Solving time : 24:31, slightly distracted by texts coming in, though I don’t think it would have been much faster if I was solving in a vacuum. In the end it was knowing the letters left to get to a pangram that helped me piece together my last one in (6 down).
There’s some really tricky wordplay in here, and a few clues that I’m not sure if I’ve parsed them correctly or not, so I’m calling this a bit of a challenge.
Just like the surfer yesterday, there’s a sneaky device we don’t see often in 2 down, but I liked it a lot.
Away we go…
Across | ||
---|---|---|
1 | AVOWED: OVA reversed, then WED (middle of the week, which we just passed, woohoo) | |
5 | BELL JARS: ELL(measurement), J(uice) in BARS. Use one to cover your experiment, or trap gases | |
9 | ENGAGING: double definition, winning meaning personality-wise here | |
10 | UNCLAD: got this from definition, but now I see it – the painter is MUNCH – chop his extremeties off (that might make him scream), and add LAD | |
11 | MAKE AMENDS: K |
|
13 | PEEK: PEKE with the last two reversed | |
14 | KISS: SKIS with the first S moved to the end | |
15 | ACCOUNTANT: I think this is ACCOUNT(consider), A(start of Audit), NT(books) | |
18 | REVOLUTION: very clever anagram of (INTO,LOUVRE) | |
20 | COW,L | |
21 | SPOT: TOPS(adds finishing touches to, like a cake), reversed | |
23 | EXPRESSWAY: another I got from definition originally, it’s EX, then P |
|
25 | HORACE: HOAR without the A, then ACE | |
26 | VERACITY: little Americana here – ER is in Richmond, which is a VA CITY | |
28 | CON,FUSED: I like FUSED as “liable to explode” | |
29 | let’s leave this one off the acrosses | |
Down | ||
2 | VANDALISE: to make a case you need V AND ALISE | |
3 | WEAVERS: anagram of (WEAR,VES) | |
4 | DAI: hidden reversed alternate letters in pIcArDy | |
5 | BE,GUN | |
6 | LOUIS QUINZE: QU,IN in (SIZE)* after LOU |
|
7 | JACKPOT: JACK, then POT reversed (I left this off originally, sorry about that) | |
8 | READE: sounds like READ(book), as in “it’s a good read”. Charles Reade | |
12 | MEASURELESS: more intricate wordplay – URE in MEASLES,S | |
16 | Let’s leave this one off the downs | |
17 | NEWCASTLE: (CELT,WAS)* in NE | |
19 | OUT(not allowed) HALF(beer) | |
20 | CASH COW: CA(accountant, from 15), then C in SHOW | |
22 | PROMO: best I can make from this is OM (half of ROOM) in PRO(high point) with the definition “video”. Edit: see vinyl1 below – half of PROMOntory | |
24 | PAVED: VE in PAD | |
27 |
|
However, I did understand the cryptic to 22 – it’s simply half of ‘promontory’, which is a high point.
I do like puzzles like this, they give me a lot to think of and a lot of time to think about it. The ‘veracity’ clue is very deceptive, since the Richmond in the UK is associated with royal doings. I really liked ‘expressway’ and ‘measureless’, too….somehow I was already thinking of Coleridge.
Too many solutions were entered without full wordplay understanding for my liking – I must thank George and vinyl for the lowdown on four clues – for this to be fully enjoyable. I very much enjoyed SPOT, though.
It’s enough to drive a rugby fan to drink. Not a long drive, admittedly.
And to Vinyl1, as a matter of interest what are the ‘royal doings’ you refer to in connection with Richmond,UK?
There were some nice cryptics here – 2, 26 and 28 in particular – but they all had dead giveaway definitions.
No aids apart from confirming that OUT-HALF existed. It’s in Collins too. The only HALF position I knew was FLY but the French revolution did for that so it was a toss-up between OUT and OFF.
My problem accessing LJ returned yesterday evening but seems to have solved itself over night. At least this time my ISP reported they had the same difficulty. If any contributors noticed anything, please let me know, though I imagine there would have been little traffic here by that time.
COWL was last in, as I struggled to think of it as a form of protection, and I still think it’s very loosely defined thus. I couldn’t work out where the V in VERACITY came from, undone again by not thinking State (or in this case Commonwealth) capitals.
Grumbles (or perhaps grudging admiration for deviousness) aside, I relished VANDALISE, my CoD, and was relieved to discover that I DID know a Norwegian painter after all.
I was also slightly held up by putting in FETCHING at 9a (albeit with a ?), and had a couple in on the literal alone, eg VANDALISE, LQ and EXPRESSWAY. I parsed 12a as Ulaca, with KE(N).
Didn’t realise this was a pangram, but sadly this wouldn’t have helped…all the letters missed out were already in!
Thanks for clear explanations, definitely needed it today!
Got UNCLAD from definition, never heard of MUNCH. I don’t think 15A really works, it’s just obvious from general theme and checkers. VERACITY is truthfullness and comes from veracious which means truthful – “it’s true” isn’t good enough. Never heard of the rugby player.
Liked the anagram at 18A. 25 irritating minutes to solve.
PS
Last in was KISS, which I didn’t understand, so particular thanks for that.
Today’s only unknown was OUT-HALF, where a complete absence of any rugger knowledge was probably helpful.
Charles Reade has appeared very recently. My memory was aided by the lovely phrase quoted by kororareka: “unsurpassed in the second class of English novelists”.
I had the same query about VERACITY but justified it to myself on the basis that VERACITY is “true” in the sense of “reliable”. Hmm.
Parsed SPOT as S=finishing touches, POT=rolls, as in rolls of fat, as in pot belly…??? Geez, it’s looking worse the more I try to explain it. As I said, a very fortunate finish.
Tom B.
I didn’t understand 15 before coming here, and I’m not sure I’m much clearer now. I’ve never heard of an OUT-HALF (my last in). I didn’t twig the painter -UNC- at the time, but twigged a bit later on. I failed to spot the pangram, as well, which might have saved me some time.
Some good clues – 2 stands out, but COD to 18 for the neat anagram.
All of which, I submit, your honour, is why this normally most conscientious of solvers (look, I’m being a lawyer – that lot define ‘veracity’ as ‘keeping a straight face’) bunged in PHOTO without bothering to think about it.
Otherwise, around 21 minutes for a good puzzle with dodgy bits.
Returned about 20 years after leaving only to find said village had become a huge modern housing estate – very sad indeed
Horse in the garage? My work would sometimes take me down to parts of ‘the Forest’ (of Dean) where the answer to “Why is there a goat in your living room?” was “Kitchen’s full.”
….surely KISS and EMBRACE are different things. Even if we are talking figuratively ie pool balls or things touching, I cannot see that the concepts overlap. One has an element of enveloping the other of slight touching.
It was however a fairly high quality puzzle so thumbs up.
And I’ll fix KEN too – the state I was in while writing last night made me read it as “disemboweled”
Range of knowledge = ken : deficient = short : thus ke.
‘Deficient’ wouldn’t instruct me to disembowel ‘knowledge’.
Louise
Incidentally, in researching other Newcastles, I googled Newcastle Down. Lots of football related results came up.