The puzzle may be found at https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/30036.
I have not had a Paul crossword to blog since … last week. Not that I am complaining – this is another funfest – definitely not a snooze. I suspect that the pairing of 25A CONSTABLE and 26A/1A GAINSBOROUGH has been done before, but if so it is well worth repeating.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 |
See 26
|
|
| 5 | SINATRA |
Frank discussions in a trade-off digested (7)
|
| A hidden answer (‘digested’) in ‘discussionS IN A TRAde-off’. | ||
| 9 | TULIP |
Clue about bulb, essentially? (5)
|
| An envelope (‘about’) of UL (‘bULb essentially’) in TIP (‘clue’), with an &litish definition. | ||
| 10 | ROOSEVELT |
A few missing artist in essence, US president (9)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of SEVE[ra]L (‘a few’) minus RA (‘missing artist’) in ROOT (‘essence’), for either Franklin D or Theodore. | ||
| 11 | LOCAL DERBY |
See Yorkshire flower near Sheff U v Sheff W, say (5,5)
|
| A charade of LO (‘see’) plus CALDER (‘Yorkshire flower’ – yes, another river) plus BY (‘near’). ‘Sheff U’ and ‘Sheff W’ are the two soccer teams in Sheffield, Yorkshire – United and Wednesday. | ||
| 12, 24 | MEAT STEW |
Last of ham we taste mixed up – in this? (4,4)
|
| An anagram (‘mixed up’) of M (‘last of haM‘) plus ‘we taste’. | ||
| 14 | SOLID GROUND |
Land idols in trouble? (5,6)
|
| Wordplay in the answer: an anagram (GROUND) of SOLID is ‘idols’. The reinforcing anagrind ‘in trouble’ in the clue would seem to be superfluous, but I think does no harm. | ||
| 18 | WITHERSPOON |
US actress, how might she cause a stir in speech? (11)
|
| With a little elision or a trip to East London, sounds like (‘in speech’) WITH HER SPOON, for the actress Reece Witherspoon.. | ||
| 21 | HEAP |
Groovy chassis on a jalopy (4)
|
| An envelope (‘on’) of ‘a’ in HEP (‘groovy’). | ||
| 22 | SNOOZEFEST |
Sense of outrageous theatre initially dressing Australian in drag (10)
|
| An envelope (‘dressing’) OZ (‘Australian’) in SNOEFES, an anagram (‘outrageous’) of ‘sense of’ plus T (‘Theatre initially’). Did you try to fit EDNA in there somewhere? | ||
| 25 | CONSTABLE |
Boy in Blue artist … (9)
|
| Double definition. In the original just ‘Boy in Blue‘ is in italics. | ||
| 26, 1 | GAINSBOROUGH |
… gets quarter (12)
|
| A charade of GAINS (‘gets’) plus BOROUGH (‘quarter’). As the ellipses indicate, clue 25A provides the definition; The Blue Boy is perhaps Gainsborough’s best known painting. | ||
| 27 | SCREW IT |
Team getting stuffed in flop, I give up! (5,2)
|
| An envelope (‘getting stuffed in’) of CREW (‘team’) in SIT (‘flop’). | ||
| 28 | AIRLESS |
Close, as Mexican dog in East London? (7)
|
| A dropped h (‘in East London’) in [h]AIRLESS (‘Mexican dog’ – the Xoloitzcuintle has a form known as the Mexican hairless dog). | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | BOTTLE |
Pluck item from the wine rack? (6)
|
| Double definition. | ||
| 2 | RELICT |
Survivor brightened up again having caught cold (6)
|
| An envelope (‘having caught’) of C (‘cold’) in RELIT (‘brightened up again’). | ||
| 3 | UNPOLISHED |
Rough tongue in nude rogue (10)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of POLISH (‘tongue’) in UNED, an anagram (‘rogue’) of ‘nude’. | ||
| 4, 23 | HORSE OPERA |
Western Samoa discontented here with poor supply (5,5)
|
| An anagram (‘supply’ – if you have not come across this usage before, make a note of it for the next time; the adverb from supple) of SA (‘SamoA discontented) plus ‘here’ plus ‘poor’. | ||
| 5 | SCOOBY-DOO |
Animated solver’s clue? (6,3)
|
| Cryptic definition. | ||
| 6 | NOEL |
Christmas movie cut, cut for Christmas! (4)
|
| A subtraction: NOEL[le] (‘Christmas movie cut’ – cut as a noun, a particular version of a film) minus its last two letters (‘cut’ as a participle). | ||
| 7 | THEREOUT |
Hawker steals present from that place (8)
|
| An envelope (‘steals’) of HERE (‘present’) in TOUT (‘hawker’). | ||
| 8 | ALTITUDE |
A cap in use tilted badly, level up (8)
|
| An anagram (‘badly’) of ‘a’ plus U (‘cap in Use’) plus ’tilted’. with a cryptic definition. | ||
| 13 | PRINCE IGOR |
That said in support of stinker, describing nicer comic 23 down (6,4)
|
| An envelope (‘describing’) of RINCE, an anagram (‘comic’) of ‘nicer’ in PIG (‘stinker’) plus (‘in support of’) OR (‘that said’ – the sense of “despite that” is somewhere close). The OPERA (’23 down’) – not comic – is by Borodin. | ||
| 15 | LOSING BET |
Chance gone, lots being wasted? (6,3)
|
| An anagram (‘wasted’) of ‘lots being’. | ||
| 16 | AW SHUCKS |
Expression of embarrassment while burying head in whelk shell (2,6)
|
| An envelope (‘burying’) of W (‘head in Whelk’) plus SHUCK (‘shell’, verb) in AS (‘while’), with a delightfully bizarre surface. | ||
| 17 | STRAINER |
Riddle from Sphinx’s first teacher (8)
|
| A charade of S (‘Sphinx’s first’) plus TRAINER (‘teacher’). | ||
| 19 | PETITE |
Little bird in leak (6)
|
| An envelope (‘in’) of TIT (‘bird’) in PEE (‘leak’). | ||
| 20 | STASIS |
Force once applied to opening in sink blockage (6)
|
| A charade of STASI (‘force once’ – East German secret police) plus S (‘opening in Sink’). | ||
| 23 |
See 4
|
|
| 24 |
See 12 Across
|
|
NOEL
My take:
For the surface, the first cut is a noun.
