Times Cryptic Jumbo 1478 January 9, 2021. Wishing You a Full and Speedy Recovery Simon.

Unfortunately your regular blogger Simon Hanson is out of action at the moment and so Vinyl asked me to do a little temping.  I’m only an intermittent and rather dilatory Jumbo solver and also a quite rusty blogger so I hope you will bear with me.  I can’t give you a time because I did it in bits but it came in under an hour altogether.  Nice straightforward puzzle, nothing outre and just one (35A) where I had to do some serious dredging.  This was a relief because we had one over the holidays (1477) that completely defeated me.  Without further ado, here’s what I made of this.

Answers in BOLD CAPS.  Definitions in italics underlined.  Taking my cue from Jackkt I have included more explanation than long-time solvers will want in order to be of use to more recent enthusiasts.

ACROSS

1.  Abolish hotel by river where people go to eat (9)
CHOPHOUSE  CHOP=abolish (slightly odd def.).  H=hotel in phonetic alphabet.  OUSE=river.
6. Mineral from drinking goblet, not one put on back of lorry (10)
CHALCEDONY  CHAL[i]CE (not 1)=goblet.  DON=put on.  Back of [lorr]Y
12.  Notorious gangster’s problem casing Yankee plant (7)
ALYSSUM  AL’S (Capone’s, it usually is)=gangster’s.  SUM=problem.  Containing Y=Yankee in phonetic alphabet
13.  Quirky fellow ringing about money.
ECCENTRIC ERIC=random fellow.  Containing CENT=money
14. Absolutely what an author would do for listeners (5)
RIGHT Homophone (for listeners) for write.
16. Bug eerie East Sussex town picked up (6-6)
CREEPY-CRAWLY CREEPY=eerie.  Homophone (picked up) for CRAWLEY=Sussex town
17.  Girl Ted clobbered with whip: it prevents stock going missing! (6-4)
CATTLE-GRID CAT=whip.  Anagram (clobbered) of GIRL TED.
19.  Tree left by old poet in my part of London (8,6)
LOMBARDY POPLAR L[eft] O[ld] BARD=poet contained in MY.  POPLAR=E. London district.
22.  Absent-minded detective’s distinguishing feature (8)
DISTRAIT DI’s=detective’s.  TRAIT=feature.
24.  Powder used in hospital (Cumbrian) (6)
TALCUM  Hidden in [hospi]TAL CUM[brian].
25.  Her music so confused some of the singers (10)
SEMICHORUS Anagram (confused) of HER MUSIC SO.
26.  Notice girl dropping by spontaneously (2,3)
AD LIB AD=notice. LIB[by]
29.  Bloomin’ tailless fish (4)
RUDD  RUDD[y]=bloomin’.  “Tailless” not really necessary but it is helpful,
30.  Agreement worker associated with enchanting female group (8)
COVENANT COVEN (of witches) with ANT=worker.
32. People engaged by board, not impossilbe to find (9)
TRACEABLE  RACE=people contained in TABLE=board.
34.  Silver-tongued Conservative leaving badly organised public sale (9)
PLAUSIBLE  Anagram (badly organised) of PUBLI[c] SALE omitting C=Conservative
35.  Free novel initially enjoyed by fashionable young man (8)
BUCKSHEE  BUCK=fashionable young man followed by SHE=novel (by H. Rider Haggard often encountered in crosswords) with E[njoyed].  It took me a while and all the checking letters before I recalled this early 20th Century piece of (?military) slang, apparently derived from the word “baksheesh” meaning bribe – in some far from obvious way.
36.  Actors in musical with Eliot in a spin (4)
CAST  CATS is the musical, flipping the last 2 letters of the initials of the author of the original book.
39.  Cricket side everyone backs, it’s plain (5)
LLANO  ON=cricket.  ALL=everyone.  Reversed (backs)
40.  Enclosure ultimately very analytic, not in papal letter (10)
ENCYCLICAL ENC. [ver]Y (ultimately).  CL[in]ICAL=analytic omitting IN
42.  Muslim official once – namely one employed by Queen (6)
VIZIER VIZ.(abbrev. of videlicet)=namely. I with ER
44.  Vehicles carrying lean Spanish monarchists (8)
CARLISTS CARS=vehicles containing LIST=lean
46.  S Atlantic islands transformed by Canadian with thrust (7,2,5)
TRISTAN DA CUNHA Anagram (transformed) of CANADIAN THRUST.  British territory about as far away from anywhere as you can get.
48.  Naval officer unexpectedly hid maps in entrance to mess (10)
MIDSHIPMAN Anagram (unexpectedly) of HID MAPS IN M[ess]
49.  Singer or priest turning over unfinished sculpture (5-7)
BASSO-RELIEVO BASS=singer.  Or.  ELI=priest.  OVE[r] (unfinished and reversed)
53.  Container brought back by soldiers for gunpowder constituent (5)
NITRE  TIN=container reversed with RE=soldiers
54.  Adverse info about old times dishonestly come by (3-6)
ILL-GOTTEN ILL=adverse.  GEN=info containing TT=times
55.  Weighty matter party goes over after all the others (7)
BALLAST BAL=party (Lab) reversed.  LAST=after all the others.  At first I thought “ball” was the party but that made nonsense of the clue so I had to re-think –  although I might not have bothered if I’d not been blogging.
56.  European left visitor briefly in posh quarter (10)
PORTUGUESE  PORT=left.  GUES[t]=visitor briefly.  E=quarter.
57.  Roofing requirement I’d obtain in anger (5,4)
RIDGE TILE I’D GET contained in RILE=anger

