Times 27,125: Meet The Barents

Well, either I’m still jetlagged or this was a pretty tough week of Times puzzles: this was the third in the row to push my solving time over the 10 minute mark, and had the distinction of leaving me with nothing at all filled in during my first pass through the across clues. Fortunately the down clues proved a little more tractable, the first three going straight in, and much to my relief progress was relatively steady from there, all the way to my last one in at 15ac, the penny there finally dropping with a satisfying “ker-ching”. Although I have to admit to my science being so rusty that I found myself thinking that water was “hydrogen dioxide” for a little until I checked that up. Not quite as bad as killing yourself in a bar by ordering “I’ll have H2O, too”, I suppose.

Anyway, I liked this a lot, plenty of terse and misleading definitions blending smoothly into the surfaces of their clues. I liked the fun words at 1dn and 6dn and enjoyed both the elaborateness of wordplay at eg 9ac and 14dn but also the admirable simplicity of eg the Pancake Day cryptic def. Many thanks to the setter, and may I say how nice it is to be back doing crosswords on English soil?

ACROSS
1 Spirit rejected by chap getting extremely sick on port (8)
MURMANSK – reversed RUM [spirit], by MAN [chap], getting S{ic}K

5 Woodlouse, perhaps, one by flower in turf (6)
ISOPOD – I [one] by PO [flower (as in a river)] in SOD [turf]

9 Dog whacked, head dropping after a wallop (8)
AIREDALE – {t}IRED [whacked, dropping its head], after A, plus ALE [wallop]

10 Cheers Henry during defeats (6)
THANKS – H [Henry] during TANKS [defeats]

12 Bad toothache inviting depression and drink (3,9)
HOT CHOCOLATE – (TOOTHACHE*) [“bad”], “inviting” in COL [depression]

15 Water, perhaps, over by fish (5)
OXIDE – O X IDE [over | by | fish]. Water being a (mon)oxide of hydrogen…

16 Popular old writer stops for vacation in UK city (9)
INVERNESS – IN VERNE [popular | old writer] + S{top}S (getting vacated)

18 Method of choice covering a specific period (9)
OPERATION – OPTION [choice] covering ERA [a specific period]

19 Long story about End of Empire (5)
YEARN – YARN [story] about {empir}E

20 Antagonistic policeman bit criminal (12)
INCOMPATIBLE – (POLICEMAN BIT*) [“criminal”]

24 Ashen chief, one addicted to booze (6)
CHALKY – CH ALKY [chief | one addicted to booze]

25 Current craze feeding anti bombing rebellion (8)
INTIFADA – I FAD [current | craze] “feeding” (ANTI*) [“bombing”]

26 Bury unevenly in a little grave (6)
SOMBRE – B{u}R{y} in SOME [a little]

27 Sugar level: attempt to conserve energy (8)
FLATTERY – FLAT [level] + TRY [attempt] “to conserve” E [energy]

DOWN
1 Married wife and husband snatching a kiss, as announced (4)
MWAH – M W H [married | wife + husband] “snatching” A

2 Extraordinary results are rightfully examined — but only “firsts” (4)
RARE – R{esults} A{re} R{ightfully} E{xamined}

3 Stellar group along with US lawyer investing capital in Europe (9)
ANDROMEDA – AND DA [along with | US lawyer] “investing” ROME [capital in Europe]

4 Most of human body turning seriously ill with internal issues? (4-8)
SELF-CRITICAL – reversed FLES{h} [“most of” human body] + CRITICAL [seriously ill]

6 Mark given after school — zilch for numskull (5)
SCHMO – M [mark] given after SCH [school] + O [zilch]

7 Date for races when fast start anticipated? (7,3)
PANCAKE DAY – cryptic definition. A date for running Pancake Day races, on which Ash Wednesday, the start of the fast of Lent, is anticipated.

8 It spreads non-European pedestrians around (10)
DISPERSANT – (PED{e}STRIANS*) [“around”]

11 Established religious community on site of monastery overlooking loch (12)
CONVENTIONAL – CONVENT [religious community] on IONA [site of monastery] overlooking L [loch]

13 Understood old men fall apart (2,2,6)
GO TO PIECES – GOT O PIECES [understood | old | men]

14 Successfully defeat, without having caught every branch (4,1,5)
LIKE A CHARM – LI{c}K EACH ARM [defeat (minus C) | every | branch]

17 Where change in production is the norm (5,4)
ROYAL MINT – cryptic definition. The Royal Mint is in the business of producing (pocket) change.

21 Following change of heart, mother finds God? (5)
MAKER – MA{t->K}er [mother, changing its central letter to something else]

22 With due reference to speed (4)
PACE – double definition. We were talking about the pronunciation of PACE (first def) not that long ago, weren’t we?

23 Endearingly funny series of Tarzan? Yes (4)
ZANY – hidden in {tar}ZAN Y{es}