As we move towards the World Cup, this was a puzzle of two halves; the first one making me think this was going to be a stroll, the second turning out to present unexpected difficulties (this may well turn out to be a close parallel with how England perform, based on other recent tournaments). End result: a rather uneven but quite respectable 19:17, possibly the equivalent of a score-draw with Uruguay. I’ll lay off the football analogies there, and move on to the actual answers.
Across |
1 |
ALL RIGHT – If nothing is left, then all must be right. |
5 |
RELIEF – [Large Island] in REEF. |
9 |
BIRDCAGE – BIRD (time, from the Cockernee Rhyming Slang “bird lime=time”), CAGE (John, composer of 4’33”). Birdcage Walk runs from Buckingham Palace to Westminster. |
10 |
DAMSON – DAM(mother), SON(child). |
12 |
DIVERSIONARY – VERSION in DIARY. |
15 |
NIECE – renegadE in NICE (respectable). My first stab was DAUNT, being accepteD plus AUNT, which was a perfect answer apart from the nagging doubt I had about aunts not necessarily being respectable, and – oh yes, it absolutely doesn’t mean “renegade”. As I say, otherwise perfect. |
16 |
MALFORMED – hidden in “aniMAL FOR ME Defines”. |
18 |
HINDSIGHT – (HIDTHINGS)*; the definition is easier to spot if you’re Scottish, being “ken after event”. |
19 |
DENIM – (MINED)rev. |
20 |
FRANCHE COMTE – (CATCHEROFMEN)*; a traditional province on the Swiss border – not the best known, I’d say, but given it’s an anagram and the several checkers, I’d expect it to be gettable even without knowing it already. |
24 |
EITHER – (RE: Hearts TIE)all rev. |
25 |
DIOGENES – OGEN(the sort of melon which isn’t honeydew) in DIES. Diogenes was a founder of the philosophy of Cynicism (which at that time meant something slightly more positive than it does now). |
26 |
HUNTER – double def., one the old-fashioned pocket watch, one the pursuer of game. |
27 |
STARLESS – South, TAR, LESS. A word which I can only hear in the voice of Richard Burton. “To begin at the beginning: it is spring, moonless night in the small town, starless and bible-black…” |
|
Down |
1 |
ABBE – Bishop inside ABE. |
2 |
LARD – vicaR inside LAD (groom as in stable lad). A somewhat risque surface. |
3 |
ITCHINESS – CHIN inside [1,TESS]. |
4 |
HUGGER MUGGER – HUGGER(one embracing) MUGGER(street criminal). One of those expressions I’ve heard, but never knowingly used. |
6 |
ERATO – (O.T. ARE)rev. The Muse of lyric poetry. |
7 |
INSTALMENT – [Lousy, ME(i.e. the setter)] inside INSTANT. |
8 |
FANNY ADAMS – I must confess the answer went in before I’d worked out the elaborate parsing: FAN(admirer), then [MAD(frenzied), AY(indeed)]rev. inside N,S. All meaning “nothing”, as per the story explained here. |
11 |
ISOLATIONIST – (LIAISONS,TITO)*. |
13 |
IN THE FLESH – I(current, scientifically), (FLEET,NHS)* Hospital. |
14 |
DEAN MARTIN – (Forest of) DEAN, MARTIN. |
17 |
OLD STAGER – Left in (DO)rev., STAGE(leg), Right. |
21 |
CRETE – CONCRETE minus the CON. |
22 |
ONCE – double def. |
23 |
ISIS – (1Succeeded)x2; the River Thames at Oxford. |
Good to see DIOGENES. He was arrested for (major charge) eating in the market place and (minor charge) “performing a lewd act” in the marketplace (14ac in Groan prize puzzle 26,274). Such were the mores of the time. At the trial, he is alleged to have said “Would that the former were as simple as the latter. Then I would simply have to rub my stomach in order to be satisfied”. Or have I got the wrong Diogenes? There were quite a few:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diogenes
On edit: yep … that’s the one. Diogenes of Sinope is the one known for his Cynicism and for flaunting his stuff in public.
Edited at 2014-06-03 04:34 am (UTC)
Not so good for me… no problem with FRANCHE COMTE, but had HUNTER and CRETE without parsing, and blanks at DIOGENES and ONCE. Who’d have thought there was another melon after galia, honeydew, cantaloupe, water…
I actually knew DIOGENES thanks to years of solving these puzzles. I liked 17D.
Our power is going off soon for the day as they repair infrastructure damaged by the floods. At least I shall escape all these irritating football analogies that are already driving me nuts before the wretched competition even gets underway
Or Charlie Parker?
I know what you’re thinking Munk1, I didn’t give it much thought either, and you’d be right.
Everything else 1ac. DIOGENES is the name of un camping Naturiste located improbably near Rickmansworth, probably named for the eccentric’s market place habit, or rather lack thereof.
I thought 25ac was a bit harsh: without knowledge of either the classics or unusual melons it’s impossible. The phrase ‘DIOGENES the cynic’ is wired into my brain but I’m not sure how it got there, or how G this K is these days.
Thanks for explaining 9ac, Tim. I thought BIRD was the composer and AGE was the time, and I couldn’t explain the C or make the thing work.
That looks a pretty good time but I did give 110% today and you can’t put in any more effort than that.
I went to the live show of I’m Sorry I haven’t a Clue last night where there was a good round of Uxbridge English Dictionary including Tamper – what you take your food in on a Yorkshire picnic, and Midwifery – part way through breaking wind.
Didn’t particularly like the vague STARLESS and ONCE – the sorts of solutions which don’t seem watertight and entirely depend on crossers for the decision to enter them.
Liked FRANCHE COMTE, which had me chasing anagrams in all the wrong places, and the well hidden MALFORMED. My COD to OLD STAGER.
The history of Fanny A was news to me, and interesting, thanks tim for the link.
Well late to this, but a nice one for me, 22 mins as well, so quite speedy.