Happy New Year to all here. Once more the best crossword of the month throws up a number of lovely words and entertaining clues. What is more, it is a double pangram! In all it took me just over 55 minutes with liberal use of aids, so a bit quicker than usual. Thank-you clever setter.
Definitions underlined in bold italics, (Abc)* indicating anagram of Abc, {deletions} and [] other indicators.
| Across | |
| 1 | Steel bands, when half-cut, very happily consider coming round to take speed (7,5) |
| JUBILEE CLIPS – JUBIL{antly} (very happily) [half-cut] + CLIP (speed) in SEE (consider) [coming round] -> EES. | |
| 8 | Who had to flee from the east and look warily back on Khrushchev (7) |
| NUREYEV – RUN (flee) [from the east] -> NUR + EYE (look warily) + last better [back on] of KhrushcheV. A clever &lit. The famous ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev, fled from the Soviet Union in 1961 during Nikita Khruschev‘s reign as First Secretary of the communist party of the Soviet Union. | |
| 9 | Plant propagator fool spoilt following vocal exchange (4-3) |
| BARK BED – BERK (fool) BAD (spoilt) swapping the vowels [vocal exchange] -> BARK BED. | |
| 11 | ISP carrying weight beginning to market external application (7) |
| EPITHEM – PITH (weight) in EE (ISP; Internet Service Provider) + first letter of Market. | |
| 12 | Postpone out-of-date contribution to Theatre Journal (7) |
| REJOURN – Hidden in TheatRE JOURNal. An old word, hence “out-of-date”. | |
| 13 | Senior rabbi discharged yeshiva’s boring old master (5) |
| DAYAN – Outside letters [discharged] of YeshivA in DAN (old master). DAN was formerly applied to esp. monks or by poets to the great poets. | |
| 14 | US city fell for housing mission plugged by Arizona (9) |
| KALAMAZOO – AZ (Arizona) in ALAMO (mission) all in KO (knock out; KO). | |
| 16 | Standard overseas track taking on British Rail opened by royal princess (9) |
| DANNEBROG – ANNE (royal princess) + BR (British Rail) in DOG (track). Thanks dcrooks for the simpler parsing. | |
| 19 | What in Moulin Rouge heralds feminine tease? (5) |
| QUOIF – QUOI (what in French) F (feminine). As in teasing hair. | |
| 21 | They give resolution to Republican that at no time holds by society (7) |
| NERVERS – R (Republican) in NEVER (at no time) + S (society). | |
| 23 | Madder monitor for one cut in middle of raid (7) |
| ALIZARI – LIZAR{d} (monitor for one) [cut] in middle letters of rAIn. Madder the plant. | |
| 24 | Tennis star in hospital department for implant (7) |
| ENGRAFT – (Steffi) GRAF (tennis star) in ENT (Ear, nose and throat; hospital department). | |
| 25 | Matter-of-fact pair see you about introduction of service charges (7) |
| PROSAIC – PR (pair) + first letter of Service in [charges], CIAO (see you) [about] -> OAIC. | |
| 26 | Conducting cylinder made of silicon, like an audio plug connected to small box (12) |
| SIPHONOSTELE – SI (chemical symbol of Silicon) + PHONO (like an audio plug) + S (small) + TELE (box). | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Disheartened drawn-out mouse checks waste, scratching bottom in a twitchy way (7) |
| JERKILY – JE{r}RY (drawn-out, i.e. animated, mouse) without the middle letter [disheartened] outside [checks] KIL{l} (waste) without the last letter, [scratching bottom]. | |
| 2 | Language that’s got quietly ousted by British Celt (7) |
| BRYTHON – {p}YTHON (computer programming language) replacing the P (quietly) with BR (British). | |
| 3 | Active participant in union left on account of contract cuts (9) |
| LOVEMAKER – L (left) + MAKE (contract) in OVER (on account of). | |
| 4 | Very little pressure will break organ stop (5) |
| EMBAR – MB (millibar; very little pressure) in EAR (organ). | |
| 5 | Novel formal wear pinched by harness-maker with no sign of hesitation (4,3) |
| LORD JIM – DJ (formal wear) in LORIM{er} (harness-maker) without the ER (sign of hesitation). Lord Jim is a novel by Joseph Conrad. | |
| 6 | In which participants may have rounds within rounds (3,4) |
| PUB QUIZ – Cryptic definition. Nice one. | |
| 7 | Perhaps showing reverence towards bishop originally called to bury dead king (2,6,4) |
| ON BENDED KNEE – ENDED (dead) + K (king), in ON (towards) + B (bishop) + NEE (originally called). | |
| 10 | Local wife somehow won film parts in reward for harmonious marriage (6,6) |
| DUNMOW FLITCH – [somehow] (won film)* in DUTCH (local, i.e. dialect word for; wife). Read about the strange custom here. | |
| 15 | Tips cover on boiling vessel upside-down with seconds to spare before escaping (9) |
| LAGNAPPES –LAG (cover a pipe) PAN (boiling vessel) [upside down] -> NAP + second letters of sPare bEfore eScaping. | |
| 17 | Let me think about kid entering North Island’s Bronze Age towers (7) |
| NURAGHI – RAG (kid) in UH (let me think) all in NI (North Island). | |
| 18 | Third of beech trees rot (7) |
| EYEWASH – Third letter of beEch + YEW + ASH (trees). | |
| 19 | Unworldly hero cross over being pinned in somewhat (7) |
| QUIXOTE – X (cross) O (over) in QUITE (somewhat). | |
| 20 | Rampant foreign character, loose old salt (7) |
| OXALATE – ETA (old character) + LAX (loose) + O (old) all going upwards, [rampant]. | |
| 22 | Letters written up for illustrator once (5) |
| SETON – NOTES (letters) [written up] -> SETON. Ernest Thompson Seton was, among other things, a wildlife artist. | |
Thanks for the blog. Couple of pedantic points. In 16a, ‘opened by royal princess’ is simply ‘preceded by Anne.’ And there’s a typo in your transcription of the clue for 2d. (Underlining.)
As usual, impenetrable, till it wasn’t, and up to the normal standard of wit and elegance.
Thanks. Blog updated.