Hello everyone. This felt like a very well balanced puzzle in terms of difficulty: the distribution of filled answers stayed even as I solved, and my pace remained steady. All very enjoyable too. Thanks setter!
As I failed to get the letters of 15a in the right order at the first attempt I can’t claim a finish under exam conditions. Having said that I definitely wasn’t solving under exam conditions – I had just returned from celebrating a friend’s birthday and so was in merry mood, if somewhat tired. (And emotional? Perhaps, perhaps…)
All of this took me 53 minutes. Usually I try to solve fully as I go along, but when writing up the blog, I did spot at least one (8d) which had slipped in half-parsed.
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 | |
| 1a | I’m sure I can whizz through elevated motorway (2,7) |
| NO PROBLEM — PRO (whizz) goes in (through) NOBLE (elevated) + M (motorway) | |
| 6a | Noise made tapping bread and butter (3-1-3) |
| PIT-A-PAT — PITA (bread) and PAT (butter) | |
| 10a | Says good things about somewhat grouchy pessimist (5) |
| HYPES — Somewhat groucHY PESsimist | |
| 13a | Photo session at farm? There’ll be sniping here (8,5) |
| SHOOTING RANGE — SHOOTING (photo session) + RANGE (farm) | |
| 14a | Mainly during classes, before end of school (2,7) |
| IN GENERAL — IN (during) + GENERA (classes) + the end of schooL | |
| 15a | Badly hit area is old Roman province (7) |
| RHAETIA — An anagram of (badly) HIT AREA | |
| 16a | Taps into theatre to make money once (7) |
| DRACHMA — C and H (taps) going into DRAMA (theatre) | |
| 17a | Shabbily treated compiler’s going to America with his boss (3-4) |
| ILL-USED — I’LL (compiler’s) US (America) + ED (his boss) | |
| 18a | Novel generated unpleasant whiff around America, needing change (6,6) |
| MADAME BOVARY — MADE (generated) and BO (unpleasant whiff) around AM (America) + VARY (change) | |
| 20a | Cavorting belle — a dish in scantily clad state (10) |
| DESHABILLE — An anagram of (cavorting) BELLE — A DISH | |
| 23a | British cooking ingredient for American cook (5) |
| BROIL — BR (British) + OIL (cooking ingredient) | |
| 24a | Peacenik, observe: doctor, Scot or Latin type (9) |
| COLOMBIAN — CO (conscientious objector: peacenik) + LO (observe) + MB (doctor) + IAN (Scot) | |
| 25a | You said cleric punches good swimmer? That’s bizarre (7) |
| SURREAL — U (you said); RR (cleric) goes inside (punches) + SEAL (good swimmer) | |
| 26a | Wife irrational after drink, in a state (11) |
| MISSISSIPPI — MISSIS (wife) + PI (irrational) after SIP (drink) | |
| 28a | It gets oxygen round big home refurbished with loan (11) |
| HAEMOGLOBIN — BIG HOME LOAN anagrammed (refurbished) | |
| 30a | Not feeling popular, one overwhelmed by life? (11) |
| INSENTIENCE — IN (popular) + I (one) inside (overwhelmed by) SENTENCE (life?) | |
| 32a | Safe time to welcome teacher, a Potter character (5,6) |
| PETER RABBIT — PETER (safe) and T (time) around (to welcome) RABBI (teacher) | |
| 34a | Westerly Parisian street contains place to sleep over in trip that won’t cost the earth (7) |
| ECOTOUR — The reversal of (westerly) RUE (Parisian street) contains COT (place to sleep) and O (over) | |
| 36a | Costly sparkler is what malingerer has picked up? (9) |
| CHAMPAGNE — Sounds like (… picked up) SHAM PAIN (what malingerer has … ?). As the toast goes, “Champagne for my real friends; real pain for my sham friends!” | |
