Times Cryptic Jumbo 1710 – 1 January 2025. I found myself!

Hi all.  This puzzle was published on New Year’s Day and already it feels like the year is far from new.  Certainly, for me it is a case of “new year, same old habits like leaving blogs until the eleventh hour”.

(Since I’m writing this at the last minute, naturally I digressed to do a quick calculation: if a year is a lifetime, 2025 is now a toddler of about 4 – so indeed, not a baby.)

I recorded 77 minutes so must have found it pretty tricky – or been very tired!  Having made no other notes at the time I’ll just add any further thoughts below as I go.  At least there’s an obvious COD for me at 34d.  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 Expected night of fine dancing (2,3,6)
IN THE OFFING NIGHT OF FINE anagrammed (dancing).
A suitable surface for New Year’s!
7a Instrument sometimes malfunctioning — I don’t know what to say (11)
SEISMOMETER — An anagram of (… malfunctioning) SOMETIMES + ER (I don’t know what to say)
13a Stand in garden back at doctor’s getting stuck into a authoritative book (4,5)
BIRD TABLE — Reverse (back) AT and DR (doctor) which is inside (getting stuck into) BIBLE (authoritative book).
I imagine that A isn’t meant to be there
14a Taking step to overcome article from Paris Match not being original (7)
LEAPING LE (article from Paris Match) + APING (not being original)
15a Nearly all go up quietly to get trophy (5)
SCALP — All but the last letter of (nearly all) SCALe (go up) + P (quietly)
16a Smart, in light clothes, following bishop (6)
BRAINY IN, which RAY (light) surrounds (clothes), following B (bishop)
17a Holding note, I play it quivering with pathos (8)
PITIABLY — Containing (holding) B (note), an anagram of (… quivering) I PLAY IT
18a Brief commotion follows on the wagon carrying English man wrongly imprisoned (7)
DREYFUS — Without its last letter (brief), FUSs (commotion) follows DRY (on the wagon) around (carrying) E (English).  Alfred Dreyfus
20a One hundred percent inflation which puts paid to spring work (4,4,4,4,4)
ALLS WELL THAT ENDS WELL ALL (one hundred percent) + SWELL (inflation) + THAT (which) + ENDS (puts paid to) + WELL (spring)
23a Chap let down when trading heads for complimentary post? (3,4)
FAN MAIL MAN (chap) + FAIL (let down) when switching the first letters (trading heads)
24a I’ll formally honour South African instrumentalist (7)
SALUTER SA (South African) + LUTER (instrumentalist)
26a Burning of billet every so often in base (7)
UNNOBLE — Regular letters of (… every so often) bUrNiNg Of BiLlEt
28a Bank at liberty to delay fine (4)
REEF FREE (at liberty) with the F moved to the end (to delay fine)
29a Met prisoner, greatly enthused (8)
POWWOWED POW (prisoner) + WOWED (greatly enthused)
32a Back transatlantic allies fronting hotel chain (5,4)
HINDU KUSH HIND (back) + UK US (transatlantic allies) + H (hotel)
35a Carmen’s admirer say, old, a past monarch (5-4)
OPERA-GOER O (old) + PER (a) + AGO (past) + ER (monarch)
36a Little matters when trained army falls short of ammunition initially (5,3)
SMALL FRY — An anagram of (when trained) [a]RMY FALLS missing (short of) the first letter of (… initially) Ammunition
37a Crawled, possibly, out of marsh before the end (4)
SWAM SWAMp (marsh) up to but not including its last letter (before the end)
39a Good seaside speciality found by the French visitor to Cornwall? (7)
GROCKLE G (good) + ROCK (seaside speciality) + LE (the, French)
41a One going right around yellow dog that’s dangerous? (7)
ORBITER OR (yellow – heraldry) + BITER (dog that’s dangerous?)
44a Stamen, tall, keeps bearing catkins (7)
AMENTAL — A hidden word: stAMEN, TALl contains (keeps) the answer
45a War verses repeated do haunt the memory of irregular (6,3,6,5)
ANTHEM FOR DOOMED YOUTH — An anagram of (… irregular) DO DO (repeated do) HAUNT THE MEMORY OF
49a Charter maybe heading for Greece — quickly boards at the front (3,4)
POP SONG — The first letter of (heading for) Greece, with POPS ON (quickly boards) at the front
50a Grand old bovine philosopher promoting pleasure (8)
EPICURUS EPIC (grand) + URUS (old bovine)
51a Plan that’s sound if unhealthy (6)
WHEEZE — Two definitions
53a Educated woman dramatically grabbing a side dish (5)
RAITA RITA (educated woman dramatically) enveloping (grabbing) A
54a Ode in praise of pre-race favourite recited? Exactly (2,1,4)
TO A HAIR — This sounds like (… recited) TO A HARE, which could be an ode to the favourite in the fabled race between the tortoise and the hare
55a Obscure answer given by foolish class (9)
ADUMBRATE A (answer) + DUMB (foolish) + RATE (class)
56a Express on European railroad stops presidential transport (3,5,3)
AIR FORCE ONE AIR (express), ON and E (European) which FORCE (railroad) goes inside (stops)
57a This kipper is off! (11)
SLEEPWALKER — Cryptic definition
Down
1d Drink needed for climb, I believe (6)
IMBIBE — Part of (needed for) clIMB I BElieve
2d Feign ignorance of spin deviously by a deletion (4,1,5,3,2)
TURN A BLIND EYE TO TURN (spin) + an anagram of (deviously) BY A DELETION
3d Be surprised, on the sea, at waves (3,4,3)
EAT ONES HAT ON THE SEA, AT is anagrammed (waves)
4d Female pupils who were at the school, their links ending in time? (4)
FOBS F (female) + OBS (old boys, pupils who were at the school)
5d In charge of key areas of expertise, they coolly cover a lot of ground (9)
ICEFIELDS IC (in charge) + FIELDS (key areas of expertise)
6d Like top medal? Indoor swimmer lacks force (7)
GOLDISH GOLD[f]ISH (indoor swimmer) lacks F (force)
7d Rest days quiet: group of Swedes with a small drink (9)
SHABBATOT SH (quiet) + ABBA (group of Swedes) + TOT (a small drink)
8d With reserve forces finally leaving island in the Med (5)
ICILY — The last letter of (… finally) forceS leaving [s]ICILY (island in the Med)
9d Error stopping out to lunch — I mostly steer clear of port (9)
MOGADISHU OG (own goal, error) inside (stopping) MAD (out to lunch) + I + mostly SHUn (steer clear of)
10d Circulating a rude meme, briefly, is no crime (12)
MISDEMEANOUR — An anagram of (circulating) A RUDE MEMe, briefly, IS NO
11d After time, rebuke makes you visibly upset (7)
TEARFUL After T (time), EARFUL (rebuke)
12d Courses dealing with history (6)
REPAST RE (dealing with) + PAST (history)
19d Rich commotion below watering hole? (4-2-2)
WELL-TO-DO TODO (commotion) below WELL (watering hole?)
21d Sea creature emerging from short grass with small boy (7)
NARWHAL NARk (grass) without its last letter (short …) + W (with) + HAL (small boy)
22d Turned to large bottles originally holding sauce (8)
BECHAMEL BECAME (turned to) plus L (large) contains (bottles) the first letter of (originally) Holding
23d Leave coat with Allen, perhaps (8)
FURLOUGH FUR (coat) with LOUGH (Allen, perhaps)
25d Confession to murder when cycling in Hebridean location (5)
LEWIS I SLEW (confession to murder) when cycling
27d Rise early to get abreast of mischief? (2,2,4,3,4)
BE UP WITH THE LARK — An alternative literal interpretation, with the lark being mischief
30d Avert battle over shed (4,3)
WARD OFF WAR (battle) over DOFF (shed)
31d Demand pulling broadcast (5)
DRAFT — Sounds like (… broadcast) DRAUGHT (pulling)
33d Gold’s wartime place as standard with money, ultimately (8)
NORMANDY NORM (standard) + AND (with) + moneY, ultimatelyGold Beach
34d Fare that’s unearthly blocks Kitty visiting Oscar (6,6)
JACKET POTATO ET (unearthly) goes inside (blocks) JACKPOT (kitty) + AT (visiting) + O (Oscar).
This took a long time to parse as I was thinking kitty was just POT, with further doubts sown because kitty could also be a JACK.
I doubt it was a true namecheck, but it’s always nice to find oneself in a puzzle
38d Henry and I open a box, trembling, fearing the unknown (10)
XENOPHOBIA — An anagram of (… trembling) H (henry) and I OPEN A BOX
40d Having zip fastener, not secure, get one caught (9)
ENERGETIC — [fast]ENER, not FAST (secure) + GET + I (one) + C (caught).
I like this for the definition and its integration into the surface reading
42d Ordered to impound expensive car — one about to cause obstruction (9)
BARRICADE BADE (ordered) containing (to impound) RR (expensive car), I (one) and C (about)
43d Our meal given scattering of French dressing (9)
REMOULADE OUR MEAL anagrammed (given scattering) + DE (of, French)
45d Storyteller outspoken in support of software user (7)
APPLIER LIER, which sounds like (… outspoken) LIAR (storyteller) underneath (in support of) APP (software)
46d Works round Brussels against almost everyone else? (7)
OEUVRES O (round) + EU (Brussels, metonymically) + V (against) + almost RESt (everyone else)
47d City no longer on the up, I would add a car crash? (6)
SPARTA PS (I would add) reversed (on the up …) + A + RTA (road traffic accident, car crash)
48d Change of direction involving French in front (6)
VENEER VEER (change of direction) containing (involving) EN (French in)
50d Starve, presumably, without right inspiration (5)
ERATO EAT O (starve, presumably) outside (without) R (right)
52d Pressure, not unknown in pump, causing crack (4)
QUIP P (pressure), not Z (unknown) in QUI[z] (pump)

