49 minutes. Another mix of easy answers and occasional words or meanings bordering on the obscure, but on the whole I found it more straightforward than yesterday’s offering and I have no complaints. I wonder how others fared?
As usual definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in curly brackets} and [anagrinds, containment, reversal and other indicators in square ones]
| Across | |
| 1 | Overweight schoolboy without hesitation is hit with head (4) |
| BUNT – BUNT{er} (overweight schoolboy) [without hesitation – er]. Billy Bunter aka ‘the fat owl of the Remove’ in the stories of Greyfriars School by Charles Hamilton writing as Frank Richards. It was handy that I saw the wordplay immediately as I have never heard of BUNT which apparently is a variation on the better known ‘butt’. | |
| 3 | Scot gives audible greeting, having come down to meet the Queen (10) |
| HIGHLANDER – HIGH sounds like [audible] “Hi!” (greeting), LAND (come down), ER (the Queen) | |
| 9 | Saw male moving to the end, being given a new seat (7) |
| OTTOMAN – {m}OTTO (saw – saying) becomes OTTOM when the m (male) moves to the end, A, N (new) | |
| 11 | Traduced maiden being dismissed in a row (7) |
| ALIGNED – {m}ALIGNED (traduced) [maiden – m – being dismissed] | |
| 12 | Angel capturing devil — one getting rid of unseen irritation? (13) |
| BACKSCRATCHER – BACKER (angel – theatre sponsor), containing [capturing} SCRATCH (devil – aka ‘Old Scratch’) | |
| 14 | Fish getting round in sound deep down (5) |
| BASSO – BASS (fish), O (round). ‘Basso profundo’ is an especially deep and rich singing voice. | |
| 15 | The old woman hugging girl, one member of a second group (9) |
| MAGNESIUM – MUM (the old woman) containing [hugging] AGNES (girl) + I (one). Magnesium is a member of a second group in the periodic table of elements which consists of 18 groups, iirc. | |
| 17 | Shadows across TV malfunctioning — trouble finally located inside (9) |
| OVERCASTS – {troubl}E [finally] contained by [located inside] anagram [malfunctioning] of ACROSS TV. I think definition and answer need to be read as verbs for this to work. | |
| 19 | Self-identification of PM lacking energy and drive (5) |
| IMPEL – I’M PE{e}L (self-identification of PM) [lacking energy – E]. Sir Robert Peel was Prime Minister for two terms in the first half of the 19th century. | |
| 21 | I play and miss a bit, getting out — defensive quality needed (13) |
| IMPASSABILITY – Anagram [getting out] of I PLAY MISS A BIT | |
| 24 | Warning sign — British not wanted in charge of a country (7) |
| AMERICA – AM{b}ER (warning sign – in the traffic-lights sequence) [British – b – not wanted], IC (in charge), A | |
| 25 | Returning priest restricting sound of bells? That’s mean (7) |
| IGNOBLE – ELI (priest) containing [restricting] BONG (sound of bells) all reversed [returning] | |
| 26 | Mark and I celebrate the controversial work of Cecil maybe (10) |
| COLONISING – COLON (mark), I, SING (celebrate). I’m not sure that Cecil Rhodes’s work was considered controversial in his day and in his home country, but there’s been a lot of fuss about him in recent months. | |
| 27 | Spy bumping off a bloke (4) |
| GENT – {a}GENT (spy) [bumping off ‘a’] | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Disappointment twice overwhelms Times, recounted in detail (4-2-4) |
| BLOW-BY-BLOW – BLOW BLOW (disappointment twice) contains [overwhelms] BY (times) | |
| 2 | Discovers opponents of motion twitching inside (7) |
| NOTICES – TIC (twitching) contained by [inside] NOES (opponents of motion – as heard a lot in broadcasts from parliament in recent weeks) | |
| 4 | Outsmarting drunk, TT’s left one in a state of bliss? (9) |
| IGNORAMUS – Anagram [drunk] of OU{t}SMAR{t}ING [TT’s left]. Ignorance is bliss. | |
| 5 | Skill must follow explosive enthusiasm (5) |
| HEART – HE (explosive), ART (skill) | |
| 6 | Tahitian crime out of control — one can work out the figures (13) |
| ARITHMETICIAN – Anagram [out of control] of TAHITIAN CRIME | |
| 7 | What LSD offers ultimately? (7) |
| DENARII – Cryptic. In the former UK currency LSD stood for Librae, Solidi, DENARII aka pounds, shillings and pence. | |
| 8 | Regret about daughter having no manners? (4) |
| RUDE – RUE (regret) containing [about] D (daughter). An escapee clue from the QC perhaps? | |
| 10 | I’m no sceptic, troubled about delusion (13) |
| MISCONCEPTION – Anagram [troubled] of I’M NO SCEPTIC, ON (about) | |
| 13 | What’s the use of working? (10) |
| EMPLOYMENT – A cryptic question based on two meanings of the answer, ‘use’ and ‘working’. | |
| 16 | Good university post in a faculty of distinction (9) |
| GUSTATION – G (good), U (university), STATION (post). Not a word in my everyday vocabulary, this means ‘taste’. | |
| 18 | On the ground below end of lane, swine has food, burying head (7) |
| EPIGEAL – {lan}E [end], PIG (swine), {m}EAL (food) [burying head]. I never heard of this but was pleased to arrive at it via wordplay. | |
| 20 | Papa inclined to be accommodating (7) |
| PLIABLE – P (papa – NATO alphabet), LIABLE (inclined) | |
| 22 | Animals spotted on coast? They make an impression (5) |
| SEALS – Two defintions | |
| 23 | Refuse to walk endlessly (4) |
| MARC – MARC{h} (walk) [endlessly]. Left-overs from the wine-making process as met here very recently | |
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