ParkSolve time 34:30. (About 80% running, 20% solving)
Orpheus provides the goods today and I’m predicting the full gamut of responses. The puzzle will test some vocabularies, but just like singing Subterranean Homesick Blues, it’s not too hard if you happen to know all the words.
Let us know how you went and what I missed.
(In the clues, definitions are underlined and anagram indicators are in bold italics.
In the explanations (ABC)* indicates an anagram of abc. Deletions and other devices are indicated accordingly, I hope).
| Across | |
| 6 | Extremely fashionable woman’s soft brimmed hat (6) |
| FEDORA – FE (“extremes” of FashionablE) + DORA (woman)
I’m a trilby man myself. My wife always objected to me wearing it because it “made me look like an old man”. Now she doesn’t say anything. Draw your own conclusions. |
|
| 7 | Source of old gear at home (6) |
| ORIGIN – O (old) + RIG (gear) + IN (at home) | |
| 9 | Bar on cricket pitch sometimes jumped by miscreants? (4) |
| BAIL – Double definition
A couple of wildly divergent definitions of the word bail. See also “kind” below. |
|
| 10 | Crucial-sounding team in dock area (8) |
| QUAYSIDE – QUAY [Homophone (-sounding) of KEY (crucial)] + SIDE (team) | |
| 11 | Perfect films regularly shown around various parts of Wales (8) |
| FLAWLESS – FLS (FiLmS regularly shown) around (WALES)* | |
| 13 | Cunning, avoiding start of demonstration (4) |
| ARCH – |
|
| 15 | Hired vehicle carrying last of popular seafood (4) |
| CRAB – CAB (hired vehicle) “carrying” R (last of populaR) | |
| 16 | Girl scoffing second pudding (8) |
| SEMOLINA – SELINA (girl) “scoffing” MO (second)
You don’t meet many Selinas but it was the name of a legendary band venue at the Coogee Bay Hotel. Those were the days. |
|
| 18 | Oddly, a shy male terrier (8) |
| SEALYHAM – (A SHY MALE)*
I’m not too good on dog breeds but this one sort of rang a bell. Not sure we need so many types, why can’t everyone just have a golden retriever? |
|
| 20 | Youngster finally taken by supporter on course (4) |
| TEEN – N [last letter (finally) of takeN] by TEE (supporter on course)
Course meaning golf course, of course. |
|
| 21 | Sailor’s useless ankle or heel bone (6) |
| TARSUS – TARS (sailor’s) + US (useless)
US in this sense being a mainly military abbreviation for unserviceable. Also “unfit for service” but it would be a little unkind to equate this with “useless”. Could just be a nasty case of bone spurs. Speaking of which, the tarsus is a cluster of seven articulating bones in each foot.
|
|
| 22 | Like loofahs perhaps ultimately emitting unpleasant odour (6) |
| SPONGY – S [last letter (ultimately) of perhapS] + PONGY (emitting unpleasant odour) | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Tradesman possibly welcomed by the three blind mice? (8) |
| RETAILER – Referencing the mice of nursery rhyme fame.
Hadn’t given it much thought before, but how were they all blind? And why run after the farmer’s wife? And why the unhinged reaction from her? I’ll wait for the Netflix series. |
|
| 2 | Dog reportedly moves unsteadily? It’s the tummy trouble (12) |
| COLLYWOBBLES – COLLY [homophone (reportedly) of collie (dog)] + WOBBLES (moves unsteadily)
In Australia the term is used to describe AFL club Collingwood’s penchant for falling at the last hurdle. Particularly between their premiership winning years of 1958 and 1990 when they managed to lose eight grand finals. But most solvers here will know it as meaning queasiness or anxiety. |
|
| 3 | Language used by Sheba’s queen? (6) |
| BASQUE – Hidden in sheBAS QUEen | |
| 4 | Standards identified by exam in writing (6) |
| MORALS – ORAL (exam) in MS (writing)
That’s ms as in manuscript. And oral (or viva voce which sounds much cooler) is a type of exam where the student is questioned verbally by the examiner. |
|
| 5 | Benevolent type (4) |
| KIND – Double definition
English must be a very difficult language to learn. |
|
| 8 | Establishment in railway property everyone enters (12) |
| INSTALLATION – IN + ALL (everyone) “enters” STATION (railway property) | |
| 12 | Prosecute university in the Home Counties (3) |
| SUE – U (university) in SE [South-East (Home Counties)]
The Home Counties are the counties of England that surround London, which places them in the south-east. |
|
| 14 | Meet first of chums on border (8) |
| CONVERGE – C (first of Chums) + ON + VERGE (border) | |
| 16 | Break in school is marvellous to begin with (6) |
| SCHISM – SCH (school) + IS + M [first letter (to begin with) of Marvellous] | |
| 17 | This person’s outstanding, cutting old woman’s shrub (6) |
| MIMOSA – IM (this person’s) + OS (outstanding) “cutting” MA (old woman) | |
| 19 | Style and vigour a large antelope mostly shows (4) |
| ELAN – ELAND (a large antelope) without the last letter (mostly) | |
Comments are closed.