Saturday Times 25669 (28th December)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
Sorry I’m a day late with this one, not used to blogging during the week and forgot I was due to post this one yesterday. For me, easiest Saturday puzzle in quite a while, solved in 11:29. The only sticking point was when I invented a new phrase for 16dn, but I soon sorted that out.

Across
1 CATECHISM – CE (Anglicans) + (s)CHISM (head off split), around AT (attending).
6 BONUS – ON (riding) inside BUS (public transport).
9 VERDANT – V(ery) + E(nglish) + (ga)RD(en) + ANT (such as leaf-cutter).
10 LASHING – SHIN (lower leg) inside LAG (delay).
11 TRAWL – LT (lieutenant) around WAR (clash), all reversed.
12 IMPLEMENT – I (one) + MP (parliamentarian) replacing the first letter of ELEMENT (faction).
13 CLOWN – C (about) + LOW (far from high) + N(oon).
14 DRAY HORSE – DRY (parched) + HOARSE (husky), with the A moved forward.
17 SPARE TYRE – cryptic definition.
18 MEANS – double definition.
19 INFERENCE – RE (on) inside IN (home) + FENCE (hot property dealer).
22 NOMAD – MAD (bats in the belfry) after NO (Japanese drama).
24 REGATTA – hidden in “Sponsor (eg, attaché”
25 LE HAVRE – (Reveal, H)*
26 DINKY – D(aughter) + INKY (very dark).
27 ENDOWMENT – T(ime) after [END (stop) + OMEN (sign) around W(ait)].

Down
1 COVET – CO-VET (someone sharing animal treatment duties).
2 TARRAGONA – RAG (tabloid) inside TAR (smear) + ON (about) + A.
3 CHALLENGE – CH(urch) + ALLEGE (claim) around N(ew).
4 IN THIS DAY AND AGE – (I’d say hint)* + ADAGE (saying) around N(ame).
5 MY LIPS ARE SEALED – double definition, the second to be taken literally!
6 BASTE – sounds like “based”.
7 NAIVE – NAVE (place of baptism maybe) around I (one).
8 SIGHTLESS – (leg’s hit)* + S(lat)S.
13 CASHIERED – CASH (money) + IE (that is) + RED (indicating debt).
15 HUM AND HAW – HUMAN (person) + (had)* + W(ife).
16 ROAD MOVIE – (avoid more)*. My first attempt at this had the new coinage “ROAM VIDEO”. Well, it sort of works!
20 FAGIN – FAG (cigarette) + IN (lit).
21 RETRY – RET (soak) + (d)RY (start off avoiding alcohol).
23 DWELT – (marke)D + WELT (red swelling).

6 comments on “Saturday Times 25669 (28th December)”

  1. I agree that this one was on the easy side and took me 11 mins. The only note I made said that HUM AND HAW was my LOI once I saw the correct wordplay, rather than “hem and haw”.
  2. Definitely on the easy side – 5.53 for me. Solved so long ago I can’t really remember much about it.
  3. Didn’t we have DRAY HORSE recently? I know we had HUM AND HAW before, because I put in ‘hem’–and I did the same damned thing this time. Other than that it was easy, as I recall, I think under a half-hour.
    1. It comes up now and again. Some people say “the fire is in”, meaning “the fire is lit”. Chambers dictionary confirms it as one of the meanings of “in”.

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