I don’t know what has happened to the blog but I’m preparing an emergency one
OK – now done. Sorry it’s a bit sparse. Help needed with 2D please
Across | |
---|---|
1 | MANITOBA – MANI(TO-B)A; thing=MANIA; perhaps from A=to B; |
5 | ALL,BUT – A(LLB)U-T; |
9 | MATRONLY – MAT-R-ONLY; |
10 | AMALFI – (c)A(l)M-(w)A(s)-L(i)F(e)-I(n); |
12 | PLAIN,CLOTHES – (hants police l=left)*; |
15 | LOLLY – LOLL-Y; dough=money=LOLLY; |
16 | RINGDOVES – RING-DO(V)ES; |
18 | CUPIDS,BOW – CUP-I’D-S-BOW; |
19 | SUSIE – S(tockings)-U(nderwear)-S(imple)-I(f)-E(x |
20 | GREENSLEEVES – GREENS-LEE-VES(t); old air is definition; |
24 | APOLLO – A(udience)-POLL-O; |
25 | A,GOOD,BUY – (do you bag)*; |
26 | DOTING – DO-TING(e); amended from comments; |
27 | ADJACENT – A-DJ-A-CENT; |
Down | |
1 | MEMO – hidden reversed (fr)OM-EM(ployment); |
2 | NATO – NA (sounds like nay)-TO(sounds like boot); from comments; |
3 | TROLLEYED – TROLL-EYED; old slang for drunk; |
4 | BILLIARD,BALL – BI(A-ILL reversed)RD-BALL; bouncer=cricket delivery=BALL: |
6 | LIMBO – LIM(B)O; B from B(rooks); LIMO is “no mini”; |
7 | BOLSHEVISM – (b movies)* surrounds L-SH; |
8 | TWIN,SISTER – TW(INSIST)ER(p); |
11 | ACKNOWLEDGED – (h)ACK-NOW-L-EDGED; L from (crimina)L; |
13 | BLACKGUARD – B-LACK-GUARD; |
14 | CLAPPED,OUT – two definitions; |
17 | DESDEMONA – (so amended)*; |
21 | NYLON – steel tower=pylon then change “p” to “n”; |
22 | ABLE – scoop=BALE then switch first two letters; |
23 | GYNT – G(leefull)Y-NT; |
Edited at 2014-02-21 02:20 pm (UTC)
Edited at 2014-02-21 03:01 pm (UTC)
Should have said thanks for concern – waters all slowly going down but the coastline is in a real state. Apparently Chesil Beach has nearly disappeared and the cliff face has collapsed at Bournemouth
Edited at 2014-02-21 02:53 pm (UTC)
Thanks for stepping into the breach, Jim.
Edited at 2014-02-21 02:09 pm (UTC)
29 mins, but with the last 9 of them spent staring at 24ac where I couldn’t see the definition or the wordplay for the life of me. When the penny finally dropped I gave a notional tip of the hat to the setter as I’d been misled by the TV references in both the definition and the wordplay.
I agree with the parsing of NATO above, and I had DOTING at 26ac with the same parsing as Olivia.
The anagram at 12 is very good indeed and I loved the troll-eyed drunk.
I have doting instead of dotant on the basis of tinge. I can’t see, Jimbo, where you get the final T from.
Oops, sorry, The posts above about doting came in while I was typing/watching the curling.
Edited at 2014-02-21 02:22 pm (UTC)
A “thing” is a MANIA – he’s got a thing about it. That surrounds “coming across” TO-B derived from (go) “from a to b” then the definition is “part of N America”. It’s a bit of a stretch in my view but very much sets the tone for a good puzzle
Thank you for the blog and thanks to the setter.
Nairobi Wallah
To be honest I didn’t relate to this crossword much. Too tricksy for me.
Edited at 2014-02-21 02:50 pm (UTC)
Edited at 2014-02-21 03:50 pm (UTC)
Edited at 2014-02-21 02:58 pm (UTC)
MATRONLY with the images it conjured up of Hattie Jacques was perhaps my favourite – even if I never properly got it.
1a is a swine, and I think “from A TO B” is what the setter must have intended, but I’m not impressed. Entered from checkers and “part of N America”.
Loved the “Programme targeting satellite” definition at 24, once disentangled from the rest of the clue. When will we see the like of Apollo again?
Around 20 mins for me, although about 3 or 4 of those were spent at the end trying to justify ABLE (got there eventually), but I also put MANITOBA in without parsing.
Lots of very cunningly hidden definitions requiring careful lifting and separating:
As good as
goldOld air
shelterProgramme targeting satellite
audienceObject to pot
boilerturningup to itI even liked 1ac.
Bravo setter, and thank you.
of baling out, a process that I hope that jimbo is not having to use.
PS not ABYE?
Edited at 2014-02-21 07:09 pm (UTC)
ABYE is an archaism. Clueing a Mephisto word with a Mephisto word would be, well, Mephistoish.
Edited at 2014-02-22 12:44 am (UTC)
Too tricksy for me today…only finished with the help of aids. Lots of aids…
(I’m a re-beginner. Yesterday’s was my first crossword in ages.)
I couldn’t parse Manitoba, NATO or Billiard ball but guessed them from definitions. I didn’t get Doting, Apollo or Able.
I really enjoyed the hidden definitions.
A.
But what a puzzle to come back to! Does your journey to work give you the opportunity to solve? There are many, many days when the task is much easier than today’s, but I trust no less satisfying.
A.
Edited at 2014-02-21 10:46 pm (UTC)
Didn’t particularly like DOTING. Yes, I know about dotage, but “doting”, for me, means fond. Purely a personal thing.
Edited at 2014-02-21 09:54 pm (UTC)
Woody Guthrie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaI5IRuS2aE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlbLs_bvimU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkAxuqrVNBM
Peer Gynt (incidental music by Grieg to Ibsen’s play)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdF988wIgUM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5M247MIarw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDi8Smb4KeI
I suddenly feel rather old.