The first Sunday in February brings us the regular geographically themed puzzle. Find it to solve online or download and print at ft.com/crossword, or via the FT smartphone app.
The usual preamble:
A cryptic puzzle themed on one particular country. The name of the country should be inserted at 24 across. Work out the name of the country by solving the * asterisked clues, all undefined. Their solutions have some relevance to the country, such as its places, famous people, culture and language.
Quite a tough workout from Gaff. I didn’t notice until I came to write up the blog that the preamble refers to a “country” when in fact it’s a city that we’re looking for today, so I can’t blame that unfortunate typo for finding this a tricky puzzle to unravel. With VICTORIA and OPERA HOUSE among the earliest of the themed solutions to fall for me, I did wonder if AUSTRALIA would be the key to the puzzle, but it didn’t fit the required enumeration. It was only once I had ELBOW and COTTON that the penny dropped. Even then, I admit I struggled to spot CORONATION STREET and CENTRAL LIBRARY due to some pretty fiendish wordplay, but I got there in the end and think I’ve managed to parse everything satisfactorily. Phew!
Many thanks to Gaff for an enjoyable challenge.
Definitions are underlined in the clues.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | VILIFY |
Roast, wicked without starter, provided that happy ending (6)
|
| [e]VIL (wicked) less the first letter (without starter) + IF (provided that) + last letter (ending) of happY | ||
| 4 | SHOWBOAT |
Perform outrageously in musical (8)
|
| Two definitions | ||
| 10/11 | CENTRAL LIBRARY |
* Money is primary support piece in recovery (7,7)
|
| CENT (money) + I (one as an ordinal = first = primary) + BRA (support) + R (rook = [chess] piece) inserted in RALLY (recovery)
Historical building in Manchester, the design of which was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. |
||
| 12 | OGLE |
Watch made from Lego (4)
|
| Anagram (made from) LEGO | ||
| 13/20 | CORONATION STREET |
* Light the first particles and ash maybe final result (10,6)
|
| CORONA (light) + first [letter of] The + IONS (particles) + TREE (ash, maybe) + last letter (final) of resulT
Location in the fictional Greater Manchester town of Weatherfield, eponymous setting for the long-running TV soap opera. |
||
| 15 | IRRUPT |
Break in organised trip to include sport (6)
|
| Anagram (organised) of TRIP containing (to include) RU (rugby union = sport) | ||
| 16 | SMITHS |
* Black, silver and gold, perhaps (6)
|
| Cryptic definition
The Smiths were a band from Manchester who came to fame in the 1980s. |
||
| 20 |
See 13
|
|
| 21 | IN SITU |
In pain, sit up, unmoving (2,4)
|
| Contained within paIN SIT Up | ||
| 24 | MANCHESTER |
[See Setter Notes] (10)
|
| The place to which all asterisked clues refer. | ||
| 26 | BLUR |
Obscure // band (4)
|
| Two definitions
A nice bit of cheekiness from Gaff to include the London-based band Blur but not their Mancunian rivals, Oasis. Blur were, of course, the far superior act. |
||
| 28 | IMPOUND |
Seize one penny in the pile (7)
|
| I (one) + P (penny) in MOUND (pile) | ||
| 29 | VENTURI |
Effect even Turing concealed (7)
|
| Concealed within eVEN TURIng
The Venturi effect is a change in pressure in a fluid when entering a constricted section of a pipe. |
||
| 30 | HACIENDA |
* Cane I had designed (8)
|
| Anagram (designed) of CANE I HAD
Legendary 80s nightclub in Manchester, now converted into a block of flats. |
||
| 31 | COTTON |
* Overstated taking part in fraud (6)
|
| OTT (over the top = overstated) inserted (taking part) in CON (fraud)
In the 19th century, Manchester was nicknamed Cottonopolis as it was the centre of the cotton industry. |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | VICTORIA |
* Terrible evisceration not seen (8)
|
| Anagram (terrible) of EVISCERATION less the letters of SEEN
Victoria is a) one of the main railway stations in Manchester, b) a large park in the south of Manchester, and c) the formal name of the University of Manchester (which awarded my son a first in History – have to sneak that in as a proud dad). |
||
| 2 | LANDLORDS |
Letters and parcel on the ground (9)
|
| LAND (parcel) + LORDS ([cricket] ground, not in Manchester) | ||
