Times 29383 – Cryptic creep?

Author   vinyl1Posted on Categories Daily Cryptic

Time: 28:51
Music: Chopin Recital, Martha Argerich
Some solvers have said that the difficulty of these puzzles has increased of late, and I have found that true even of the Monday offerings.   As you can see from my time, it was not really hard, but there are some tricks here that require a little thought, particularly some of the literals.      I would have been faster if I had tackled the two long answers first and gotten a lot of useful starting and ending letters – they are quite easy for experienced solvers.    But it is highly likely that for most solvers, there is something here that you do not know.  I do not believe I have ever encountered imprest or pratie, and I had to work the cryptics to get them.
So what didn’t you know?
Across
1 Awe maybe after short time for cruel god (6)
MOLOCH –  MO + LOCH.   Yes, there is a Loch Awe; I’m surprised no one has used it before.
4 Make an error in space excursion? (4,2)
TRIP UP – Double definition, one from the Uxbridge.
10 Bits of holy text in old city guarded by special force (5)
SURAS –  S(UR)AS.   The Sumerians have deployed the Special Air Services to obtain verses of the Koran.   It’s complicated.
11 A new atomiser for perfume (9)
AROMATISE – A + anagram of ATOMISER, with perfume as a verb.
12 Language of the old man approaching John in greeting (7)
PAHLAVI – PA + H(LAV)I.   One of the Middle Persian dialects.
13 Self-important politician in middle of room probing matter (7)
POMPOUS – P([r]O(MP)O[m])US.   A busy cryptic that many solvers will just biff.
14 Attempt again diminished performer — one holding something back in theatre? (9)
RETRACTOR – RETR[y] + ACTOR.   Experienced solvers are always suspicious when the word theatre appears, and here their suspicions are justified.
16 Couple pinning medic, an idiot (5)
DUMBO – DU(MB)O.    Or a flying elephant, which would give the answer away.
18 Demonstrate quietly, wander here and there (5)
PROVE – P + ROVE, an escapee from the Quickie.
20 Seal fibre somehow in sculptural feature (3-6)
BAS-RELIEF – Anagram of SEAL FIBRE, which many will biff from the enumeration.
22 Permits variable amount of money to be loaned (7)
IMPREST – Anagram of PERMITS.  A rather obscure business term, which many solvers will just conjure up from the anagram letters.
24 Be right, holding rugger is for the heavy physical type (7)
BRUISER –  B(R.U. IS)E + R.
25 Cut hole in material that’s affected by the sun outside? (9)
TREPANNED –  T(REP)ANNED.
26 Commercial link-up that is needing external money (3-2)
TIE-IN – T(I.E.)IN.
27 Son conveniently near to provide drink (6)
SHANDY –  S + HANDY.
28 Regional potato dish containing rodent (6)
PRATIE – P(RAT)IE.  The Irish equivalent of tattie.
Down
1 Wrongfully grabs material possessed by girl (15)
MISAPPROPRIATES – MIS(APPROPRIATE)S.  Material as an adjective meaning pertinent.
2 The French quarter divided by river moving slowly (9)
LARGHETTO –  LA (R) GHETTO, a biff for classical music fans.
3 Idiot into sparkling wine and starchy food (7)
CASSAVA – C(ASS)AVA.
5 Back cure leaving knight ready for battle again? (7)
REARMED –  REAR ME[n]D.   Easily mis-parsed, but the answer is clear enough.
6 Greek character? Behold — half of his field is cut! (5)
PHILO – PHI + LO.   His field was PHILO[sophy], so the literal is a cryptic as well.
7 How to make pear juice for media meeting? (5,10)
PRESS CONFERENCE – PRESS CONFERENCE in the sense of a conference pear, a write-in if you have seen this pear before.
8 Queen and Country — first person to fall down (4)
RANI –  IRAN with the I moved to the end in a down clue.
9 Watery stretch coming from huge river in endless sweep (8)
BOSPORUS –  B(O.S. PO)RUS[h], a rather busy cryptic.
15 People with foreign character boarding vessels (8)
TIBETANS –  TI(BETA)NS.
17 Men hit sea — moving this? (9)
MAINSHEET –  Anagram of MEN HIT SEA.
19 Green Triumph car without top has this writer in (7)
EMERALD –  [h]E(ME)RALD.   I deduced the existence of the car from the obvious answer, and I was right.
21 Circle or something similar, mostly feature of Dartmoor? (7)
EQUATOR –  EQUA[l] + TOR.
23 Work of art that is, in part, second only to Raphael (5)
PIETA –  P(I.E.)T + [r]A[phael].   The Pieta, of course, is by Michelangelo.
24 Give warning about person close to relative (4)
BODE –  BOD + [relativ]E.

93 comments on “Times 29383 – Cryptic creep?”

  1. Had heard of IMPREST, because back in the day we had to file expenses into one, or out of one, or something. IMPREST ACCOUNT that is. I always thought it was a bit of in-house jargon. To all those who disliked this puzzle, I can only say that I disagree. But that is from the smug position of one who solved it easily enough in 13’26”. Wavelengths again. Even the obscurer answers I had vaguely heard of, so was able to piece together from the cryptic. MOLOCH was LOI and I am glad I paused, because my initial instinct was to spell it MOLOCK. But following the old axiom, if you can’t parse it … wait, I did – and the loch solution suddenly occurred. Many thanks.

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