Pretty much a 60-minute puzzle so arguably a bit harder than average for a jumbo. There were several clues of a particular type I’ve struggled to categorise which are neither nowt nor summat as they say in these parts. Sort of, but not quite, a definition with a cryptic hint. You’ll see what I mean as we get to them (if you read that far).
Also, how kind of the setter to name check my younger daughter whose 21st birthday it is 5 days after this blog appears on TfTT. Albeit at the lowly 48 down rather than 1 across.
First in was TEMPO and last was BALCONY.
If any of my explanations don’t make sense then feel free to ask for further elucidation.
Clues are in blue with the definition undelined. Anagram indicators are in bold italics.
Notation:
DD: Double definition
CD: Cryptic definition
DDCDH: DD/CD hybrid where a straight definition is combined with a cryptic hint.
&Lit: “all in one” where the entire clue is both definition and wordplay.
(fodder)* denotes an anagram of the letters in the brackets.
Rounded brackets are also used to add further clarity
Squiggly brackets {} indicate parts of a word not used
Deletions are struck out
Square brackets [] expand an abbreviation or shortening like G[olf]
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Across |
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1 |
Try poem about boy’s party (4,1,4,4) |
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HAVE A GOOD TIME – HAVE A GO, ODE around TIM |
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8 |
Swimming group: appropriate requirement for pupil? (9) |
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SCHOOLBAG – SCHOOL (fish) BAG (appropriate as a verb) |
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13 |
What might be prescribed by hurried medic? (1,3,1) |
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R AND R – I’m not sure I fully understand this but I think it’s just a CD, premised upon a doctor in a hurry maybe writing just R and R rather than rest and recuperation. But we all know what R and R is so an unhurried medic might do the same.Anyway, I solved the clue, so wevs. |
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14 |
Fit for pouring? (5,2,4) |
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RIGHT AS RAIN – This is the first of the “funny” clues I was blathering about in my intro. Right as rain means fit, and the for pouring bit is neither a second, quirky definition of the answer nor a direct cryptic indication of anything, rather just a nudge in the right direction. |
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15 |
Pulse something that doctor may take, along with blood group (5) |
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TEMPO – TEMP[erature], (type) O. Did anyone else consider PINTO, thinking of Hancock? |
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16 |
A number assist, backing one’s opinion (9) |
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DIAGNOSIS – reversal of SONG, AID, then IS |
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17 |
Latest thing the Speaker’s cut? (4) |
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MODE – sounds like mowed. I spent a while trying to think if MODEL or MODEM or something else could mean speaker. |
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18 |
Film on China, about singular versifier (8) |
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PSALMIST – MIST on PAL around S[ingular] |
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20 |
Scans books? They’re up for approval (6) |
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THUMBS – DD |
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21 |
Musical fraudster close to Thatcher? (7,2,3,4) |
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FIDDLER ON THE ROOF -DDCDH |
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24 |
Trouble man buries beneath the surface (9) |
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SUBMARINE – (man buries)* |
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26 |
Docking port ultimately not sound (7) |
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TAILING – {por}T, AILING |
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27 |
Contrive to shade in point of access (5) |
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HATCH – triple def |
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29 |
DG unluckily lost golf knockout after unpromising start (4,8) |
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UGLY DUCKLING – (DG unluckily)*, G[olf] |
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31 |
Chap of little substance — baleful? (3,2,5) |
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MAN OF STRAW – Here’s another funny clue that comprises a straight definition and a cryptic nudge. Straw comes in bales and, er… |
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33 |
Pancakes, sweets and ice creams (4,6) |
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DROP SCONES – DROPS, CONES |
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35 |
Inherit quiet place and start functioning? (4,4,4) |
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COME INTO PLAY – COME INTO, P[iano], LAY |
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38 |
Track, note, that accommodates horse: horses for courses? (5) |
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RHYME – R[ailwa]Y, ME all around H[orse] |
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39 |
Fabled wolf lives for one month around Rhode Island (7) |
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ISEGRIM – IS, E.G., M[onth] around R[hode] I[sland]. The wolf character in Reynard the Fox. A new one on me. |
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40 |
Poor atheist’s close to prelate — and so is lost? (9) |
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HESITATES – (atheist’s {prelat}E)* |
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42 |
Bon viveur Victor a fool to chase girl endlessly (9,7) |
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CHAMPAGNE CHARLIE – CHAMP, CHARLIES after AGNE |
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44 |
Likeness reflected in grainy gif: female (6) |
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EFFIGY – reverse hidden |
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47 |
International, western screen goddess, nude (2,3,3) |
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IN THE RAW – INT[ernational] and W[estern] around (screening) HERA |
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49 |
Cracked when sculpted (4) |
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HEWN – (when)*. It took me a while to decide which end was the def and which the anagrind. |
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50 |
Way to display adequately what flights are around? (9) |
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STAIRWELL – ST[reet], AIR, WELL |
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52 |
Said pub has 90 per cent off at opening (5) |
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VOCAL – LOCAL (pub) with L (fifty) reduced to V (five) |
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53 |
After rest, copper is at home primarily eating healthier food (4,7) |
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LEAN CUISINE – LEAN, CU, IS, IN, E{ating} |
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54 |
Area by caption at the back of fliers (5) |
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AVIAN – A[rea], VIA, {captio}N |
