Thanks to Brummie for an entertaining puzzle, with some helpful anagrams to get things moving.
Seeing GALILEO and MONTEVERDI made me think we might be in for an Italian theme, but I can’t see anything else relevant. There’s also the French WATTEAU and MADAME, with several French elements used in the clues, but again not enough to constitute a theme. I could well have missed something, of course.
| Across | ||||||||
| 9 | DIME NOVEL | ‘Evil demon vanquished!’ makes sensational reading (4,5) (EVIL DEMON)* |
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| 10 | CAVER | Sporty type beneath the surface, but one who’ll give in? (5) Double definition |
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| 11 | OCTOBER | Court award presented in alternative month (7) C[our]T + OBE in OR |
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| 12 | GALILEO | Astronomer’s western partner, one with a sign (7) GAL (western partner, as in guys & gals) + I + LEO (astrological sign) |
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| 13 | INCH | Tongue-in-cheek, creep inside (4) Hidden in tongue-IN_CHeek |
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| 14 | MONTEVERDI | Composer of divertimento managed without it (10) DIVERTIMENTO less IT |
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| 16 | TANGENT | Treasure’s almost buried by explosive – touching (7) ANGE[L] (treasure, as an endearment) in TNT |
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| 17 | WATTEAU | Artist’s Power Unit and Evian Water (7) WATT (SI unit of power) + EAU (French “water”) |
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| 19 | EMBODIMENT | Model person appearing in NME, Time Out (10) BOD (person) in (NME TIME)* |
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| 22 | BRAT | Child has right to enter club (4) R in BAT |
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| 24 | CENTRED | Focused on getting money – shamefaced (7) CENT + RED |
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| 25 | SEDUCER | Deceiver, foreign nobleman, featured in Observer (7) DUC (French duke) in SEER |
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| 26 | ARSON | Minister without Portfolio’s capital offence (5) PARSON (minister) less the first letter (capital) of Portfolio |
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| 27 | MERCILESS | Very hard as level of gratitude abroad reduced? (9) MERCI (French “thank you”) -LESS |
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| Down | ||||||||
| 1 | A DROP IN THE OCEAN | Not much of an experience for the Artemis II crew at the end (1,4,2,3,5) Double definition, referring to the splashdown of a spacecraft |
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| 2 | EMOTICON | Smiley book’s going up I learn? (8) Reverse of TOME + I + CON (study, learn) |
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| 3 | SNUBS | Insults marrow in seconds (5) NUM (bore, marrow) in S S |
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| 4 | OVERCOAT | Company actor initially wearing plain attire (8) CO A[ctor] in OVERT (plain) |
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| 5 | BLIGHT | Black, easily portable mould (6) B + LIGHT – mould/blight as in diseases of crops |
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| 6 | ACCLIVITY | Incline to quash civil act by end of day (9) (CIVIL ACT)* + [da]Y |
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| 7 | OVULAR | Valour shown after detonation of part of a plant (6) VALOUR* |
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| 8 | ARBORICULTURIST | Tree expert’s concoction of citrus and oil-tar rub (15) (CITRUS OIL TAR RUB)* |
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| 15 | DEODORANT | It refreshes dictionary’s backing – and work by Bellow (9) Reverse of OED (Oxford English Dictionary) + DO (work) + RANT (to bellow) |
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| 17 | WINDSURF | Travel on board Chinook, say, seated on foam (8) WIND (Chinook is a wind in the Rocky Mountains) + SURF (foam) |
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| 18 | ENRICHED | Buddy possibly needs energy to be put in goal and improved (8) RICH (Buddy Rich, jazz drummer) + E in END (goal) |
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| 20 | BANISH | Elected, elevated and taken to party’s heart – then shut out (6) Reverse of IN (elected) in BASH (party) |
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| 21 | MADAME | Nice woman gets a daughter into musical? (6) A D[aughter] in MAME (Jerry Herman musical), with the familiar trick of using Nice as the French city |
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| 23 | ADMIT | Sing and entertain (5) Double definition – to sing is to admit to a crime |
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Thanks Andrew. Slight typo – SNUBS is NUB in SS.
I was impressed by the surface for ARBORICULTURIST. CAVER took me far too long. Is this the second appearance of MADAME this week? I realise I got DIME NOVEL wrong, entering ‘demi’ for the first word, getting confused with demi-monde, so a red face from me. Good to see Buddy Rich in the fodder. I agree with Andrew that this was a very inventive and enjoyable puzzle. Thanks to Brummie and Andrew.