| 3 | FURY |
* Turn into fish (4)
|
| U (turn) inserted into FRY (fish)
The boxer Tyson Fury is originally from Manchester. |
||
| 5 | HALLOUMI |
Call for mother to leave meaty cheese (8)
|
| HALLO (call) + U[ma]MI (a “meaty” flavour) less MA (mother to leave) | ||
| 6 | WEBCASTING |
Reporting on line-dancing gets ABC win (10)
|
| Anagram (dancing) of GETS ABC WIN | ||
| 7 | OKAPI |
Fine a constant beast (5)
|
| OK (fine) + A + PI (constant) | ||
| 8 | TRYING |
Difficult drawing round rear end (6)
|
| TYING (drawing) round the last letter (end) of reaR | ||
| 9 | ELBOW |
* Stagger back with blackout (5)
|
| WO[b]BLE (stagger) reversed (back) with one of the letters B (black) taken out – take your pick which one
Band from Manchester, formed in the 90s but still going strong. |
||
| 14 | OPERA HOUSE |
* Revolutionary rose up with a hoe (5,5)
|
| Anagram (revolutionary) of ROSE UP + A HOE
Theatre in central Manchester, originally known as the New Queen’s Theatre when it opened in 1912. |
||
| 17 | STILL HUNT |
Feat includes run down hard track (5,4)
|
| STUNT (feat) including ILL (run down) + H (hard) | ||
| 18 | TEN-SIDED |
Didn’t see foul, Premiership Rugby say (3-5)
|
| Anagram (foul) of DIDN’T SEE
There are 10 teams playing in the English Rugby Union Premiership. |
||
| 19 | GUARDIAN |
* Tremble leaving Bermuda Triangle at sea (8)
|
| Anagram (at sea) of BERMUDA TRIANGLE less the letters of TREMBLE
The Guardian newspaper was founded in Manchester as the Manchester Guardian in 1821 but dropped Manchester from its name in 1959 shortly before it moved to Fleet Street. |
||
| 22 | IMPISH |
Naughty warriors stretch sides (6)
|
| IMPI (warriors) + first and last letters (sides) of StretcH | ||
| 23 | VERVE |
* Winter’s ending in two days (5)
|
| Last letter (ending) of winteR inserted between VE + VE (two days, ie VE Day, which commemorates the end of the Second World War in Europe)
Band formed in Wigan in Greater Manchester in the 90s. |
||
| 25 | NSPCC |
Protectors of partners at inoffensive daycare centre (1,1,1,1,1)
|
| NS (north and south = partners in the game bridge) + PC (politically correct = inoffensive) + middle letter (centre) of dayCare
NSPCC stands for National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. |
||
| 27 | UNDO |
Cancel mid-June party (4)
|
| Middle letters of jUNe + DO (party) |
Loved this, especially 6d WEBCASTING, a combined ‘lift and separate’ of “line-dancing”, with a Gossard of “on line” -> “online”
and 9d ELBOW with a Playtex of “blackout” -> “black out”
Being a fan of all the bands helped; they were the chewiest clues. {Glad Oasis weren’t included.)
[15a IRRUPT = “Break in“] Thanks G&W.
I got HACIENDA and CENTRAL LIBRARY early, which when I then solved VICTORIA and GUARDIAN led me to MANCHESTER. Not everything was fully parsed, I forget to go back and check my last few with the FT app that flashes up a completed screen.
Thank you Gaff and Widdersbel.
I too got totally confused as it said country (it has previously said place when not a country), I had Victoria and opera house but Australia didn’t fit and started looking for countries beginning with M that might work.
It increasingly looked like Manchester and I was internally shouting “that’s not a country”. Then I got Hacienda and it had to be Manchester.
Having bunged in OPERA HOUSE and noting that VICTORIA is capital of Seychelles I rashly assumed that since it was the only country that now fitted, it must be that.
Then came IMPISH and NSPCC and it was time to assume the FT had done a Guarniad.
I think 3 bands is a bit much though. Pity that 10CC won’t go into a crossword.
Wigan (VERVE) and Bury (ELBOW) are both Greater Manchester rather than Manchester, but I suppose that’s ok. Thanks for the blog and the tricky puzzle.
This was a fun crossword, but I think I must be musically deficient! I have not even remotely heard of Elbow, Verve and Smiths. I had to reveal Elbow and Verve. Smiths I got, but only because of a passing knowledge of a less-than-reputable bar called Mr Smiths from when my brother was at Manchester Uni! I was surprised that such a bar had made it to the illustrious heights of the FT, until I saw the real Smiths in this blog!
Thanks to Gaff and Widdersbel