Time: 8 minutes. This is Tango’s third QC and the first on my watch as blogger. I hope you all found it as straightforward as I did.
As usual definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in curly brackets} and [anagrinds, containment, reversal and other indicators in square ones]. “Aural wordplay” is in quotation marks. I now use a tilde sign ~ to indicate an insertion point in containment clues. I usually omit all reference to juxtaposition indicators unless there is a specific point that requires clarification.
 Across |
|
|---|---|
| 7 | Opera about king and soldiers (6) |
| CARMEN – CA (about), R (king), MEN (soldiers) | |
| 8 | In the morning, more talk endlessly lacking ethics (6) |
| AMORAL – AM (in the morning), {m}OR{e} + {t}AL{k} [endlessly] | |
| 9 | Somewhat fear son is turning criminal (8) |
| ARSONIST – Hidden (somewhat) in {fe{AR SON IS T{urning} | |
| 10 | Two seconds to catch black bird (4) |
| IBIS – I~I (two) + S (seconds) containing [to catch] B (black) | |
| 11 | Fish travels over ice (6) |
| SKATES – Two meanings | |
| 13 | Without pressure, difficult situation’s easy to bear (5) |
| LIGHT – {p}LIGHT (difficult situation) [without pressure] | |
| 14 | The first lady happening to lose books (3) |
| EVE – EVE{NT} (happening) [to lose books – New Testament] | |
| 15 | Wanderer hid among set back houses (5) |
| NOMAD – {hi}D AMON{g} contains [houses] the answer reversed [set back] | |
| 17 | Italian PM’s note implicating Musk? (6) |
| MELONI – M~I (note) containing [implicating] ELON (Musk) | |
| 19 | Newspaper covering Los Angeles apartment (4) |
| FLAT – F~T (newspaper – Financial Times) containing [covering] LA (Los Angeles) | |
| 20 | Memorial not cheap to change (8) |
| CENOTAPH – Anagram [to change] of NOT CHEAP | |
| 22 | Mindlessly repeat standard rubbish (6) |
| PARROT – PAR (standard), ROT (rubbish) | |
| 23 | Periodically, drivers sell fuel (6) |
| DIESEL – D{r}I{v}E{r}S {s}E{l}L [periodically] | |
| Down |
|
|---|---|
| 1 | Duo’s quiet song (4) |
| PAIR – P (quiet), AIR (song) | |
| 2 | Bring in the setter’s wine (6) |
| IMPORT – I’M (the setter’s), PORT (wine) | |
| 3 | Impartial international body founded to protect India (8) |
| UNBIASED – UN (international body), B ~ASED (founded) containing [to protect] I (India) | |
| 4 | Fully absorbed style of music over time (4) |
| RAPT – RAP (style of music), T (time) | |
| 5 | River in spring’s sound perhaps of little interest (6) |
| BORING – R (river) contained by [in] BO~ING (spring’s sound perhaps) | |
| 6 | The middle of that poet’s musical (8) |
| HAMILTON – {t}HA{t} [the middle of…], MILTON (poet) | |
| 12 | Tragic figure’s family glare horribly (4,4) |
| KING LEAR – KIN (family), anagram [horribly] of GLARE | |
| 13 | Lead me on, having mixed drink (8) |
| LEMONADE – Anagram [having mixed] of LEAD ME ON | |
| 16 | Grown-up’s confusing tea and rum (6) |
| MATURE – Anagram [confusing] of TEA RUM | |
| 18 | Landlord’s character (6) |
| LETTER – Two meanings | |
| 20 | Attractive copper and French revolutionary (4) |
| CUTE – CU (copper), then ET (‘and’ in French) reversed [revolutionary] | |
| 21 | Ask questions about closure of Yorkshire quarry (4) |
| PREY – PR~Y (ask questions) containing [about] {Yorkshir}E [closure of…] | |
8:39 so a Monday time for me, and some really good surfaces –– notably KING LEAR, PARROT, and RAPT. But (joining the crowd) COD to BORING with the pleasingly misleading PREY runner-up.
Thanks to Tango and jackkt.
I found it hard to get started (my FOI was EVE), but the lower half of the grid helped me gain traction and I then sped along until I had three clues to solve. My time at that point was just 15 minutes, which is extremely fast for me, and I was looking forward to a day out of the SCC.
Trouble was, my three remaining clues (_A___N, ___O__ and _K___S) were all linked and a further 15 minutes passed before I managed to break through with CARMEN. Two more minutes for IMPORT and SKATES and I fell over the line in a very ordinary 32 minutes. Deflated again.
Many thanks to Jack and Tango.
Surrendered @ 17 mins. Failing to find any wine fitting -M-O-T. Only to realise in Jacks blog I had the wrong end of the clue. Otherwise fun and relatively easy. Thanks Jack and Tango
5:43 for the solve. In my top 10 times but given the comments have run over the page, the Quitch probably won’t log that. Struggle with IBIS and fingers crossed for MELONI as couldn’t parse it insolve as was looking at the ME- start as being the note.Turns out I misparsed BORING as thought it was some kind of soundalike related to e.g. the Severn bore. Some very nice clues in here
Thanks to Tango and Jack – not quite the Stallone/Russell combo of my youth
All done in 15m for a good start to the week. Very approachable though for some reason I filled in the SE and then NE corners before embarking on the left hand side. For real operas about kings and soldiers you need Verdi and a bit of Wagner but CA plus R plus the inevitable MEN made for a fun clue. The anagrams and hiddens and reversed hiddens were great, culminating in “and French revolutionary” which I never would have got as TE a year ago! So huge thanks to bloggers and fellow solvers for all that they have taught me: esp today Tango and Jack
6:31 nice puzzle
I liked Ibis. Thx Tango & jack
RST 09:24! Not bad considering them Boring Nomad Skates slowed me down.
Ta JAT
8:49 here. Enjoyed the solve.
Thanks to Tango and Jackkt.
I kept changing my mind about 17a – I had the correct spelling to start with but was basing my answer on the musk melon we saw in a crossword a week or so ago, so couldn’t work out how the I would fit in and wondered if E was the note 🤣 I think I may have to claim a technical DNF. Shame – it was quite a good time for me. Otherwise fun, with a giggle at boing.
6:05 FOI Pair LOI Unbiased COD Light
Thanks Tango and Jack
7 mins, but day ruined by falling 8 short on 15 x 15. Good QC for new solvers, but not much use when attempting to make the jump to the ‘proper’ crossword.
20:47. Should have been faster but distracted by goings-on around me, I think. At least, that’s the excuse I’m going for.
(Been seeing folks refer to SCC and just looked it up. Definitely me!)
FOI AMORAL, LOI CARMEN, COD MELONI
Thanks J and T