Most of the usual things are here and highlighted in the grid. A pleasant crossword from Everyman, and the only criticisms are not very major and indicated in the blog.
Definitions in crimson (?? It looks as if I’ve made a mistake in setting things: the answers are in crimson but not the definitions; sorry), underlined. Indicators (homophone, hidden, containment, anagram, juxtaposition, etc) in italics. Anagrams indicated *(like this) or (like this)*. Link-words in green.
I suppose SCAR and SPAR could be highlighted, but …
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | SHEDS A TEAR |
Edward’s of Islamic faith, Spooner tells us, and is visibly moved (5,1,4)
|
| “Spooner” would say “Ted’s a Shia” | ||
| 6 | SCAR |
Mark and Cliff (4)
|
| 2 defs | ||
| 9 | DEMOCRATIC |
Comic rated ‘poor’ as the public chooses (10)
|
| (comic rated)* | ||
| 10 | SPAR |
Pole and box (4)
|
| 2 defs | ||
| 11 | ONCE IN A WHILE |
Love disposing of Chilean wine now and again (4,2,1,5)
|
| 0 *(Chilean wine) — 0 = love, as in tennis | ||
| 15 | REINS IN |
Checks score in Singapore when some are ignored (5,2)
|
| Hidden in scoRE IN SINgapore — a good hidden, one of my last in | ||
| 16 | NUTTIER |
Increasingly deranged old teachers having row (7)
|
| NUT tier — NUT = National Union of Teachers, now superseded by the National Education Union, tier = row | ||
| 17 | CHATGPT |
Chirpy haphazard assistant that’ll give plausibleish text, primarily? (7)
|
| Our first letters clue | ||
| 19 | THROUGH |
Cast can be heard from beginning to end (7)
|
| This sounds like “threw” — threw = cast | ||
| 20 | DOWN THE AISLE |
As trolleys and some trains proceed? (4,3,5)
|
| CD referring to the passage of a trolley serving refreshments, typically on a train or an aeroplane, and “trains” in the clue refers to bridal trains, which move down (up?) the aisle at a wedding | ||
| 23 | ROVE |
After drop of Riesling (round #5), Everyman’s beginning to ramble (4)
|
| r[iesling] 0 V E[veryman] — 0 = round, #5 = V, the Latin number — the self-referential clue | ||
| 24 | WIDOW’S PEAK |
Women’s group talk including stock index and what may resemble recession (6,4)
|
| WI (Dow) speak — WI = Women’s group (Women’s Institute), speak = talk, Dow = stock index (the Dow Jones Industrial Average) — the definition refers to what happens to some men as they age: at the front their hairline recedes on the left and right, leaving a “widow’s peak” of hair in the middle — a sort of recession | ||
| 25 | SASH |
Frame small tree (4)
|
| s ash — s = small, ash = tree — a sash is a window frame/sash window | ||
| 26 | ASSISTANCE |
Nitwit with one point of view: some help! (10)
|
| ass 1 stance — ass = nitwit, 1 = one, stance = point of view — the exclamation mark is hidden inside what someone might say: it isn’t referring to the way the clue works | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | SODS |
Lays the ground for irritating types (4)
|
| 2 defs | ||
| 2 | EMMA |
Bovary? A Madame that’s written about? (4)
|
| (A MMe)rev. — Madame Bovary’s first name was Emma — Madame Bovary was a novel by Flaubert, published in 1856 and 1857 — what’s the second question mark doing? | ||
| 3 | SECOND SIGHT |
Prediction: more food will lead to fight not starting (6,5)
|
| seconds [f]ight — seconds = more food | ||
| 4 | TRADE-IN |
Traffic; perhaps old vehicle (5-2)
|
| Without the hyphen this refers to business (I’m a bit uncomfortable here and can’t see how traffic = trade in: traffic = trade and traffic in = trade in) — the definition refers to a second-hand car | ||
| 5 | AVIGNON |
Mixed gin in English ceremonial county – or somewhere in Provence (7)
|
| Avon around *(gin) — Avon no longer exists as a county, so there should be an “old” somewhere; it was a non-metropolitan ceremonial county in South West England that existed from 1974 to 1996; Avignon is a place in Provence | ||
| 7 | CAPRICIOUS |
Prosaic echinus every so often removed: that’s somewhat whimsical (10)
|
| (Prosaic [e]c[h]i[n]u[s])* — “removed” is a strange anagram indicator but I suppose it’s just about OK: it’s not in the Chambers Crossword Dictionary’s enormous list of anagram indicators (some of which are to my mind rather dodgy) — an echinus is a genus of sea urchins, so the surface is very odd | ||
| 8 | RARE EARTHS |
Wrongfully arrest and hear certain elements (4,6)
|
| *(arrest hear) — rare earth elements are ones like scandium and yttrium | ||
| 12 | WATER CLOSET |
Where to go in castle tower undergoing restoration (5,6)
|
| (castle tower)* | ||
| 13 | PROCEDURES |
M.O.s involving secure drop (10)
|
| *(secure drop) — an M.O. is, amongst other things, a modus operandi, a way of working: a procedure | ||
| 14 | TIDAL WAVES |
Current events – or figuratively, the public’s responses (5,5)
|
| 2 defs — In the first one “Current” refers to the current in the sea, where you get tidal waves, and the other definition refers to waves in the tides of opinion among the public | ||
| 18 | THE PITS |
Rubbish comprising uneaten peach parts? (3,4)
|
| The uneaten parts of a peach are the peach stone, for which “pit” is a US word | ||
| 19 | TRIPOLI |
Journey arriving at oil rig regularly somewhere in Libya (7)
|
| trip o[i]l [r]i[g] | ||
| 21 | DEAN |
College official having stripped off on retirement denied knighthood (4)
|
| (na[K]ed)rev. — naked = having stripped off, “on retirement” reverses it, K = knighthood (a colloquial term that I haven’t heard anyone using — no doubt because I don’t move in the right circles — but which I know from Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minister) | ||
| 22 | SKYE |
Spot of land grabbed from Murmansk yesterday (4)
|
| Hidden in MurmanSK YEsterday — since Skye is an island it can I suppose be regarded as a spot of land |
I’m with you on 7d; my note on this was “where’s the anagrind?”. I had “removed” as part of the indication to take out alternate letters from Echinus. If it is (as on reflection I agree it must be) the anagrind, why “REmoved” when just “moved” would surely have been adequate and more accurate?
