A Very Happy Christmas to you all, whether you are celebrating that, something else or nothing. (For me it’s Catmas, natch, or rather the great Boxing Day Eve.) I hope that you are safe, well, and enjoying your preferred amount of merriment.
30 minutes into this I was sailing along merrily with much of the grid filled, but I needed half that time again to sort out a few in the SW and a few more in the NW. My last in was actually REGALE because I had a complete mental block beyond the RE part. In the end, I put it in and hoped, and only later sorted out how it worked. Sometimes it’s the simple things that get you.
The other thing I failed to do was note down a favourite clue, so would like to invite you to rectify my omission. Thank you in advance – and thanks, of course, to the setter!
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics, explicit [deletions] are in square brackets, and I’ve capitalised and emboldened letters which appear in the ANSWER. For clarity, I omit most link words and some juxtaposition indicators.
| Across | |
| 1 | Striking Tories perhaps without qualification (8) |
| OUTRIGHT — OUT (striking) + RIGHT (Tories perhaps) | |
| 5 | Argument stated, reserve knocked over (4-2) |
| BUST-UP — PUT (stated) + SUB (reserve) all reversed (knocked over) | |
| 9 | Considerate deed farthest off you feel, always ending on the periphery (7) |
| TACTFUL — ACT (deed), with all the last letters of (… always ending) farthesT ofF yoU feeL around it (on the periphery) | |
| 14 | Sending out chef, start on breakfast (6,5) |
| FRENCH TOAST — An anagram of (sending out) CHEF START ON | |
| 15 | Runs bagged, another top ground for cricket perhaps (11) |
| ORTHOPTERAN — With R inserted (runs bagged), an anagram of (… ground) ANOTHER TOP | |
| 16 | Bring joy to conclusion of life story’s retrospective? (5) |
| ELATE — The last letter (conclusion) of lifE and TALE (story), all of which is reversed (retrospective) | |
| 17 | Time Carol is knocking off (7) |
| ERASING — ERA (time) + SING (carol) | |
| 18 | Trouble’s back: certainly coach seeing problem (9) |
| EYESTRAIN — TroublE’s last letter (back) + YES (certainly) + TRAIN (coach) | |
| 19 | Somewhat hot here, torrid coming to that (7) |
| THERETO — Somewhat hoT HERE TOrrid | |
| 20 | Allowing for changes, autumn mist is tad different (7,8) |
| MUTATIS MUTANDIS — AUTUMN MIST IS TAD anagrammed (different) | |
| 22 | Sound of rapper, villain penning all the best dross (3-1-3-3) |
| RAT-A-TAT-TAT — RAT (villain) around (penning) TATA (all the best) + TAT (dross) | |
| 23 | Entertain Royal Engineers, primarily (6) |
| REGALE — REGAL (royal) + the first letter of (… primarily) Engineers | |
| 25 | You and I see, certainly (4) |
| YEAH — YE (you) and AH (I see) | |
| 28 | Recover after a mauling when lioness won and duck lost (4,4,6) |
| LICK ONES WOUNDS — An anagram of (… lost) LIONESS WON and DUCK | |
| 30 | Girl, she’s drunk a huge amount of water (5,3) |
| IRISH SEA — IRIS (girl) + SHE anagrammed (drunk) + A | |
| 32 | Particular things, matches involving French team? (8) |
| NICETIES — NICE TIES could be matches or ties involving a French team | |
| 34 | Blue fluff on one’s tongue, perhaps? (4,2,3,5) |
| DOWN IN THE MOUTH — Definition plus a literal interpretation of the answer, with down = fluff | |
| 37 | Arsenal, looking back, compact and organised (4) |
| SNUG — GUNS (arsenal) reversed (looking back) | |
| 38 | Loyal subject ultimately out of practice (6) |
| TRUSTY — The last letter of (… ultimately) subjecT + RUSTY (out of practice) | |
| 39 | Relevant where taper’s heading? (2,3,5) |
| TO THE POINT — Another definition plus literal interpretation | |
| 43 | Purplish, purplis and purpli mouse? (9,6) |
| SHRINKING VIOLET — Purplish (VIOLET) is SHRINKING by losing a letter each time. I had assumed when solving that purplis and purpli would be real words, but they aren’t | |
| 45 | Holidaymaker, one freaking out? (7) |
| TRIPPER — Double definition | |
| 47 | Nation, one entertained by an American refrain (9) |
| AUSTRALIA — I (one) in (entertained by) A US (an American) and TRA–LA (refrain) | |
| 49 | What’s lost, finding a way to cut pay (7) |
| WASTAGE — A ST (way) inside (to cut) WAGE (pay) | |
| 51 | Sign on end of rope, near hole in the middle (5) |
| ENROL — The last letter (end) of ropE + NR (near) + the central letters of (… in the middle) hOLe | |
| 52 | Puzzle isn’t a doddle, unfinished brother admits (11) |
| BRAINTEASER — AINT EASy (isn’t a doddle) without the last letter (unfinished), which BRER (brother) contains (admits) | |
| 53 | Telling stories is generally nice, all kicking off should I be unable to do so (11) |
| SIGNIFICANT — All the initial letters of (… all kicking off) Stories Is Generally Nice + IF I CAN’T (should I be unable to do so) | |
| 54 | Sponges in sediment mopping up last bits of classic French wine (7) |
| LEECHES — LEES (sediment) around (mopping up) the final letters (last bits) of classiC FrencH winE | |
| 55 | Some hollow fruit collected (6) |