Thanks Brummie and Andrew
Very entertaining. Favourite WINDSURF (once I remembered that Chinook was originally a wind); lots of other good ones too.
A couple I didn’t like, for a similar reason – TANGENT and EMBODIMENT both needed not very obvious synonyms for a word in the clue to be inserted. Did anyone think “treasure’s almost – that’ll be ANGE then”?
@3 muffin, no, I managed to guess TANGENT then took several seconds to work out what treasure ANGE_ was.
Didn’t know BOD, Buddy RICH (not into jazz much) or MAME, and couldn’t parse BANISH or ARSON. Otherwise, not too taxing; ADMIT my LOI and a favourite clue, along with BLIGHT. If there’s a theme, I can’t identify it. Thanks Brummie and Andrew!
I had diver for CAVER initially. It seemed to work. I hadn’t heard of MAME so look longer on that one despite spotting the Nice woman device. I’m glad I’m good at French this week.
Good puzzle. Thanks Brummie and Andrew.
I made quickish work of the northern half of this, but took a while to solve some of the later clues. LOI was WINDSURF, which was my fave in the end. I felt that ADMIT wasn’t an exact fit for either of the clued definitions – yet it still sprung to mind before I had any of the crossers. And liked DEODORANT, even though ‘bellow’ might only be a loose synonym for ‘rant’, for mine. Overall a very enjoyable finish to the week!
Martin @6 I had ‘diver’ too at first, before tackling the anagram.
I only thought of Buddy Rich after rejecting Holly, Greco and Guy. PARSON was my favourite. Muffin@3 maybe only Spurs supporters?
Liked CAVER, INCH, A DROP IN THE OCEAN, ACCLIVITY and BANISH.
INCH
Liked the unconventional construction.
A D I T OCEAN
Def 1 of Def 2 —acceptable. right?
Thanks Brummie and Andrew.
Like Layman#5 I couldn’t parse banish. Centered loi. Thanks
Very enjoyable puzzle.
Favourite: MADAME, WATTEAU, MERCILESS.
New for me: drummer Buddy RICH (for 18d).
[Buddy Rich gets a mention in this Pete Atkin/Clive James song!]
Thanks, Brummie and Andrew. I thought there might be a theme of things that happen in a DIME NOVEL: a BRAT, a SEDUCER and a MADAME commit ARSON but faced with a MERCILESS detective in a shabby OVERCOAT, they CAVE and ADMIT their crimes. Nah, probably not.
kVa@9 I had “not much of” as the definition for 1d
I had similar thoughts, b-w-a-e@13. I liked CAVER, as I used to be one – that went straight in (hello, DerekTheSheep!). Lots more to like, even though I baulk at foam=SURF – the latter can cause the former, but surely they are not equivalent. Thanks, Brummie and Andrew.
Judge@14
A D I T OCEAN
I feel that ‘not much’ is a better fit (as the blogger has underlined).
This puzzle reminded me that I need to do my Duolingo, to keep my streak going. On the easier side for the setter, 1d was a bit of a gift. MERCILESS and EMOTICON were my favourites and nice to be reminded of the drummers’ drummer.
Ta Brummie & Andrew.
Tried ennobled first at 18d, but then of course there’s no energy needed (there’s an actor Buddy Noble, not that I knew him). The c of seducer sorted it out. Fun puzzle, ta Brum and Andrew.
I’ve been underwhelmed by Brummie in the past but thoroughly enjoyed this one
Podium places for MERCILESS, EMBODIMENT and GALILEO for getting the day off to a great start with a bit of Indigo Girls
Cheers B&A
brian-with-an-eye@13 I like the way you think! That would make for an interesting noir. Last one in for me was BRAT. All the children I know are well-behaved. 🙂
Very entertaining. My favourites were ARSON for the “Minister without Portfolio” and WINDSURF for the “Travel on board” — both brilliant.
KVa @9: yes I wondered about “of” as a link word in 1d. I suspect PostMark wouldn’t like it. Could the whole clue (at a pinch) be taken as a cryptic definition?
INCH was another nice reminder that the definition doesn’t have to be at the beginning or end of the clue.
Many thanks Brummie and Andrew.
Surprised how many commenters on the Guardian site seemed to think this was tricky, as I found it all went in fairly easily, though to be fair I did get the two long ones quite quickly and a surrprising number of first guesses at the definition turned out to be on the money. I suppose you get days like that.
On the other hand, it’s good to derive an answer purely from the cryptic part, and this for me was a gratifyingly bijorate puzzle, both ACCLIVITY and OVULAR being NHOs. I await tomorrow’s Prize with unwonted and unmerited confidence.
