Saturday Times 26106 (23rd May)

Author   linxitPosted on Categories Weekend Cryptic
Struggled with this one, limping home in 26:16. I just couldn’t get on the setter’s wavelength for some reason, and I’m sure I’ve solved much trickier puzzles in half the time before. Coming back to it today I can’t see any problems with it, plenty to like in fact. Maybe I was just tired. It looked like a definite pangram candidate during the solve, but in the end the V was missing.

Across
1 Weak complaint from left during strike (5)
BLEAT – L(eft) inside BEAT (strike).
4 Judge no longer in despair, taking time in making discovery (9)
DETECTION – DEJECTION (despair) without the J for judge, and around T(ime).
9 Wind up everybody outside about narrow escape (5,4)
CLOSE CALL – CLOSE (wind up) + ALL (everybody), around C (about).
10 Musical group performing in drag (5)
NONET – ON (performing) inside NET (drag).
11 A puzzle not completed — needing old name for flower? (6)
AMAZON – A + MAZ(e) (puzzle not completed) + O(ld) + N(ame).
12 Somebody against men on purpose? (8)
OBJECTOR – OR (men) next to OBJECT (purpose).
14 A very short distance from Bath has rider struggling (5-7)
HAIR’S-BREADTH – (Bath has rider)*.
17 Give order to find Emma once — or another book (2,4,3,3)
OF MICE AND MEN – (find Emma once)*. 1937 novel by John Steinbeck.
20 Prepare to fight fuddy-duddy in court (6,2)
SQUARE UP – SQUARE (fuddy-duddy) + UP (in court).
21 Girl given test about keeping home (6)
MAXINE – EXAM (test) reversed, around IN (home).
23 Flyer from east close to landing in the drink (5)
EAGLE – E(ast) + (landin)G inside ALE (the drink).
24 Complaint that a criminal is concealing wealth (9)
AFFLUENCE – FLU (complaint) inside A FENCE (a criminal).
25 Decorum shown by pack member that is seen during conversion of try (9)
PROPRIETY – PROP (pack member) + I.E. (that is) inside (try)*.
26 Dope found in port after a note’s dispatched (5)
TWERP – ANTWERP (port) without A N(ote).

Down
1 Gamble on contents of sachet for pain (8)
BACKACHE – BACK (gamble on) + (s)ACHE(t).
2 In advancing years, soon over obsessive preoccupation with me (8)
EGOMANIA – AGE (years), around IN A MO (soon), all reversed. That one went in from the definition, took me ages to see how it worked!
3 Drunk and disorderly father swore twice, disowning one son (3,5,3,4)
THE WORSE FOR WEAR – (father swore swore)*, without one S.
4 Swap start and end of clue to get agreement (4)
DEAL – LEAD (clue) with the first and last letters swapped. LOI for me, tricky if you don’t spot it right away. Someone on the forum claimed a legitimate alternative answer, but I can’t think what that might be.
5 Gossip from following people more revealing, we hear (10)
TALEBEARER – sounds like “tail barer”.
6 Yes-man in the majority in Congress (10,5)
CONSENTING ADULT – cryptic definition. Clever and funny.
7 Set off from meeting, initially somewhat upset (6)
IGNITE – hidden reversed in “meeting, initially”.
8 Character’s name for maiden in bloom? (6)
NATURE – MATURE (bloom), with the M exchanged for an N.
13 Recital at university broadcast, say, clearly (10)
ARTICULATE – (recital at U)*.
15 Bishop’s put in appearance, impressed by excellent atmosphere (8)
AMBIENCE – B(ishop) inside MIEN (appearance), all inside ACE (excellent).
16 Very much involved in call for cutting support (4-4)
KNEE-DEEP – NEED (call for) inside KEEP (support).
18 Inattentive man’s fleeced regularly over parking (6)
ASLEEP – alternate letters of “man’s fleeced” + P(arking).
19 Sailor’s porridge — food served up over and over again (6)
BURGOO – GRUB (food) reversed + O(ver) + O(ver). Unfamiliar word for me, but the helpful wordplay allowed me to put it in confidently.
22 Second, not first up in the air (4)
IFFY – JIFFY (second), minus the first letter.

9 comments on “Saturday Times 26106 (23rd May)”

  1. This was one (like yesterday’s) where the answers were constantly on the tip of my tongue but refused to emerge without a fight, as exemplified by 3D which I was unable to see even when the checkers indicated that the answer began with THE ?O?S?. I speculated for a while that the second word might be HORSE, but eventually succumbed to the last resort of pen and paper, at which point the anagram was resolved. Didn’t know BURGOO, and TALEBEARER didn’t seem familiar either. Some good surfaces in this one.
  2. Also struggled a bit but got there in the end despite a few unknowns as the wordplay was helpful on those occasions. Overall it was fair and entertaining.

    Edited at 2015-05-30 09:29 am (UTC)

  3. 22 mins. This one definitely felt tougher than the previous couple of prize puzzles. TALEBEARER was my LOI after OBJECTOR. I biffed KNEE-DEEP but did manage to parse it post-solve, and I’m another who entered BURGOO from the wordplay.
  4. 36:56. Similar story here, I think: I found this quite difficult but felt I was making unnecessarily heavy weather of it. BURGOO seemed a very unlikely word but the wordplay was clear.
  5. Did this on the bus on the way to a performance of The Creation so no time and indeed no trace of the sheet of paper. I remember enjoying the consenting adult and wondering if I’d ever come across talebearer. The porridge must have been one of the last to go down….
  6. 18:55 .. solved this about 7am in Brussels last Saturday (I think, it was a bit of a blur), which probably helped with (an)TWERP if nothing else.

    The CONSENTING ADULT clue has stayed with me, so I wanted to pop in and give it a doff of the cap.

    edit: and thanks, linxit. As ever.

    Edited at 2015-05-30 06:28 pm (UTC)

    1. In 6 down, why majority? For me “Yes-man in Congress” works, and majority adds unnecessary confusion, length and general imprecision to the clue.

      Also found it tricky though clear when finally seen. Done in dribs and drabs so no time.
      Rob in Malaysia

  7. Took me forever, I imagine–no record of the time–and I stupidly typed an A for the E of AMBIENCE, even though I’d written it in correctly. I spent a lot of useless effort trying to parse IGNITE until I finally spotted the hidden. BURGOO was somehow tucked away in my memory, although I couldn’t have defined it to save my life. 6d definitely the COD; one of the rare times I’ve laughed out loud when solving.

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