Methuselah has provided today’s teaser. It was back in 2024 that it last fell to me to blog a puzzle by this setter.
I found this to be a fairly challenging puzzle that was full of flair on Methuselah’s part and which offered me plenty of entertainment along the way.
Although I managed to tease out everything else, perhaps with the exception of 7, Methuselah had the last laugh, as I needed to search Chambers to find the answer to the cryptic definition at 13.
My favourite clues today were 3, for originality; 14, for surface reading, maintaining culinary references across definition and wordplay alike; 23D, for sheer flair; and, above all, the cryptic definition at 26.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are underlined; a break in underlining separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| ACROSS
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||
| 1 | LADDISH |
Macho director hosted by Hollywood Bowl? (7)
|
| D (=director) in [LA (=Hollywood, i.e. Los Angeles) + DISH (=bowl) | ||
| 5 | MEDUSAS |
Our people getting into sea like jellyfish (7)
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| US (=our people) in [MED (=sea, i.e. Mediterranean) + AS (=like)] | ||
| 9 | VERTIGINOUS |
Overusing it could make you dizzy (11)
|
| *(OVERUSING IT); “could make you” is anagram indicator | ||
| 10 | ORC |
Tolkien creature has ring before Return of the King (3)
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| O (=ring, pictorially) + RC (CR=king, i.e. Charles Rex; “return of” indicates reversal); an orc is an ogre in work by J R R Tolkien | ||
| 11 | SCUM |
Character opening seedy clubs let me see dirty film (4)
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| S<eedy> (“character opening” means first letter only) + C (=clubs, in cards) + UM (=let me see, i.e. while thinking of what to say next); scum is a dirty film on the surface of a liquid | ||
| 12 | CHAMELEON |
Blender juiced each lemon (9)
|
| *(CHAMELEON); “juiced”, i.e. drunk, is anagram indicator; cryptically, the chameleon could be described as a “blender” since it blends into its surroundings | ||
| 13 | COWPAT |
Flat deposit previously held in stock (6)
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| Cryptic definition: the “flat deposit” of the definition refers to excrement deposited by cattle, i.e. (live)stock | ||
| 15 | EN SUITE |
European on vacation mentioned charming private facilities (2,5)
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| E<uropea>N (“on vacation”, i.e. emptied, means middle letters are dropped) + homophone (“mentioned”) of “sweet (=charming)” | ||
| 18 | ANYWAYS |
Crudely yawn and say “where was I?” (7)
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| *(YAWN + SAY); “crudely” is anagram indicator; “anyways” is used as a rhetorical device used by a speaker who has lost their train of thought to get back on track | ||
| 20 | SILVER |
A little utensil Verdi used as top conductor (6)
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| Hidden (“a little”) in “utenSIL VERdi”; the “conductor” of the definition refers to a substance that conducts heat | ||
| 21 | BREAK A LEG |
Cast member after being told this? (5,1,3)
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| Cryptically, if a cast member, i.e. actor, is told to break a leg and then does, then his member (=leg) will need a cast (=to be put in plaster)! | ||
| 23 | TOFU |
Vegan food fight’s ending with saucer being thrown back (4)
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| <figh>T (“ending” means last letter only) + OFU (UFO=(flying) saucer, i.e. unidentified flying object; “being thrown back” indicates reversal) | ||
| 25 | RIA |
One described by “river area” (3)
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| I (=one) in [R (=river) + A (=area)]; cryptic definition, since a ria is a normal drowned valley | ||
| 26 | TENNIS ELBOW |
Joint liability established by court appearances? (6,5)
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| Cryptic definition: the “joint” of the definition is the “elbow” and the “court” is a “tennis court”! | ||
| 27 | ENLARGE |
Increase in volume startled Al Green (7)
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| *(AL GREEN); “startled” is anagram indicator | ||
| 28 | GOSPELS |
John and the other three ultimately planning to dress up like colourful soldiers (7)
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| <plannin>G <t>O <dres>S <u>P <lik>E <colourfu>L <soldier>S; “ultimately” means last letters only; the reference is to the four Gospels in the New Testament | ||
| DOWN
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| 1 | LIVE |
Wicked’s Defying Gravity performed on stage (4)
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| EVIL (=wicked); “defying gravity”, i.e. standing on its head, indicates vertical reversal | ||
| 2 | DIRECTORY |
Awful politician takes cocaine in a bunch of addresses (9)