| 38a | Empty delta with dropping water (5) |
| DRAIN — D (delta) + RAIN (dropping water) | |
| 39a | Cash for Roman trustees I’m moving around (10) |
| SESTERTIUM — TRUSTEES I’M anagrammed (moving around) | |
| 41a | Old King Edward, say, cuts caper, getting bump (12) |
| PROTUBERANCE — O (old) and TUBER (King Edward, say) goes inside (cuts) PRANCE (caper) | |
| 45a | Boozing, wanting constant stimulation (7) |
| AROUSAL — [c]AROUSAL (boozing) lacking (wanting) C (constant) | |
| 46a | Indian’s oven has brown opening (7) |
| TANDOOR — TAN (brown) + DOOR (opening) | |
| 47a | Fish submerged in drink in sea-change (5-2) |
| SHAKE-UP — HAKE (fish) submerged in SUP (drink) | |
| 49a | Sausage course sandwiched by Italian beer (9) |
| PEPPERONI — PPE (course) sandwiched by PERONI (Italian beer) | |
| 50a | Assistant crime-fighter engaged by PM, with boy ludicrously involved (5,8) |
| HEATH ROBINSON — ROBIN (assistant crime-fighter, of Batman) inside (engaged by) HEATH (PM) and SON (boy) | |
| 52a | What indicates requirement of energy in old vehicle (5) |
| CARET — E (energy) in CART (old vehicle) | |
| 53a | Earn dime? I’m going to work in restaurant (7) |
| DESERVE — D[im]E with I’M removed (going) + SERVE (to work in restaurant) | |
| 54a | Charlie maybe playing golf in crowd (9) |
| CONCOURSE — C (Charlie) + ON COURSE (maybe playing golf) | |
| Down | |
| 1d | Treatment for the gullible son excluding alcohol bottles (7) |
| NOSTRUM — S (son); NO RUM (excluding alcohol) surrounds (bottles) it | |
| 2d | Something to weigh up for Polish politicians (4,3,4) |
| PROS AND CONS — PRO (for) + SAND (polish) + CONS (politicians) | |
| 3d | Group turned around business before the New Year (5) |
| OCTET — CO (business) reversed (turned around) + TET (the New Year) | |
| 4d | Some dialogue on item of unmentionables turned up in old script (6,1) |
| LINEAR B — LINE (some dialogue) + BRA (item of unmentionables) reversed (turned up) | |
| 5d | Damage in memory on the rise (3) |
| MAR — RAM (memory) written upwards (on the rise) | |
| 6d | Write name on sign, a mystical symbol (9) |
| PENTAGRAM — PEN (write) + TAG (name) + RAM (sign, Aries) | |
| 7d | What toddlers do, having temperature: get angry, losing head (6) |
| TEETHE — T (temperature) + sEETHE (get angry) without the first letter (losing head) | |
| 8d | Soldier to seek returns on gold, holding one piece? He’ll do some probing (7,12) |
| PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR — PRIVATE (soldier) + INVEST (to seek returns on) and OR (gold) around (holding) I (one) and GAT (piece) | |
| 9d | Ferociously catty Middle Eastern runner gets hot (7) |
| TIGRISH — TIGRIS (Middle Eastern runner) + H (hot) | |
| 10d | What rider needs to deal with some pressure (9) |
| HANDLEBAR — HANDLE (to deal with) + BAR (some pressure) | |
| 11d | Initially very brash, Pearl somehow gets to chill out, for example (7,4) |
| PHRASAL VERB — The first letter of (initially) Very and BRASH PEARL anagrammed (somehow) | |
| 12d | Arsenal gutted, overrun by blue side (5) |
| SALAD — ArsenalL without its inner letters (gutted) is inside (overrun by) SAD (blue) | |
| 16d | What may create neurotics in India and Pakistan? (10,9) |
| DEVELOPING COUNTRIES — A reverse clue: an anagram of (DEVELOPING) COUNTRIES may create NEUROTICS | |
| 19d | I continue to ponder frames for part of window (7) |
| MULLION — I, which MULL ON (continue to ponder) goes around (frames) | |
| 21d | Duke topped another one (9) |
