Hi everyone. Coming up with the answers took me comfortably inside the hour but I had left myself an unusually large number of empty single squares signalling the need to go back and parse fully. In the event this didn’t prove as tricky as I’d anticipated, but did take me over that hour mark.
My last in was the bower in 7a and I had to choose between the two options for the surname which the wordplay allowed. I guessed right, which was a relief. There were a couple of other things to look up when writing the blog, but no other causes for doubt when solving.
It felt like there was a sense of fun and playfulness here, which I appreciated. Thanks setter!
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, most 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 | Lose it down a gutter, its front blocking gondola (4,1,6) |
| BLOW A GASKET — LOW (down), A and Gutter – its first letter (its front) – inside (blocking) BASKET (gondola) | |
| 7a | Recollection of bread, as fed to natives in wonderful bower? (5,6) |
| PABLO CASALS — Reversal (recollection) of BAP (bread) + AS inserted in (fed to) LOCALS (natives). Pablo Casals was a cellist, hence “bower”, and also a composer and conductor | |
| 13a | Second lecture on my seabird (9) |
| CORMORANT — MO (second) and RANT (lecture) on COR (my) | |
| 14a | Worship is embraced by one with benefit (7) |
| IDOLISE — IS inside (embraced by) I (one) with DOLE (benefit) | |
| 15a | A little titbit, as tempter? (5) |
| TASTE — Part of (a little) titbiT, AS Tempter, &lit | |
| 16a | Vaudeville star, one celebrating? (6) |
| LAUDER — Two definitions, the first referring to Harry Lauder | |
| 17a | Drink in picnic containers, carbonated? (8) |
| CHAMPERS — HAMPERS (picnic containers) with the addition of C , the chemical symbol of carbon (carbonated?) | |
| 18a | Reverend often slipping tongue in kisser (7) |
| SPOONER — Two definitions | |
| 20a | Savage lurch, reminder at death in Canterbury tale? (6,2,3,9) |
| MURDER IN THE CATHEDRAL — An anagram of (savage) LURCH, REMINDER AT DEATH. Play by T. S. Eliot about the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral | |
| 23a | Heartless relative having dropped in, everybody hiding away (7) |
| CALLOUS — COUS[in] (relative) having dropped IN, with ALL (everybody) inside (hiding away) | |
| 24a | Turn fan backwards and ventilate after evacuation (7) |
| REVOLVE — LOVER (fan) backwards + VentilatE after evacuation of its inner letters | |
| 26a | Old type-size in collection that’s back in the news (7) |
| TOPICAL — PICA (old type-size) in LOT (collection) that’s reversed (back) | |
| 28a | Odd pink or blue? (4) |
| RARE — Three definitions | |
| 29a | Mathematical computation, hard stuff (8) |
| CALCULUS — Double definition | |
| 32a | Drug: one was in possession of the police (9) |
| METHADONE — MET HAD ONE (one was in possession of the police) | |
| 35a | Man, male regenerating gradually (9) |
| PIECEMEAL — PIECE (man) + MALE anagrammed (regenerating) | |
| 36a | Binds sample embroidery (8) |
| TAPESTRY — TAPES (binds) + TRY (sample) | |
| 37a | Commercials broadcast for bladed tool (4) |
| ADZE — Sounds like (… broadcast) ADS (commercials) | |
| 39a | Uncommunicative about one being faced by rogue element (7) |
| CADMIUM — MUM (uncommunicative) around (about) I (one) preceded by (being faced by) CAD (rogue) | |
| 41a | Female and pop party (7) |
| SHEBANG — SHE (female) and BANG (pop) | |
| 44a | Small change in old cartoon strip? (7) |
| PEANUTS — Two definitions | |
| 45a | Writer inspired by the dream is talking about why our arguments are equally sound? (5,5,5,5) |
| GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE — INK (writer) inside (inspired by) an anagram of (… about) THE DREAM IS TALKING | |
| 49a | Shudder with terror entering contest (7) |
| VIBRATE — BRAT (terror) going into (entering) VIE (contest) | |
| 50a | Hit hard, broke (8) |
| STRAPPED — Double definition | |
| 51a | Get down from oak originally in tree-lined avenue (6) |
| GROOVE — The first letter of (… originally) Oak in GROVE (tree-lined avenue) | |
| 53a | Water thrown back, so wet behind the ears (5) |
| NAIVE — EVIAN (water) reversed (thrown back) | |
| 54a | Blot that was registered by yours truly on audio? (7) |
| EYESORE — Sounds like (… on audio?) I SAW (that was registered by yours truly) | |
| 55a | Breed with refined deportment, reportedly? (9) |
| PROPAGATE — A soundalike of (… reportedly?) PROPER (refined) GAIT (deportment) | |
| 56a | When Westminster quietens, that keeps the wet lot on edge (5,6) |
| SILLY SEASON — YON (that) holds (keeps) SEAS (the wet lot) on SILL (edge) | |
| 57a | Ho hum, pedestrian score checker (5-6) |
| SIGHT-READER — SIGH (ho hum) + TREADER (pedestrian) | |
| Down | |
| 1d | Fastener joins deer and baby animal up (6) |