The little ones were the toughest! Another DIVER here – it fits as well as CAVER until the top crosser doesn’t match. BRAT took a long time to appear and neither of the two synonyms for (loi) ADMIT came to mind: I needed a wordfinder for that. OVULAR and ACCLIVITY were new ( though I knew declivity).
Favourites MONTEVERDI, A DROP IN THE OCEAN, DIME NOVEL, WINDSURF (which had me thinking of helicopters, as no doubt it was meant to).
Spelt DEODORANT wrong, which explains why I couldn’t parse it 🤣.
Enjoyable puzzle, a couple of new words for me (ACCLIVITY, MAME, OVULAR) but worked them out and checked the defs. Thanks Brummie & Andrew
WINDSURF took a long while. So did ADMIT. The long solutions at 1d, 8d provided a generous way into the grid to begin with. Excellent puzzle from Brummie today, I thought. (Have also recently discovered from reading Rob Halford’s (he of the band Judas Priest) entertaining autobiography “Confess” that the Brummie and the Black Country accents are distinctly different from one another)…
[My 11 year saw this thread the other day and despite my advice to the contrary, has started saying “quibble”. I hope you’re proud of yourselves! 😂]
Pleasant solve with some Nice ideas. I particularly liked the astronomer GALILEO’s western gal, MERCILESS showing little thanks, Bellow’s DEODORANT, and to WINDSURF aboard a Chinook. I think A DROP IN THE OCEAN might be an extended definition as the Artemis II astronauts are only going in to earth orbit before splashdown.
Thanks Brummie and Andrew.
[Martin@26, wait ’til your 11 year-old spots “quiblet” 😉 ]
Goldilocks for me; ADMIT took too long. Andrew, thanks for your blog; have you omitted the usual brackets and apostrophe for the anagram fodder in 14?
Nice puzzle.
My only slight sticking point was after getting GALILEO trying to justify GAL – was it meant to be a partner (i.e.woman) in a Western movie, or how women might be referred to West of some unmentioned reference point, presumably the UK? Not sure it really matters.
Very enjoyable, not to tricky, in readiness of Paul tomorrow, maybe?
Just missed on EMOTICON having been thoroughly foxed by SMILEY, assumihg it was as in George.
ACCLIVITY was new and ADMIT took far to long.
Thanks both…
Slipped up on a couple, but fun and less punitive than a usual Friday.
Ronald @25 – by the same token, don’t ever call someone from Wolverhampton a Brummie!!
Buddy Rich raises the “what’s general knowledge“ question again. I would say he is, but then I’m cracking on a bit. I’d imagine he hasn’t been spoken of much for twenty years at least, outside specialist circles. I know he was one of the great drummers of the 20th century, many on this blog do. But is he still fair game?
Buddy Holly I imagine we’d all be happy with.
A crossword editor’s lot is not a happy one.
Some delightful and tempting misdirections in this one. Getting the two long Downs early helped a lot. Several gettable nho’s with clear clueing
My top favourite was 26a ARSON, with “Minister without Portfolio” and “capital offence” both forming compelling and misdirecting phrases. It also has an excellent surface. Great clue
Also 27 MERCILESS (funny, expected a subtraction), 1d ADITO (funny), 15d DEODORANT (referencing Canadian author Saul Bellow, neat construction), 17d WINDSURF (on an actual “board”, double bluff), 23d ADMIT (a DD that creates a plausible misdirection), and most of the others. Excellent puzzle
25a SEDUCER, my first thought was yet another EYEBALL (“Observer”), supporting Forest Fan’s conspiracy theory @51 yesterday. Not to be…
10a CAVER will please DerekTheSheep, who I think engaged in that sport beneath the surface
Well done brian-with-an-eye@13 assembling the theme. So obvious now
Thanks both and all
Good fun and not too hard. In fact the whole week has been OK for me.
Not much to say that has not already been said. Many great clues. I thought ADMIT was a bit of a stretch for sing and entertain.
Thanks B&A
Had fun with this.
Whenever I see the name “Watteau” I hear in my head the tune from “Trial by Jury,” the reminiscence of a formerly lovesick boy — “Breathing concentrated otto, An existence a la Watteau.”
I’m not as smart as those who thought of “diver” — I tried “ceder” for “one who’ll give in.” That didn’t work either.
I’ve never heard of Buddy Rich, but after guessing ENRICHMENT I googled the name to see if there was such a person.
muffin@3 I certainly didn’t. I thought something like “explosive — TNT on the outside — touching might make tangent — that leaves ANGE on the inside — oh, maybe ANGE(l)?
