Solving time: 9:08
Nothing too tricky it would seem, just took a while to piece it together and fill in the blanks. I suffered a minor eyebrow twitch at 17a where I felt the answer wasn’t the optimum phrase in regular use – see my notes below – and was mildly irked by the seemingly superfluous word at the start of 4d.
On the other hand, I very much enjoyed each of 6d, 13a and 13d and full marks to Pedro for 4d’s wonderful anagram.
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]. The tilde ~ indicates an insertion point in containment clues.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Dairy product person in society fed to pet (9) |
| CAMEMBERT – MEMBER (person in society) inserted into [fed to] CA~T (pet) | |
| 6 | Best score at snooker recalled (3) |
| TOP – POT (score at snooker) reversed [recalled]
‘score’ is a verb here |
|
| 8 | Recalled learning about new record (5) |
| ENROL – LORE (learning) reversed [Recalled] gives E~ROL – insert N (new) | |
| 9 | Entertainment for kids by drama writer (7) |
| PLAYPEN – PLAY (drama) PEN (writer) | |
| 10 | Time not at school felt unsettled amidst damage (4-4) |
| HALF-TERM – Anagram [unsettled] of FELT inserted into [amidst] HA~RM (damage) | |
| 11 | Single copy not initiated (4) |
| LONE – |
|
| 13 | Group continue to swing in popular trend (9) |
| BANDWAGON – BAND (Group) WAG ON (continue to swing)
The meaning of jumping on the bandwagon i.e. “attaching oneself to anything that looks likely to succeed,” is attested by 1899 in the writings of Theodore Roosevelt. |
|
| 16 | Piano melody or two (4) |
| PAIR – P (Piano i.e. musical notation) AIR (melody) | |
| 17 | Refused to participate and became prominent (5,3) |
| STOOD OUT – Mildly cryptic word play
SAT OUT or STOOD DOWN might have fitted the cryptic better, but would not have fitted the definition (nor the enumeration). |
|
| 20 | I note past, present or future could be deeply emotional (7) |
| INTENSE – I N (note) TENSE (past, present or future) | |
| 21 | Daughter escaping peril shows passion (5) |
| ANGER – |
|
| 22 | Send back negative information (3) |
| GEN – NEG (negative) in reverse (Send back)
The only example that I can think of, where NEG is actually used as a short form of negative, is from the world of Citizens Band (CB) radio, where a positive answer to a question might be ‘That’s a Rog’ (i.e. Roger) and the corresponding negative answer would be ‘That’s a Neg’ (i.e. Negative). I expect I shall, very soon, be inundated with other more obvious examples. |
|
| 23 | Doubtful behaviour is wrong in any ethics (9) |
| HESITANCY – Anagram [is wrong in] of ANY ETHICS | |
| Down | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Nursery care avoided by a revolutionary (6) |
| CRECHE – C From 13th century Old French cresche, creche “crib, manger, stall”. The meaning of “a public nursery for infants where they are cared for while their mothers are at work” is attested from 1854. |
|
| 2 | No time for human message from story (5) |
| MORAL – MOR |
|
| 3 | Turned tail when collared by new activist (8) |
| MILITANT – Anagram [Turned] of TAIL inserted into [when collared by] MI~NT (new)
Unusual anagram choice – ‘Turned’ would more often indicate a reversal than an anagram, but the phrase ‘Turned tail’ is in common use, so perhaps makes for a smoother surface reading. |
|
| 4 | One specialist disposing of sixteen twerps? (6,7) |
| EXPERT WITNESS – Anagram [disposing of] of SIXTEEN TWERPS
‘One’ seems superfluous… Bravo Pedro for producing this amusing anagram. |
|
| 5 | Warmer weather that cut short start of winter (4) |
| THAW – THA |
|
| 6 | Source of hurricane in printing error about storm (7) |
| TYPHOON – First letter [Source] of H{urricane} in TYP~O (printing error) then ON (about)
Amusingly, at the beginning of its TYPHOON entry, Wikipedia takes the trouble to add the warning ‘Not to be confused with Typhon or Typhoo’. While Typhon was a monstrous serpentine giant, Typhoo is a brand of tea in the UK. |
|
| 7 | Fruit basket appearing in online joke community? (6) |
| PUNNET – an online joke community might be known as PUN NET (NET being short for network)
One of the best known online communities using a similar naming format was USENET (circa 1980s). |
|
| 12 | I concede accepting negative comment will be foolish (8) |
| IGNORANT – I G~RANT (concede) containing [accepting] NO (negative comment) | |
| 13 | Composer plagued by mosquitoes crossing river (7) |
| BRITTEN – B~ITTEN (plagued by mosquitoes) with R (river) inserted [crossing]
Benjamin BRITTEN (1913-1976) |
|
| 14 | Leap year’s subdivision? (6) |
| SPRING – Double definition, lifting and separating the first two words
The ? seems a trifle superfluous to me. |
|
| 15 | Industry finally supporting shop floor (6) |
| STOREY – Final letter of {Industr}Y underneath [supporting] STORE (shop)
This is the British preferred spelling. The American spelling excludes the E. ‘supporting’ is apposite as this is a down clue. |
|
| 18 | Musical instrument helping to sustain a group, on reflection (5) |
| ORGAN – Reverse [on reflection] hidden [helping to] sustain a group | |
| 19 | Move slowly in church (4) |
| INCH – IN CH (church)
Today’s chestnut. |
|
Might as well chip in now I’m feeling not so grumpy. I stuck where others stuck I think. Slow brain, I mean if I can’t see CRÈCHE when I already had the ‘H’ and I knew ‘Che’ that must be it. Extra tricks to (fail to) memorise as well, whoever heard of Avoid ‘a’, or Not Initiated … If these come from the 15×15 I’m staying with the QC, and wary of Pedro next time!
A very late post, although I did the crossword this morning.
Not too bad, although breezeblocked by my LOI. I have absolutely no idea why I found that one so difficult 😅
I thought this seemed a lot less wordy than some of Pedro’s previous offerings and overall a bit easier to solve. But I was a bit baffled by the surface for PLAYPEN – as a few others have commented, it isn’t a form of entertainment, more a means of keeping them in one place
AOD – definitely EXPERT WITNESS, and I will always nominate TWERP as WOD. It is just so descriptive, without being too mean.
10:10 FOI Top LOI Thaw COD Spring – simple but very effective
Thanks Pedro and Mike
I think this was one of the harder ones of recent times. Especially so in the NW corner. If you can’t get either 1a or 1D it’s gonna be a tough day. Learning as Lore I also think is a bit of a stretch. And Wag On for ‘continue to swing’ is also not common parlance I would argue. Pedro can take a break I hope.