This blog is for a one-off Guardian Jumbo that appeared in a printed Puzzles supplement on Saturday 25th July. The puzzle wasn’t published online, except in the Guardian Editions App, which doesn’t seem to offer any easy way to download it other than as a screenshot. Note also that the Guardian Editions App requires a digital Guardian subscription for access.
The puzzle was set by Paul, who is, to my mind, one of the more difficult Guardian setters.
Jumbos offer great scope for longer entries, longer clues and quirky clues. We had each of EUROVISION SONG CONTEST and OLD ENOUGH TO KNOW BETTER across the entirety of their rows.. The clue for GOOF OFF had 16 words. We even had one clue in French.
Paul often offers long anagrams in this puzzle. The clue for OLD ENOUGH TO KNOW BETTER was a good example of a long anagram compiled from five distinct words plus a final letter.
I note we had DANTE and INFERNO in the grid, but I don’t think there was any other reference to the epic poem elsewhere in the clues or the entries.
The next Guardian Jumbo is likely to appear in August. There were two in August last year, one in a puzzle special built into the paper early in the month, and one on the official Bank Holiday weekend at the end of the month. The one at the beginning of August may have been the 2025 equivalent of the puzzle being blogged in this post. We will keep our eye out for Jumbos, but they don’t always appear when you expect them.
In the Puzzles supplement, the grid gave 40 down a blue background. There were several words highlighted in blue in puzzles and clues throughout the supplement. Together they formed a quotation.
| No | Detail |
| Across | |
| 1 | Ball of hydrogen and helium mainly – and lead (4)
STAR (stars are giant spheres of superheated gas, mostly composed of hydrogen and helium) STAR (leading performer; lead) double definition STAR |
| 4 | Fish sink teeth into sinker for Spooner (9)
WHITEBAIT (the fry of various species of herring, sprat, etc; fish) Reverend Spooner would pronounce WHITEBAIT as BITE (sink teeth into) + WEIGHT (a sinker is a WEIGHT for sinking anything, such as a fishing-line) WHITEBAIT |
| 9 | Flexing soft tissue in hermaphroditic fungi? (6)
BICEPS (muscle [soft tissue] that flexes the forearm) BI (bisexual; hermaphroditic) + CEPS (mushrooms; fungi) BI CEPS |
| 12 | Business – would that make me secure? (6)
MÉTIER (one’s calling or business) ME + TIER (one who ties; one who binds or makes secure) ME TIER |
| 13 | Hell, as navy on ecstasy gets into dope (7)
INFERNO (Hell) (E [ecstasy] + RN [Royal Navy]) contained in (gets into) INFO (information; dope) INF (E RN) O |
| 14 | Comment on gospeller (6)
REMARK (comment) RE (with reference to; on) + MARK (referenced the Gospel of St Mark in the New Testament of the Bible) RE MARK |
| 15 | Number against tax on currency given future plan for international competition (10,4,7)
EUROVISION SONG CONTEST (international SONG competition) EURO (a currency) + VISION (imaginative future plan) + SONG (a musical number) + CON (against) + TEST (examine; tax) EURO VISION SONG CON TEST |
| 16 | Fresh body, with feet essentially, carried out (6)
OBEYED (did what one was told; carried out) Anagram of (fresh) BODY and EE (central letters of [essentially] fEEt) OBEYED* |
| 18 | Slowly but surely, past donning smalls? … (6,2,6)
LITTLE BY LITTLE (gradually, lowly but surely) BY (past) contained in (donning) (LITTLE [small] + LITTLE [small]- giving smalls) LITTLE BY LITTLE |
| 21 | … ditto, and quickly? (6,2,6)
MINUTE BY MINUTE (descriptive of something happening or developing quickly with updates every MINUTE) BY (past) contained in (donning) (MINUTE [miniature; small] + MINUTE [miniature; small] – giving smalls) MINUTE BY MINUTE – I have interpreted ‘ditto’ as duplicating the phrase ‘donning smalls’ |
| 24 | Minister asking to deal with that meat or that illness? (6)
CURATE (clergyman; minister) CURATE (sounds like [asking] CURE IT [an instruction to deal with meat [CURE {preserve} that meat {IT}] or deal with an illness [CURE IT]) CURATE |
| 25 | Being without attachment, make notes on return copy (9)
SINGLEDOM (the state of being alone; being without attachment) SING (make musical notes) + MODEL (copy) reversed (on return) SING LEDOM< |
| 27 | When spilt, tea missed coffee cup (9)
DEMITASSE (a small cup of or for coffee) Anagram of (when split) TEA MISSED DEMITASSE* |
