I know I asked for more tricky ones when I blogged Jumbo 1442… and, lucky me, I got it in spades this time. “A bit of a beast” one or two of my pals have said. And indeed, we have an abundance of trickery today. I loved it! And I’m relieved that (I think!) I’ve managed to parse it all. I found the NE corner trickiest apart from 52A, for which I needed help. Lots of lovely words and lovely clues. Many ticks on my copy and it’s hard to pick a favourite, but 33A was the most fun to try and parse. I have to say I enjoyed doing the blog to revisit the cleverness, some of which I’d missed on solving. If only I hadn’t made a typo in 37D on entering my answers online, leaving me with a pink square. Grr. Thank-you setter. I would say “More like this, please, editor!” again, but what do others think?
Definitions underlined in bold italics, (Abc)* indicating anagram of Abc, deletions and [] other indicators.
| Across | |
| 1 | Old Greek image that’s sacred, commonly including Mass (7) |
| OLYMPIC – PIC (image) after (h)OLY (sacred) [commonly] [including] M (mass). Well a bit of tricky wordplay to start… and about par for the course. | |
| 5 | School flag is appropriate (8) |
| HIGHJACK – HIGH (school) JACK (flag). Sneaky definition.. and not the last sneaky one. | |
| 9 | Features, something Greek might write, connected with old Balkan ruler (6) |
| PHIZOG – PHI (something Greek might write) ZOG (old Balkan Ruler). Zog I was King of Albania. What a great name! And a bit of a tricky clue – a new word on me. | |
| 13 | Thing troubling babe, soon nineteen (1,3,2,4,6) |
| A BEE IN ONES BONNET – A semi-&lit. (babe soon nineteen)* [troubling]. Lovely! | |
| 14 | Glass that’s filled behind agent’s back (6) |
| BUMPER – BUM (behind; lol) REP (agent) [back] -> PER. A new meaning for me. | |
| 16 | Most bold in corporation — the rest falling short (8) |
|
GUTSIEST – GUT (corporation) SIEST |
|
| 17 | Flier, held, fall out of cases (2,2) |
| EL AL – hELd fALl without the outside letters [out of cases]. Israeli national airline. | |
| 18 | Boasts of returning, returning to the fold (5-4) |
| CROWS-FOOT – CROWS (boasts) OF [returning] -> FO, [returning] TO -> OT. | |
| 20 | Performers once cut grass on pitch in front of one (8) |
| CASTRATI – What a sneaky definition! Love it! RAT (grass) after [on] CAST (pitch); [in front of] I (one). | |
| 21 | Job involved keeping ointment by for particular case (8,3) |
| JUNCTION BOX – (job)* [involved] outside [keeping] UNCTION (ointment), X (by; times). | |
| 24 | Some smelt tar derivative back in plant (3,6) |
| RED RATTLE – Reverse hidden [back in] smELT TAR DERivative -> RED RATTLE. | |
| 25 | Special purpose yellow packs pursued (8) |
| TAILORED – OR (yellow) inside [packs] TAILED (pursued). | |
| 26 | Ultimately, they conclude agenda with informal agreement (4) |
| YEAH – Last letters [ultimately] of theY concludE agendA witH. | |
| 29 | A travel writer holding talk at house, fearing to leave it? (11) |
| AGORAPHOBIC – Tricky! A GO (travel ) BIC (pen; writer) [holding] RAP (talk) H (house). | |
| 31 | Footwear sellers paid to diversify (11) |
| ESPADRILLES – Phew! A straighforward one. (sellers paid)* [to diversify]. | |
| 33 | One putting down a grand on a flat? On the contrary (5,6) |
| PIANO PLAYER – This &lit (I think) is a bit difficult to explain. Let me try. One putting down (I.e. a better) is a PLAYER, and a (grand) PIANO, reversed, [on the contrary] would be a PIANO PLAYER, who might put down (i.e. play) (e.g.) a black key (any of which would be a flat in D flat major) on a piano. (i.e.a flat on a grand). I think I need a lie down. | |
| 36 | Allowed only famous poem — and one leading up to it (11) |
| JUSTIFIABLE – JUST (only) IF (famous poem) I (one) ABLE (up to it). Lovely charade! | |
| 38 | House that had a rose bowl (4) |
| YORK – Double definition and our (first) obligatory cricket clue. Nice one! | |
| 39 | Old chief investigator hesitates: he’s backtracking (8) |