For the cryptic reading, two cuts indicate the removal of
the last two letters from Noelle ((a) Christmas movie).
SCOOBY-DOO
Took it as a DD.
Def 1 Animated solver
Def 2 Clue (CRS)
The CONSTABLE-GAINSBOROUGH combo was excellent.
Thanks Paul and PeterO.
Great puzzle, ta PnP. No doubt someone will say what the X is about…
Agree with KVa on Scooby doo
For Noel, I had Elf as the movie title, cut to be EL and then it was cut again so there was NO EL(f) – maybe a bit convoluted but it got me there!
One of those tricky Paul crosswords that seems impossible at first glance but slowly unravels.
Thanks PeterO for the blog
I’m with KVa @1 for Scooby Doo – it’s well-established rhyming slang for “clue” (“haven’t a Scooby” – havent a clue).
Hadn’t thought of Elf for the Christmas movie, but I think Alex @3 is right – if the Christmas movie has been cut, then there’s “No Elf” (the movie), and then that’s cut again to give NOEL.
No idea about the “X” instruction – maybe just a Graunism?
Thanks both.
Didn’t get SNOOZEFEST, possibly because of an attempt to forget the dishonest Old Etonian slob with the bad hair who used to refer to Kier Starmer as “Sir Crasheroonie Snoozefest”. Yes, there was a time when we were relatively polite about KS…
A couple of parsings I didn’t get, for which many thanks, PeterO. A pleasant start to the day with just a little trademark Paul smuttiness. Ta, both.
Tough but never a snoozefest. The SE corner taking the most time.
Another who enjoyed the CONSTABLE/GAINSBOROUGH pairing.
My only explanation for the special instruction x is that someone accidentally typed in a box they shouldn’t have.
Thanks PeterO and Paul
X is a typo, I guess.
Although it is the CTRL+ for a cut that is needed twice with the Elf problem, and elsewhere.
I see the special instructions ‘x’ have been removed online. There was me wondering whether to interpret it as a cross, times, ten…… Clearly, just an error. A fun puzzle, not easy but all fair. Thanks Paul and many thanks PeterO for help with some parsings.
Quite a number of people on the site saying how difficult this is – it often seems to me that when that’s the case, I find it relatively benign (and vice versa). I didn’t actually realise this was a Paul until a good few clues in. I still didn’t complete it, throwing in the towel on being stuck in the SE and revealing AIRLESS, PETITE and STASIS.
This was a struggle and took some time – but every clue was worth it once the parsing was achieved. PeterO thanks so much for pointing out the clever adverb at at 4/23. I totally missed that – simply thinking it meant “you get this from the supply of these letters”. How brilliant and, yes, one to watch out for in future.
The CONSTABLE and GAINSBOROUGH combination was great.
I took WITHERSPOON as a soundalike of “with a spoon” (rather than “with her spoon”). It reminded me of one of my all-time favourite clues (also by Paul), “Actress was less inclined to sketch Robin and Maurice Gibb, but…? (4,9)”.
Many thanks Paul and PeterO.
Lord Jim@11
WITHERSPOON
Agree. That sounds better.
Wading in to the great WITHERSPOON debate – I think PeterO was right, but I’d have said it’s a rendering (rather than a soundalike) of WITH ‘ER SPOON, otherwise the east London reference is unused.
Agree with cryptor about SCOOBY being rhyming slang for ‘clue’, and therefore a DD as per KVa @1.
I was another who went down the NO EL[f] route, not having come across the movie Noelle. Be interesting to know what Paul had in mind.
Overall I thought this was a lot of fun, which is not something I often say about Paul puzzles. So thanks to him and to PeterO for teasing out a couple of the trickier parsings that eluded me.
22 – yes, I did try to fit EDNA in! LOI, by guess’n’check, but what a fabulous clue.