DOWN

1.  Wife leaves old Welsh county, going over English river (5)
CLYDE  Remove the W from CLWYD and add an E on the end.
2.  Old French art work capturing witch’s gullet (10)
OESOPHAGUS  O+ES (French art=tu es) OPUS containing (capturing) HAG=witch
3.  Murderer — one detectives found in private residence (8)
HOMICIDE  I CID contained in HOME
4.  Schedule mainly involves this group of Muslim scholars (5)
ULEMA  Hidden in [sched]ULE MA[inly]
5.  Oil producers having typical ground south of Brussels (9)
EUCALYPTI  EU with anagram (ground) of TYPICAL
6.  Attorney leaves Commonwealth country for scene of marriage feast (4)
CANA Remove DA (attorney) from CANADA.  In the NT it’s Jesus’s first miracle where he changes the water into wine.
7.  Abroad securing Irish transport route (6)
AIRWAY  AWAY=abroad containing IR.
8. Publican’s aid creating agitation in Manhattan (8,6)
COCKTAIL SHAKER  A Manhattan contains rye or bourbon, sweet vermouth, bitters and a glace cherry garnish.  Not my cup of.
9.  Extremely weird new retreat oddly, a Cumbrian lake (12)
DERWENTWATER  Anagram (oddly) of W[eir]D (extremely) with NEW RETREAT.
10.  Rise of first-class fellow in west African republic (7)
NIGERIA  AI=first-class.  REG=fellow with IN, all reversed (rise).  Anyone else try for Namibia?
11.  Electronic device a local court deployed, missing nothing (10)
CALCULATOR  Anagram (deployed) of A LOCAL C[o]URT omitting the O
15.  Returning, amend story about book consulting navigational aid (4,5)
TIDE TABLE  EDIT=amend (reversed).  TALE=story containing B=book.  The “consulting” is a little confusing – “for” might have been simpler.
18.  Pitiful way to get quote set up! (8)
PATHETIC  PATH=way.  CITE=quote reversed (set up)
20.  Genial-sounding, taking small drink before a production (9)
MELODRAMA  MELO sounds like “mellow”=genial.  DRAM with A
21.  First choice when low-value coins secure advert (10)
PREFERENCE  PENCE containing REFER=advert.
23. Capital invested at first in unruly kid’s discharge (10)
BRATISLAVA  BRAT’S=unruly kid’s containing I[nvested].  LAVA=discharge.  Capital of Slovakia
27.  Politician, Republican, heretic — one looking after books (9)
LIBRARIAN  LIB.  R.  ARIAN=heretic.
28.  Drink putting an end to string player’s technique (6-8)
DOUBLE-STOPPING  DOUBLE=drink.  STOPPING=putting an end to
31.  A pound bill (or more, ultimately) for fish (8)
ALBACORE  A LB=pound.  AC=bill.  OR [mor]E.  What I know about them is written on the side of a can of tuna
33.  Disbelief as regarding one’s Queen visiting shelter (12)
ASTONISHMENT  AS. With  ON=regarding IS=ONE’S HM=Queen all contained in TENT=shelter
34.  Law enforcer‘s plan of action endlessly upset celebrity (9)
POLICEMAN  POLIC[y]=plan.  NAME=celebrity reversed (upset)
37.  Tat a rector recycled, making sculpture perhaps (10)
TERRACOTTA  Anagram (recycled) of TAT A RECTOR
38. Cull a flower, so to speak — it adds zest to the course (10)
PICCALILLI   A kind of savory chutney.  Sounds like (so to speak) “pick a lily”
41.  Fellow required in Bury right away (9)
INSTANTER  STAN= our random fellow contained in INTER=Bury
43. Clever, accepting woman as deserving love (8)
ADORABLE  DORA=our random woman contained in (accepting) ABLE=clever
45.  Delivered books primarily telling of 18th cent masquerade (7)
RIDOTTO RID=delivered.  OT=books.  T[elling] O[f] (primarily).  Georgette Heyer, as so often, the best source
47.  Scottish magistrate, that is. propping up cricketers bar? (6)
BAILIE  BAIL=bar.  I.E.  DNK the magistrate but I just about knew the wicket thingie so not a hard guess with the checking letters.
50.  Academics upset about conclusion of priestly council (5)
SYNOD  DONS containing [priestl]Y reversed (upset).  Semi &Lit. (see glossary)
51.  Delete Times editorial for a start (5)
ERASE ERAS=Times.  E[ditorial]
52.  Sleep lightly, being nearly twelve (4)
DOZE  DOZE[n]