Thanks to Everyman and John.
CHATGPT? Mutter, mutter…
Incidentally, a new technical entertainment has arisen with the O’s site. I previously accessed it with a proper computer, but can no longer do that, as it tells me “Please rotate your device to an upright position”. Mrs. E has printed today’s off from her ‘phone…
Etu @2
Same thing happened to me two weeks ago. Then last week I got in – then this am I can’t and am getting the same message – on my laptop….
Fortunately I get the paper so can do it in that – but of course I can’t enter the competition unless I want to spend lots on a stamp.
It is particularly annoying as I am a subscriber to the Guardian and Observer but there doesn’t seem to be a way of telling them that.
Re 7d. Could it be re-moved?
As in, you moved them once, now move them again
Thanks for the blog, John, but unfortunately I’ve decided to give up with the Observer. I’ve also faced the request to rotate my laptop, and there seems to be no way of getting past it. And if it’s not that, there’s regularly some other difficulty, like having to delete cookies every so often. So, bye-bye Everyman and Gemelo!
Etu @2
brian-with-an-eye @ 5
Maybe try a different web browser. I have had the rotate screen message for the last two weeks using Vivaldi but Chrome seems to be OK for me currently.
Lazarus Churchyard @6. Thanks! Opera works, after a fashion.
I’m with brian-with-an-eye@5
And I think this site should stop blogging Everyman as surely fifteensquared.net is devoted to freely accessible puzzles?
As one of this blog’s supporters who buys The Observer each week so that the Everyman setter can get paid for giving us pleasure, I hope fifteensquared will continue to blog the puzzle.
@5 and @8
For 7d, I did wonder whether ‘somewhat whimsical’ was doing double duty as anagrind and definition.
I was also puzzled by Trade-in equalling Traffic.
Thanks John & Everyman
TripleJumper@8: Everyman is freely available. I’ve never been asked to pay for it, just register an email address. This has come up repeatedly so I don’t know what;s going on. Similarly I’ve never been asked to rotate my desktop screen. I use Firefox on Linux if that’s of any help, but I suspect the problem lies with the people running the website. One change over the last few months is that printing is now materially worse than it used to be. Clue numbers appear in a tiny font and there seems to be no way to avoid wasting toner.
Moving on; I also has a problem with ‘trade-in’. I toyed with the idea that TRAD was ‘old’, but them couldn’t find a vehicle called an ‘EIN’.
I find that using incognito/private mode helps
It works now. Frequently there are technical problems that get resolved during the day
Yes, patience pays. It’s a new (ish) website and transient issues are only to be expected.
And the crossword is, whatever, still free.
In the course of the day I’ve become able to print out Gemelo, which I couldn’t earlier. Evidently The Observer have been made aware of the problems with the site and — I hope — sorted them out. I never had the rotating screen problem but let’s hope that’s OK too now.
Etu@2: I’ve been in touch with Caitlin O’Kane, the Puzzles Editor of The Observer and she wonders if you can provide information which will help to get the problems sorted out: are you accessing the puzzle via a web browser or the Observer app? And what device and operating system are you using?
@John, Windows 11, Firefox browser. Yesterday morning I either got a gap where the crossword should be with the usual header and footer or, after a full minute or so, a snippet of HTML, just 5 or 6 lines followed by various graphics of bent pencils. Next time, I’ll take a screenshot. Hope this helps.
I just print it out using the tiny url. Not concerned about prizes as I am excluded from entry as overseas. But the puzzle is perfect for my level and I enjoy the challenge.
Hi
What is the url?!
I found this crossword review really enjoyable because it highlights the clever wordplay, recurring themes, and signature features that make the Everyman puzzles so appealing to cryptic crossword enthusiasts. It reminded me that solving crosswords is about more than finding the right answers—it’s about appreciating the creativity, logic, and craftsmanship that go into constructing a satisfying puzzle.
https://www.maryvv.com/