedian and Times hack, unlikely hosts (3-2-3-4)
WAG-BY-THE-WALLWAG (northern comedian) BY (Times), HEW (hack ) in TALL (unlikely; a tall tale).
4 Irish food: one way to reverse what the Polish brought up? (8)
DRISHEEN – I (one)  RD (road) [to reverse] -> DRI, SHEEN (what polish brought up).
5 Small place of worship using English for Mass: one’s above all that? (7)
STEEPLES (small), E (English) replacing the M (mass) in TE{m}PLE -> TEEPLE. The definition means a tower above a place of worship.
6 Couple retaining place for US singer (6)
JOPLINPL (place) in JOIN (couple).
7 Island sinking in foul marsh on the veldt? (4)
VLEI – VILE (foul) with the I (island) sinking, i.e. letter coming later in the word, -> VLEI.
8 Sit with lungs heaving, making convulsive gasps no more (8)
SINGULTS – (sit lungs)* [heaving]. “No more” indicating the answer is archaic. Nice surface.
12 Doctors veg, mostly reversing contradictory advice for insectivore (12)
ZALAMBDODONT – BMA (British Medical Association; doctors) LAZ{e} (veg) [mostly], all reversed -> ZALAMB, DO DONT (contradictory advice). Gold star for intricate clue and unlikely looking word.
15 Choke by informally and very quietly pressing on outside of ligature (8)
THROPPLETHRO (by, informally) PP (pianissimo; very quiet), [outside of] L{igatur}E.
17 Leg raised in the morning, a hand likewise, making decorative figures (8)
GAMMADIAGAM (leg), AM (in the morning) [raised] -> MA, AID (a hand) also raised -> DIA.
18 Sons switch positions, the second occupying two steam-holes (8)
SOFFIONIS (sons), OFF,  and ON (switch positions) with the ON inside II (two) ->  IONI. Nice one.
19 Flounce out of a party, upset after brief stumble (7)
FALBALAFAL{l} [brief] (stumble), A LAB (party) [upset] -> BALA.
21 Daughter’s right to withhold the odd stuff from personnel, coy (6)
ESNECY – Even number letters [withhold the odd stuff] from pErSoNnEl CoY.
24 Holes, one graphically represented, in flooded forest (4)
GAPOGAP (hole) O (hole graphically represented).

2 comments on “Monthly Club Special No 272”

  1. 9a. I think the colon and ‘that’s’ avoids the double-duty jeapordy, though would note that both are required.

Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *