Hello all. This took me almost exactly an hour. Although I’ve taken longer, seldom have I been so surprised to complete with no errors: this was sprinkled with entries for which I’d had to rely on the wordplay or (less of an issue) with unfamiliar wordplay components.
My most doubtful entry was BEND (51d) – I didn’t think of heraldry so the definition made no sense and I was expecting to have missed something obvious. But actually I was more surprised when writing this up at just how many unfamiliar words there were. I suppose I’m not phased when coming across things I don’t know because I’m used to it!
Thanks to the setter for the challenge.
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, quoted indicators are in italics, specified [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 | Gave funds due after death (7) |
| ENDOWED — OWED (due) after END (death) | |
| 5a | Matter about buffs showing self-assertive behaviour (9) |
| PUSHINESS — PUS (matter) around (about) SHINES (buffs) | |
| 10a | Old and regularly unsteady (4) |
| USED — Regularly UnStEaDy | |
| 14a | Sabotage drink mixed for sports activity (13) |
| SKATEBOARDING — An anagram of (… mixed) SABOTAGE DRINK | |
| 15a | Friend grabbing horse to annoy marsupial (9) |
| PHALANGER — PAL (friend) grabbing H (horse) + ANGER (to annoy) | |
| 16a | Who’ll study DNA of cat found next to one burial chamber (10) |
| GENETICIST — GENET (cat) found next to I (one) + CIST (burial chamber). A genet is not a true cat, but a catlike animal. (I was sure I’d made a similar comment before in one of my blogs here, perhaps about a civet rather than genet. I have just checked and I was right about the civet but wrong about it being here: it was in an EV puzzle in another place.) | |
| 17a | Chartreuse drunk with round can be risky (11) |
| TREACHEROUS — An anagram of (drunk) CHARTREUSE with O (round) | |
| 18a | Dictator is human, no saint (5) |
| PERÓN — PER[s]ON (human) without S (no saint) | |
| 19a | It’s old Piglet running round in a flap (10) |
| EPIGLOTTIS — An anagram of (… running round) IT’S O (old) PIGLET | |
| 21a | Capital provided by lender, Saudi, perhaps (unlimited) (6) |
| ANKARA — The concatenation of bANK (lender) and ARAb (Saudi, perhaps) without outer letters (unlimited) | |
| 23a | Scotland’s odd about case for players (9) |
| ORCHESTRA — ORRA (Scotland’s – a Scottish word for – odd) around (about) CHEST (case) | |
| 25a | Own up to hiding millions in part of mine (5) |
| ADMIT — The answer is hiding M (millions) in ADIT (part of mine) | |
| 26a | Keen to make out in popular nightclub (3,4) |
| HOT SPOT — HOT (keen) + SPOT (to make out) | |
| 28a | Angel perhaps trapping Devil, which might provide relief (13) |
| BACKSCRATCHER — BACKER (angel perhaps) around (trapping) SCRATCH (Devil) | |
| 31a | Agreed to change society for tons raising no objection? (9) |
| CONTENTED — CON[s]ENTED (agreed) replacing S with T (to change society for tons) | |
| 33a | What can be used to conceal cigarette smell by doctor (5,4) |
| SMOKE BOMB — SMOKE (cigarette) + BO (smell) + MB (doctor) | |
| 35a | A feature of Jamaica to regularly squander heaps on a large scale? (4,9) |
| BLUE MOUNTAINS — BLUE (to regularly squander) + MOUNTAINS (heaps on a large scale?). I’m not sure about “regularly” which isn’t backed up by the dictionaries I checked – could someone not blue all their money as a one-off? | |
| 37a | Approve of sellers, not very European (7) |
| ENDORSE — [v]ENDORS (sellers) not V (very) + E (European) | |
| 38a | Work with convulsive twitch of the eye (5) |
| OPTIC — OP (work) + TIC (convulsive twitch) | |
| 40a | Company supply outside idiot dealing with knowledge acquisition (9) |
| COGNITIVE — CO (company) + GIVE (supply) outside NIT (idiot) | |
| 42a | Female pointer to produce litter (6) |
| FARROW — F (female) + ARROW (pointer). Since farrow can also be a litter, “to produce” could alternatively be a link rather than part of the definition | |
| 44a | Fed up with mousetrap, perhaps, remove (7,3) |
| CHEESED OFF — CHEESE (mousetrap, perhaps) + DOFF (remove) | |
| 46a | Egyptian’s spirit stated to be broken (5) |
| KAPUT — KA (Egyptian’s spirit) + PUT (stated) | |
| 48a | Not secret, MP being involved in dispute (11) |
| CONTRETEMPS — NOT SECRET, MP being anagrammed (involved) | |
| 50a | Who’ll do a lot to deliver domestic energy? (10) |
| POWERHOUSE — To POWER HOUSE could mean to deliver domestic energy | |
| 52a | Backing prison to hold Arab narcissist (9) |
| EGOMANIAC — Reversing (backing) CAGE (prison) containing (to hold) OMANI (Arab) | |
| 53a | The responsibility of tiny ones is far from past (2,2,3,6) |
| UP TO THE MINUTE — A whimsical secondary indication: if something is UP TO someone it is their responsibility; THE MINUTE could refer to tiny individuals | |
| 54a | Red wine’s having great effect, knocking out petty officer (4) |
| TENT — [po]TENT (having great effect) removing (knocking out) PO (petty officer) | |
| 55a | Communication system that’s great help when working (9) |
| TELEGRAPH — GREAT HELP when anagrammed (working) | |
| 56a | Road split by a grand little plant (7) |
| RAGWEED — RD (road) having inside (split by) A, G (grand) and WEE (little) | |
| Down | |
| 1d | Smallest, not large bearing (4) |
| EAST — [l]EAST (smallest) without (not) L (large) | |
| 2d | Awful matricide is completely opposed (9) |
| DIAMETRIC — An anagram of (awful) MATRICIDE | |
| 3d | Book big attraction all the same for the foolish? (5,6,4,2,5) |
| WHERE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD — This is referring to “fools rush in where angels fear to tread” … I suppose if the fools are rushing in then it must be a big attraction for them, regardless of whatever it is that is keeping the angels away | |
| 4d | Novice upset to be nipped by device for cutting rock (7) |
| DIORITE — TIRO (novice) upwards (upset) going inside (to be nipped by) DIE (device for cutting) | |
| 5d | Parking truck, one long part of the operation? (11) |
| PARTICIPANT — P (parking) + ARTIC (truck) + I (one) + PANT (long) | |
| 6d | Suspicion of serious error with steering gear reported (9) |
| SCINTILLA — Sounds like (… reported) SIN (serious error) with TILLER (steering gear) | |
| 7d | Valuable brick home acquired (5) |
| INGOT — IN (home) + GOT (acquired) | |
| 8d | Wrote up hemistichs in part avoiding strong words (11) |
| EUPHEMISTIC — WrotE UP HEMISTIChs in part | |
| 9d | Thoroughly explore musical ability in school (6) |
| SEARCH — EAR (musical ability) in SCH (school) | |
| 11d | Notice ring — right on a married woman (7) |
| SIGNORA — SIGN (notice) + O (ring) + R (right) + A | |
| 12d | Partly refurbished arms TA’d test in place (9) |
| DARMSTADT — Partly refurbisheD ARMS TA’D Test | |
| 13d | Be wrong working mine having no Thatcher OK? (4,7,5,6) |
| HAVE ANOTHER THINK COMING — An anagram of (working) MINE HAVING NO THATCHER OK | |
| 18d | The Sun reported charge on public transport (7) |
| PHOEBUS — PHOE here sounds like (reported) FEE (charge); it’s on BUS (public transport) | |
| 20d | Buffalo in river area for all to see (7) |
| TAMARAU — TAMAR (river) + A (area) + U (for all to see) | |
| 22d | Fabric sun hat turned out no good (8) |
| SHANTUNG — SUN HAT anagrammed (turned out) + NG (no good). I’d meant to come back to this and actually forgotten about it, or it would have added to my uncertainty. I suppose there weren’t too many other workable combinations, and the right answer looked more plausible than THANSUNG | |
| 24d | Money taken by shop for pastry (8) |
| TURNOVER — Two definitions | |
| 27d | Old diva wanting bread but no tea (5) |
| PATTI — [cha]PATTI (bread) but without (but no) CHA (tea). Adelina Patti | |
| 29d | Clubs — noisy and dim (5) |
| CLOUD — C (clubs) + LOUD (noisy) | |
| 30d | Regular patron of some in cast (7) |
| HABITUE — A BIT (some) in HUE (cast) | |
| 32d | Give up on eating small sweet (7) |
| DESSERT — DESERT (give up on) taking in (eating) S (small) | |
| 34d | Like action of yeast in French loaf with mineral left right out (11) |
| BIOCHEMICAL — B[r]IOCHE (French loaf) with MICA (mineral) and L (left); R (right) is taken out | |
| 36d | Computer’s hex device (11) |
| MICROSWITCH — MICRO’S (computer’s) + WITCH (hex) | |
| 37d | In effect one is organised and methodical (9) |
| EFFICIENT — IN EFFECT I (one) is anagrammed (organised) | |
| 39d | A pectoral fashioned for monarch (9) |
| CLEOPATRA — A PECTORAL anagrammed (fashioned) | |
| 41d | One million letters are with university for a swindle (9) |
| IMPOSTURE — I (one) + M (million) + POST (letters), then [a]RE with U (university) in place of (for) A | |
| 43d | In a poor state, narrowly losing at cricket? (3-4) |
| RUN-DOWN — Two indications | |
| 45d | Refrain initially featuring our Rupert and Pooh? (7) |
| FORBEAR — Initially Featuring Our Rupert + BEAR (Pooh?) | |
| 47d | Reduced manoeuvre in street is hard (6) |
| STRICT — Without the last letter (reduced) TRICk (manoeuvre) in ST (street) | |
| 49d | Tons in solar radiation get initially attacked by a wasp (5) |
| STUNG — T (tons) in SUN (solar radiation) + Get initially | |
| 51d | Ordinary black curtains (4) |
| BEND — B (black) + END (curtains). A bend is a type of ordinary in heraldry | |
Lots of unknowns here: CIST, DIORITE, TAMARAU (or did we have this once?), PATTI, PHALANGER. I biffed 3d from the W; the book, incidentally, is Forster’s novel of that name. 13d is an impressive anagram.
I had lots of notes and queries in the margins but I think I resolved most of them eventually on the day. There were several unknown words or meanings that I took on trust and never got round to looking up after the event.
I had one error that I am now unable to account for, MACROSWITCH instead of MICROSWITCH at 36dn. I used at one time to write macro scripts for manipulation of data that that were triggered by a button or key command, so that’s probably what I had in mind, but I doubt this would have been termed a MACROSWITCH. However I never heard of MICROSWITCH either.
To my shame I used aids for my LOI after an unsuccessful alphabet trawl, but I have absolutely no idea why I was unable to think of TURNOVER as a type of pastry.
I read 24d as almost a triple definition. Money taken = TURNOVER. Shop = TURN OVER [e.g. shop someone to the police]. Pastry = TURNOVER.
I agree with the comment on ‘regularly’ in 35a. It’s both incorrect and unnecessary.