Hi everyone. I don’t have anything new or unexpected to say about this puzzle, for the good reason that Trelawney is very consistent. Nothing really held me up, so I put in one of my faster times. I really liked the rocket booster in 19a, which is my standout favourite. 16d also warrants a mention for its surface. (Which is a good occasion to say that if you need help sorting your green paint from your Ninja Turtles, you can consult this site’s glossary.) Finally, I was also amused by the serious business of juggling lemons (22a). Thanks Trelawney!
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 | Swindle Greek character for seafood (6) |
| SCAMPI — SCAM (swindle) + PI (Greek character) | |
| 4a | Prepares orthodontic device (6) |
| BRACES — A double definition | |
| 8a | Nurse pocketing certain revolutionary’s box of goodies (8,5) |
| TREASURE CHEST — TREAT (nurse) taking in (pocketing) SURE (certain) and CHE’S (revolutionary’s) | |
| 10a | Lift up and tear down, reportedly (5) |
| RAISE — Sounds like (… reportedly) RAZE (tear down) | |
| 11a | Fortress let acid out (7) |
| CITADEL — LET ACID anagrammed (out) | |
| 13a | Quietly permitted to split separate dessert (5,4) |
| APPLE TART — P (quietly) and LET (permitted) dividing (to split) APART (separate) | |
| 17a | Cut off one very behind schedule (7) |
| ISOLATE — I (one) + SO (very) + LATE (behind schedule) | |
| 18a | Immature insect right inside molten rock (5) |
| LARVA — R (right) inside LAVA (molten rock) | |
| 19a | Heads of secret aerospace lab dealing with rocket booster? (5,8) |
| SALAD DRESSING — The first letters of (heads of) Secret Aerospace Lab + ADDRESSING (dealing with) | |
| 21a | Anger about European flower arrangement (6) |
| WREATH — WRATH (anger) around (about) E (European) | |
| 22a | Juggling lemons is serious (6) |
| SOLEMN — An anagram of (juggling) LEMONS IS | |
| Down | |
| 1d | Ridicule South African flag (6) |
| SATIRE — SA (South African) + TIRE (flag) | |
| 2d | On camera, I stirred coffee (9) |
| AMERICANO — ON CAMERA, I anagrammed (stirred) | |
| 3d | Model entertains small gang (5) |
| POSSE — POSE (model) holds (entertains) S (small) | |
| 5d | Italian cheese — cook it with actor (7) |
| RICOTTA — Make an anagram of (cook) IT with ACTOR | |
| 6d | Signal is crude in every other place (3) |
| CUE — Alternate letters of (… in every other place) CrUdE | |
| 7d | Sort out US city ignoring amendment initially (6) |
| SETTLE — SE[a]TTLE (US city) omitting (ignoring) the first letter of (… initially) Amendment | |
| 9d | Loud noise and revelry periodically criminal (9) |
| RACKETEER — RACKET (loud noise) and rEvElRy taking every other letter (periodically) | |
| 12d | Decide to put off something explosive (9) |
| DETERMINE — DETER (to put off) + MINE (something explosive) | |
| 14d | Acclaim extremely practical inspection (7) |
| PLAUDIT — The outer letters of (extremely) PracticaL + AUDIT (inspection) | |
| 15d | Puzzle observed after merry dance (6) |
| JIGSAW — SAW (observed) after JIG (merry dance) | |
| 16d | Technical language primarily just gas (6) |
| JARGON — The initial letter of (primarily) Just + ARGON (gas) | |
| 18d | Young woman at first orders cowboy’s accessory (5) |
| LASSO — LASS (young woman) + the beginning of (at first) Orders | |
| 20d | Part of client’s falsehood (3) |
| LIE — The answer is part of cLIEnt | |
7 minutes. Nice and easy. My only query was plural BRACES for the singular orthodontic device, but I see Chambers has this covered by ‘brace – often in plural’.
Yes, I remember when I was a child that my brother had “a brace”. But now I am a grown up with teenage daughters, my younger daughter has “braces” despite it being only on her top teeth. I can see why it is called braces though – there are a number of different things pulling various teeth in different direction, I can see why one would call the whole construction “braces”.
I felt I should have been quicker than 8.22 but I was held up by the retrospectively obvious and non-threatening BRACES, JARGON and WREATH. Thanks Trelawney and Kitty.
Pretty straightforward but was held up by having DRILLS for 4a which gave me lots of problems with 6d till I gave it another think
3:09. Usually start my day with an americano; today is a rare exception! Also liked the lemons surface and thought ‘rocket booster’ was a fairly good cryptic definition, but surface of the day for me was ‘immature insect right inside molten rock’, which conjured up an interesting image. Thank you Kitty and Trelawney.
Trelawney never seems to miss and this one was no exception.
Started with BRACES and finished with COD SALAD DRESSING, where I briefly wondered if I needed to know something about solid forms of propellent before the penny dropped, in 4.27.
Thanks to Kitty and Trelawney
A rare sub ten 8:10 this morning. Delayed by the posse then fetching the wreath. BIFD treasure chest and apple tart.
Thanks Kitty and Trelawney
17.30 for a quick (for me) start to the week.