| TECUMSEH – Beyond my ken, I’m afraid, lacking the general knowledge, but I guessed it eventually and looked up to confirm. TEC (detective; investigator) UM (hesitates) HE’S [backtracking] -> SEH. | |
| 41 | Needing a cut of beef to be picked up after deliveries (9) |
| OVERGROWN – Lovely construction. GROWN sounds like [picked up] GROAN (beef) [after] OVER (deliveries). | |
| 44 | Small section of block crossed by a gaoler waving a bunch of keys? (11) |
| ARCHIPELAGO – Sneaky definition… and wordplay! CHIP (small section of block, as in “a chip off the old block”) inside [crossed by] (a gaoler)* [waving]. | |
| 45 | Recalling who the sunglasses belong to …? (6,2) |
| SHADES OF – If you remember the sunglasses belong to Henry you might say they are SHADES OF Henry. Substitute any other name for the … depending on who’s you have found. The definition part referring to being reminded of something similar. | |
| 48 | Watchful dog with no tail you once had (5-4) |
|
SHARP-EYED – SHAR PE |
|
| 49 | Take in cable, with height not constant (4) |
|
HOAX – The cable is a |
|
| 50 | Long-running drama, Farewell Monsieur, is back (8) |
| MARATHON – NOH (drama) TARA (farewell) M (Monsieur) all reversed [is back] -> MARATHON. Yes I can imagine a there might be a play entitled Farewell Monsieur. | |
| 52 | Stateswoman we’d understand an important member of the opposition? (6) |
| AQUINO – My LOI, and I needed someone to explain the wordplay to me. It’s a homophone [we understand] of A (an) KEY (important) NO (member of the opposition). Cory Aquino, as I’m sure you know (but I didn’t) was the 11th president of the Phillipines and known as “The mother of democracy”. At least I knew the name. A bit of a vague definition, isn’t it? | |
| 53 | Dedication ends with shoe-leather being badly worn (16) |
| WHOLEHEARTEDNESS – (ends w (with) shoe-leather)* [badly worn]. | |
| 54 | On return, prepared bread and port (6) |
| NANTES – Not the drink, of course, but the port on the River Loire in France. SET (prepared) NAN (bread) all reversed [on return] -> NANTES. | |
| 55 | Cannon once essential, note, for securing back of line (8) |
| AMUSETTE – I’m not sure how I knew this word which is flagged as “obsolete” in Collins. A MUST (essential) TE (note with jam and bread) outside [securing] [back of] linE. | |
| 56 | Story about a doctor turned railway worker (7) |
| YARDMAN – YARN (story) [about] A MD (doctor) [turned] -> DM A. | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Zero scope for movement — and hence a squash? (6) |
| ORANGE – A bit of a cheeky definition! O (Zero; O looks like 0) RANGE (scope for movement). | |
| 2 | Possibly miss last part of comedy screened? Not the last (6) |
| YVETTE – Another sneaky definition! [Last part of] comedY VETTEd (screened) [not the last]. | |
| 3 | Particular sort of beer, right to give to a new mum (9) |
| PRIMIPARA – PRIM (particular) IPA (India Pale Ale; sort of beer) R (right) A. A new word on me. | |
| 4 | Embroidery done a certain way, given the needle’s very small one (5-6) |
| CROSS-STITCH – CROSS’S (given the needle’s) TITCH (very small one). Well at least I think that’s how it works! It had me scaratching my head. “given the needle” = “cross” seems a bit of a leap. | |
| 5 | Humble clerk has energy, bursting with it (4) |
| HEEP – Uriah Heep, the Dickensian character, that is. E (energy) inside [bursting] HEP (with it). | |
| 6 | Trap the lot with one’s sudden movement — then lose it (2,9) |
| GO BALLISTIC – GOB (trap; mouth) ALL (the lot) I’S (one’s) TIC (sudden movement). Epic charade. | |
| 7 | Nice jug Jules smashed, spilling son’s liquor (6,5) |
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JUNGLE JUICE – (Nice jug Jule |
|
| 8 | Faith, involving short display of emotion, getting stronger (9) |
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CRESCENDO – CREDO (faith) [involving] SCEN |
|
| 10 | London area head office not dragging its feet? (8) |
| HOUNSLOW – HO (head office) UNSLOW (not dragging its feet). | |
| 11 | Unknown, he boxed probable criminal in double-header on radio show (6,10) |
