An enjoyable puzzle from Cyclops this time. The clue surfaces were at their story-telling best, in the usual Private Eye style.
The puzzle started with 1d’s hilarious surface reading, and was solved faster than I expected. The anagram part was clearly signalled. But I am tempted to award it my top clue badge for the surface reading – and I will!
Then I slapped in 8a – wrong. I do have trouble pronouncing and thus spelling “NM” words.
Among other clues worthy of note I will pick out 12/13. Even though WREAK is not an adjective, this reminds me of a wordgame I have stumbled upon recently:
Nounsense: https://daily.gametje.com/nounsense/ You are presented with an adjective and have to supply the most apt noun. Maybe it’s just me but I like to get a really low non-zero score.
Thus the last clue solved was 2d – it did not help at all having a crossing N instead of M and it took a while to figure out what was going on.
| Across | ||
|---|---|---|
| 8 | ENMITY | Malice spreads anytime leader is kicked out (6) ([a]NYTIME)* AInd: spreads. One of those NM words I have trouble spelling and pronouncing correctly, and don’t ask me to say ANENOME |
| 9 | MAGNOLIA | Bush gets Trump backers to import northern crude oil (8) (N[orthern] OIL)* AInd: crude, inside (imported by) MAGA (Trump backers) Magnolias are lovely but their flowers seem to be over so quickly |
| 11 | GREEN BELT | Maybe Polanski goes on strike to secure undeveloped land (5,4) GREEN (Polanski, maybe), BELT (strike) Nice to see Zack as Green Party leader getting his place as an example in a cryptic clue. |
| 12/13 | WREAK HAVOC | Vow a hacker made about what Trump’s actions do (5,5) (VOW A HACKER)* AInd: made about. Not many things get “Wreaked” none of them good. Havoc, Destruction, Revenge, Vengeance, any more? |
| 15 | PARAMEDIC | Pence joins Democrats in America – oddly a potential life-saver (9) (P[ence] D[emocrats] AMERICA)* AInd: oddly. Ref. surface of the clue: Stranger things have happened? |
| 17 | COPPER | “Old boiler“: can that be PC? (6) Double Def. I remember pushing clothes around in the copper when I was small, before mum got a twin-tub |
| 18 | CINEMA | Pictures of Chirac in email content (6) Hidden in ChiraC IN EMAil, Hidden Ind: content Also from the 60s, I never knew the Cinema as anything than “The Pictures” or “The Flicks” |
| 21 | LOSE TOUCH | Cryptic clue’s too hard – fail to keep up (4,5) (CLUE’S TOO H[ard])* AInd: cryptic. And the list of films not yet watched and books not yet read gets longer. Maybe when I retire. |
| 23 | SOCKS | Beats members’ wear (5) Double Def. Do not make the mistake of putting condoms on your feet. They’re too tight. |
| 24 | NIGEL | Party leader finally beaten by international set (5) [beate]N I[nternational] GEL (set) Fartage’s true colours coming out recently |
| 26 | TERMINATE | Wind up getting temperature one time, on wearing fur (9) T[emperature] A T (one time) inside (on wearing) ERMINE (fur) Terminate the Ermine! (Abolish the House of Lords) |
| 28 | EMISSARY | State agent is into working? My arse! (8) IS (is) inside (into) (MY ARSE)* AInd: working. Turns out our ex-US Emissary was an utter arse after all |
| 29 | SPOILT | Over-indulged Post Office is covered in mud (6) PO (Post Office) inside (is covered in) SILT (mud) The Post Office’s name is still mud after the Horizon scandal. I wonder how many decades it will take to regain its reputation. Sir Rowland Hill will be spinning in his grave. |
| Down | ||
| 1 | LENGTHY | Long and hard, gently stimulated all round (7) (GENTLY)* AInd: stimulated, around H[ard] Surface reading in classic Eye clue style. |
| 2 | IMPERVIOUS | Unmoved, just like Trump crushing Republicans? (10) Double Def. Hard as nails and twice as thick Edit: Not a Double Def. See Comments. The def. is “Unmoved”. The wordplay was intended as IMPERIOUS (like Trump) around (crushing) R[epublicans], but there was a slight “brain fade”. |
| 3 | STUN | Balls dropped? Just the opposite, causing shock (4) NUTS< (Balls) reversed (opposite of dropped) The reverse might be a shock. |
| 4 | BANTER | Ridicule ten getting pissed in pub (6) (TEN)* AInd: getting pissed, inside BAR (pub) Only ten? I suppose the goalie was the designated driver. |
| 5 | IN TWO MINDS | Cares halved at first? Doubtful (2,3,5) MINDS (Cares) IN TWO (halved) at first It might be useful having to minds. I could catch up my reading whilst watching a film. |
| 6 | CLUE | Tip: Labour leader needed inside prompt (4) L[abour] inside CUE (prompt) I put the def. as “tip” but it could almost be taken as “prompt” and tip used to provide CUE |
| 7 | PACK ICE | Crew with US enforcement, very dangerous in the main (4,3) PACK (crew) ICE (US enforcement) I have been on a cruise ship and concur, it is dangerous to pack too much ice in your scotch on the rocks |
| 14 | CAPITALIST | Restrict sex with celebrated tycoon? (10) CAP (Restrict) IT (sex) A-LIST (celebrated) Is that why Musk is such an arsehole? |
| 16 | DEMOCRATIC | “Un-Republican” march – Commander-in-Chief covers arse (10) DEMO (march) CIC (Commander-in-Chief) around (covers) RAT (arse) … as is always the way |
| 18 | COHORT | Military unit in Pacific – oh, or Tehran (6) Hidden in PacifiC – OH, OR Tehran Roman military unit of about 480 soldiers. Don’t annoy them. |
| 19 | SLANDER | Smear last of oil inside tool (7) [oi]L inside SANDER (tool) You get bad mouthed if you don’t ensure your sander is well oiled |
| 20 | ASSENTS | A number of thumbs up Trump’s behind – tens perhaps? (7) ASS (behind, US style) (TENS)* AInd: perhaps. There’s more than a few thumbs up there |
| 22 | UPTURN | Holding power, what Thatcher wouldn’t do for a boost (6) P[ower] inside (held by) U-TURN (what Thatcher wouldn’t do) Some would say Thatcher held power too long |
| 25/10 | GRIM REAPER | You’ll be dead unlucky when he comes at you with his long tool (4,6) Cryptic clue Steer clear of anyone waving a scythe about |
| 27 | IMPS | Trouble-makers backing politician’s intrusion into lives (4) MP (politician) inside (intrusion in) IS (lives) Do politicians intrude into our lives too much, or too little? Edit: Wordplay is more likely PM< (politician, backing) Thank you KVa Comment #1 |
I tried to read a book on the history of Sellotape, but I couldn’t find the beginning.
