Solving time: 45 minutes
Very enjoyable but tough with some tricky definitions and wordplay. Just as I thought I was about finish at around half-an hour I hit a wall in the NE corner and needed another 15 minutes to chisel my way through it.
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]. “Aural wordplay” is in quotation marks. I usually omit all reference to juxtaposition indicators unless there is a specific point that requires clarification.
 Across |
|
| 1 | Plant feature close to lake bedded by contrary gardener (9) |
| MACHINERY | |
| CHIN (facial feature) + {lak}E [close to…] contained [bedded] by MARY (contrary gardener). From the nursery rhyme:
Mary, Mary, quite contrary, |
|
| 9 | Proprietor of Venice bar sounded rough — in a state! (7) |
| ARIZONA | |
| Aural wordplay [sounded rough]: ARIZONA / “’arry’s owner” (proprietor of Venice bar – Harry’s Bar). This was my last one in. I had spotted the answer as a possibility much earlier but dismissed it because I couldn’t see how it fitted the wordplay. It was only when I had all the checkers in place that I had to accept it was correct and then I set out with new resolve to understand why. Please click the link above for more details if required. | |
| 10 | Bob gets caught by Faye’s truck when reversing (7) |
| CURTSEY | |
| Hidden [caught by] and [reversing] in { Fa}YE’S TRUC{k} | |
| 11 | East German boy receiving a kiss (5) |
| SAXON | |
| SON (boy) containing [receiving] A + X (kiss) | |
| 12 | Excoriates MBAs Tesla sacked (9) |
| LAMBASTES | |
| Anagram [sacked] of MBAS TESLA. Not that it matters other than for the surface, but MBA is ‘Master of Business Administration’. |
|
| 13 | Way past locks that POW got around? (7) |
| TOWPATH | |
| Anagram [got around] of THAT POW. This anagram had me baffled for ages. The definition refers to locks on canals or rivers and the towpath that runs alongside. The surface refers to prisoners of war. A very clever clue! |
|
| 15 | Vehicle securing parking, current Ford model (5) |
| CAPRI | |
| CAR (vehicle) containing [securing] P (parking), then I (current). A classic design at its most popular in the 1970s. The name has just been revived for an electric model. | |
| 17 | Appreciate timeless hotel inside Pune’s walls (5) |
| PRIZE | |
| RI{t}Z (hotel) [timeless] contained by [inside] P{un}E [’s walls] | |
| 18 | Struggle putting name in frame (5) |
| GRIND | |
| N (name) contained by [in] GRID (frame) | |
| 19 | Idiot losing pounds — an indefinite number — in card game (5) |
| POKER | |
| P{l}O{n}KER (idiot) [losing pounds + an indefinite number] | |
| 20 | Evasive former pupil runs out of booze after leaving university (7) |
| OBLIQUE | |
| OB (former pupil), LIQUE{u r} (booze) [leaving university, runs out]. A tortuous deletion instruction which needs to be read as: U leaves, after which R comes out too. Or perhaps I’m over-complicating it? | |
| 23 | Recall my stroll gathering old aromatic plant (9) |
| ROCAMBOLE | |
| COR (my!) reversed [recall), AMBLE (stroll) containing [gathering] O (old). A variety of sand leek akin to garlic. NHO this. It has not appeared before today but was clued helpfully. | |
| 25 | Additional time to collect Times and Time? (5) |
| EXTRA | |
| ERA (time) containing [to collect] X (times) + T (time) | |
| 27 | Chatter involving defrocked Lima bishop? (7) |
| PRIMATE | |
| PRATE (chatter) containing [involving] {L}IM{a} [defrocked] | |
| 28 | Darkly brooding writer bored by year working (7) |
| BYRONIC | |
| BIC (writer – pen) containing [bored by] YR (year) + ON (working) | |
| 29 | Reportedly checks shade that constrains pavement artist? (9) |
| KERBSTONE | |
| Aural wordplay [reportedly] “curbs” (checks) / KERBS, then TONE (shade). Presumably a pavement artist draws only on the flagstones and not on the kerbstone. | |
| Down |
|
| 1 | Great distance, around 100 kilometres (6) |
