As nmsindy says in his Quixote report, this Sunday’s edition (8th June) will include a shortened version of Don Manley’s “Chambers Crossword Manual”. For UK solvers who don’t yet have a “how to solve cryptics” book and think it might help, this is a chance to get some very good advice cheaply.

Independent website page about the book: http://www.independent.co.uk/extras/article840232.ece

Unusual for Phi to appear other than on a Friday. Not sure if this means some themed puzzle is planned for this Friday 6 June. This I found very well put together as always from Phi, a little on the easy side, solving time 15 mins.

Recently I missed a Phi Nina, so, with only a little confidence, say I don’t see one here.

* = anagram < = reversed

ACROSS

1 AB (Blood group) SUR(e) D (Dracula at first). Reminds me of one of my favourite clues from the late Aquila (Bert Danher) “An alarming blood count? (7)” - answer at end of blog

5 D (YNAM) O many<

8 RELIGIOUS ORDER The quote is from Shakespeare’s Hamlet

11 GLIB Bilg(e)<

12 CHRONIC LED

13 T (E N) ON SAW (was not)<

15 HIP P O

17 SHARP PRACTICE

22 ASTRONOMER (star no more)* The ‘me’ has an extra significance as the Azed book reveals Phi is a trained astronomer

25 CHIC(k)

25/26 NOISE POLLUTION (sell-out opinion)*

27 P (l = left) IERS

28 EL NINO (on line)* ”Weather formation’ sounds a touch euphemistic

DOWN

2 BULL I ON

3 (p)URGE

4 DROP (HEAD COUP E) S New phrase to me that I was very pleased to work out from the excellent wordplay.

5 DE (of in French) SPOT

6 NEOLITHIC (into Chile)*

7 MUDFLAP “Flood map”

8 R IGHT AS RAIN (r this again)* r = runs (cricket)

10 RADIO BEACON (aboard on ice)*

14 NIPP (ONE’S) E (r)

16 TRUE BLUE Blue = waste (squander). Very much on the political right

18 AN T (H) ILL farm (vb) = till

20 ICH DIEN German for “I serve” Motto of the Prince of Wales

24 BU (R) N R = rex (king)

DRACULA

With Listener puzzle 4000 due this year (20 September to be exact) we should not forget Quixote has less than a year to make the 1000. If my calculations are correct this is due on 12 April 2009 (Easter Sunday as it happens).

This must have been one of the easiest of the 1000, taking me just 11 minutes to solve.

Please note also that next Sunday 8 June a version of Don Manley’s Chambers Crossword Manual is being given out free with the IoS. So maybe new enthusiasts will turn to puzzle 956, Quixote being Don Manley as many will know.

* = anagram

1 DAM PEN

4 OBS TAC(k)LE

9 LA (VI) SH

10 BACKS TOP

11/19 CLEMENT ATTLEE (t let men elect)* Labour PM after the War - appears much more often in crosswords than other PMs, must have useful letters for setters.

13 TANGLES (Sent gal)*

14 CHINLESS WONDER Cryptic definition

18 CENTRAL H EATING H in the middle of the two words, surprised to see ‘eating’ appear as itself in the clue

20 RE STING

22 PIER ROT

24 HO OLIGAN (in gaol)*

25 GERBIL hidden

26 DANDYISM (My dad’s in)*

27 A T ON CE

DOWN

1 D ELI CT

2 MO VIE

3 EA STERNER

5 BEAUTY SLEEP Good cryptic definition - my last entry

6 TA KEN

7 COTYLEDON (led tycoon)*

8 EXPO SURE

12 THEOLOGIANS (anthologies)* Interesting that these are anagrams of each other

15 HANDS DOWN

16 ON THE BEAT

17 SCOR (C H) ED

21 (S) ICILY

23 RAB IN Rab Butler, seen before in Quixote puzzles.

Common abbreviations used
dd = double definition
cd = cryptic definition
rev = reversed or reversal
ins = insertion
cha = charade
* = anagram

I am ever so blessed with my Guardian assignments. Today I landed another of my favourite compilers. Who can forget his “Man United playing away from home (9)” and the beauty of such a clue is that you can repeat it in any circle and get the same laughs from people who may have no inkling of what a cryptic crossword clue is.

