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 — TO–DO (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, ultimately. Gold 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) |
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.
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.
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!