Given that this was on the vanilla end cryptically my favourite clue ended up being 51ac, for being moderately funny. No bad thing to have a puzzle that isn’t too hard but gets your brain warmed up for the weekend; thanks setter!
ACROSS
1 Resolve to prevent note reaching people (13)
DETERMINATION – DETER MI reaching NATION [to prevent; note; people]
8 Volumes here returned, he passed on fine examples (9)
BOOKCASES – reversed OB. + OK CASES [“returned”, he passed on; fine; examples].
Ob. is short for obiit.
13 Queen adopts one orphan (5)
ANNIE – ANNE adopts I [queen; one].
Little Orphan Annie from the comic strips/films/musicals.
14 Device very quietly supersedes first learner in group (9)
APPLIANCE – PP supersedes L in ALLIANCE [very quietly; L{earner}; group]
15 A few in heat: I’m panicking they’ll be beaten (7)
TIMPANI – a few (letters) in {hea}T I’M PANI{cking}
16 Plymouth has a complex temperature controller (12)
HYPOTHALAMUS – (PLYMOUTH HAS A*) [“complex”]
Per Wikipedia “the hypothalamus controls body temperature, hunger, important aspects of parenting and attachment behaviours, thirst, fatigue, sleep, and circadian rhythms.” Busy lad.
17 Prominent sign of male parish priest submerged in water (5,5)
ADAM’S APPLE – PP submerged in ADAM’S ALE [parish prient; water]
18 Respect judge (6)
REGARD – double definition
19 Install thereon after changing around noon (8)
ENTHRONE – (THEREON*) [“after changing”] around N [noon]
21 The last Edward‘s stature, first, to last (6)
EIGHTH – HEIGHT [stature] with its first letter moving to the end.
Edward VIII was king for less than a whole year in 1936, before abdicating to marry American divorcee Wallis Simpson.
24 Professional heretic’s predicting how complaint will go (10)
PROGNOSTIC – PRO GNOSTIC [professional ; heretic]
26 Sort of gearing for gap in rates (12)
DIFFERENTIAL – double definition
A differential gear allows the wheels to revolve at different speeds while cornering, clever stuff.
29 Brit in Oz retains English lines (4)
POEM – POM retains E [Brit in Oz; English]
30 Little change at seaside due to opposing attractions (4,4)
NEAP TIDE – cryptic definition
A neap tide is “a tide just after the first or third quarters of the moon when there is least difference between high and low water”, hence only a little change. The opposing attractions are the gravitational pools of earth, moon and sun.
31 Royal wife and cool patriarch ignoring bishop on way back (8)
MAHARANI – IN A{b}RAHAM [cool; patriarch “ignoring B{ishop}], on way back = reversed.
A maharani is the wife (or just female equivalent) of a maharajah.
34 Extra work finished magazine (8)
OVERTIME – OVER TIME [finished; magazine]
Time, the American weekly news magazine founded 1923, print readership 26 million.
35 Group seem endlessly flummoxed by this Freudian concept (8)
SUPEREGO – (GROUP SEE{m}*) [“flummoxed”]
36 Record of events left in can (4)
BLOG – L in BOG [left; can].
The “bog” was the preferred word for the gents during my schooldays, for sure, though I can’t remember hearing it so much recently.
39 Music station’s old booze a source of energy? Could be (12)
RADIOISOTOPE – RADIO IS O TOPE [music station; (i)s; old; booze]
40 Is eastern doctor poking Peg’s gut? (10)
DISEMBOWEL – IS E MB poking DOWEL [is; eastern; doctor; peg]
43 Are depressing old poems set in heart of Kansas withdrawn? (6)
SADDEN – EDDA set in NS [old poems; {ka}NS{as}], all reversed
The Edda are the literary works of 13th century Iceland, some written by the brilliantly named Snorri Sturluson.
44 Old boy’s story about constant handicap (8)
OBSTACLE – OB’S TALE about C [old boy’s; story; constant]
C is the speed of light, a constant 299,792,458 meters per second.
45 Loose stones close to cairn presenting riddle (6)
SCREEN – SCREE N [loose stones; {cair}N]
A screen can be “a large sieve or riddle, especially one for sorting substances such as grain or coal into different sizes.”
49 Such characters are inclined to be idealistic, sort of (10)
ITALICISED – (IDEALISTIC*) [“sort of”]
51 Possibly preparing mutton for frying as opener? (9,3)
BATTERING RAM – a quirky reimagining of the phrase “battering ram” as a culinary activity. A battering ram must be about the least subtle “opener” of doors imaginable, but it’ll do the job.
53 Everyone devours salmon and strong drink (7)
ALCOHOL – ALL devours COHO [everyone; salmon]
Coho are Pacific silver salmon and just one of those words you need to know for crosswords.