| 29 | Wader heading for water, tail recalled on that (6)
GODWIT (wading bird of the plover family) (W [first letter of [heading for] Water + DOG [to track; to tail]) all reversed (recalled) + IT (that) (GOD W)< IT |
| 31 | Only a soft touch then? Don’t worry about it (2,4,8)
NO HARD FEELINGS (no offence taken; no animosity; don’t worry about it) If one receives only a soft touch from someone else, there are NO FEELINGS of HARDness on the skin. NO HARD FEELINGS |
| 33 | Get ready to go and rule (3,2,3,6)
SIT ON THE THRONE (prepare to urinate or defecate; get ready to go, where THRONE is an informal term for a lavatory) SIT ON THE THRONE (be the monarch and rule) double definition, one cryptic SIT ON THE THRONE |
| 36 | Pakistani city I see bound by traditions (6)
LAHORE (City in Pakistan) AH! (I see) contained in (bound by) LORE (learning of a traditional out-of-the-way miscellaneous kind) L (AH) ORE |
| 37 | An adult shamefully looked when one got butt whipped, rear in the air (3,6,2,4,6)
OLD ENOUGH TO KNOW BETTER (descriptive of an adult who is of an age [OLD ENOUGH) where he/she should KNOW BETTER than TO do the foolish thing they have just done) Anagram of (whipped) LOOKED WHEN ONE GOT BUTT + R (last letter of [rear in the]) aiR OLD ENOUGH TO KNOW BETTE* R |
| 41 | Appear, say, on setter having retired (6)
EMERGE (appear) (E.G. [for example, say] + RE (with reference to; on] + ME [the setter]) all reversed (having retired) (EM ER GE)< |
| 42 | Foreign Office repeatedly having been plunged into confusion, looking back, refuse to work for an American (4,3)
GOOF OFF (American term for avoiding work or duties; refuse to work for an American) ([FO {Foreign Office} + FO {Foreign Office} – giving repeatedly] contained in [having been plunged into] FOG [confusion]) all reversed (looking back) (GO (OF OF) F)< |
| 43 | Blossom in flower cut by this is cut! (6)
THRIVE (develop vigorously; blossom) THis excluding (cut) IS + RIVEr excluding the final letter (cut) R TH RIVE |
| 44 | Adieu château aux frontières, as-tu dit? (3,3)
The clue translates from French to Farewell, border castle, you said SEE YOU (Adieu; farewell) SEE (C [first letter of [border of] Castle, or [frontière of] Château]) + YOU (YOU said) SEE YOU |
| 45 | Handler of money less suspicious after adjustment of rate (9)
TREASURER (a person who is in charge of collected funds; handler of money) Anagram of (adjustment) RATE + SURER (more confident; less suspicious) TREA* + SURER |
| 46 | Grub scoffed by few, or many (4)
WORM (a grub) WORM (hidden word in [scoffed by] feW OR Many) WORM |
| Down | |
| 2 | Browse stories about English Jack, and sailors in unseaworthy ship? (3,8)
THE JUMBLIES (reference the poem, THE JUMBLIES by Edward Lear [1812 – 188], English author and poet who wrote that THE JUMBLIES went to sea in a sieve [an unseaworthy ship]) (THUMB [browse a book] + LIES [stories]) containing (about) (E [English] + J [Jack]) TH (E J) UMB LIES |
| 3 | Necessary hearing derisive denial? (5)
RHINO (money; necessary, slang terms for money) RHI (sounds like [hearing] WRY [bitter or ironic; derisive]) + NO (a denial) RHI NO |
| 4 | Scrap served up, one slicing through cherry ate (7)
WORRIED (ate is an informal term for WORRIED) ROW (fight; scrap) reversed (served up; down entry) + (I [Roman numeral for one] contained in [slicing through] RED [cherry]) WOR< R (I) ED |
| 5 | One fool, one partner at first (9)
INITIALLY (at first) I (Roman numeral for one) + NIT (fool) + I (Roman numeral for one) + ALLY (partner) I NIT I ALLY |
| 6 | Dainty bit of Spanish cod? (5)
ELFIN (dainty) EL (Spanish word for ‘the’) + FIN (bit of a fish), together describing a bit of Spanish fish EL FIN |
| 7 | Fan finds tune funky (3-4)
AIR-COOL (fan) AIR (a simple tune) + COOL (swish and exciting; cool) AIR COOL |
| 8 | Skimpy underwear chafing ultimately after second half of long race (5)
THONG (skimpy underwear) maraTHON (long race) taking just the second four of the eight (second half) letters + G (last letter of [ultimately] chafinG) THON G |
| 9 | Winger presently on left with hurdle to overcome? (4,3)
BARN OWL (bird; creature with wings; winger) BAR (obstruction; hurdle) + NOW (presently) + L (left) BAR N OW L |
| 10 | Accept total specifications, sense hard (4,2,5,4)