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55 |
One of our best friends evidently embarrassed me (3,6) |
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RED SETTER – DDCDH |
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56 |
Substandard stuff on the milk bar menu? (2,5,6) |
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NO GREAT SHAKES – sort of a CD. The first word on its own is an adequate definition. I think we might be in nudge territory again. |
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Down |
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1 |
Period covered by star American historian of old (9) |
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HERODOTUS – DOT (period as in full stop) in HERO, U.S. I struggled with this as I don’t know the chap and putting ERA inside something was tempting. There’s probably a star called H DOT somewhere out there. |
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2 |
A variety of tuna — superior — found south of five Pacific islands (7) |
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VANUATU – A, (tuna)* U under V |
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3 |
Shrub adorns a bare ground (6,5) |
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AARONS BEARD – (adorns a bare)* |
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4 |
Charge our NHS scrapped (6) |
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ONRUSH – (our NHS)* |
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5 |
Fancy, after heading off, celebratory biscuit (9) |
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DIGESTIVE – DIG, |
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6 |
Tending to cow briefly, eventually one showing its age? (12) |
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INTIMIDATING – IN TIM{e}, I, DATING |
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7 |
Be gentle, not demanding female pose (4,4,2) |
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EASY DOES IT – EASY, DOE, SIT |
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8 |
Drunk as a skunk in the end (4) |
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SOAK – SO A {skun}K |
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9 |
Well, really genuine! (6-2-8) |
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HONEST-TO-GOODNESS – Here we go again, the defintion is the exclamation, genuine a nudge. |
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10 |
Using smaller base: some flat, cottage retreats (5) |
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OCTAL – reverse hidden |
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11 |
Young Italian graduate doctor in love (7) |
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BAMBINO – BA, MB, IN, O. I’ll take the liberty of assuming that I don’t need to expalin these crossword staples. |
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12 |
Make special effort to work remote (2,3,2,3,3) |
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GO OUT OF THE WAY – GO, OUT OF THE WAY |
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19 |
Ponder gearwheel, one that’s initially bolted down (8) |
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COGITATE – COG, I, T{hat’s}, ATE |
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22 |
European’s keeping still that produces spirit (5) |
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ETHOS – E[uropean], ‘S, around THO[ugh] |
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23 |
One revealing plaque putting plate down on stone slab (10,6) |
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DISCLOSING TABLET – CISC, LOSING (down in a sproting context), TABLET. This week’s dentistry clue. |
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25 |
Platform with recess outside large, ancient study (7) |
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BALCONY – BAY outside L[arge], CON. CON doesn’t usually come with an antiquaticator but it is an archaic, Spenserian term. |
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28 |
Working girl allowed not much food? (7) |
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TARTLET – TART, LET |
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29 |
Partial failure here ruined a CV, sadly (13) |
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UNDERACHIEVER – (here ruined a CV)* |
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30 |
Faithful followers of story in French about jewel (8) |
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LIEGEMEN – LIE, EN around GEM |
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32 |
Bang travelling far after starter on engine’s backfiring (12) |
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BOOMERANGING – BOOM, RANGING after E{ngine} |
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34 |
Escape grasping wife, getting clean away? (5) |
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SWEEP – SEEP around W[ife] |
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36 |
Thus pants about to go in having just finished washing (3,2,6) |
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OUT OF BREATH – RE in OUT OF BATH |
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37 |
Cleric’s cunning and largely expensive ruse (10) |
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ARCHDEACON – ARCH, DEA{r}, CON |
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40 |
Irish lad worked with English lockkeeper (4,5) |
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HAIR SLIDE – (Irish lad E[nglish])* |
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41 |
You two, they say, could have been one of the famous ones (9) |
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SPYPLANES – You two sounds like U2 |
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43 |
Soldier, maybe a hero, bringing medicine (7) |
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ANTACID – ANT, A (El) CID |
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45 |
What mountaineer may carry in reserve: cream (3,4) |
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ICE PICK – ICE, PICK. We recently had the debate on whether and ice pick is a kitchen untensil, climbing aid, murder weapon or all or any of the above. |
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46 |
Loudspeaker on marquee plainly visible (6) |
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PATENT – P[ublic] A[ddress], TENT |
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48 |
Girl’s oddly abandoned vehicle lies upside down (5) |
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ELLIE – reversed alternate letters of vEhIcLe LiEs. As mentioned my daughetr Eleanor will be 21 on Thursday. We started calling her ELLIE when she was 2 or 3 but she objected quite forcefully “I not Ellie, I Eleanor!”. Somehwere between then and now it all flipped. Her friends, lecturers etc. all call her Ellie and that’s how she likes to be known. We’ve reverted to Eleanor which she now doesn’t like. Girls eh? |
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51 |
Fine-tune the market (4) |
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FAIR – F[ine], AIR |
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There’s one of these ‘cryptic nudge’ clues in last week’s ST puzzle: see tomorrow’s blog for more details.
13ac is RAN (hurried), DR (medic).
I wasn’t sure about HONEST-TO-GOODNESS but thought perhaps it was a triple definition. ‘Genuine’ and ‘really’ are given as definitions in Collins, but I’m struggling a bit with ‘well’.