| ELLINGTON — wELLINGTON (duke) without the first letter (topped) creates another duke | |
| 22d | Happening upon dance music style (3-3) |
| HIP-HOP — HIP (happening) + HOP (dance) | |
| 23d | Uneven quality of sponges covering trees (9) |
| BUMPINESS — BUMS (sponges) around (covering) PINES (trees) | |
| 24d | Fire, or what’s left of it that is in hollow container (7) |
| CASHIER — ASH (what’s left of [fire]) and IE (that is) in ContainerR without its inside letters (hollow…) | |
| 25d | Flog small bottle after removing article (7) |
| SCOURGE — S (small) + COUR[a]GE (bottle) without (after removing) A (article) | |
| 27d | Current coating of cheese gets better — it shouldn’t be melting! (3,3) |
| ICE CAP — I (current) + the outer letters (coating) of CheesE + CAP (better) | |
| 29d | Perhaps one inclined to embrace daughter’s lover (7) |
| LEANDER — LEANER (perhaps one inclined) around (to embrace) D (daughter) | |
| 31d | Broadcast capturing hearts? Bung in a crowd-pleaser (4,7) |
| SHOW STOPPER — SOW (broadcast) containing (capturing) H (hearts) + STOPPER (bung) | |
| 33d | Crazily, Eritrea bans the crossword puzzle, perhaps (5-6) |
| BRAIN-TEASER — An anagram of (crazily) ERITREA BANS | |
| 35d | Tardily woke Liberal seen in month in public (9) |
| OVERSLEPT — L (liberal) seen in SEP (month), all in OVERT (public). Hmm, how best to describe this type of clue without mentioning the R word? | |
| 37d | Attendant admitting illicit act in holy residence (9) |
| PARSONAGE — PAGE (attendant) taking in (admitting) ARSON (illicit act) | |
| 40d | Having lifted obstacle, go across new town (7) |
| TELFORD — After reversing (having lifted) LET (obstacle), FORD (go across) | |
| 42d | One’s blown asset, allowing idiot in (7) |
| BASSOON — BOON (asset) containing (allowing … in) ASS (idiot) | |
| 43d | Charge made by swans in river (7) |
| EXPENSE — PENS (swans) in EXE (river) | |
| 44d | An unending job for fixer, in the main (6) |
| ANCHOR — AN + CHORe (job) without the last letter (unending …) | |
| 45d | Gelatinous substance not quite a flavour-enhancer (5) |
| ASPIC — Missing the last letter (not quite) A SPICe (a flavour-enhancer) | |
| 48d | Fighter entering a ring in China (5) |
| AMIGO — MIG (fighter) going inside (entering) A and O (ring) | |
| 51d | Noise made by drunk here, classically (3) |
| HIC — HIC means here in Latin (classically) | |
I’m afraid I don’t remember much about this one and the almost total absence of notes and workings-out on my hard copy suggests I found it reasonably easy.
My only MER was the definition at 12dn where I thought ‘side’ for SALAD was rather too flimsy.
We seem to be missing the blog for Jumbo 1554 from the May Day Bank Holiday Monday. I’m not sure who was on duty that day.
Couldn’t you have guessed? Just posted a quick blog for 1554, but moved it back to the appropriate place in the timeline.
Ah, I see. I had used Search and also checked the Dashboard before posting that I couldn’t find it. Will take a look at it now anyway.
Comfortably below 100 minutes. Held up most by 39ac where I knew SESTERCES, which I couldn’t make fit, and did not know a thousand of them was a SESTERTIUM. Lots of friendly enjoyable clues like PIT-A-PAT, BROIL AND BUMPINESS. Nice Jumbo
Missed a lot these-SHAKE-UP, HEATH ROBINSON, INSENTIENCE,and PHRASAL VERB. Still I knew I could come here and find out what stumped me. Thanks,Kitty, for great informative blog!