| SEDATE — SomE without its inner letters (hollow) + DATE (fruit) | |
| 56 | It having broken ornamental stone, daughter upset (8) |
| AGITATED — IT inside (having broken) AGATE (ornamental stone) + D (daughter) | |
| Down | |
| 1 | On holiday, whip is eccentric (7) |
| OFFBEAT — OFF (on holiday) + BEAT (whip) | |
| 2 | Remedial teacher I put in a spin (11) |
| THERAPEUTIC — TEACHER I PUT anagrammed (in a spin) | |
| 3 | Harsh material’s ending in secure boxes (9) |
| INCLEMENT — MateriaL’s ending, which IN plus CEMENT (secure) contains (boxes) | |
| 4 | Play dirty with handle on weapon, bet the elbow bent going in? (3,5,3,4) |
| HIT BELOW THE BELT — HILT (handle on weapon) with an anagram of (… bent) BET THE ELBOW inserted (going in) | |
| 6 | Separating foolish peacekeepers, head of security puts things straight (8) |
| UNTWISTS — Inside (separating) UN TWITS (foolish peacekeepers) is the first letter (head) of Security | |
| 7 | Improbable cerebral talent, however pedestrian activity (7-7) |
| THOUGHT-READING — THOUGH (however) + TREADING (pedestrian activity) | |
| 8 | Snooker player’s stick somewhere in Hertfordshire (7,3) |
| POTTERS BAR — POTTER’S (snooker player’s) + BAR (stick) | |
| 9 | American writer you no longer read briefly visits (7) |
| THOREAU — THOU (you no longer), which REAd without its last letter (briefly) goes inside (visits) | |
| 10 | How to make something smaller succeed (3,2) |
| CUT IT — To make something smaller you could CUT IT | |
| 11 | Appropriate to charge? I’m not sure it’s an offence in rugby (7,4) |
| FORWARD PASS — FOR (appropriate to) + WARD (charge) + PASS (I’m not sure) | |
| 12 | Revolutionary figure in register — such as him? (8) |
| LENINIST — The reversal of (revolutionary) NINE (figure) in LIST (register) | |
| 13 | A laugh arising in story (4) |
| SAGA — A + GAS (laugh) reversed (arising) | |
| 20 | Pet sounds mellow if allowed on woman’s sofa, initially (6) |
| MIAOWS — First letters of (… initially) Mellow If Allowed On Woman’s Sofa | |
| 21 | Plant a feature of Italy’s summer (7) |
| ALYSSUM — The answer is contained within (a feature of) ItALY‘S SUMmer | |
| 22 | Verdict going straight across the page? (6) |
| RULING — Two definitions, the second by example | |
| 24 | Remarkable piece of jewellery? That’s the unusual set inside? (5-10) |
| EARTH-SHATTERING — EARRING (piece of jewellery) with an anagram of (… unusual) THAT’S THE inserted (set inside) | |
| 26 | Great extra-terrestrial (3,2,4,5) |
| OUT OF THIS WORLD — Another double definition | |
| 27 | Reportedly walk while swaying — something saucy in that? (6) |
| SACHET — Sounds like (reportedly) SASHAY (walk while swaying) | |
| 29 | Odd bits erased, touch label on figure (7) |
| OCTAGON — Without the odd letters (odd bits erased), tOuCh + TAG (label) + ON | |
| 31 | Walking, where mule should be? (2,4) |
| ON FOOT — Two definitions; the mule is a shoe | |
| 33 | Focus of attention being cold main dish, male tucking in (6,5) |
| CENTRE STAGE — C (cold) + ENTRÉE (main dish*) with STAG inserted (tucking in). *In the US anyway. I’d eat my hat – for starters – if I came across that usage over here | |
| 35 | Chap drinking wine in one measure — not worth mentioning (11) |
| UNIMPORTANT — MAN (chap) around (drinking) PORT (wine), all inside (in) UNIT (one measure) | |
| 36 | A solution to a glaring problem? (10) |
| SUNGLASSES — Cryptic definition | |
| 40 | Tariff triples unfortunately, tying in one client originally (5,4) |
| PRICE LIST — TRIPLES anagrammed (unfortunately) containing (tying in) I (one) and the first letter of (… originally) Client | |
| 41 | Where sultan, I suspect, had embraced capital in Byzantium? (8) |
| ISTANBUL — In which SULTAN I anagrammed (suspect) is around (had embraced) the first letter of (capital in) Byzantium | |
| 42 | In secret, someone’s outside, not far apart (5-3) |
| CLOSE-SET — In CLOSET is SomeoneE’s outer letters (outside) | |
| 44 | Almost selling out, society in disorder (7) |
| ILLNESS — Almost SELLINg anagrammed (out) + S (society) | |
| 46 | Similar sore, evidently, behind cuts (7) |
| RELATED — RED (sore, evidently), which LATE (behind) goes inside (cuts) | |
| 48 | Farm office locally not opening (5) |
| RANCH — bRANCH (office locally) without the first letter (not opening) | |
| 50 | Back circling river, mythical ship (4) |
| ARGO — AGO (back) around (circling) R (river) | |
I don’t think there was anything wrong with the clues but perhaps I wasn’t in the right frame of mind when I started on it and on every return I became more discouraged when the answers refused to flow.
Learn more about LiveJournal Ratings in FAQ.
Answer: IRISH SEA
Blogger’s explanation: IRIS + an anagram of SHE’S
but HSEA is NOT an anagram of SHE’s
HSEA is an anagram of ‘SHE’ followed by the ‘A’ in the clue (which is NOT part of the definition which is ‘Large body of Water)
Mutatis mutandis is my cod, it is one of those phrases where if someone uses it in conversation, I automatically bow to their superior command of English… SO much better than my “Well, who knows, innit?” would be