Saturday Times 25400 (16th Feb)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
16:53 to solve, fairly straightforward apart from the one tricky bit of wordplay that I had to come back to. A few bits of British geography might have made it harder for overseas solvers though.

Across
1 BALLPOINT – BALL (party) + POINT (time).
6 GABON – NO BAG reversed.
9 CLIP ART – CART (shift) around LIP (margin).
10 READING – double definition.
11 NAHUM – AN reversed + HUM. 34th book of the Old Testament, one of the Minor Prophets.
12 RIFLE SHOT – FLESH (soft tissue) inside RIOT (scream).
13 CROTCHET – T(ime) inside CROCHET (delicate art).
14 IOTA – double definition.
17 AMBO – RAMBO (Sylvester Stallone character in a number of films) minus the first letter.
18 AIREDALE – AIRED (given a draught) + ALE (drink).
21 PIZZICATO – PIZZA (doughy dish) around I (one) + C(old), + (roas)T + O (duck).
22 BIDET – BIDE (stick with) + (detergen)T.
24 GRAVITY – GRAVY (juice) around IT.
25 ORATORY – OR (gold, precious thing) + A + TORY (politician).
26 ELDER – double definition.
27 REPRESENT – RE (on) + PRESENT (here).

Down
1 BACON – double definition, the artist Francis Bacon.
2 LEIGHTON BUZZARD – (Edinburgh a lot)* around ZZ (unknown couple).
3 PHARMACY – PACY (quick) around HARM (evil).
4 INTERNET – (entire town)*. We are here, at any rate!
5 TARIFF – RI (Rhode Island, state) inside TAFF (a Welsh river).
6 GOATEE – A TEE (supporter) after GO (game).
7 BRIGHTON AND HOVE – RIGHT ON (PC) inside BAND (gang) + HOVE (raised).
8 NIGHTMARE – (thing)* with MARE (female) underneath.
13 CHAMPAGNE – CHA (drink) + P(laced) inside MAGNE(t) (drawer short). I put this one in on the definition, and didn’t work out the wordplay until writing this up. Not sure why now, but I think the comma threw me.
15 MISO SOUP – I’M reversed + SO SO UP (very very happy).
16 VERBIAGE – (o)VERAGE (too old, topless) around BI(ts).
19 TIDIER – RIT (short for ritardando, slowing) reversed around DIE (stop).
20 MAGYAR – MAG (issue) + RAY (bit of light) reversed. A Hungarian.
23 TRYST – hidden in “Coventry street”.

8 comments on “Saturday Times 25400 (16th Feb)”

  1. A disastrous 80 minutes for this one with nothing now to indicate what my problem was. I had only one unknown, AMBO as a desk, which I might have thought of sooner if the literal had been ‘pulpit’.

    The English town went in quite late in the proceedings, much to my shame as I have lived there for the past 30 years. I remember the last time it appeared in a Times puzzle I was solving whilst awaiting my usual train to work, looked up from the puzzle and read the answer off the platform sign opposite. No such luck this time!

    Edited at 2013-02-23 08:40 am (UTC)

  2. I really struggled with this one, though in hindsight I can’t see why – I think I’m going to blame the Viking festival that started in the square by my flat …
  3. Solved this last Saturday on the plane out to Gran Canaria. Slow going until I got the two long down answers. Andy, thanks for explaining the Rit bit of Tidier – that was new to me. Got Iota wrong – couldn’t understand the clue and guessed Zola.
    Daniel (in Gran Canaria waiting for the flight home)
  4. Not much quicker than Jack with one wrong, Airedale, which has got me twice out of the three times it’s come up in the last year or so.

    ulaca on the wife’s iPad

  6. No real problems here, although “precious thing” for “OR” in 25ac feels unsatisfactory. It’s either the colour gold (not the metal) or the metal tincture, as applied in heraldry, which seems a bit indirect.
  7. This took me just over an hour in 2 sessions. I can’t understand why I found it so difficult since only AMBO was new to me. My main holdups were the CHAMPAGNE/CROTCHET crossing and AIREDALE. All perfectly fair clues. I think I was having an off day. Am now off to tackle last Sunday’s cryptic. I hope it’s a smoother ride than this one. Ann
  8. Anyway for non UK crossword fans to find out names of places such as Leighton Buzzard!! would be most appreciated.
    Anna

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