Solving time: 5:27
An enjoyable offering from Wurm which, to me, seemed easier on the downs than on the acrosses, with a bumper four, yes four, double definitions to enjoy.
Certainly, a couple of UK-centric answers across the top line may furrow a few brows abroad, though seasoned solvers will most probably be familiar with 5a, and should certainly have heard of both the specific component and the answer at 1a – if not, then checkers will be very helpful.
I liked the old browser at 17a, and the faraway land (for many of us) at 23a. My LOI was the lengthy 3d which required all checkers to finally see where it was going.
Do let me know how you found it….
Definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in curly brackets} and [directions in square ones].
| Across | |
| 1 | Type of tweed nothing new for Beatle (8) |
| HARRISON – HARRIS (Type of tweed) O (nothing) N (new)
George Harrison (1943-2001) was the lead guitarist of The Beatles. I don’t expect there will be too many here who will not have heard of that particular beat combo. HARRIS tweed is a cloth made from pure virgin wool, dyed, spun, handwoven and finished in the Outer Hebrides. This definition, quality standards and protection of the HARRIS tweed name are enshrined in the Harris Tweed Act 1993. |
|
| 5 | Court order fans abhor regularly (4) |
| ASBO – Alternate letters [regularly] of fAnS aBhOr.
ASBO is an acronym which stands for ‘anti-social behaviour order’, which was a civil order introduced in the UK in 1998 (though abolished in England and Wales in 2014, where they were replaced by the less snappy ‘civil injunctions’ and ‘criminal behaviour orders’). The orders restricted behaviour in some way, such as: prohibiting a return to a certain area or shop; or restricting public behaviours, such as swearing or drinking alcohol. |
|
| 9 | Stick man (5) |
| STAFF – Double definition | |
| 10 | Usually like beer taking in rugby (2,1,4) |
| AS A RULE – AS (like) ALE (beer) containing [taking in] RU (rugby union acronym) | |
| 11 | Keep this and give nothing away (8,4) |
| STRAIGHT FACE – Mildly cryptic – if you can keep a STRAIGHT FACE e.g. at poker, you may give nothing away and successfully disguise whether or not you have a good hand | |
| 13 | Support feature in newspaper (6) |
| COLUMN – Another double definition. Lift and separate… | |
| 15 | Burning paintings outside study (6) |
| ARDENT – ART (paintings) containing [outside] DEN (study) | |
| 17 | Our boss with a turn fixed old browser (12) |
| BRONTOSAURUS – Anagram [fixed] of OUR BOSS with A TURN
Before Google was ever thought of, a browser was defined as an animal that feeds mainly on high-growing vegetation. |
|
| 20 | Discover tofu near the sandwiches (7) |
| UNEARTH – Hidden [sandwiches] in tofu near the | |
| 21 | Account subtraction in notes and coin (5) |
| DEBIT – D E (notes – of the musical scale) and BIT (coin e.g. threepenny bit) | |
| 22 | Food hamper’s first on Pluto (4) |
| DISH – H (hamper’s first letter) added to [on] DIS (Pluto)
Pluto or DIS was a chthonian god of wealth and the Underworld, the world of the dead. His name means “Rich One” and Dis Pater means “Rich Father”. |
|
| 23 | Spoil Dylan broadcast in US state (8) |
| MARYLAND – MAR (Spoil) then anagram [broadcast] of DYLAN
Officially, the new “Maryland Colony”, as it was termed in 1632, was named in honor of Henrietta Maria of France, wife of Charles I. The Lord Baltimore (2nd Baron) had initially proposed the name “Crescentia”, the land of growth or increase, but the King proposed Terra Mariae [Mary Land], which was concluded on and inserted in the charter. |
|
| Down | |
| 1 | Crowd keen to consume seconds … (4) |
| HOST – HOT (keen) containing [to consume] S (seconds) | |
| 2 | … cooked meat in pan (5) |
| ROAST – Double definition, the second being a severe reprimand or criticism | |
| 3 | Drunk man from Italy likely to cause trouble (12) |
| INFLAMMATORY – Anagram [Drunk] of MAN FROM ITALY
This is in the sense of arousing or intending to arouse angry or violent feelings. My LOI – having all of the checkers really helped. |
|
| 4 | Old stove in Dutch royal house (6) |
| ORANGE – O (Old) RANGE (stove) | |
| 6 | Wise importing Australia’s food (7) |
| SAUSAGE – SAGE (wise) containing [importing] AUS (Australia)
SAUSAGE comes via Old French salssice and via Vulgar Latin salsicus “seasoned with salt”, ultimately from the past participle of Old Latin sallere “to salt”. |
|
| 7 | French pop in over-the-top American musical work (8) |
| OPERETTA – PÈRE (French pop i.e. French for ‘father’) in OTT (over-the-top) A (American) | |
| 8 | Any date’s sure to change for movable feast! (6,6) |
| EASTER SUNDAY – Anagram [to change] of ANY DATE’S SURE | |
| 12 | 100 among Bedouin somehow stranded in Arctic? (8) |
| ICEBOUND – Anagram [somehow] of BEDOUIN with C (100 – Roman numeral) inserted [among] | |
| 14 | Pound is small housing single feline (7) |
| LIONESS – L (Pound – abbreviation of the Latin libra) IS S (small) containing [housing] ONE (single) | |
| 16 | Complaint from mum after time in volcanic dust (6) |
| ASTHMA – MA (mum) after T (time) inserted into ASH (volcanic dust) | |
| 18 | Shadow inside Museum Brandhorst (5) |
| UMBRA – Hidden [inside] in Museum Brandhorst | |
| 19 | Here you might see stallion bolt (4) |
| STUD – Lift and separate for the double definition | |
Yet again, I missed out on the 15 x 15 by one clue. That did not improve my mood after my struggles with the QC. One day this might all click, but that is a long, long way in the future.