13:38. I really liked this puzzle, but I have left blogging until very late (as I write it’s just after midnight on Saturday) so I’m a bit rushed and my memory of solving it is a bit hazy. There are a couple of really excellent cryptic definitions, which are a bit of a Harry speciality: something he has in common with his fellow Sunday setter Dean Mayer. Having gone through the clues checking I can confirm the impression of a really excellent set, and this was a lot of fun both to solve and to blog, so thank you Harry and here’s how I think it all breaks down.
Definitions are underlined, anagrams indicated like (TIHS)*, anagram indicators are in italics.
Across |
1 |
High Barnet as American might call it |
|
MOHAWK – CD. A ‘barnet’ is hair (Barnet Fair, CRS), and a MOHAWK is a sticky-up style so ‘high’. This is the American term for what we Brits would call a Mohican. |
4 |
Ran out of kit at a sporting event |
|
STREAKED – another CD. |
10 |
Horseman skipping initial horse trial |
|
NIGHTMARE – kNIGHT, MARE.. |
11 |
One’s to arrest Tory sex symbols |
|
ICONS – I(CON)S. |
12 |
East German radical opens liquor stand |
|
ROSTRUM – R (radical, a chemistry term), OST (east in German), RUM (liquor). |
14 |
Spooner’s declared Starmer “lacklustre beast”. |
|
MEERKAT – Spoonerism of ‘Keir matt’. |
15 |
I hold mid-course at sea for salt |
|
SODIUM CHLORIDE – (I HOLD MID-COURSE)*. A rare appearance of ‘salt’ with the meaning that is most obvious to normal people. |
18 |
IM isn’t seen sat playing with a GM |
|
INSTANT MESSAGE – (ISNT SEEN SAT A GM)*. |
22 |
What He is mostly limiting? |
|
ATHEISM – contained in ‘what he is mostly’. In practice of course He has not been entirely successful in this endeavour, perhaps hampered by non-existence. |
24 |
Clearly Men at Work had no part in these hits |
|
STRIKES – two definitions, one mildly cryptic. A reference to the Australian band that had a couple of massive international hits in the 80s, most notably Down Under, a great song. The little flute hook in it was the subject of a long-running legal dispute. |
25 |
Strange story appearing in article |
|
ALIEN – A(LIE)N. |
26 |
How’s rep dancing along with In the Navy? |
|
SHIPOWNER – (HOWS REP IN)*. |
28 |
Diplomatic insult island caught on wiretap |
|
DISCREET – either DIS followed by a homophone of ‘Crete’, or a homophone of ‘diss Crete’, depending on your spelling preference. |
29 |
In a heartless way, seized and released grouse |
|
GRIPED – GRIPpED. Or possibly GRIpPED. |
Down |
1 |
Day ultimately spent on wine and port |
|
MONTROSE – MON (day), spenT, ROSE. This clue confused me a bit because AFAIC MONTROSE is a wine, a chateau in Saint-Estephe that makes excellent, very long-lived wines. It’s also a port in Scotland. The connection between Bordeaux and British or Irish names is quite common: see Talbot, for instance, or Lynch-Bages. People often say Haut-Brion is a bastardisation of O’Brian but that’s probably a myth. |
2 |
I’m exasperated about nasty old lady |
|
HAG – reversal of gah! |
3 |
A barrel containing heaven-sent Adam’s ale? |
|
WATER BUTT – CD, ‘heaven-sent Adam’s ale’ here being rain. |
5 |
Happily, her malt is what can give winger a lift |
|
THERMAL – (HER MALT)*. |
6 |
Eusebio’s header fired up final for George Best |
|
ELITE – Eusebio, LIT georgE. |
7 |
Drunk quickly given the cold shoulder? |
|
KNOCKED BACK – DD. |
8 |
Tyrant has no power over explorer |
|
DE SOTO – DESpOT, O. A Spanish conquistador I hadn’t heard of. He was apparently the first European to cross the Mississippi, and was otherwise as hideously destructive as you’d expect. |
