Saturday Times 24562 (12th June)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
Solving time approx 15 minutes. There were some very good “container and contents” clues in this one, although 25% of one clue type is probably too many. I think there was a mistake in 1D, but it could be mine. I’m open to suggestions.

Across
1 BATCH – C.H. (Companion (of Honour)) after BAT.
4 PAPER-THIN – PERTH inside PAIN. Not the first city that came to mind, so I needed a few checking letters to get this one.
9 TOP DRAWER – TOWER around PD (paid) + R.A. (artist).
10 STROP – PORT + S(ecound) reversed.
11 EARWIG – E.G. around alternate letters of ‘bArRoWs Is’. This also appeared as an answer in last week’s TLS crossword, as part of a very strange quotation!
12 IMPERIAL – AIR reversed inside IMPEL.
14 COMPLEXITY – EXIT inside COMPLY.
16 FAIR – sounds like “fare”.
19 PELT – double definition.
20 ASTRINGENT – AS + RING inside TENT.
22 MISTAKEN – STAKE inside MIN(k)
23 COPTIC – C(hapter) + OPTIC. The language of the Christian descendants of the ancient Egyptians.
26 TROLL – T + ROLL
27 ABDOMINAL – (balm no aid)*
28 FREEWHEEL – EEL after (FEW H(ours) around RE). I could see that all the components were there, but it took a while to get them in the right order and make sense of it!
29 REALM – hidden in “superstoRE ALMost.

Down
1 BUTTERCUP – BUT (object, as a verb) + PURE (good) reversed around C (front of cottage), which leaves a T unaccounted for. Any suggestions? [ BUTT as the object of a joke of course. Glad it was my mistake and not the setter’s. ]
2 TAPER – T.A. (Territorial Army = volunteers) + PER.
3 HORRIBLY – H(ot) + ORLY around RIB.
4 PAWN – double definition – to pop is slang for to pawn something.
5 PEREMPTORY – (type emperor)* minus one E.
6 RUSSET – RUS(k) + SET.
7 HERMITAGE – HERITAGE around M.
8 NEPAL – APE (take off) + N, reversed above L(ake).
13 EXASPERATE – REPS (agents) + AXE (cut), all reversed + ATE (put away).
15 MILLSTONE – M(arried) + ILLS + TONE.
17 RETICULUM – 1 inside (culture)* + M(ass). Obscure word of the day, but I knew of it from barred-grid puzzles.
18 INFORMER – IN + FORMER
21 CALLOW – ALL inside COW.
22 MOTIF – M.O.T. (check on vehicle) + IF.
24 TANGA – N(ame) inside TAG + A. I’d hesitate to call it a piece of swimwear though – beachwear perhaps. Chambers decribes it as “a brief, string-like bikini”.
25 IDOL – LIDO with the first letter moved to the end.

7 comments on “Saturday Times 24562 (12th June)”

  1. Think it may be object as in the butt of a joke etc which would account for the extra T
  2. opening second = S
    round = trop (Chambers has it as “denoting tutning ” )
    In bad temper is the definition for STROP
      1. meaning ill-tempered, a Br. expression. You can Google it if you like to add
        to Barbara’s definition.
  3. As I read it:
    port = opening
    S = second
    round means reversed, which gives strop
    Def: a fit of bad temper
    Barbara
  4. Rather slow for this one at 19:12 – partly from hastily plumping for CH,ORAL(!) rather than C,OPTIC at 23.

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