54 Sweet Papa allowed in separately (5,4)
APPLE TART – P LET in APART [Papa; allowed; separately]
55 I run back to collect clubs? Run up! (5)
INCUR – I + RUN reversed, collecting C [clubs]. As in “run up debts”
56 Exploratory device to conclude very big deal (9)
ENDOSCOPE – END OS COPE [to conclude; very big; deal]
57 Insect doggedly lands all over the shop (5-8)
DADDY-LONGLEGS – (DOGGEDLY LANDS*) [“all over the shop”]
DOWN
1 Finish role climbing dangerous building? (9)
DEATHTRAP – DEATH + PART “climbing” [finish; role]
2 10p, say, secures time for security in camp (4,3)
TENT PEG – TEN P, E.G. secures T [10p; say; time]
3 Work for sloppy clerk to do with breaking in? (2-8)
RE-ENTERING – If a clerk fails to enter things properly the first time, he will need to engage in re-entering. Or else punctuate differently as RE ENTERING [to do with; breaking in]. A rather convoluted clue I thought…
4 Book this writer has tipped — it’s about perfect (6)
ISAIAH – I [this writer] + HAS “tipped”, about A1 [perfect]
Isaiah had two sons, naming one Shear-jashub, meaning “A remnant shall return” and the younger, Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, meaning, “Spoil quickly, plunder speedily”. So if anyone knows anyone who’s pregnant right now and struggling for baby name ideas…
5 Order that’s a bit cheap sadly, yet wholly absorbing (12)
ALPHABETICAL – (A BIT CHEAP*) [“sadly”], absorbed by ALL [wholly]
6 I left to support one probing city vice (8)
INIQUITY – I + QUIT to support I probing NY [I; left; one; city]
7 Elected in Tyneside square (4)
NINE – IN in NE [elected; Tyneside]. Nine = 3 x 3 = a square number.
8 Bachelor to study European spy returning cutter (5,5)
BREAD KNIFE – B READ + E FINK returning [bachelor; to study; European; spy]. A fink is a rat but more specifically perhaps an informer, which I guess means they might’ve been doing some spying?
9 Promptly issue denial that’s taken up (2,4)
ON TIME – EMIT NO, all “taken up” [issue; denial]
10 Firm hosting wife in island steps on board (12)
COMPANIONWAY – COMPANY hosting W in IONA [firm; wife; island]
Iona is a small island in the Inner Hebrides and a companionway is the steps that lead down below from a ship’s deck.
11 Start to strum instrument? That’s not natural (5)
SHARP – S HARP [S{trum}; instrument]. The musical sense of the word “natural”.
12 Yen and cents in old money? That’s scary (5-8)
SPINE-CHILLING – PINE and C in SHILLING [yen; cents; old money]. Yen is often a noun meaning “yearning”, but can also be a verb, to yen.
20 Ruminants check tossed grass (8)
REINDEER – REIN + “tossed” REED [check; grass]
22 He succeeds with a real criminal (4-2-3)
HEIR-AT-LAW – (WITH A REAL*) [“criminal”]
23 Chap’s taken up wearing bespoke suits, making waves (8)
TSUNAMIS – MAN [chap] is taken up, wearing (SUITS*) [“bespoke…”]
25 Old writer finished, allowing any answer (4-5)
OPEN-ENDED – O PEN ENDED [old; writer; finished]
27 Reckoned wind instrument is captivating a boy (8)
REASONED – REED is captivating A SON [wind instrument; a; boy]
28 Place outside better for working girl (8)
STRUMPET – SET outside TRUMP [place; better]
29 Stall for box holding a small container (13)
PROCRASTINATE – PRO CRATE holding A S TIN [for; box; a; small; container]
32 Both girls set out to be disco dazzlers (6,6)
STROBE LIGHTS – (BOTH GIRLS SET*) [“out”]
33 One who’s sorry journal excludes first prison (12)
PENITENTIARY – PENITENT {d}IARY [one who’s sorry; journal “excludes first”]
37 Draw includes black horse from same stud (10)
STABLEMATE – STALEMATE includes B [draw; black]
38 A union gathering that is taking off (10)
ABSCONDING – A BONDING gathering SC [a; union; that is]. Sc. short for scilicet.
“Sc. provides a parenthetic clarification, removes an ambiguity, or supplies a word omitted in preceding text, while viz. is usually used to elaborate or detail text which precedes it.”
41 Line with blemishes as distinctive features (9)
LANDMARKS – L AND MARKS [line; with; blemishes]
42 Dispatch across cliff? Some neck! (5-3)
SCRAG-END – SEND across CRAG [dispatch; cliff]. The inferior end of a neck of mutton. Lots of mutton in this puzzle!
46 Drops the answer to this listener’s complaint? (7)
EARACHE – cryptic definition. If you have earache, you might resolve it with eardrops.
47 Most of trial took place in Venice (6)
RIALTO – most of {t}RIAL TO{ok}
48 Santa’s place having rubbish toys? Not half (6)
GROTTO – GROT TO{ys} [rubbish; toys, “not half”]
50 In four notes, Ravel’s opening described curve (5)
ARCED – in A C E D, R{avel}. Any letter from A to G can be a (musical) note in crosswords.
52 Ran exercises in South Dakota (4)
SPED – P.E. in S.D.
Ong’ara,
Kenya.