COME TO TERMS WITH (accept) COME TO (amount to; total) + TERMS (specifications) + WIT (sense) + H (hard, when describing pencil lead) COME TO TERMS WIT H |
| 11 | Cheese left, acknowledge unfinished (4,5)
PORT SALUT (a mild cheese orig made at the Trappist monastery Le du Salut in Bayonne, France) PORT (left) + SALUTe (acknowledge) excluding the final letter (unfinished) E PORT SALUT |
| 17 | Foul mood comes with any US war, yeh, yeh? (3,3,5,4)
YOU AND WHOSE ARMY (an expression of disbelief in someone’s ability to carry out a threat: YEH is a word that also expresses sarcastic disagreement with or disbelief at what someone has said) Anagram of (foul) MOOD and (comes with) ANY US WAR YEH YOU AND WHOSE ARMY* |
| 19 | Time on run for all to see, 1.6 kph laps for victory (7)
TRIUMPH (victory) T (time) + R (run) + ([I {roman numeral for one} + MPH {miles per hour}] containing [laps] U [film classification indicating that a film is suitable for viewing by people of all ages]) – note 1.6 kilometres per hour (kph) is approximately 1 mile per hour (mph) T R I (U) MPH |
| 20 | Fish, ray about right (5)
BREAM (a fish) BEAM (ray) containing (about) R (right) B (R) EAM |
| 22 | US city in match turned up for Red Sea city (5)
EILAT (Israeli city on the Red Sea) LA (Los Angeles [US city]) contained in (in) TIE (a sporting match) reversed (turned up; down entry) EI (LA) T< |
| 23 | Suffer when treasury’s capital lost thus (7)
UNDERGO (experience; suffer) fUND (treasury) excluding the first letter (capital lost) F + ERGO (consequently; thus) UND ERGO |
| 24 | Lovely and quaint on the borders, did you say? (5)
CUTIE (cute; lovely) CU (sounds like [did you say] Q [one of the outer letters [border] of Quaint) + TIE (as pronounced in CUTIE, sounds like [did you say] T [the other outer letter [border] of quainT) CU TIE |
| 26 | At first down, something upped for poet (5)
DANTE (reference the Italian poet DANTE Alighieri [1265 – 1321], Italian poet) D (initial letter of [at first] Down) + ANTE (reference the phrase ‘up the ANTE‘, so something upped) D ANTE |
| 28 | Ultimately, worker below average bee that’s lazy for a busy bee! (5,6)
EAGER BEAVER Anagram of (lazy) AVERAGE BEE + R (last letter of [ultimately] workeR) – as this is a down entry, the final letter R is placed below the letters EAGER BEAVE in the grid EAGER BEAVE* R |
| 30 | Old standard bullets almost loaded into old weapon (9)
ORIFLAMME (a small banner of red silk split into several points, carried on a gilt staff, the ancient royal standard of France. AMMo (ammunition; bullets) excluding the final letter (almost) O, contained in (loaded into) (O [old] + RIFLE [weapon]) O RIFL (AMM) E |
| 32 | Tempting proposal of splitting fine spliff (4,5)
FREE OFFER (tempting proposal) OF contained in (splitting) (F [fine] + REEFER [cigarette containing marijuana, also known as a spliff) F REE (OF) FER |
| 34 | Advocate of civil disobedience stirring up our hate (7)
THOREAU (reference Henry THOREAU [1817 – 1862], American essayist who wrote the essay “Civil Disobedience”, an argument in favour of citizen disobedience against an unjust state; advocate of civil disobedience) Anagram of (stirring up) OUR HATE THOREAU* |
| 35 | Sink in house under tap (3,4)
HIT HOME (have the intended, especially unsettling or painful, effect on their audience; sink in) HIT (tap) + HOME (house) – as this is a down entry, the letters HOME are positioned under the letters HIT in the grid HIT HOME |
| 36 | Chuck back endless seafood (7)
LOBSTER (seafood) LOB (throw up high chuck) + STERn (back [of a ship]) excluding the final letter (endless) N LOB STER |
| 38 | Trespassing, I go there stealing sheep, say (5)
GIGOT (a leg of mutton or lamb; sheep) GIGOT (hidden word in [stealing] trespassinG I GO There) GIGOT |
| 39 | American artist, one’s cocked up (5)
KOONS (reference Jeff KOONS [born 1955], American artist known for his work dealing with popular culture) SNOOK (reference the phrase ‘cock a SNOOK [show contempt; one’s cocked) reversed (up; down entry) KOONS< |
| 40 | Reportedly overcast? (5)
THREW (cast) THREW (sounds like [reportedly] THROUGH [over]) THREW |
Is this puzzle available online anywhere?
SEE YOU
I think it’s borders of castle (chateau) i.e. C U.
C U…did you say/you said=SEE YOU
I know from experience that writing up a Jumbo blog is like working on five regular blogs at once, so, well done. Fun puzzle, and thanks to my fellow bloggers.