Hello everybody. It’s Monday again. This wasn’t a complete 14a for me: I started apace, but some trickier ones slowed me down to finish in average QC time, with last one in 7d. Sometimes the right words just don’t come to you. I enjoyed the food for a violinist in 9a among other pleasant fare. Thanks Orpheus!
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. In the explanations, most quoted indicators are in italics 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 | More benevolent general framing painting in young kids’ school (12) |
| KINDERGARTEN — KINDER (more benevolent) + GEN (general) surrounding (framing) ART (painting) | |
| 8a | Restriction illuminated across motorway (5) |
| LIMIT — LIT (illuminated) across MI (motorway) | |
| 9a | Food for a violinist? Only partly (7) |
| RAVIOLI — The answer is embedded in (… only partly) foR A VIOLInist?) | |
| 10a | Live in, dressed like a monk (7) |
| INHABIT — IN HABIT (dressed like a monk) | |
| 11a | See soldiers crossing island in French river (5) |
| LOIRE — LO (see) and RE (soldiers) around (crossing) I (island) | |
| 12a | Mollusc primarily encountered in fanciful story (6) |
| OYSTER — The first letter of (primarily) Encountered in an anagram of (fanciful) STORY | |
| 14a | Portion of aspic, nice to eat outside (6) |
| PICNIC — A portion of asPIC, NICe | |
| 17a | Tease husband in popular eating-place (5) |
| CHAFF — H (husband) in CAFF (popular eating-place, “popular” because it’s slang) | |
| 19a | Liqueur drunk at a fair (7) |
| RATAFIA — An anagram of (drunk) AT A FAIR | |
| I think even if you don’t know this word, there’s only one place the vowels are really likely to go | |
| 21a | Kitchen wizard introducing a supposed cure-all (7) |
| PANACEA — Presumably a PAN ACE would be a wizard in the kitchen; this is preceding (introducing) A | |
| 22a | Good entertainer, one who writes for others (5) |
| GHOST — G (good) + HOST (entertainer) | |
| 23a | A French writer is newspaper boss? That’s not permitted (12) |
| UNAUTHORISED — UN (a, French) + AUTHOR (writer) + IS + ED (newspaper boss) | |
| Down | |
| 1d | Optical toy from space I looked around (12) |
| KALEIDOSCOPE — SPACE I LOOKED anagrammed (around) | |
| 2d | Politician in New York initially hugging a beautiful maiden (5) |
| NYMPH — MP (politician) in NY (New York) and initially Hugging | |
| 3d | Cheese finally placed on a board, suitable for a meal (7) |
| EATABLE — The last letter of (… finally) cheesE placed on A + TABLE (board) | |
| 4d | Extremely giddy speed to revolve! (6) |
| GYRATE — Outside letters of (extremely) GiddY + RATE (speed) | |
| 5d | Merrymaking in which bar gets overturned (5) |
| REVEL — In which LEVER (bar) gets reversed (overturned) | |
| 6d | Key topic for debate, producing strong feeling (7) |
| EMOTION — E (key) + MOTION (topic for debate) | |
| 7d | Fed up, as the Sleeping Beauty was, eventually? (12) |
| DISENCHANTED — DIS–ENCHANTED (as the Sleeping Beauty was, eventually) | |
| These days, the prince’s actions would not be condoned, however handsome he was, magic spell or no | |
| 13d | Quiet girl on Irish river (7) |
| SHANNON — SH (quiet) + ANN (girl) + ON | |
| 15d | A number, for example, visiting Bury? (7) |
| INTEGER — EG (for example) going inside (visiting) INTER (bury) | |
| 16d | German composer ringing about opening (6) |
| BREACH — BACH (German composer) surrounding (ringing) RE (about) | |
| 18d | Woman’s shawl originally found in centre of Manchuria (5) |
| FICHU — The initial letters of (originally) Found In + the centre of ManCHUria | |
| A triangular piece of light fabric worn around the neck or shoulders, from the 18th or 19th century. The word may or may not have rung a bell, but in wordplay I trust | |
| 20d | Dental silk sometimes used after candy (5) |
| FLOSS — You can put the answer after candy to make candyFLOSS | |
Add me to both the “quick start, slow finish” club and the “CHAFF/FICHU is rather unkind” club, but happy enough with 12:42.
Thank you for the blog!
31 minutes
What’s the point of carrying on with this when I am so monumentally stupid?
All bar three in seven minutes and then held up by DISENCHANTED, FICHU and BREACH. BREACH took longer than the rest combined.
I don’t know why I put myself through this daily torture. I spent ages last week trying to improve by attempting the big crossword, and this is the result. Just awful and another week ruined on Monday (no way I’ll hit my target after this). Bottom line is I simply don’t have the brain power to become a strong solver. It seems like every day there are one or two clues that I simply cannot read in the correct way, causing me to become hopelessly marooned. Another depressing experience!
Thanks for the blog.
I sympathise. I’ve been doing the QC for years and I guess I’ve plateaud. Can usually finish but it will take 20 to 30 mins. Sometimes I have to look things up – I’m not good at anagrams or spotting words from the checkers. Ho hum…
Thanks Filbert. Glad it’s not just me!