| BUCKLE — We join ELK (deer) and CUB (baby animal) in reverse (up) | |
| 2d | Mournful and true, I’d a dismal book (3,6,6) |
| OUR MUTUAL FRIEND — An anagram of (… dismal) MOURNFUL and TRUE, I’D A | |
| 3d | Repairs on inverted cross very near (2,4,4) |
| AT ONES DOOR — ATONES (repairs) on backwards (inverted) ROOD (cross) | |
| 4d | A modus operandi abroad (4) |
| AWAY — A + WAY (modus operandi) | |
| 5d | Imperial chief, leader of nation in comfort with uniform on (9) |
| KITCHENER — The first letter of (leader of) Nation in CHEER (comfort) with KIT (uniform) on top | |
| 6d | Success as island blocks top hotel (7) |
| TRIUMPH — I (island) goes into (blocks) TRUMP (top) + H (hotel) | |
| 7d | Southern French clan dancing at end of show (9) |
| PROVENÇAL — CLAN anagrammed (dancing) after (at end of) PROVE (show) | |
| 8d | English composer a joy (5) |
| BLISS — Double definition | |
| 9d | Slack lovers finally woke up, but were late for work, probably? (9) |
| OVERSLEPT — An anagram of (slack) LOVERS + end letters of (finally) wokE uP buT | |
| 10d | Another opportunity to see article on pay reforms (6,6) |
| ACTION REPLAY — ARTICLE ON PAY is anagrammed (reforms) | |
| 11d | Store outfit in North London (7) |
| ARSENAL — Another double definition | |
| 12d | Range of phonetic letters? (6) |
| SIERRA — A reference to SIERRA being a code word in the phonetic alphabet | |
| 19d | Pretty up on amenable gelding, equestrian initially — in this? (8) |
| DRESSAGE — DRESS (pretty up) on the first letters of (… initially) Amenable Gelding, Equestrian | |
| 21d | Thus title written upside down underneath the bottle (7) |
| THERMOS — SO (thus) and MR (title) reversed (written upside down) underneath THE | |
| 22d | In the dark unable to solve crosswords? (8) |
| CLUELESS — Two definitions | |
| 23d | Heat-resistant tiles on spacecraft, vehicle like a rocket (8) |
| CARAPACE — CAR (vehicle) + APACE (like a rocket) | |
| 25d | So long time for hotel employee (5) |
| VALET — VALE (so long) + T (time) | |
| 27d | Obscure winger to arrive in theatre of impossible dreams (5-6-4) |
| CLOUD-CUCKOO-LAND — CLOUD (obscure) + CUCKOO (winger) + LAND (to arrive) | |
| 30d | Jumbos bit incomplete, defeat admitted (7) |
| COLOSSI — COIn (bit) without the last letter (incomplete), with LOSS (defeat) inserted (admitted) | |
| 31d | Pigment more likely to leak, might you say? (5) |
| SEPIA — SEEPIER (more likely to leak), soundalike (did you say?) | |
| 33d | Change point for old gate (8) |
| TURNPIKE — TURN (change) + PIKE (point) | |
| 34d | Red label, yet I will appear troubled by design (12) |
| DELIBERATELY — RED LABEL, YET I is to be anagrammed (will appear troubled) | |
| 38d | Bespoke orders I’m told are covering area (6-4) |
| TAILOR-MADE — The answer mixes up (orders) I’M TOLD ARE around (covering) A (area) | |
| 40d | Childish communication intercepted by supremo? There’s evidence! (9) |
| MOTHERESE — This is inside (intercepted by) supreMO? THERE’S Evidence! | |
| 42d | Colour that is used up before blue, warmer? (9) |
| EIDERDOWN — Reversed (… used up), RED (colour) and IE (that is) before DOWN (blue) | |
| 43d | Land unpleasant job, being lab rat (6,3) |
| GUINEA PIG — GUINEA (land) + PIG (unpleasant job) | |
| 45d | French food borne by female messenger (7) |
| GABRIEL — BRIE (French food) inside (borne by) GAL (female) | |
| 46d | Half-naked, as Alf naked? (7) |
| TOPLESS — As ALF is hALF missing its first letter, in this way it is TOPLESS. I’m finding it hard to put into words here, but I can see what the clue is getting at | |
| 47d | Chance to host first of three contests (6) |
| EVENTS — EVENS (chance) taking in (to host) the first of Three | |
| 48d | Fireball more disastrous, full of energy and temperature (6) |
| METEOR — MORE anagrammed (disastrous), containing (full of) E (energy) and T (temperature) | |
| 50d | Small muscles, those found on end of nose (5) |
| SPECS — S (small) + PECS (muscles) | |
| 52d | Rookie shooter (4) |
| COLT — Double definition | |
I failed to parse a oouple: BLOW A GASKET, BUCKLE, RARE (pink=rare? blue=rare?). Didn’t even try with GREAT MINDS–a very impressive anagram, as was MURDER. Biffed CLOUD from the enumeration.
Blue=rare? Why?
Also, SEPIA doesn’t sound like ‘seepier’ to me.
Sorry, I should have replied to Kevin before. Very rare (pink) steak is known as blue steak. I had assumed it would be in the dictionaries but can’t find it in any of the big three. Googling turns up that usage though.
I wrote on my copy that most of this was easy except the SW which I described as “a pig”.
Biffed 45ac as life’s too short and I was thankful not to be on blogging duty needing to investigate further.
Unfortunately I guessed incorrectly with the bower unlike our blogger. Shame because I’d solved the rest with only LOI LAUDER giving me any real trouble as I hadn’t heard of him either!