I would have come close to a PB with this puzzle, until I was slowed down by the 23d and 26a crossers, and 21a which required all the alternate letters in place before I saw what was needed. Two long anagrams can get you off to a fast start. I was a little uncomfortable with the definition at 21a.
EDIT: it seems I was lucky, or just on particularly good form, as most people below found this hard! It’s unusual for me to be speedier than most, but even a blind squirrel finds a nut now and then.
EDIT: it seems I was lucky, or just on particularly good form, as most people below found this hard! It’s unusual for me to be speedier than most, but even a blind squirrel finds a nut now and then.
| Across | |
| 1 | Fortunate I am on horse: no fun here on bike? (12) |
| COBBLESTONES – COB (kind of horse) BLEST (fortunate) ONES (I am, one’s). | |
| 9 | Chinese switch positions in capital (5) |
| HANOI – HAN for Chinese, O and I for off and on positions. | |
| 10 | Grasping toff has a heart of gold? (5,4) |
| MEANS WELL – MEAN (grasping) SWELL (toff). | |
| 11 | Driving competitively, squeezing teammate into roundabout, perhaps (8) |
| RALLYING – ALLY (teammate) inside RING = roundabout perhaps. | |
| 12 | Firm resistance: read all about it (6) |
| STURDY – R for resistance inside STUDY = read. | |
| 13 | Your extremely evil master’s twisted jesting (8) |
| DROLLERY – All reversed (twisting): YR (your) EL (ends of EviL) LORD (master). | |
| 15 | To be ranked worse than F went down badly (6) |
| GRATED – if you’re G RATED you’re worse than F. | |
| 17 | Perhaps designer garments last for one season — gets darker clothes (6) |
| DENIMS – E N the last letters of one season, inside DIMS = gets darker. | |
| 18 | Won’t share: had to drink initially enormous amount of alcohol (8) |
| HOGSHEAD – If you HOG sometning you’re not keen to share it; so HOGS = won’t share, HAD has E = initially enormous, inserted. A hogshead is a big barrel, its actual volume seems to depend on whether it is for wine, beer, or spirits. 54 gallons for beer, 63 for wine, usually. | |
| 20 | Memory returning, fool is in confused state (6) |
| MORASS – ROM (read only memory) reversed, ASS = fool. | |
| 21 | Frenchman’s duck, caught by a favourite opener (8) |
| APERIENT – a bit obtuse and my LOI. A PET = a favourite, insert RIEN which means nothing in French. An aperient is a laxative, hence an “opener” of a sort. | |
| 24 | Old browser I rejected as you are texting way ahead (9) |
| STEGOSAUR – ST (way, ahead meaning first part of the answer); EGO (I), SA (rejected as) UR (you are in text language). | |
| 25 | Having got bigger reaction to bad joke perhaps when broadcast (5) |
| GROWN – sounds like GROAN = reaction to bad joke. | |
| 26 | Going through endlessly harsh part of mountain, note it took its toll (6,6) |
| SEVERN BRIDGE – SEVER(E) = endlessly harsh, RIDGE = part of mountain, N.B. = note is inserted (“going through”). I had the bridge bit a while before seeing which bridge we were talking about. The first Severn Bridge was a toll bridge from its opening in 1966 to 2018 when it became “free to enter Wales”. | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Girl in school stuck with another (7) |
| COHERED – HER (girl) inside CO-ED (school). | |
| 2 | Having burned oneself very badly, an anxious case (6,2,6) |
| BUNDLE OF NERVES – (BURNED ONESELF V)*. | |
| 3 | Neglect to send out Times: they haven’t taken orders (5) |
| LAITY – LAXITY = neglect, remove the X = times. | |
| 4 | House not ever needed as college (8) |
| SEMINARY – SEMI (semi-detached house) NARY meaning never a one. | |
| 5 | Female avoiding wife’s state (4) |
| OMAN – WOMAN loses W for wife. | |
| 6 | Do they spread the cost of a superficial education? (4,5) |
| EASY TERMS – witty cryptic definition. | |
| 7 | Shy contender, he turned out founder of a dynasty (5,3,6) |
| HENRY THE SECOND – (SHY CONTENDER HE)*. First king of the House of Plantagenet, 1154 to 1189. | |
| 8 | You being laid in earth was excessively sickening (6) |
| CLOYED – YE = you inside CLOD = earth. | |
| 14 | Rock and roll single gripping me (9) |
| LIMESTONE – LIST (roll) ONE (single) has ME inserted. | |
| 16 | Composer’s astonishing feat, in captivating monarch (8) |
| COUPERIN – COUP =astonishing feat, ER = monarch, IN. French baroque composer, François Couperin. | |
| 17 | Prosecutor not to reveal being a silk (6) |
| DAMASK – DA (district attorney) MASK (not to reveal). | |
| 19 | Period of relaxation having taking a knock largely with alien invasion (7) |
| DETENTE – DENTE(D) = taken a knock largely, insert ET the usual ‘alien’. | |
| 22 | I hear you pulled up some more gorse (5) |
| ROGER – hidden reversed as above. | |
| 23 | Worry as distinct period of change announced (4) |
| FAZE – sounds like “phase” = distinct period of change. Collins gives FAZE: to disconcert, worry, disturb. I suspect many people use the word in this sense meaning worry thinking it is spelt ‘phase’. | |
Apart from that one, clues were hard but fair.
Hardest ive ever seen through to the end without giving up. Quite pleased with myself.
56 mins.
Congrats to Pip, I really struggled, thankfully like some others.
Will keep plodding on.
FOI DENIMS
LOI HOGSHEAD
COD COBBLESTONES
TIME 14:37
Still only half-completed after 45 minutes until COBBLESTONES hit me with four checkers (though I had initially thought 1d might be CLASSED). That more or less helped to complete the rest of the NW and I was just left with CLOYED, STURDY, FAZE and the impossible COUPERIN (who? — had to cheat with this as no idea) and APERIENT which I gingerly pieced together with a shrug.
Thx setter and blogger.
The w/p was tough to untangle in many places such as STEGOSAUR which together with the first half of the BRIDGE and FAZE were the three I didnt get.
Did get APERIENT from w/p and COUPERIN quite early but everything else was like pulling teeth. Thought of every crossword synonym for horse apart from COB; not sure I’ve heard of EASY TERMS; DROLLERY eventually constructed
I like a tough challenge but not sure I enjoyed this one too much
Thanks Pip and setter