COD SALAD DRESSING. Thanks Trelawney and Kitty. Not sure about your Ninja Turtling reference, an indulgence I occasionally enjoy.
Ninja Turtling only used as a reference for some crosswording JARGON, as an excuse to link to the glossary. It’s one of my favourite crosswordy terms.
7:49 for the solve … my 2nd slowest Trelawney of the year 🤣 As always very doable and very enjoyable. Was held up for 1+min by RACKETEER at the end and the SW corner was a small tussle.
I was also held up by RICOTTA where Italian cheeses are definitely part of my GK blackhole for food&drink. On reflection that was being tested by a puzzle which also contains SCAMPI, AMERICANO, SALAD-DRESSING and APPLE-TART.
Thanks to Kitty and Trelawney
I was not quick at 16.50 but I parsed them all before completion. My recent Trelawney times have varied greatly – from under 10 to ca. 20
I enjoyed this QC a lot. Some very good clues (I agree with Kitty: SALAD DRESSING was my COD, too).
Thanks to both.
6 mins – I prefer them a bit chewier but enjoyable nonetheless. SALAD DRESSING made me smile. Thanks T&K
8:19. A very tasty offering as pointed out by New Driver. Like Kitty, the standout clue for me was SALAD DRESSING which is an early candidate for clue of the week.
Thanks to Trelawney and Kitty
Biffed SALAD DRESSING without reading the clue. I don’t recall anything about this puzzle, but it evidently was pretty easy: I even got in under my target time for once. 5:10.
It had to be TREASURE CHEST but just couldn’t piece it together, so thank you, Kitty. All good in another friendly, enjoyable Trelawney, to whom thanks. LOI WREATH.
8:16 for a gentle start to the week. According to the invaluable QC SNITCH, Trelawney is regularly the least challenging of the QC setters, but as this puzzle shows, it is not at the expense of some really excellent clues and surfaces. A most enjoyable puzzle.
Many thanks Kitty for the blog.
What a delicious way to start the week. Truly enjoyed this – around 10 minutes which for us is great. Held up by screen suddenly magnifying all…who knows why (not me)..IT and I have a touchy relationship.
17a ISOLATE brought a chuckle – found all clues and solves very satisfying.
COD – can we have two? SALAD DRESSING and TREASURE CHEST.
Thank you Trelawney and Kitty!
4:06. I was held up at the end by WRAITH and JIGSAW from posting a rare sub 4-minute time. Nice gentle Monday fare. I also liked SALAD DRESSING. Thanks Trelawney and Kitty.
WREATH!
Ah yes. I had it right in the crossword. Not sure where I got that from in the comment!
That’s the answer to
Anger about one ethereal spirit (6)
Great time, John!
Approximately 6.17.
Enjoyable solve today. Just what a QC should be. COD SALAD DRESSING. Thanks Trelawney and Kitty
Did anyone else put in CONCHI for 1A or was it just me who convinced themselves that was a legit plural for Conch…
I put in conchi too!
A fast one, 7:53.
Would have been better if I hadn’t stuck in DETONATOR, where I had D-T, its nine letters and “something explosive”.
LOI SALAD DRESSING, I was sure it started with SOLID, and was the technical name for those rockets they strapped to the Space Shuttle.
Trelawney persistently shows that a Qc can be pleasing and challenging without resorting to obscure vocab.
Arrgh, very fast then needed hint for JIGSAW which gave me WREATH.
SALAD DRESSING COD made me smile. Also liked JARGON, POSSE, SETTLE, ISOLATE, SCAMPI and DETERMINE, among others.
Thanks vm, Kitty.
A very enjoyable 7 minutes. Another fan of rocket booster.
12:01
A slow solve for me, not quite sure why. Last two in were JIGSAW and WREATH.
COD to SALAD DRESSING.
Thanks Kitty and Trelawney
Excellent clues, good start to the week. Offsets the Bank Holiday week weather – wet and blowing hard in Devon.
Bank holiday in Devon?
Excellent puzzle – we have had a few more sensible ones lately 🙂 . Thanks Trelawney and Kitty.
5:00
Gentle opener for the week. 19a gets my COD as well. I was a little slow with both APPLE TART and RACKETEER, but otherwise, no issues. LOI WREATH.
Thanks Kitty and Trelawney
“Rocket booster”, arf arf! Very good indeed.
A thoroughly enjoyable romp, despite 1a reminding me that yesterday I pulled up my langoustine pots to find them full of dogfish, which were in turn full of langoustines 🙁
All done in 04:34, for my second fastest time on the QUITCH and a Red Letter Day. Many thanks Kitty and the Squire.
As Kitty said…nothing really held me up. My LOI and COD goes to SALAD DRESSING. Home in 4:56. Thanks Kitty.
Finished correctly in 38 minutes. Quite a good time for me.
This was a true QC.
Well done Trelawney.
A rare visit to sub 5 territory! From SATIRE to SALAD DRESSING in 4:44. Thanks Trelawney and Kitty.
I was quick (for me) until two at the end held me up.
I was very slow finding SEATTLE as the city.
And LOI was WREATH where I fell into the (no doubt intended) trap of looking for a European river or flower . Excellent clue among many.
COD, of course, to SALAD DRESSING.
13 minutes in the end.
David