Times 27945 – that’s life, China.

Author   piquetPosted on Categories Daily Cryptic
Middle of the week, middle of the spectrum for me, this one, it’s Wednesday fare once again. A good sprinkling of anagrams, a mainstream brand name, and nothing to scare the horses, I thought. For once, nothing sent me off into a WIki session or a rant. Thank you, Mr 1d.

Across
1 Like Urdu musical that’s turned round mood (10)
INDICATIVE – INDIC Urdu is an Indic language, EVITA musical reversed.
6 Love to form a bond that’s outstanding (4)
OWED –  O love WED form a bond.
10 Maybe charge writer in old case of sacrilege (7)
EXPENSE – PEN (writer) inside EX (old) SE (case of sacrilege).
11 The French state’s Eurosceptics (7)
LEAVERS – LE = the French, AVERS = states, verb.
12 Killer‘s aim with direct shot (9)
MATRICIDE – (AIM DIRECT)*.
13 Making a comeback, lives on energy drink (5)
PEPSI – PEP = energy, IS = lives, reversed. So brand names are allowed.
14 Picked out cape and stockings (5)
CHOSE – C (cape) HOSE (stockings).
15 Feeling life, say, or time is overwhelming one (9)
SENTIENCE – SENTENCE (time in jail) insert I for one.
17 Must those who don’t know the score do so? (5-4)
SIGHT-READ – &lit slightly cryptic definition.
20 Faithless fellow’s missing at job (5)
HEIST – ATHEIST loses AT; criminal job.
21 Sign in book store missing line (5)
LIBRA – LIBRARY loses RY for railway line.
23 Popular artist in funky blues allowing cover (9)
INSURABLE – IN (popular), (BLUES)* with RA inserted.
25 He composed line in exam papers the wrong way (7)
VIVALDI – VIVA (exam) ID (papers) the wrong way = DI, insert L (line).
26 They soothe a temperature, tucking into round pastries (7)
OPIATES – O (round) PIES (pastries) insert A T. Soothe is a bit of an understatement.
27 Inspired, Dante pens literary collection (4)
EDDA – hidden as above.
28 School now, then this? A learner’s acting alone (10)
UNILATERAL – after school we go to UNI(versity) LATER, add A L(earner).

Down
1 The setter shows contentment in supporting structure (1-4)
I-BEAM – I BEAM, I smile. I am the setter.
2 A pair of characters in lower hot pants (9)
DIPHTHONG – DIP (lower) H (hot) THONG (pants, skinny form of). For a change, pants means pants.
3 Convinced India and China in secret (14)
CONFIDENTIALLY – CONFIDENT (convinced, as in “I am condifent that…”) I (India) ALLY (china, mate).
4 Where diggers work with spades — it’s awful (3,4)
THE PITS – Diggers work in THE PIT, S for spades.
5 Peasant‘s home south of foreign town (7)
VILLEIN – VILLE French for town, IN = home.
7 Drop litter with domestic servant (5)
WHELP – W (with) HELP (the help = domestic servant).
8 Involved in non-conformism, I would … be this? (9)
DISSIDENT – DISSENT being non-conformism, put I’D (I would) into that to get DISSIDENT
9 Player of instruments interpreted disco hit, right? (14)
HARPSICHORDIST – HARPS (instruments) (DISCO HIT R)*. Took me a mo to see that the definition was not “player of instruments”.
14 Corrected vice with least resigned phrase (4,2,3)
CEST LA VIE – (VICE LEAST)*.
16 What may be tense in Linear B — it’s translated (9)
NAILBITER – (LINEAR B IT)*.
18 Inciting rebellion, no small issue (7)
EDITION – SEDITION = rebellion, lose the S.
19 Oddly, dress Penny with possibly crude sack (7)
DESPOIL – Alternate letters of D r E s S, P for penny, OIL possibly crude.
22 Some stock book by Latin poet (5)
BOVID – B (book), OVID. Bovids are any members of the Bovidae family of ruminants.
24 Stand or move gently left (5)
EASEL – EASE (move gently) L (left).

​

47 comments on “Times 27945 – that’s life, China.”

  1. I enjoyed this. Took forever to see HARPSICHORDIST after trying, when I had fewer checkers, to go for SOUSAPHONIST or FLUGELHORNER or ALPENHORNER (but I couldn’t think of candidates with enough letters). I struggled with OPIATES too since I as sure that the AT was going in early, since there seem to be a lot of oat-based masks, which fits “soothing” rather better than the actual answer.

    We have had brand names before. One particularly memorable one was RAWLPLUG ages ago, since outside the UK I don’t the company exists, although obviously similar products do…so PEPSI is a lot fairer.