| ZAPHOD BEEBLEBROX – What an amazing answer to find in a crossword! Chapeau setter! Z (unknown) (he boxed probable)* [criminal]. From the awesome Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. | |
| 12 | Fabric made of net: good, strong thing all round (4-3) |
| GORE-TEX – RETE (net) with G (good) OX (string thing) [all round]. | |
| 15 | Nanny’s tender way under attack by chap (8) |
| GOATHERD – RD (road; way) [under] GO AT (attack) HE (chap). | |
| 19 | Job where each apparently has his own assistant? (8) |
| PAPERBOY – Definition with a cryptic hint. PA (assistant) PER (each) BOY (the job holder) | |
| 22 | Put on early pressure to work at gathering harvest (8) |
| PREAPPLY – P (pressure) PLY (work) [gathering] REAP (harvest). | |
| 23 | Lines of John’s, eg, radio announcer fluffed (3,2,1,7,3) |
| ODE ON A GRECIAN URN – (eg. radio announcer)* [fluffed]. A reference to this poem by John Keats. | |
| 27 | Is like Jack early in fairytale, on hearing people out (3-5) |
| HAS-BEENS – Sounds like [on hearing] HAS BEANS (like Jack in Jack and the Beanstalk before he plants them). | |
| 28 | Website inviting knowledgeable improvements, primarily? (4) |
| WIKI – Lovely &lit. First letters [primarily] of Website Inviting Knowledgeable Improvements. | |
| 30 | Headless giant is very curious (4) |
|
AGOG – |
|
| 32 | History exam as teacher’s responsibility? (8) |
| PASTORAL – PAST (history) ORAL (exam). | |
| 34 | Prince of Wales theatre’s latest, fittingly, coming up: playing regularly (8) |
| LLEWELYN – Not Prince Charles, of course. TheatrE [‘s latest] WELL (fittinglly) [coming up] -> LLEWE, pLaYiNg [regularly]. Llewelyn the Great “dominated Wales for 45 years“. He died in 1240. | |
| 35 | Spurs lose: I start to hear delirious Reds fans (11) |
|
RUSSOPHILES – Nice football surface. (Spurs lose I h |
|
| 36 | What stops kid, a page, taking headpiece for old king (11) |
| JEHOSHAPHAT – A bit of ninja turtling helped with this one… EH (what) [stops] JOSH (kid) A P (page) HAT (headpiece). I remembered the old king from the oath “Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat”, as in “Jumpin’ Jehosaphat Batman, we’re needed again! “. | |
| 37 | Popular lament about a new style, periodically so lacking grace (11) |
| INELEGANTLY – (Aargh! I had a typo here). IN (popular) ELEGY (lament) [about] A N (new) sTyLe [perdiodically]. | |
| 40 | Thousandth employee to come across opposition in the workplace? (2,3,4) |
| US AND THEM – Neatly hidden in ThoUSANDTH EMployee [to come across]. Yes, I’ve seen quite a bit of that in my time working for and with big organisations. | |
| 42 | Game with ring and rubber duck (9) |
| GOOSANDER – GO (game) O (ring; circular letter) SANDER (rubber). | |
| 43 | Ten exercises brought in for a small sum (8) |
| SIXPENCE – X (ten) PE (exercises) [brought in] SINCE (for). | |
| 44 | Don’t put an X rating on the spot (7) |
| ABSTAIN – Nice definition. AB (Able-Bodied seaman; rating) STAIN (spot). | |
| 46 | Being collected from public house, left meeting (6) |
| PHLEGM – PH (public house) L (left) EGM (extrordinary general meeting). Hmm. “Being collected” seems a bit of a stretch for the definition. | |
| 47 | Concert with possible Oxbridge dons — not outside (6) |
| UNISON – UNIS (Oxbridge; Oxford and Cambridge) dONs [not outside]. | |
| 51 | Fail to apply for audition, and flourish (4) |
| WAVE – Sounds like [for audition] WAIVE (fail to apply). | |
Pour, oh pour, the pirate sherry,
Fill, oh fill, the pirate glass!
And to make us more than merry,
Let the pirate bumper pass!
I, too, ninja-turtled jumping J, but I think from Daffy Duck or Yosemite Sam.
I know the word phizog but would probably have spelled it fizzog, and the required meaning of bumper was just about within my ken.
Thanks to the setter for a super puzzle, and to John for completing the unenviable task of unraveling it all.
Knew Cory Aquino only because it was she who took over from Pres. Marcos when he was booted out.
Phizog is Woosterish, and bumper is Heyerish ..