10 comments on “Times Cryptic Jumbo 1478 January 9, 2021. Wishing You a Full and Speedy Recovery Simon.”

  1. ….with an electrical device for controlling cattle, as I inexplicably poured my hour of effort down the GRID (spelled grrrrrrid !)
    1. I thought about the prod too Phil, having apparently been mishearing some of the Rock The Casbah lyrics all these years (I see it’s an electric kettle drum whatever that is).
  2. We had CATTLE-GRID very recently; if I recall, I put in PROD then, but learned my lesson. I knew the Scottish BAILIE, though not what he is, but not the cricket one. I don’t know the cricket anything. Also DNK RIDOTTO, not having read any Heyer, yet. Biffed TRISTAN DA CUNHA from the A + enumeration; not too many islands in the South Atlantic. Rather a blah Jumbo, I thought.
    1. Thinking again, I’m pretty sure it was a Freudian slip, caused by remembering that recent grid v prod discussion !
  3. Thanks for the covering for Simon, Olivia, and I would add my best wishes to him for a speedy recovery.

    I managed most of this without incident but I failed to parse REFER in 21dn (I’d forgotten that meaning of ‘advert’) and the CLICAL bit of 40ac.

    ULEMA was unknown but easy with checkers. I used aids to arrive at BASSO-RELIEVO (which I knew) and RIDOTTO (which I didn’t).

    Edited at 2021-01-23 11:00 am (UTC)

  4. How nice to see you back in the blogging chair Olivia!
    Found this one to be about medium difficulty, nice enough though nothing much stood out. Basso relievo a guess (but not ridotto, of course :-).
  5. Thanks for stepping in Olivia. I found this very straightforward finishing in about 28 1/2 minutes, so possibly my fastest ever Jumbo. A pity I had a typo again entering the answers online from my paper copy leading to a pink square. Grr. ULEMA was unknown as was CARLISTS, BASSO RELIEVO and RIDOTTO, but the wordplay was generous. COD to the biggest tick on my paper copy… ECCENTRIC.

    Edited at 2021-01-24 01:25 pm (UTC)

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