Thanks Cyclops and beermagnet.
Excellent puzzle. GREEN BELT and IN TWO MINDS were my faves among others.
Superb blog filled with humour as usual.
SOCKS and ASSENTS (a couple of samples): Enjoyed the blogger’s comments.
IMPS
Is the politician PM (otherwise, backing is redundant)?
Thanks for a great blog , really enjoyed this but perhaps a bit too American , mentioning no names . I also have the M N issue sometimes , remuneration always seems wrong .
IMPS I agree with KVa@1 .
IMPERVIOUS , just a thought , is it wordplay gone wrong ? Imperious crushing R ( should be V ) ??? probably just my imagination .
Nice blog, thanks BM, and you’ve summed up my feelings well too.
I fiddled with TURBINATE (and even TURBANAGE) for 26a for a while, which was a workable definition – but couldn’t parse it – until I thought of ERMINE.
(Mrs. E, like my late mum, also has the MN problem.)
Roz #2: For 2d IMPERVIOUS, I had the same thought, because “crushing Republicans” implied to me a word with an R put inside it.
Yes, Roz and Michael J, a mistake with my clue for IMPERVIOUS. Senior moment for Cyclops there!
An enjoyable crossword.
I agree with KVa and Roz regarding IMPS and, like Etu, fiddled around with TURBINATE at first. (I have so little familiarity with fur that it took an eternity before ermine occurred to me…)
My faves were MAGNOLIA and LENGTHY.
Thank you Cyclops for the fun, and beermagnet for an entertaining blog.
Thanks Cyclops@5 , these things are bound to happen . I am surprised by the rarity of mistakes in crosswords , around 30 clues and many with quite a bit of complexity .
Thanks everyone for the comments so far.
I have added a couple of addendums in the blog
Cyclops #5: Thanks from me, too. It really makes my day to get answers to our comments from the actual crossword setter.
Our real live actual crossword setter even! I input the full relevant clue to Google search, and that very untypically shut up its so-called AI Overview completely — not a peep. Giving it the next clue btw elicited its usual confidence:
“The answer to the crossword clue is TORSION. It means a twisting of a bodily organ or structure (like the spermatic cord), which is the exact opposite of descending (“dropped”) and causes intense pain and shock. @ Urology Care Foundation +2
“If you are working on a crossword and need help with other clues, or if you need help on another topic, just let me know!
“Could you share any other clues from the puzzle so we can solve it together?”
What would work as a functioning clue for 2d?
Something like: “Unmoved, just like Trump taking in victory?”
Slight variation . Unmoved , just like Trump claiming victory .
Well done Duncan and Roz – but I hope neither of you is after my job!
BTW, the error went virtually unnoticed by Eye readers : only one solver queried it.
Thanks beermagnet and Cyclops. I did exactly the same thing (MN) with 8a. It took me ages to find 2d. I think I must always mispronounce enmity. I was so relieved on 8a I don’t think I spotted the error on 2d.
I marked 3d as my favourite. It’s still making me laugh now as I reread it. Brilliant!
Hi Franko. I’m glad it’s not just me.
“It’s the way we tell ’em”
My NM mispronounciation/misspelling is undoubtedly picked up from my parents. I believe Philip Larkin analysed the general problem.
Cyclops@13 I am no good at thinking up clues , but I am quite good at adjusting them .
Not an umnitigated mistake then.
Thanks beermagnet @15. I like the Frank Carson reference. I must check out the Philip Larkin analysis.
bm 15, it could be worse.
At least we’re not Tracey Emin.
Franko 18: I met Frank Carson once, and I’m more than content with that.
@Franko
This is the Larkin “analysis” I was referencing:
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48419/this-be-the-verse
Beermagnet 20:
Yep. That’s all that I could find too.
However, AI says that Larkin had a bad stammer especially with words beginning with M or N.
Etu @19, he came across as a shy retiring fellow on the telly.
Beermagnet @20 Thanks for the link. I reckon old Phil had some parental issues. (That’s the full extent of my literary analysis skills.)
We need a mnemonic for words like enmity .
Didn’t finish this anywhere near in time to submit it. A few threw me, had to come here especially to figure out why IMPERVIOUS and UPTURN — “imperious” is a word I only associate with the original BSG and I couldn’t figure out where the U came from in UPTURN. I don’t remember Thatcher as PM but do have the audio of “the lady’s not for turning” in my head thanks to Chumbawamba.
Right, let’s see if I can actually complete the new one in time to submit…think I’ve missed the last three now!
i saw trump as being the PERV in impervious,wrong parse(?),right solution.