Considering the number of bits and pieces I didn’t know, I was pleased to complete this in 31 minutes. Rather heavy on classical stuff and soap operas.
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]. I usually omit all reference to positional indicators unless there is a specific point that requires clarification.
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Across |
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| 1 | 1940s swinger‘s cheers returned by male police officer (6) |
| HEPCAT : HE (male), PC (police officer – Police Constable), TA (cheers) reversed [returned]. This is defined by Collins as obsolete slang – a person who is hep, esp a player or admirer of jazz and swing in the 1940s. ‘Hepcat’ may be obsolete, but ‘hep’ and ‘cat’ both survive in the context of music from that era so it was no great challenge to stick them together. | |
| 4 | Situation thus involving Asian country backed by church (8) |
| SCENARIO : SO (thus) containing CE (church) and IRAN (Asian country) reversed [backed] | |
| 10 | Recommendation of good Scottish priest born in Paris (9) |
| GUIDELINE : GUID (good, Scottish), ELI (priest), NÉ (born, in Paris). ‘Né’ is the male equivalent of the more familiar ‘née’ used when a woman has changed her surname. Men tend to change their surnames less often but you might see, for example, George Orwell (né Eric Blair). | |
| 11 | Student workers’ association given support on course (5) |
| TUTEE : TU (workers’ association – Trades Union), TEE (support on golf course) | |
| 12 | Mood palpably altered with two rooks in tree (8,6) |
| LOMBARDY POPLAR : Anagram [altered] of MOOD PALPABLY RR (two rooks – chess). I can’t say I knew this although I may have met it before. POPLAR as ‘tree’ stood out from the anagrist and the remainder just fell into place. | |
| 14 | Gunpowder constituent soldiers can put back at front (5) |
| NITRE : TIN (can) reversed [put back], RE (soldiers – Royal Engineers) | |
| 16 | Profusion of bakery product served during a social (9) |
| ABUNDANCE : BUN (bakery product) contained by [served during] A + DANCE (social) | |
| 18 | Paul was one, always carrying weapon (9) |
| EPISTOLER : E’ER (always) containing [carrying] PISTOL (weapon). Another word I didn’t exactly know but I am familiar with the The Epistles of Paul the Apostle so I didn’t take long to figure it out. In the long-forgotten days when he was still funny, Eddie Izzard used to do a very amusing routine on the subject of Paul and his epistles. | |
| 20 | Tragic day briefly captured in very old film (5) |
| VIDEO : IDE{s} (tragic day – for Caesar – Ides of March and all that) [briefly] contained by [captured in] V (very) + O (old) | |
| 21 | Stuck with animal coat, promises to pay, being very quick (4,3,7) |
| FAST AND FURIOUS : FAST (stuck), AND (with), FUR (animal coat), IOU’S (promises to pay) | |
| 25 | Revolutionary figure, one about to entertain team (5) |
| IXION : I (one) + ON (about) containing [to entertain] XI (team). Another unknown that was easy enough given a combination of wordplay and checkers. In Greek mythology Ixion was a king of Thessaly punished by being bound to an eternally revolving wheel in Hades. | |
| 26 | Shop assistant is large and extremely slothful, sadly (9) |
| SALESGIRL : Anagram [sadly] of IS LARGE S{lothfu}L [extremely] | |
| 27 | Residence of Catholic dignitary in charge of French island (8) |
| DOMICILE : DOM (Catholic dignitary e.g. Dom Pérignon), IC (in charge of], ILE (French island) | |
| 28 | 1 down’s circular hollow in TV soap, familiarly (6) |
| CORRIE : Two meanings. The first is a cross-reference to ‘Highlander’ at 1dn signalling a Scottish word. The second is a popular nickname for the TV soap Coronation Street which celebrated 60 years on air a few weeks ago. The actor, William Roache, who played Ken Barlow in the very first episode in 1960 is still in it! | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Eg native of Wick taking school exam without gain? (10) |
| HIGHLANDER : HIGHER (school exam) containing [without] LAND (gain – e.g. land a prize) | |
| 2 | Formal setting for a Trojan king (5) |
| PRIAM : A contained by PRIM (formal) [in a formal setting]. He features in the legend of the Trojan horse. A reminder of another excellent Izzard routine. | |
| 3 | Mean to declare advancing years? (7) |
| AVERAGE : AVER (declare), AGE (advancing years) | |
| 5 | Inexpensive headgear worn by ambassador (5) |
| CHEAP : CAP (headgear) containing [worn by] HE (ambassador – His/Her Excellency) | |
| 6 | Poet messed around with and getting writer’s block? (7) |
| NOTEPAD : Anagram [messed around] POET AND. At my school a ‘block’ was a pad of loose sheets of lined paper for preparation and presentation of work. | |
| 7 | Unemotional son leaves, given refresher course (9) |
| RETRAINED : RE{s}TRAINED (unemotional) [son – s – leaves] | |
| 8 | Outstanding work of Pindar possibly read aloud (4) |
| OWED : Sounds like [read aloud] “ode” (work of Pindar possibly). A Greek poet who wrote an ode or two, but was unknown to me. | |
| 9 | Sentence about everything a booby may produce? (8) |
| BIRDCALL : BIRD (prison sentence – slang), C (about), ALL (everything). Collins advises that a ‘booby’ is any of several tropical marine birds of the genus Sula: family Sulidae, order Pelecaniformes ( pelicans, cormorants, etc). I didn’t know that, but assumed it had to be a bird of sorts | |
| 13 | Insect I see around lakes at end of March? (10) |
| DEMOISELLE : DEMO (march), I, then SEE containing [around] L L (lakes). It’s a dragonfly. apparently. Another unknown. | |
| 15 | Neat cover for Indonesian island’s ethnicity (9) |
| TRIBALISM : TRIM (neat) contains [cover for] BALI (Indonesian island). Let’s move on… | |
| 17 | Smooth out articles in French about old card game (8) |
| UNRUFFLE : UN + LE (articles – indefinite and definite – in French) containing [about] RUFF (old card game). I ‘d never heard of the card game but I gather it’s of the whist variety. | |
| 19 | Some thought it a nice old vessel! (7) |
| TITANIC : Hidden [some] in {though}T IT A NIC{e} | |
| 20 | Retired priest is second to identify Puccinian style (7) |
| VERISMO : REV (priest) reversed [retired], IS, MO (second – wait a mo!). I knew the word but not its meaning in relation to music, but Wiki advises Verismo was a post-Romantic operatic tradition and Puccini was one of its leading exponents. I thought he just wrote good tunes. | |
| 22 | Like hooter US space administrators lacked at first (5) |
| NASAL : NASA (US space administrators), L{acked} [at first]. Hooter being slang for ‘nose’. | |
| 23 | Basket-maker, or provider of stockings in Albert Square? (5) |
| OSIER : {h}OSIER (provider of stockings) [in Albert Square]. Albert Square is the location of Eastenders, the cockerney soap opera in which heveryone drops their haitches. | |
| 24 | Look out! It’s planted with explosives, we’re told! (4) |
| MIND : Sounds like [we’re told] “mined” (planted with explosives) | |
I suppose this was a technical DNF as my LOI was OWED, and as I had never heard of Pindar I looked him up.
Again liked this very much. Good challenge and the rest of the unknowns were quite gettable.
Quite enjoyed it though
Thanks all