I started over breakfast and got not very far, and then inched through it during the course of the day, working up and left from the SE towards the NW corner. I finished about supper time! Looking at the discussion on the Club site, I don’t seem to have been the only one struggling. The times on the leader board are right up at the high end too.
To be fair, I don’t think any of the clues were uncrackable – I think it was just a fine puzzle. There was a nice mix: some clues where with the aid of the helpers I guessed the answer, and then struggled to work out the cryptic, and others where I eventually worked out the cryptic and then had to take the definition on faith. Three answers I didn’t know, three others in unfamiliar uses. My choice for the clue of the day has to be 6ac. Congratulations to the setter.
Clues are in blue, with the definition underlined. Anagram indicators are bold and italicised. The answer is in BOLD CAPS. (ABC)* means ‘anagram of ABC’, {deletions are in curly brackets}.
Across
1. Feasible being without a room at first for changing (8)
VARIABLE: VIABLE (feasible) around (without, meaning outside) A, plus R=room at first.
6. Being properly prepared puts the girl out (6)
KOSHER: KO’S (knocks out) HER. A lovely definition.
9. Pine ridge that obscures sea view (4)
FRET: triple definition! Pine=fret, ridge=fret, sea mist=fret. And a lovely surface.
10. Flag received on trip (5,5)
JOLLY ROGER: JOLLY=trip, ROGER=“received/understood” in British radio code.
11. Drink with blooming tramp! (4-3-3)
DOWN-AND-OUT: DOWN=drink, AND=with, OUT=blooming.
13. Letter to the Corinthians from the east that Ezra covers (4)
ZETA: reverse hidden answer. Corinth is in Greece, and so we get a Greek letter.
14. Idler crossing yard who’s come back down to earth? (8)
SKYDIVER: SKIVER around YD=yard.
16. Working shifts you tend to lack energy (2,4)
ON DUTY: (YOU TND*), where the anagram fodder lacks E=energy.
18. Possible effect of number raised being in endless supply (6)
STUPOR: UP=raised inside STOR{e}. “Number” with a silent B is a setter’s ploy that never goes stale.
20. Hail storms of concern to batsmen? (8)
AVERAGES: AVE=Latin for “hail/greetings”, RAGES=storms.
22. Am I not able to save first opponent? (4)
ANTI: {c}AN’T I? The first C of CAN’T is saved for another day.
24. Unlicensed trader to make off with jar (10)
FLYPITCHER: FLY=make off, PITCHER=jar. Didn’t know this expression – presumably British.
26. Bob promoted — so was Donald (4-6)
DUCK-BILLED: DUCK=bob, BILLED=promoted.
28. Tips switched in lounge for future Derby winner? (4)
FOAL: LOAF with first and last letters swapped. Not all foals are future winners, hence the question mark.
29. GPS rue organising event for winter (5,1)
SUPER G: (GPS RUE*). FOI, entirely from the anagram since I’d never heard of the event.
30. Sets about yak in mountains when on hikes (8)
UPSPEAKS: UPS=hikes (process, say), PEAKS=in mountains. Quaint word – I had to check the dictionary to set my mind at rest.
Down
2. Express appropriate reason for discomfort on flight (3-6)
AIR-POCKET: AIR=express, APPROPRIATE=pocket [confiscate or steal, say].
3. One of Kelly’s fans, perhaps, was singing (7)
INTONED: or INTO NED [Kelly], the bushranger.
4. Caribbean native born a month before others (5)
BAJAN: B=born, A, JAN=month before all other months. Another word I didn’t know, but I put it in confidently based on the wordplay.
5. Former length of building extension (3)
ELL: double definition: a measure of length, or an unfamiliar usage where I would expect to see “L-shaped extension”. Couldn’t find it in Chambers, but it is in Collins and the Shorter Oxford.
6. Press producing letter, maybe: a major coup? (9)
KEYSTROKE: KEY=major, COUP=stroke. Another nice definition.
7. Went off in opposite directions, having escaped slowly (7)
SNOOZED: South/North, OOZED. Went off to sleep … nothing to do with directions!
8. Use ash, perhaps, when covering cross up (5)
EXERT: TREE [ash, perhaps] covering X=cross, all written upwards.
12. Mary’s 27-yard jogging (3,4)
OUR LADY: (LOU YARD*). This one gave me 27dn, rather than the reverse.
15. Struggling to hold axe up for checking (9)
VERIFYING: VYING, around FIRE written upward. My first thought was to look for EXA = “axe up”, but eventually the helpers saved me.
17. Brussels politician opening flood defence and leisure centre (5,4)
THEME PARK: THE ARK around MEP. Would it be picky to suggest the Ark was an escape mechanism rather than a defence?
19. Little point in end of winter hot water bottles (7)
PRICKLE: PICKLE=hot water, around {winte}R.
21. Shot of race horse leading rival (4-3)
ARCH-FOE: (OF RACE H*). H is a standard abbreviation for horse; the “leading” refers to the foe, not the horse.
23. Island not displaying any aquarium oddly (5)
NAURU: even letters of aNy AqUaRiUm.
25. Home with mostly clean running water in Asia (5)
INDUS: IN=home, DUS{t} =“clean”, mostly.
27. Watch suitable for anyone, male or female (3)
LOU: LO=watch, U=universal exhibition. Can be a man’s or woman’s name.
FOI 9ac FRET. LOI 24ac FLY PITCHER once I finally twigged 17dn THEME PARK.
COD 28ac FOAL! Also like 10ac JOLLY ROGER.
A fine puzzle, but you really have to work the cryptics.
Where can I get a copy of the Bumper Fun Book 1927? Is it in Kindle?
I’m finding the second half of this week equally difficult. Time for a coffee.
Nice blog, Bruce
Edited at 2017-08-05 01:40 pm (UTC)
ONG’ARA,
KENYA.
Eventually I gave up needing 2d, 14a and 18a. And I put Cret (Crest without S) for 9a and Examining for 15d until I got Flypitcher.
It seemed tough to me and when Monday’s 15×15 came along, confidence was restored. Liked Kosher and Averages and the fiendish anagram for Super G. David
I did not know about the “building extension” usage of ELL but I was reminded of the 1960s book/film “The L-Shaped Room”. When a solution is in Collins but not Chambers I sometimes wonder if there is any pressure (by Collins) on the setters to include such words 🙂