  2. I wasn’t particularly pleased to see PEPSI (not particularly pleased to see Pepsi, for that matter). Made the mistake of biffing SENSITIVE–another biff-now-come-back-later mistake–until I finally got NAILBITER. HARPSICHORDIST was my LOI–I was trying to come up with an XHORNIST–and I didn’t parse it until after submitting.
  3. 32 minutes. I wasn’t entirely sure of INDIC (like Urdu) but it had to be. Similarly BOVID as opposed to the more familiar ‘bovine’.

    Edited at 2021-04-07 05:16 am (UTC)

  5. I found that entertaining with no dubious definitions.
    Thanks, Pip, for DIPHTHONG, DISSIDENT and HARPSICHORDIST.
    LOI: DIPHTHONG/SIGHT-READ. I’m sure, like others I thought “hot pants” meant an anagram of “hot”
    My first effort at 15ac was SENTIMENT.
    COD: SIGHT-READ.

    Edited at 2021-04-07 06:24 am (UTC)

  6. At 15a I was sure early on it had to be SENTIMENT or SENSATION. Both words for feeling. But I couldn’t justify the wordplay, and (for obvious reasons) my trial insertions of the first letters didn’t give me any confirmation.
  7. I was clearly on the wavelength for this, finishing with a top 10 time for me. Like Jack, I hesitated over BOVID and INDIC, but the constructions left little doubt.

    Thanks, Pip, for the clear and timely blog.

      1. Thanks and, yes, I had noticed :-). I was a bit surprised not to see some faster times posted overall.
  8. Much of my time was spent in the NE corner finishing with a biffed DISSIDENT, where I couldn’t fathom the parsing and which I feared might lead to the dreaded pink squares. Like Pip and I expect many others, I thought the definition for HARPSICHORDIST was “Player of instruments”. Thus once I had sorted out the anagram part I was bemused as to where the HARPS had come from. Nice piece of misdirection and for that my COD.
  9. My sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk,
    Or emptied some dull Opiate to the drains

    25 mins pre-brekker. Is it just me or do these jar slightly?
    The apostrophe in state’s to get aver’s.
    The ‘in’ and apostrophe combo in 16dn.

    Thanks setter and Pip.

    Edited at 2021-04-07 06:56 am (UTC)

  10. No difficulties today … well apart from solving on my phone for the first time as my internet was down (my satellite connection was obviously blocked by the dark snow clouds … we have a dusting of snow everywhere).
  11. I BEAM, since no feathers DESPOIL
    Today’s cruciverbalist toil
    As they CHOSE erudition
    In the Wednesday EDITION
    Not the creatures that make my blood boil

    Edited at 2021-04-07 08:59 am (UTC)

  12. 19.48, so stickier for me, and I finished in the top left corner as they pretty much all resisted.
    That meant I didn’t really get round to parsing DIPHTHONG, imagining the setter thought a thong and hot pants were equivalent and thinking s/he may not have been around when hot pants were in vogue.
    I liked the UNI LATER device, and Pip’s exemplary neat and tidy blog.
  14. Hesitated for a while over MATRICIDE, even though I’d figured out the anagram, as I didn’t know that it can be the killer as well as the act. VILLEIN was vaguely remembered but helped a lot by the wordplay, and I biffed HARPSICHORDIST and THE PITS once the checkers were in, so thanks for the explanations. Otherwise this was fairly straightforward and I was done in about 15 minutes.

    FOI Expense
    LOI The pits
    COD Confidentially

    1. Two of the constants in Times crosswords for as long as I can remember are that brand names appear, and people are surprised when they do.

      Edited at 2021-04-07 08:38 am (UTC)

  16. 34 minutes with LOI HEIST. I liked some but not all. Good: SIGHT READ, INDICATIVE, DIPHTHONG and COD UNILATERAL. I wasn’t so happy with HARPSICHORDIST and THE PITS. I mean, what else would she/he be playing and diggers could surely already be working in more than one pit. But a decent puzzle overall. Thank you Pip,and setter.
  17. 14:07 A steady solve finishing with PEPSI and DISSIDENT which I’d left out earlier until I saw the parsing. I enjoyed the image of the HAPSICHORDIST SIGHT-READing VIVALDI in THE (orchestra) PITs.
  18. Long delays to the East, as I tentatively put in DISSENTER, though at the time, I went through the process of thinking “that doesn’t really work, it’s either an incredibly weak clue or I’ve missed something”, and suspecting that the latter was, as usual, far more likely. As a result, couldn’t get PEPSI or see past SENTIMENT (same thought process as above). All disentangled in due course.
  19. 10:27. By far the most trouble in the NW corner, where I found the hardest clues and also somehow mentally switched ‘town’ for ‘house’ and put in VILLAIN, making the killer tricky.
    1. I started with VILLAIN too, but then I remembered what the Cambridge Professor of Medieval Studies said:
      Oh it’s written in the village rolls
      That if one plough-team wants an oxen
      And that oxen is lent
      Then the villeins and the ploughmen got to have the lord’s consent
  20. Way off (I) beam today. Work is too much of a distraction, though was pleased to get HARPSICHORDIST with just the second H in place.