Today’s theme is also one that is close to a Malaysian’s heart, since Sepang in Malaysia is one of the Formula One circuits since 1999. Indeed a very entertaining themed puzzle

Across
1 AEROSOL Rev of LO (look) SORE (painful) A
5 MUD BATH Paul the compiler has two other pseudonyms, Mudd in the Financial Times and Punk in the Independent. MUD (Mud(d) my name disgraced, probably from tail docked or tail between the legs) BATH (an English city where my good friend, Dr Brain Skinner lives)
9 ORBED Cha of OR (gold, precious metal) BED (bottom)
10 WINDSTORM *(mind worst)
11 SUNGLASSES Cha of SUNG (delivered a song) LASSES (girls)
21,12 RINGTAIL Cha of RING (call) TAIL (back) see opossum/possum in Chambers
22 BAWDYHOUSE *(wash bed ye)
25 HUNGARIAN Cha of HUNG (suspended) ARIAN (Arianism is the heretical doctrine of Arius, that Christ was not consubstantial) The Magyar Nagydíj has been part of the F1 Circuit since 1986
26 LOTUS A good British name that has fallen on hard times in the racing scene; the company has since been acquired by a Malaysian concern
27 PHONEME See Chambers
28 SHANNON Cha of SH (quiet) ANN (girl) ON. There are two rivers of that name, one in Ireland and one in Minnesota, USA

Down
2,14 RUBENS BARRICHELLO Cha of RUBENS (Peter Paul 1577–1640) BARRI(e) (J. M. Barrie (1860–1937), Scottish novelist and dramatist; creator of Peter Pan) HELLO (greeting)
3 SADDLEBACK Cha of SADDLE (burden) BACK (support) I was most surprised to see tucked away in Chambers a definition thus a breed of pig
4,8 LEWIS HAMILTON Cha of Lewisham (part of London) ‘ILTON (the Cockney’s posh hotel Hilton) Well, this British driver has really startled the racing world with his flair and I pick him to win the Driver’s Championship this season. Wonder what’s the odds now?
5 MANNERISM Cha of MANN (Paul Thomas, 1875–1955, a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and 1929 Nobel Prize laureate) ER (Elizabeth Regina or queen) M (male)
6 DASH dd
7 ADORABLE Cha of A DO (a party) (g)RABLE (after Betty ,1916–1973, an American dancer, singer and actress)
13 CHINCHILLA Ins of CHILL (possible reason for fur coat) in CHINA (country)
15 RE-EXAMINE Ins of E (English) in REX (king) + A MINE (a pit)
16 STARSHIP Cha of STARS (features) HIP (with it) I think there is a typo here with traveller.
In the Times today, I saw at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/
Obama wants Clinton on his side – not at his side
Barack Obama must heal deep divisions within the Democrats but aides say he has little desire to accomodate Hillary Clinton
I have always been told “double c double m” for accommodate
17,1 FERNANDO ALONSO Cha of FERN (plant) AND (with) O (old) + ALONSO *(saloon)
20,19 JENSON BUTTON Cha of JENSEN (Homophone of Jensen, a defunct sports car manufacturer from UK) and BUTTON (switch)
23 DANES ha
24 FACE F + ace (one in a pack of cards)

Given that I’m posting relatively late in the day, I’ll keep the editorial comments to a minimum - in the interests of expediency.  There’s not really anything unduly tricky in here anyway, although I suspect 19D could be a literary allusion?

Across
1 WRITER’S CRAMP - I think this is an attempt to pun on “hand”=handwriting but, unfortunately, this seems to read far more obviously as a simple straight definition.
11 PAR(S)LEY
12 TEARS - cryptic definition only.
13 LION,ISED - (side)*
15 OR,NA,MENTAL - (an)<
16 T[-h]E,RN
20 WATER NYMPH - (Why men trap)*
22 HILAR(IT)Y
26 NODS OFF - (Fond of, s[oprano])*, I’m not desperately enamoured with “anyway” as the anagrind.
27 ATISHOO - “a tissue”.  This one must be approaching full ripeness as an old chestnut.
28 GOBBLED,I,GO,OK

Down
2 REDRAW,N
4 RHE,A - (her)*
5 CAPT,IVATE,D - (Evita)*
7 PEL(IS)SE - is in (sleep*
8 NEXT TO NOTHING - (tonight X ten on)*.  The only genuinely amusing roadside church sign that I’ve ever seen went something along the lines of: ”If all you think about is Number One then remember - Number 1 is next to nothing”.  Still wasn’t enough for me to have a Damascene conversion though.
9 DYED IN THE WOOL - “died”
17 GNASH,ING - (hangs)*,(gin)*
19 BULLDOG - ???
21 MAN,CHOO[-choo]
23 R[-as]H,O,MB