Solving time : 14:02 on the club timer, a steady but solid solve. On a first pass through the across answers I only managed three so I thought that it was going to be a tough one. Fared considerably better on the down answers and then managed to fill in the blanks – top right and bottom left first, then the opposite quadrants.
With two X’s and a J appearing quickly, I was on pangram watch, but I think there’s a few letters missing. There’s also some tricky wordplay, but for a change I think I’ve got everything, a massive relief on blog day.
Away we go…
Across | |
---|---|
1 | ANTIPASTO: A, NT(New Testament, books), 1, PAS and then the other set of books – OT reversed |
6 | JACOB: AC in JOB – I think this popped up in a Mephisto lately, that Jacob sold his birthright. |
9 | LEG SLIP: GEL reversed and the SLIP. Now if I was a massive pedant, I would say that a cricketer is a batsman, a bowler, a wicket-keeper, an all-rounder (or in my case a no-rounder), but I don’t think boys with bats, pads and boxes dream of playing leg slip |
10 | our across omission |
11 | WITHDRAWAL: anagram of (R,A,WIDTH) followed by WAL |
12 | FOOL: double definition |
14 | HANOI: H then reversed alternating letters in In Or NeAr |
15 | GALWAY BAY: ALWAY |
16 | DEGREE DAY: D,E (poorer classes) then GREEDY with A(top grade) inside. Not a term I was familiar with, but wordplay clear |
18 |
|
20 | BABY: A in B,B(Bees, say), Y |
21 | BOX SPANNER: or BOX’S PANNER |
25 | U(certificate), NEAR, TH |
26 | TROLLOP: sounds like TROLLOPE. As someone whose last name also sounds like another noun, I wonder if he was picked on in school while playing TIG? |
27 | DETOX: O,TED(chap) reversted, then X(by, think multiplication) |
28 | REPLY-PAID: REP, then P(soft) in (LADY,I)* |
Down | |
1 | AG(silver – shiny metal),LOW(blue) |
2 | TIG,H,TEN: haven’t thought about TIG as a game since the 70s |
3 | PILE-DRIVER: or PILED RIVER |
4 | SEPIA: 1 in APES reversed |
5 | OLD BAILEY: anagram of BOY ALLIED |
6 | JADE: I didn’t know the HACK definition (a worn-out nag) |
7 | CAR BOMB: the lead in pencils is made out of CARBON, take the end off it and add MB(doctor) |
8 | BIT PLAYER: 1 and PT(part) reversed in B,LAYER(film) |
13 | LABORATORY: A in LAB OR TORY(political dilemma) |
14 | HIDE,BOUND |
15 | GODMOTHER: GO(try), then (METHOD)*, R |
17 | GABFEST: spoonerism of FAB GUEST |
19 | FENELLA: EN(space) in FELLA |
22 | our downly omission |
23 | RAP(knock),ID(passport) |
24 | CRUX: CRU is the vineyard, and X is the opposite of tick |
NB George: at 15ac you may need “indeed” rather than “always” in the final brackets?
Why did I like this? No cryptic defs!
Edited at 2012-09-13 12:55 am (UTC)
Mostly very inventive and satisfying clues. I enjoyed it despite making heavy weather.
Edited at 2012-09-13 12:50 am (UTC)
The ones that really held me up were ‘Fenella’ and ‘box spanner’, although many were elusive. Non-cricketing Americans will have to think long and hard to get ‘leg slip’.
Well, correctly solved and 99% understood.
I can’t do these puzzles that are mean with pure anagram clues – is 5 down the only one?
On balance, I rather preferred yesterday’s, but vive la difference.
Brian Johnson always relished it when the captain brought a leg slip in, as he could then say, ‘There’s [Botham], waiting for a tickle.’
Edited at 2012-09-13 09:04 am (UTC)
Also I invented a SET SPANNER for 21 across which did not help matters.
Mike O
Edited at 2012-09-13 08:01 am (UTC)
The puzzle seemed to make out that it had some intricate wordplay in parts without ending up too difficult. I guess that was the sort of self-delusion that makes you think you have solved a corker of a clue when in reality it was probably signposted. ANTIPASTO, WITHDRAWAL, DEGREE DAY are all those sorts of clues.
Held up for a while by bunging in FLOELLA (I always assume that any unknown two letter word is a printing space!!) and thereupon struggling for the tool. When SPANNER came, FENELLA was obvious, although I would struggle to name anyone, including the example given above. Perhaps there should be an unwritten rule as with the dead people one that girl//boy/man etc should at least appear in the top ??50 names over the last decade (amend number to suit).
All in all a decent middle of the road grid. No complaints, but then again nothing amazing either.
On edit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gahoXXYLU98
Edited at 2012-09-13 09:00 am (UTC)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CK5VwuYGNY0&feature=related
!!
Those were the days.
Definition stretch of this ilk means that if you think Alumin(i)um is a shiny metal, then ALLOW might somehow mean “like radiator” – only just avoided. FOOL was so easy it was my last in – thinking wrong sort of sweet and “boil” rudely intruding.
CoD to TROLLOP: careful with the nudge nude stuff guy’s and gals, we’re in danger of becoming as rude as a Tim Moorey Sunday. A Spooner fan, GABFEST was tempting, but I’d venture that only one of the four words involved would ever have been on the great looter’s tips.
I failed to see the well-hidden “after too much” for “greedy”, so thanks for help with that one George.
Lots of good clues here I thought, and particularly some very inventive definitions. 11, 21, 22 & 26 were all excellent in this regard.
I didn’t know the song Galway Bay, but I remembered that the NYPD choir were singing it in The Pogues’ Fairytale of New York.
Thanks to George for explaining 1a. I coudn’t work out why OT was set. Should have been obvious, really.
For something completely different, here is Alan Bennett’s take on the story in Beyond the Fringe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOsYN—eGk
P.S. Nearly forgot – 23 minutes.
Edited at 2012-09-13 06:17 pm (UTC)
Indeed so, and that is what the clue says (it wouldn’t make sense with the “one” in the active sense)
The setter (who seriously regrets the lack of cryptic defs today :-))
It would have been funny if there were a bunch of cryptic definitions, as I think mctext, Jimbo and I are the ones who have the lowest tolerance of unoriginal cryptic defs, so back-to-back would have been worth the read.
Wonder why it took 18 hours to have ESAU pointed out.
However, I thought this was a most enjoyable puzzle with some splendidly inventive clues.