    After a very slow start, things didn’t really speed up at all.

  21. I thought this was excellent, finding myself pulling out of several rabbit holes, including sentiment as above. This was one of those where you get the answer and then work out why. Fortunately there were enough Quickie clues to keep me going.
    COD HARPSICHORDIST
  22. I-BEAM, EXPENSE and THE PITS went in easily enough, but the rest of the NW resisted and I came back to it after dealing with the rest of the puzzle. Didn’t have too much trouble there,but NAILBITER resisted for some time, as did UNILATERAL. Back in the NW a postulated VILLEIN allowed me to see MATRICIDE and EVITA recalled, and I then saw CONFIDENT to add to my Indian friend. That left me to fill the gaps in 2d, which I did with a thong in my heart. 30:05. Thanks setter and Pip.
  23. …though that is a bit heavy for a certain frustration I felt with this one, finally solved in 29’29.
  24. so either I’ve lost a lot of marbles overnight or just off wavelength.
    Never sussed out 18d (S)edition, so thanks for that.
    Andyf
  25. A solid puzzle, only — but substantially — delayed by putting the unlikely TOP SOIL for THE PITS (OP + S inside TOIL), an ingenious answer that suffered the unfortunate handicap of being completely wrong. 25m

    Edited at 2021-04-07 10:58 am (UTC)

  26. 35m today, held up in the north east by entering a lazy VILLAIN, but eventually saw the error. I enjoyed this puzzle, as I felt I would eventually get there, despite having to untangle some clever wordplay such as 14d ‘resigned phrase’ and 2d. So thank you, setter, for the challenge and also Pip for the enlightment.
  27. Another unaided finish, very satisfying whatever my time, although for me it’s always productive to leave the grid for a few minutes and come back to it.
    Like others I was seduced down a rabbit hole for 15ac ( my drug of choice was sensation) until I got the 16dn anagram.
    A linguistic theme today. As a Spanish learner/struggler the subjunctive v. indicative mood is a challenge.
    Interested to hear of trade names being acceptable . I was biffing in lassi as the only drink I could think of ending in I. Knew it was wrong so why can’t I just dismiss the thought?…

    Wonder if ‘the pits’ entered common usage after J. McEnroes outburst?

    This was a good all round work out for me , COD 25ac.

    Thank you for the always informative blog, and to the setter.

  28. Except for “Edda” which was clear from the clue but unknown to me.
    At least today’s composer was a well-known one.
    Thanks for the blog.
  29. Solid today after no fewer than three mistakes yesterday. Took me far too long to see NAILBITER and SENTIENCE, my LTI. Good stuff overall.
  30. 16.25. FOI owed, LOI I Beam which even after seeing the explanation doesn’t strike me as one of the Times Crossword greatest hits.

    Otherwise a fair test with lots of good cluing.

    COD indicative .

    Thanks setter and blogger.

  31. 44:09. In 1ac DNK INDIC but later with the crossers there were only two gaps to fill once I’d seen EVITA (though actually I never have). A good workout. COD to UNILATERAL
  32. ….with some really good clues, but spoiled by the tooth-grinding occasioned by PEPSI (yuk !) and SIGHT-READ (barely cryptic).

    INDICATIVE, CONFIDENTIALLY, and DISSIDENT (very clever once I grasped it) all parsed afterwards

    FOI OWED
    LOI CONFIDENTIALLY
    COD VIVALDI
    TIME 11:42

    Edited at 2021-04-07 04:37 pm (UTC)

  33. 21.03. Hesitated at the end over harpsichordist because I couldn’t see how the harps came in and wondered whether there wasn’t another type of -sichordist that was a better fit. State’s for avers seems a bit off. Liked the rest.
  34. A fairly routine affair but I also baulked at the vanishing apostrophe in “avers” and think that adding question marks to clues that are just badly constructed (e.g. for the unwanted “of” in the clue for “harpischordist”) really shouldn’t get them past the editor.
  35. Less a DNF – more a never got started on this one. I’ve got a lot to learn…

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