| MICKLE | |
| MILE (distance) containing [around] C (100) + K (kilometres). I knew this word only from the saying Many a mickle makes a muckle but didn’t even know what that meant. The dictionaries confirm ‘muckle’ means ‘great’ or as a noun ‘a great amount’ but Collins confuses the issue by adding that in Scotland ‘muckle’ means a small amount. I quote verbatim the entry in Brewer’s which perhaps explains all: the original Scottish proverb is A wheen o’mickles mak’s a muckle, where mickle means ‘little’ and muckle ‘much’. However micel or mycel means ‘much’, so that if the Scots proverb is accepted, a converse meaning must be given to mickle. | |
| 2 | Molière can upset formalities (10) |
| CEREMONIAL | |
| Anagram [upset] of MOLIERE CAN | |
| 3 | Example of batting position? (8) |
| INSTANCE | |
| IN (batting), STANCE (position) | |
| 4 | Film featuring Germany’s extremists and power in the country (5) |
| EGYPT | |
| ET (film) containing [featuring] G{erman}Y [’s extremists] P (power) | |
| 5 | Measure credit extended to Met office? (9) |
| YARDSTICK | |
| TICK (credit) extended to Scotland YARD (the Metropolitan police – aka the Met – headquarters or office) gives us YARD’S TICK | |
| 6 | Talk idly about regular letters in biggest puzzle (6) |
| JIGSAW | |
| JAW (talk idly) containing [about] {b}I{g}G{e}S{t} [regular letters in…] | |
| 7 | Manage to wheedle some fizzy drinks, we hear (4) |
| COAX | |
| Aural wordplay [we hear]: “cokes” (some fizzy drinks) / COAX | |
| 8 | Began meal, entertaining ace journalist (8) |
| LAUNCHED | |
| LUNCH (meal) containing [entertaining] A (ace), then ED (journalist) | |
| 14 | Disciple uncovered Mafia don — ciao! — shot (10) |
| AFICIONADO | |
| Anagram [shot] of {m}AFI{a} [uncovered] DON CIAO | |
| 16 | Support journal covers novel format (9) |
| PAPERBACK | |
| PAPER (journal), BACK (support). ‘Covers’ is just a placement indicator meaning ‘on top of’ in this case. | |
| 17 | Dog restrained by lead beginning to sniff book (8) |
| PROVERBS | |
| ROVER (dog) contained [restrained] PB (lead), S{niff} [beginning] | |
| 18 | Girls getting upset with men — they’re such troublemakers! (8) |
| GREMLINS | |
| Anagram [upset] of GIRLS MEN | |
| 21 | Eccentric derivatives geek embracing India (6) |
| QUAINT | |
| QUANT (derivatives geek) containing [embracing] I (India). I had no idea about this but Collins advises that a Quant (short for Quantative Analyst) is a highly paid computer specialist with a degree in a quantitative science, employed by a financial house to predict the future price movements of securities, commodities, currencies, derivatives, etc. | |
| 22 | Nocturnal horseman always features in teaching of Scripture (6) |
| REVERE | |
| EVER (always) contained by [features] RE (teaching of Scripture – Religious Education). Paul Revere. | |
| 24 | Bud kicking Mike out of RV (5) |
| CAPER | |
| CA{m}PER (RV – recreational vehicle) [kicking Mike – M – out]. Capers are the small green buds of caper plants. | |
| 26 | Designate old hot bath no longer hot (4) |
| TERM | |
| T{h}ERM (old hot bath) [no longer hot]. An archaic term for a public bath. I didn’t know that. | |
A lovely crossword this: full of fun, deception and inventiveness. I started off well, for me, and assiduously followed the cryptic to put in the top half of it, but then I hit a snag and slowed down to a crawl – searching for a toe-hold for the bottom half. Cheated to get ROCAMBOLE, of course, and a few more clues unravelled. Happy that AFICIONADO was clued the other day (for the spelling), and really enjoyed my struggle to complete the grid (GRIND being one of the starting blocks!). BYRONIC is a lovely adjective, and it helped piece together PAPERBACK and KERBSTONE, but QUAINT and TERM were two NHOs. Great fun: thank you Mr Jacques, and more of the same please.