Wow that was tough! I made the mistake of tackling this late at night when I was too tired to concentrate, and it went well over the half-hour. Quite a few went in just on the definition and checkers, but I managed to figure out all the wordplay eventually. Almost a pangram too, but there’s no Z. Great puzzle, just the quality and level of difficulty I hope for on Saturdays.
Across | |
1 | To wash is sort of routine (5-2) |
STAND-UP – double definition, the first not hyphenated, where to wash means to stand up to scrutiny (normally in the negative, as in “that won’t wash”). | |
5 | Language students doing homework maybe overheard start of Conference address? (2,5) |
AU PAIRS – homophone of how one might begin a speech to an audience of fruit: “O Pears…” Not sure if maybe is part of the definition or the wordplay, could be either. | |
9 | Member with drink seen by entrance to country retreat (9) |
CLIMBDOWN – LIMB (member) + DOWN (drink), next to C(ountry). | |
10 | Start with our leading lady present (5) |
OFFER – OFF (start) + ER (our leading lady). | |
11 | Gag from the pen of Spooner? Line causing mischief (7-6) |
JIGGERY-POKERY – Spoonerism for “piggery joke” (where the pen is a sty), + RY (line). | |
13 | Possible forger in mint worked with this (8) |
TINSMITH – (mint, this)* | |
15 | Bowls laid at supper around bottles (6) |
STADIA – hidden reversed inside “laid at supper”. | |
17 | The setter’s most reliable reference work’s not left down! (6) |
IMBIBE – I’M (the setter’s) + BIB(l)E (most reliable reference work, minus the L). By the way, the bible in the clue isn’t the Holy one, but according to the Solvers’ Bible (i.e. Chambers) refers to any comprehensive book regarded as the ultimate authority on its subject. Second use of down to mean drink there, but that’s a minor quibble in such a good puzzle. | |
19 | Poet may write it as exercise (8) |
QUATRAIN – QUA (as) + TRAIN (exercise). | |
22 | Up at six to join manoeuvres being put together (13) |
JUXTAPOSITION – (up at six to join)*. | |
25 | Work on war papers covering trouble after revolution (5) |
ILIAD – ID (papers) around AIL (trouble) reversed. Homer’s epic poem about the Trojan War. | |
26 | She does what singers do, without scores, mostly (9) |
CHARWOMAN – CHAR (what singers, i.e. people who singe, do) + WO (without) + MAN(y) (scores, mostly). Took me ages to figure that one out. | |
27 | Turned, using saw to set about cedar, finally (7) |
TRENDED – TENDED (saw to) around (ceda)R. The “using” confused the hell out of me, and this is another one it took me ages to get. | |
28 | Film recalled girl’s occupation (7) |
TENANCY – ET (crosswordland’s favourite film) reversed, + NANCY (girl). |
Down | |
1 | Drain made by bore with time running out (4) |
SUCK – STUCK (bore, i.e. tolerated) without the T for time. | |
2 | Sailor departs during New Year’s Day for African city (7) |
ABIDJAN – AB (sailor) + D(eparts) inside 1 JAN (New Year’s Day). Largest city and former capital of Ivory Coast. | |
3 | Fancied ringing English club, finally finding correct code? (5) |
DEBUG – DUG (fancied) around E(nglish) + (clu)B. | |
4 | Quality front row with key series from top row (8) |
PROPERTY – PROP (front row, rugby position) + ERTY (key series from top row (of a QWERTY keyboard, anyway)). | |
5 | Hacks off announcing a report, for example (6) |
ANNOYS – sounds like “a noise”. | |
6 | Letters to keep burning? I’m obliged to return copy (9) |
PHOTOSTAT – POST (letters) around HOT (burning?), + TA (I’m obliged) reversed. | |
7 | One not believing that diamonds have dropped down from fence? (7) |
INFIELD – INFIDEL (one not believing), with the D for diamonds dropping to the bottom. | |
8 | Pays in part for smashing decoration to be sent by jet (5,5) |
SPRAY PAINT – (pays in part)* | |
12 | Pole set off with others for entertainment venue (5,5) |
STRIP JOINT – S (pole) + TRIP (set off) + JOINT (with others). | |
14 | British given to support way of working with large company (3-6) |
MOB-HANDED – B(ritish) + HANDED (given), underneath MO (modus operandi, way of working). | |
16 | In transport project, including most of big network (8) |
JUBILANT – JUT (project) around BI (most of big) + LAN (network). | |
18 | High-flier, live, intercepted by neat tackle (3-4) |
BOX-KITE – BE (live) around OX (neat) + KIT (tackle). | |
20 | A good thing convent has Roman name (7) |
AGNOMEN – A + G(ood) + NO MEN (thing convent has). A name added to the family name. | |
21 | Articulated lorry, van or bike is initially, but not taxi (6) |
VOICED – L, V, and B are VOICED consonants, whereas T isn’t. Well, I learned something by looking up the letters mentioned: L is a lateral liquid, B is a voiced bilabial stop, V is a voiced labiodental fricative and T is a voiceless alveolar stop. | |
23 | American, I love pasty (5) |
IOWAN – I + O (love) + WAN (pasty). | |
24 | What makes you (think the grass might be) greener? (4) |
ENVY – cryptic definition, ref the phrase “to be green with envy”, and the bit in brackets giving an example, ref another phrase: “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence”. |
I sort of wish you hadn’t given the answer to a clue in today’s (below) as I haven’t been able to access it yet!
Lots of solve first, work it out later stuff, but I did like the Conference opening and got the wordplay in time to inform the solution.
Edited at 2014-06-21 08:43 am (UTC)
But maybe I have a blind spot over this clue given my initial conviction there was a misprint (passim).
Edited at 2014-06-21 12:46 pm (UTC)
I didn’t understand 21dn and with the benefit of Andy’s erudite explanation, still don’t. That whole area, a bit of a blind spot for me. Also in 4dn it’s the second row of every keyboard I’ve ever used, though I see where the setter is coming from.
Best of the year so far, maybe, though I vaguely remember saying that at least once before.
Thanks setter.
Thanks for explanations, as several had to go in without parsing.
I haven’t been able to get into the club site at all yet today – the usual link just gave a blank frame.
I thought that this was a proper Saturday puzzle, hard enough to be interesting but not so hard to be boring. Thank you, Setter.
Jerry, try saying lack, vac, back and tack with your middle finger on your throat and you will feel the vocal folds vibrating for the first three, but not for the last – until you move from the initial consonant to the vowel (which as always is voiced) – especially if you spin out the initial consonant. Then, try saying ‘da’ and ‘ta’ in turn with said finger in place, to see how the voiced consonant differs from the unvoiced one made with the same mouth set-up. (Works for other pairs, including b/p and v/f, as well.)
Edited at 2014-06-21 12:25 pm (UTC)
I still couldn’t see how trended and charwoman worked so thanks for those Andy.
ERTY is a series on the top row (at least the top row of letters). The letters of PROP are there but not in the right order.