3 comments on “Times Cryptic Jumbo 1710 – 1 January 2025. I found myself!”

  1. I wish I could say I matched Kitty’s 77 minutes – this took me almost twice as long over three sessions, though I didn’t resent a minute of it. Such a brilliant puzzle, lots of clever wordplay and imaginative definitions. At one stage, when the setter was running rings around me, I wondered if 34d’s ‘unearthly’ was a particularly audacious way of saying a potato was something that had to be unearthed! (I probably took a break then.)

    I wonder if Richard Rogan created this. The style was very reminiscent of his, and one of his QCs appeared around the same time.

  2. I rarely time Jumbos although sometimes I’m aware if I manage to complete one in a single session, but that certainly wasn’t the case here. Actually I wrote Bloody Hard Work! on my print-out, but for all that I have indicated only two uses of aids, in the solving of SCALP as trophy (should have thought of that), and TO A HAIR which I’ve never heard of. I liked the reference to the Aesop fable once I’d understood the clue.

  3. Ooof.

    I’m guessing the editor was counting on us having more time to solve, being a Bank holiday an’ all.

    I only wish they’d balanced this against the effect of the Hogmanay festivities. There’s a reason we have two New Year Back holidays up here in Scotland, and even that wasn’t enough for this one!

    Many thanks Kitty, your blog shed light on many of the clues for me!

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