Times 26236 – in “good” company

Author   glhPosted on Categories Daily Cryptic
Solving time : I got a few texts during this so the puzzle didn’t have my full and undivided attention, but when I hit the submit button at 17:36, I’m showing as one incorrect. I appear to be joined by at least one other regular blogger, so I can confidently say I biffed one in that turned out to be utterly incorrect and it was lazy solving on my part. Congratulations to all who actually figured out what was going on in 4 down before calling it quits.

Since I’ve been beaten I can say I think there is a plurality problem in 23 across, but the rest of the puzzle is firm and fruity.

Away we go…

Across
1 DECIMAL: LAD with MICE inside, all reversed
5 BURGESS: the spy was Guy Burgess, the author (notably of “A Clockwork Orange”) was Anthony Burgess
9 BRAINWASHED: B then an anagram of (IN,WAR,HEADS)
10 BAA: hidden in mamBA Appalling
11 NATURE: TAN reversed (to the left) then the river URE
12 INTEGRAL: a definition and two anagrams!
14 ROUND THE CLOCK: double definition, one slightly cryptic
17 LONG TIME NO SEE: L, ON, (MEETING,SO)*, (acquaintanc)E
21 PAINTING: AIN’T in PING
23 PINETA: N in PIETA. Wordplay crystal clear, but since ARBORETUM is singular, shouldn’t this be PINETUM or the definition be ARBORETA?
25 ASH: double definition
26 STICK INSECT: or STICK IN SECT
27 GARB,AGE
28 AUDITOR: ID(passport, say) reversed in AUTO(car), (borde)R Edit: I fluffed the parsing on a first version of the blog
 
Down
1 DEBUNK: DUNK(plunge) containing the first letters of Every Bomb
2 COASTER: double definition
3 MINOR SUIT: double definition
4 LEAD: I put LOAF and I bet I’m not the only one, but of couse this is a double definition as there is LEAD in the middle of a pencil
5 BEHINDHAND: or BEHIND HAND… maybe I messed up LEAD because I wasn’t expecting a third double definition in a row and here’s a fourth
6 RIDGE: Sally RIDE surrounding G(lobe)
7 EMBARGO: (AMBER)*,GO
8 SWAN LAKE: tricky clue this one – SLAKE(satisfy) containing(houses) WAN
13 ADAMANTINE: A DAME containing ANTI,(electio)N
15 CUSHIONED: (COUSIN,HE)* before D
16 SLAP BANG: both words that mean hit
18 NEITHER: 1 in NETHER
19 ELEMENT: double defintion, the ELEMENT being the water heater in a kettle
20 MATTER: double definition
22 TEST,A
24 OKRA: ARK,O(pen) all reversed

55 comments on “Times 26236 – in “good” company”

  1. Late solve but all correct at 40m so happy with that. No problems with LEAD or the spy as never thought of loaf or Maclean. Had same query with PINETA but entered with a shrug and had a HUM ( Held Up Myself) by entering OCRA which made the insect impossible. Finally light dawned and it fell into place. Good puzzle despite the multi-question marks and good blog too!
  2. Utterly defeated. I was off school on the day they covered PIETA and PINETA (although, oddly, I’m OK with ‘pineal’), and hence had no hope of getting 23ac. All attempts to combine “pi”, “kew” (the only small, vaguely arboretal word I could think of) and “n” ended in disappointment and implausibility.

    Not helped by 20d, which I also failed utterly to get. I’m still not convinced that “matter” is synonymous with “content”, or at least not clearly enough to decide between that and “factor”. However, as I failed also to think of “matter”, I guess the point is moot.

    I should have got MINOR SUIT, even with my limited familiarity with bridge. I did, however, not. Nor can I find a convincing excuse for failing on DECIMAL, LEAD and DEBUNK, other than general dimth on my part.

  3. 26:56. I quite enjoyed this, especially the double anagram at 12a and was pleased to get some pretty tricky clues. Luckily recognised ‘writer’ as being an implement in 4d; quite possibly a subliminal echo of Sotira’s pencil coming to my aid.

    Edited at 2015-10-22 10:24 pm (UTC)

  4. Not timed but fairly slow. Managed to get ‘lead’ correct, but failed by entering ‘factor’, which I think is, actually, as valid an answer,as ‘matter’ – so there.

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