A chewy enough puzzle from Izetti, taking me a bit over 12 minutes to get the Unlucky! sign: I failed on my LOI 7d, and even stared dutifully for another couple of minutes before clicking on the answer. Alas, I am very well acquainted with failing to get the last clue of a crossword, so it isn’t sour grapes when I say this clue lurks somewhere between unfair and wrong, with the dictionaries indicating the latter. (Ok, slightly sour grapes.) But the rest of the puzzle was a pleasure, as can be expected from this setter, so many thanks to Izetti! Oh, and happy new year!
| Across | |
| 1 | African islander organised galas in spring month (8) |
| MALAGASY – anagram (organised) of GALAS in MAY (spring month) | |
| 5 | Mistake? Hope, perhaps, to conceal nothing (4) |
| BOOB – BOB (as in Bob Hope, say) to conceal O (nothing) | |
| 9 | King comes to a place no longer able to function (5) |
| KAPUT – K(ing) comes to A ; PUT (a ; place) | |
| 10 | On a peninsula in a very cold place with no hint of sun (7) |
| IBERIAN – sIBERIAN (in a very cold place) with no S (no hint of Sun) | |
| 11 | Sleep in something soft and fluffy (3) |
| NAP – double definition | |
| 12 | Social with gin being poured out for philosophers (9) |
| LOGICIANS – anagram (poured out) of SOCIAL with GIN | |
| 13 | Rescue operation with lake drained to get beast (6) |
| SAVAGE – SALVAGE (rescue operation) drained of the L for lake. | |
| 15 | Charge made by artist swinging round in row (6) |
| TARIFF – R.A. (artist) swinging round in TIFF (row) | |
| 17 | Daughter is cleaned and combed — and dumped! (9) |
| DISCARDED – D(aughter) IS ; CARDED (is ; cleaned and combed). As in to card wool. A chuckle-worthy surface (if not for the daughter). | |
| 19 | Equipment essential for skittles (3) |
| KIT – is essential for sKITtles | |
| 20 | Support one on the same side without breaking the law (7) |
| LEGALLY – LEG (support) ALLY (one on the same side) | |
| 21 | Rush made by operator not getting on (5) |
| SURGE – made by SURGEon (operator) without the ON | |
| 22 | Fuss made by Dorothy about nothing (2-2) |
| TO-DO – made by DOT (dorothy) about = reversed, and O (nothing) | |
| 23 | Like an inscribed trophy buried in the churchyard? (8) |
| ENGRAVED – cryptic hint, although there is an obsolete verb “engrave”, to put in a grave. | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Necessary qualities of arts graduate leading Cambridge college (7) |
| MAKINGS – MA (arts graduate) leading KING’S (Cambridge college) | |
| 2 | Really enjoy drink at Oxford? (3,2) |
| LAP UP – LAP (drink) UP (at Oxford) | |
| 3 | Get bagatelle, having shifted item of furniture (7,5) |
| GATELEG TABLE – anagram (having shifted) of GET BAGATELLE | |
| 4 | Alcoholic drink for cast (5) |
| SLING – double definition. Singapore seems rather to have cornered the sling market. | |
| 6 | Old chum in Paris collects apparatus for artistic hobby (7) |
| ORIGAMI – O(ld) AMI (chum in Paris) collects RIG (apparatus) | |
| 7 | A possible problem for some coming up? (5) |
| BENDS – assuming I’ve parsed this correctly, this is a cryptic definition referring to decompression sickness from coming up too quickly when diving. Every dictionary I checked, however, specifies this as THE BENDS, and I tend to think the answer would have to be in this form to work. (As for my original answer, if the crossword had been intended for before Christmas, I suppose giving a Christmas BONUS could be a problem for the penurious.) | |
| 8 | Seller is worker involved in various crimes with little hesitation (12) |
| MERCHANDISER – HAND (worker) involved in an anagram (various) of CRIMES, with ER (little hesitation) | |
| 14 | Showing facial expression of wise person in short video (7) |
| VISAGED – SAGE (wise person) in VID (short video) | |
| 16 | Overweight leader is an idiot (7) |
| FATHEAD – FAT (overweight) HEAD (leader) | |
| 17 | Convict finally escaped, heading north in Netherlands town (5) |
| DELFT – T (convicT “finally”) FLED (escaped), heading north | |
| 18 | Senior man, fellow to entertain you in old-fashioned way (5) |
| DOYEN – DON (fellow) to entertain YE (you in old-fashioned way) | |
| 19 | Russian city known in romantic old verse, originally (5) |
| KIROV – Known In Romantic Old Verse, “originally“ | |
David