Times 26547 – a melange

Author   piquetPosted on Categories Daily Cryptic
I found this a strange puzzle, because it offered a mixture of dead-easy quickie-type clues and much trickier ones which would have been hard to see without the checkers from the write-ins. With 1a and 1d going in immediately, followed by the next long one at 10d, I thought it was going to be a Monday-type stroll, but there were some more chewy items in store. Just over half an hour saw it done, with 2d my LOI from wordplay as the definition doesn’t seem to match the answer very well.

Across
1 SAMOSAS – SAMOS is the island, AS = for instance; D snacks. I’ve been on a few dozen Greek islands but not yet to Samos, birthplace of Pythagoras amongst other notables.
5 HARASS – HAR(T) = deer no end, ASS follows as the animal; D hound.
8 AIRSTREAM – AIRS = broadcasts, RE = about, AM = American, insert T (president finally); D current.
9 PIN-UP – PI = very good, holy, PUN = gag, reverse it NUP; D a beauty?
11 IVIED – I VIED = I struggled, D overcome by climber. A QC chestnut.
12 PARTIALLY – If I ALLY with a PART, I could be biased; D not entirely.
13 HARD CASH – HARD = firm, CA = not exactly, circa, SH = quiet; D money.
15 WANTON – If you WANT ON you keep desiring, D woman of easy virtue.
17 UPLAND – Hidden word in YO(U PLAN D)RASTICALLY; D rise.
19 MANDATED – a MAN DATED would be a fellow on a night out; D instructed.
22 TERRIFIED – TERRIE(R) is the tailless canine; insert I F(orce) and add D (dog’s lead) to the end; D trembling?
23 CONES – Alternate letters of C o O k N e E d S; D ice-cream containers.
24 REEVE – VEER = turn, ‘about’ means reverse it, add E end of case; D former official.
25 PHONE CALL – Anagram of LONEL CHAP, removing the Y being ‘no yen’; D communication.
26 XYSTER – X and Y are axes on a graph, STER(N) = mostly flinty; D tool for scraping (bones usually). I did somehow know this word, maybe from a previous puzzle or reading too many forensic pathology thrillers.
27 FALSELY – ‘London school’ in a crossword should make you go first to the LSE; Insert A LSE into FLY = cunning, D deceptively.

Down
1 SPANISH GUITAR – An elegant clue, if an easy anagram; (HARPIST USING A)*, D instrument.
2 MARDIER – RE I DRAM would be ‘concerned with a single tot’; reverse all; D rather spoilt. I knew MARD or MARDY means a bit soft, a Mummy’s boy perhaps, but I can’t see why it’s ‘rather spoilt’ as opposed to the comparative ‘more spoilt’? Discuss.
3 SITED – SUITED would be wearing formal attire, remove the U; D given position.
4 SHEEPISH – SHE = female, HE male, about = EH, insert PIS = SIP, drink, up; D shamefaced.
5 HOMBRE – Insert BR into HOME; D guy.
6 REPRIMAND – REP is a ccoarse material, RID = delivered, as in saved from, removed; insert MAN = piece; D carpet, tell off.
7 SINGLET – G o L d oddly = GL, after IN, inside SET = collection; D garment.
10 PAY AND DISPLAY – Well, you lay out cash, then you lay out your ticket; D car park.
14 CONFIDENT – CONFIT is a French ‘course’ well, a dish; insert DEN for study; D certain.
16 HANDS OFF – HANDS = presents, passes over; OF F = belonging to female; D don’t touch.
18 LARGELY – (ALLERGY)*, D to a great extent.
20 TINWARE – (I WANT)*, anagrind ‘kinks’, on = RE, D metal objects.
21 TIPPER – Tourist is TRIPPER, lose a R(upee); D he’s happy with the service?
23 CREEL – C = caught, REEL = angler’s equipment; container for fish.

68 comments on “Times 26547 – a melange”

  1. The first couple of verses just for the record. Although it’s comfortably post-1972 I think it’s a cracking song.

    Now then Mardy Bum
    I see your frown
    And it’s like looking down the barrel of a gun
    And it goes off
    And out come all these words
    Oh there’s a very pleasant side to you
    A side I much prefer

    It’s one that laughs and jokes around
    Remember cuddles in the kitchen yeah
    To get things off the ground
    And it was up, up and away
    Oh, but it’s right hard to remember that
    On a day like today when you’re all argumentative
    And you’ve got the face on

  2. Ah so the Arctic Monkeys are your bag.
    I see in Collins MARDY has two distinct meanings 1. spoilt (as a child) 2. sulky, irritable.
  3. Thirty-two minutes, which is about my average (as long as one ignores all the ones that take me significantly longer than that). I seem to have plateaued, time-wise, and will never join the ranks of those who regularly achieve sub-quarter-hour times.

    XYSTER was no problem but MARDIER was a definite NHO which I would never have got without all the checkers and the wordplay. I gave up trying to parse the Ikea clue at 6d, but apart from that things went remarkably smoothly.

    1. I suggest aim for 20 minutes. Quick enough so that you don’t feel your day has been too interfered with. Long enough so that you can enjoy the intricacies of probably the best cryptic crossword in the world. I have nothing but contempt for those who dash it off in double quick time. Well, and unbridled envy, of course.. but I do think they are missing something
  5. But I do aim for 20 minutes… it’s just that I almost invariably fail. But I agree about taking time to enjoy the puzzle – I always feel that I’ve got three times more value* out of mine than some of these speed-demons.

    (*or at least whoever I’ve stolen my copy from that day has had three times the value, by proxy)

      1. Scritti Politti still exist? Wow. I still have a vinyl copy of Cupid & Psyche somewhere. The Word Girl used to be the song every hi-fi store played to show off their £10,000 speakers.
  7. 10:16 – probably about as good as I can hope for nowadays for a reasonably straightforward puzzle like this one with no unknowns.

    The question is whether verlaine will show a dramatic improvement when he lays off the booze, or whether he’ll suffer from withdrawal systems? 😉

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