Solving time: 9:34
In similar fashion to my previous blog (QC3024 by Teazel), I was once again breezeblocked at the final hurdle in the South East corner of the grid. Before that, the going had been pretty good, sailing over the fences with aplomb.
Without their first letter, both 18a and 18d foxed me for longer than they should have, though in retrospect, I can’t quite determine what the fuss was all about…
Let me know how you got on.
Definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in curly brackets} and [directions in square ones].
| Across | |
| 1 | Morning exam not distinguishing right from wrong (6) |
| AMORAL – AM (Morning) ORAL (exam) | |
| 4 | Part of family includes one mastermind (6) |
| GENIUS – GENUS (Part of family) containing [includes] I (one)
GENUS is defined as a principal taxonomic category that ranks above species and below family. |
|
| 8 | Majority of English think about splitting trip (13) |
| PREPONDERANCE – E (English) PONDER (think about) inserted into PRANCE (trip)
I wasn’t sure about PRANCE being synonymous with ‘trip’, but Collins has it. Collins Online also defines PREPONDERANCE as the quality of being greater in weight, force, influence, etc. or the fact of having more of one type than of any other. |
|
| 10 | A research degree about island insect (5) |
| APHID – A PHD (research degree) about I (island) | |
| 11 | Clive moved around Delhi regularly in wheeled transport (7) |
| VEHICLE – Anagram [moved] of CLIVE around alternate letters [regularly] of Delhi
From the Latin vehiculum “means of transport, carriage or conveyance,” from vehere “to bear, carry, convey”. The sense of “cart or other wheeled conveyance or carriage moving on land” is recorded by 1650s. |
|
| 13 | Silly small child gave the game away (9) |
| SIMPLETON – S (small) IMP (child) LET ON (gave the game away)
‘Silly’ as a noun here. |
|
| 17 | Prominent female you once found in metaphysical poet (7) |
| DOYENNE – YE (you once) in DONNE (metaphysical poet)
John DONNE (1571-1631) was the DOYEN of the Metaphysical poets, a term coined by Dr Samuel Johnson to describe a loose group of 17th-century English poets whose work was characterised by the inventive use of conceits, and by a greater emphasis on the spoken rather than lyrical quality of their verse. Johnson’s assessment of “metaphysical poetry” was not at all flattering:
|
|
| 18 | Use credit card to steal (5) |
| SWIPE – Double definition | |
| 19 | Energy in branch high tension cables beginning to short (13) |
| SPRIGHTLINESS – SPRIG (branch) HT (high tension) LINES (cables) S{hort} (beginning i.e. first letter of) | |
| 21 | Kind of a tuner needing adjustment (6) |
| NATURE – Anagram [needing adjustment] of A TUNER | |
| 22 | Character who’s renting property (6) |
| LETTER – Two meanings to ‘Character’ here – as a LETTER e.g. A, B or C; and secondly as someone renting out their property
I think the clue reads badly, and should read: Character who’s renting out property (6) The LETTER is the landlord who rents the property OUT, not the tenant who rents the property. Feel free to throw in your ha’penn’orth… |
|
| Down | |
| 1 | Show program feature used for sound capture (6) |
| APPEAR – APP (program) EAR (feature used for sound capture) | |
| 2 | Rash developing as very hot (9) |
| OVERHASTY – Anagram [developing] of AS VERY HOT | |
| 3 | Don’t go near an empty space (5) |
| AVOID – A (an) VOID (empty space) | |
| 5 | How far one can hear others running round area (7) |
| EARSHOT – Anagram [running] of OTHERS round A (area) | |
| 6 | What sounds like fashionable pub (3) |
| INN – Homophone [What sounds like] IN (fashionable) | |
| 7 | Revamped store installing European sound system (6) |
| STEREO – Anagram [Revamped] of STORE containing [installing] E (European) | |
| 9 | Troublemaking from 500 bad people over time (9) |
| DEVILMENT – D (500 i.e. Roman numeral) EVIL (bad) MEN (people) over T (time) | |
| 12 | Happy having home in Asia? (9) |
| CONTINENT – CONTENT (Happy) having IN (home) inserted [in]
Asia? is a definition by example. Other CONTINENTs are available. |
|
| 14 | A German promoting male executive (7) |
| MANAGER – Starting with A GERMAN, promote the male i.e. move the letters MAN up to the front | |
| 15 | Peculiar child very likely to succeed (4-2) |
| ODDS-ON – ODD (Peculiar) SON (child)
For the purposes of betting, if a horse, team or player is ODDS ON, the bookmaker believes there is a greater probability of winning than not. ON is also used to express specific odds when there is a better than evens chance of winning e.g. 3/1 (three-to-one) is only a 25% chance of winning (i.e. 1 chance of winning to every 3 chances of losing) but how to express a 75% chance of winning (i.e. 3 chances of winning to every 1 chance of losing)? Rather than expressing as 1/3 (one-to-three), a bookmaker would say 3/1 ON (three-to-one ON). |
|
| 16 | Tricky problem getting energy into police weapon (6) |
| TEASER – TASER (police weapon) with E (energy) inserted | |
| 18 | Cut tail off the bird (5) |
| SNIPE – SNIP (Cut) then the last letter [tail off] of {th}E | |
| 20 | Boring routine in truth (3) |
| RUT – Hidden [in] in truth
From: Going Underground by The Jam |
|
A disaster today! I don’t know where to begin – so I won’t 😅
I’m finding it very difficult doing the crossword on the Times Live site, as mentioned above – I really miss my piece of paper and seeing the grid as a whole. Never mind, I spent a lovely day in Rye, we’re off out for a nice meal now, and it’s just a puzzle 😉
Fingers crossed for a better day tomorrow!
Thanks Joker and Mike
Hello Penny,
Did you go to The Apothecary coffee house in Rye? A top venue, as far as the Randoms are concerned.
And did Mr B find the old vinyl record shop in the High Street?
Funnily enough, I had lunch there today while MrB took his bike over the hills and far away – well, to Hastings and back! The Apothocary is an amazing time capsule for sure. We did see the vinyl shop – and the one which specialises in ukuleles too.
What’s the betting we see apothocary or ukulele in the crossword tomorrow? We see Vinyl in the blog every day, of course 😅
Probably enjoyable for the 15x 15 solvers to have a little speed contest but once again, not a QC