9 |
Jack up part of car that’s stuck on the road |
|
TARMAC – TAR (sailor, Jack), revesal of CAM (part of car). |
13 |
Seats held and carried by Labour? |
|
SEDAN CHAIRS – a CD, and a really excellent one. |
16 |
Errors I’ve rectified in VAT |
|
RESERVOIR – (ERRORS IVE)*. A great clue. |
17 |
Certain to tuck into boozy drink? Steady! |
|
MEASURED – MEA(SURE)D. |
19 |
Indian greeting celebrity holding short drink |
|
NAMASTE – NAM(ASTi)E. |
20 |
Flash bag holding one’s artwork |
|
MOSAIC – MO (minute, flash), SA(I)C. |
21 |
Top team occasionally ignored linesman |
|
TABARD – TeAm, BARD. |
23 |
Offender letting slip small secret |
|
INNER – sINNER. |
27 |
Little crash … pot kicked over? |
|
NAP – reversal of PAN. |
I didn’t know yer Mr Starmer, but got there anyway. And I’m surprised that you hadn’t heard of de Soto—so we’re even, ha.
It’s funny that Brits call the haircut by the name of a different Native American tribe from the one… Americans call it by. But I don’t know how Mohawks or Mohicans feel about it either way.
Allow me to ♥ your comment on the hidden-word clue.
Edited at 2021-06-27 04:28 am (UTC)
Along with the unknown ‘call’ HAO that turned up on Friday I now have GAH as an expression of exasperation to add to my list of 3-letter words never seen before.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilbert
Edited at 2021-06-27 07:19 am (UTC)
Namaste known from Indian restaurants amongst other things.
My first thought for 1a was UP (high) TOWN (Barnet) but I was saved by COD MONTROSE.
David
IM threw me too, but the anagrist was smoothed out without too much trouble when I came back to it with all the crossers in place
Slight MER at “Navy = SHIPOWNER”, as surely HMS means that the owner is actually Her Maj.
FOI STREAKED
LOI INSTANT MESSAGE
COD SEDAN CHAIR
TIME 14:54
Gill D
Thanks keriothe for the usual insightful blog and Mr M for a cracking example of the setter’s art.
FOI 6dn ELITE
LOI 25dn NAMASTE – different tribe of IKEAN Indians
COD 13dn SEDAN CHAIRS the ‘gull-wing’ version of what was my
WOD 8dn Hernando DE SOTO – who was well-known to me
Edited at 2021-06-27 05:11 pm (UTC)
DE SOTO I vaguely recalled, possibly from his later career promoting lateral thinking.
I think that’s nonsense. What’s the point of a blinking grid?
Edited at 2021-06-27 09:37 pm (UTC)
That said, if I’d noticed the ambiguity, I think I would have requested a change.
(This was in the course of dropping a note to the abovementioned Anna in which I am going to include the historical information you provided.)
But has it been changed? Keriothe said in the comments that he found GAH to be the “most natural” answer… OH, wait! I answered HAG myself in actually working the puzzle. That’s where I got the H in BRIGHT, of course.
I could delete this, but will leave it in for comic relief.
Edited at 2021-06-28 09:18 pm (UTC)
An enjoyable puzzle that I chipped away at across four shortish sessions yesterday, finishing with the clever WATER BUTT (took ages to see that second part) and the tricky to see and parse MOSAIC.
Messed up the parsing of MEERKAT – used a visual approach to the Spoonerism (“CAR MEET”, shifting the “KA” with the MEE) rather than the proper audio approach – basically because I haven’t heard of your latest Opposition leader
Was pleasing to see the Men at Work clue – for memories of wresting the ‘Auld Mug’ off the Americans for the first time and for seeing them as the ‘warm-up’ band at a gig at Latrobe University in 1980. when doing my post-grad study.