| Time: 25 minutes
Music: Beethoven, Symphony #3, Bernstein NYP Yes, I was checking to see who was blogging the Quickie today, and I saw my own name as the daily puzzle blogger. I probably would have remembered sooner or later, since if I’m not blogging Mephisto, I must be blogging the daily. This puzzle should not have been that hard, but a number of clues required a little thought. I only got two across clues on first read, so I started my solve there and gradually spread out. I should have seen ebb and flow, and planking, much sooner, but on the other hand I recognized showground as a reverse cryptic immediately. Most experienced solvers should have little difficulty. Across |
|
| 1 | Lay out papers, receiving pound: great! (8) |
| SPLENDID – SP(L)END + I.D. | |
| 9 | In full gear he commonly told a joke (8) |
| EQUIPPED – ‘E QUIPPED. | |
| 10 | Climb awkwardly missing large raised curve (6) |
| CAMBER – C[l]AMBER. | |
| 11 | Throaty sound on apple heard, a bird (10) |
| KOOKABURRA – KOOKA, sounds like cooker in some strange dialect, + BURR + A. | |
| 12 | Thoughtful character (4) |
| KIND – Double definition, the easy sort I can never get. | |
| 13 | Do better to speak formally after email fails (10) |
| AMELIORATE – Anagram of EMAIL + ORATE. | |
| 16 | Father lacking in delicacy and nimbleness (7) |
| AGILITY – [fr]AGILITY. | |
| 17 | Most painful infection just starting in a breast (7) |
| ACHIEST – A CH(I[nfection])EST. | |
| 20 | Who’s suggested an outdoor arena? (10) |
| SHOWGROUND – Reverse cryptic – SHOW GROUND is a clue for WHO’S. | |
| 22 | One endless hoo-ha about devout Muslim (4) |
| SUFI – I + FUS[s] backwards. | |
| 23 | One turning over dough is very rich and secure (7,3) |
| ROLLING PIN – ROLLING + PIN, in entirely different senses. | |
| 25 | Finally without appeal, he had paid a percentage (6) |
| TITHED – [withou]T + IT + HE’D. | |
| 26 | Supports us with cheers during lapses (8) |
| SUSTAINS – S(US, TA)INS. | |
| 27 | Anti-communist union lacks a Republican firmness (8) |
| SOLIDITY – SOLID[a,r]ITY, the Lech Walesa group. | |
| Down | |
| 2 | Smoothing round knot, not missing floorboards (8) |
| PLANKING – PLAN(K[not])ING. | |
| 3 | Fan wobbled badly in alternating motion (3,3,4) |
| EBB AND FLOW – Anagram of FAN WOBBLED. | |
| 4 | Much of the universe not seen to be important after nightfall (4,6) |
| DARK MATTER – DARK + MATTER, once again in entirely different senses. | |
| 5 | Loved to hold me up and put down (7) |
| DEMOTED – D(ME upside-down)OTED. | |
| 6 | A slander upset assembly (4) |
| DUMA – A + MUD, all backwards. The Russian parliament. | |
| 7 | Ancient kingdom, not all in South Africa (6) |
| SPARTA – S(PART)A. | |
| 8 | Next US prosecutor turns judge with a little money (8) |
| ADJACENT – D.A. backwards + J + A CENT. | |
| 14 | Subordinate working as detective, talent almost wasted (10) |
| INCIDENTAL – IN C.I.D. + anagram of TALEN[t]. | |
| 15 | Put back in control over situation, died (10) |
| REINSTATED – REIN + STATE + D. | |
| 16 | Swearing about regular instalments of satire not being easy to get (8) |
| ABSTRUSE – AB(S[a]T[i]R[e])USE. | |
| 18 | Peter to install something reliable for party (4,4) |
| SAFE SEAT – SAFE + SEAT, as in seating a valve. | |
| 19 | Excel, almost certain to involve a teammate (7) |
| SURPASS – SUR[e] + PASS, as in football or basketball. | |
| 21 | Solemn and old, want to keep lucid in the head (6) |
| OWLISH – O + W(L[ucid])ISH. | |
| 24 | Type of film that doesn’t use infrared? (4) |
| NOIR – NO I.R. | |
14’17”. I was going to ask if Sparta was a kingdom, but I checked and it was. Technically an oligarchy, but with two hereditary kings. This all came pretty easily. Slowed down slightly by wanting IMAM for the devout Muslim. But it would have meant there being a word MAM* meaning hoo-ha. Many thanks.
Did far better than usual on this one, as I decided not to try and finish it before I started my (busy) day, but to savour it over two days…which meant my subconscious was working away at the blank spaces , and the clues practically fell in! Only unknown was DUMA, and last one in was the second half of SAFE ?E?T. Had to cheat for SHOW GROUND, however ( which was before I decided to relax and enjoy it. COD to NOIR.