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| C (=cocaine) in [DIRE (=awful) + TORY (=politician)] | ||
| 3 | IDIOM |
Phrase Methuselah had (flipping pompous way of referring to himself) (5)
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| I’D (=Methuselah had, i.e. the setter) + IOM (MOI=pompous way of referring to himself; “flipping” indicates reversal) | ||
| 4 | HAIRCUT |
A B-52 possibly Spoonerised Love Shack? (7)
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| Spoonerism (“Spoonerised”) of “care (=love) hut (=shack, cabin)”; a B-52 is another name for the beehive hairstyle popular in the 1960s | ||
| 5 | MOORAGE |
Where to stop vessel twisting space and time (7)
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| MOOR (ROOM=space; “twisting” indicates reversal) + AGE (=time, era) | ||
| 6 | DISPERSAL |
Aldi’s reps freshened up spread (9)
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| *(ALDI’S REPS); “freshened up” is anagram indicator | ||
| 7 | STOLE |
Didn’t take kindly to being hugged by solver, oddly (5)
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| TO in S<o>L<v>E<r> (“oddly” means odd letters only are used); cryptically, someone stole something if they didn’t take (it) kindly, i.e. with permission of the owner! | ||
| 8 | SECONDED |
Supported Davey rather than Miliband? (8)
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| Cryptically, as both politicians are called Ed, Davey could be described as the second Ed! | ||
| 14 | PRANKSTER |
Lover of capers quietly orders starters for the entire restaurant (9)
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| P (=quietly, i.e. piano, in music) + RANKS (=orders, places in line) + T<he> E<ntire> R<estaurant> (“starters for” means first letters only) | ||
| 16 | INEFFABLE |
Good story moving leader more than words can say (9)
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| FINE (=good) + FABLE (=story); “moving leader” means first letter moved to later in the word | ||
| 17 | JAMBOREE |
Big gathering spread bad smell about base (8)
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| JAM (=(a) spread, for sandwiches) + BO (=bad smell, i.e. body odour) + RE (=about, regarding) + E (=base, in maths) | ||
| 19 | SILENCE |
Still seeing that heartless lie being swallowed (7)
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| L<i>E (“heartless” means middle letter is dropped) in SINCE (=seeing that); as a noun, still is peace and quiet, hence “silence” | ||
| 20 | SIGNING |
New team member communicating digitally (7)
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| A signing is e.g. a footballer who has just signed a contract with a new club; someone communicating “digitally”, i.e. with fingers/hands could be signing, i.e. using sign language | ||
| 22 |
Parliament embraces revolutionary way to contact MP? (5)
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| Reversed (“revolutionary”) and hidden (“embraces”) in “parLIAMEnt” | ||
| 23 | TRESS |
Brief PM with wrong letter from EU? That’s a bit of a shock (5)
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| TRUSS (=brief PM, i.e. Conservative PM Liz Truss, who was in office for just 49 days); “with wrong letter from E/U” means that letter “u” is replaced by “e”; a tress is “a bit of a shock” of hair! | ||
| 24 | OWLS |
Those turning heads with hot walks now and then (4)
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| <h>O<t> W<a>L<k>S; “now and then” means alternate letters only; owls can turn their hands through 270 degrees |
I had to use a word fit to get COWPAT.
Some very clever surfaces: Return of the King in ORC; GOSPELS with its reference to the Beatles in Sergeant Pepper; HAIRCUT with the reference to Love Shack by the B-52’s (who took their name from the hairstyle not the bomber); and, I assume, Defying Gravity is a song from Wicked (didn’t check).
After the relatively straight-forward offering from Eccles yesterday, we have a slightly tougher puzzle from Methuselah, which was a steadier solve for me but I got there in the end
My fave clues have to be 28 GOSPELS for the surface alluding to The Beatles/Sgt Pepper and 26 TENNIS ELBOW for the clever cryptic definition
I’d not heard of the B-52 haircut but I’ve obviously heard of the beehive which is its more common name – interesting how B-52 can be a haircut, a plane, a band and a cocktail (the latter being a shot consisting of coffee liqueur, Irish cream and Grand Marnier – I don’t drink but even if I did I think I’d avoid that)
Anyway, thanks RR and Methuselah
Absolutely top notch puzzle from Methuselah (who is Chameleon, occasionally, over on MyCrossword). As Hovis says, some super surfaces and I loved the cryptic twists in eg COWPAT, BREAK A LEG, TENNIS ELBOW and RIA. Interesting to learn that OWLS can turn their hands through 270 degrees 😉
Thanks both
HAIRCUT was very satisfying and nice to see OWLS who are not Members of Parliament.