Chinook didn’t make me think of helicopters at all, but to remember the westerly winds off the Canadian Rockies in the frozen winters. I lived in Calgary for nine months long ago, and remember the “Chinook arch” that appears over the mountains to the west and lets you know that tomorrow will be t-shirt weather.
Thanks, Brummie and Andrew.
In 11A, I don’t see the indication for taking the middle out of COURT. What am I missing?
I struggled with EMBODIMENT and therefore didn’t get BANISH but I know who Buddy Rich is. WINDSURF took a bit of head-scratching until the lightbulb went on…aahh, chinook!!
Nyer@37 CT is a standard abbreviation for COURT, which comes up a lot in crosswords. They’re pretty much equivalent in crosswordland. File it away!
Thanks both,
Some entertaining clues. Potato blight is not a mould. How frequently are blights caused by moulds?
Thanks for the blog , very good set of neat clues , a setter I know well because of Cyclops so now 3/5 for guess the setter .
Mine again , four days in a row .
[ AlanC@17 your run has ended , a word of advice for tomorrow . Do not sit in Row Z , it can be dangerous for young children . ]
Congrats to Roz@42.
Enjoyable but seemed a little easy for a Friday, although I ADMIT that 23d took a lot longer than it should have. My thanks to B & A.
Possibly earliest ever finish except I did not get ADMIT even using a thesaurus and word finder. Looks like it caused trouble for others as well.
A rare DNF for as ADMIT defeated me. I dragged up MAME from, I think, a recent cryptic. Otherwise, WATTEAU and OVULAR were new for me, but went in by construction/deduction.
A good puzzle for Friday.
To all those who have never heard Buddy Rich, count your blessings.
[Roz @43: spookily enough, that’s exactly where we’re sitting, I wish I could post a photo to prove it. Keep up the good work on 42 😊
Zoot @47: now I’m very intrigued by that comment?]
I had not heard of Buddy Rich but at least he is more recent than Richard Rich.
Also now intrigued by Zoot@47.
Possibly not as intrigued as I am about Roz’s 42 mission.
[ AlanC @48 , you must know the song my students taught me about a former KPR player ? So watch out . ]
Apart from the rather weakly-clued TANGENT, I enjoyed this one. Thanks to blogger and setter.
AlanC @48 [ Buddy Rich is revered by many drummers for his superlative technique, but in my view technique is a means to an end, not an end in itself. I think he was unable or unwilling to subordinate that technique to the needs of the band he was playing with and accept the role of accompanist, as for example his older contemporary Jo Jones was. His playing spoils a number of recordings for me, for example those with Charlie Parker. It’s obviously a matter of taste.]
Buddy Rich also comes up in the Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage,” as a metaphor for flying off the handle–there is a famous tape of him cursing out his band after a gig. Now to not think about how old “Sabotage” is. Less GK for me than some of the more UKish references! And Watteau I know about from the Monty Python skit that has Carol Cleveland [edit: rather Katya Wyeth, apparently] sobbing, “But it’s my only line!”
Very enjoyable puzzle, with the SW taking the longest for me–is DEOHERZOG something, I wondered? Misled myself on several of the constructions like figuring “party’s heart” would be R.
Thanks Brummie and Andrew!
[matt w @53
I’ve found the Buddy Rich clips. (PG warning!) He doesn’t sound like a very nice person!]
muffin @ 54. He wasn’t. He once kicked Terry Gibbs out of his car in the desert in the middle of the night. Fortunately the band bus came along a couple of hours later and picked him up.
[Zoot @52 I entirely agree. I always found his work egocentric to the point of being unlistenable.]
[Zoot @55: thanks for your input, had no idea and has certainly taken the sheen of Spooner’s female red setter]
AlanC@57: lol
[ Zoot, you’re right, it’s a matter of taste, and if you have any, you find his playing as obnoxious as his treatment of his bands.
My biggest beef with him is that he inspired a whole generation of drummers who thought their job was to drown out everything else. I recall going to a concert to hear Renee Rosnes, and coming away wishing I had heard Renee Rosnes. (Fortunately she eventually ditched him.) ]
AlanC 57,
Thanks for that 🙂
Great stuff as usual from Brummie.
Cheers all.
Enjoyed this. Annoyed at myself for not seeing ‘bash’ as party in 20D so came here for the parsing. Learned that Chinook was a wind too, so thank you.
Hoofit, will you be at The Den today? Who knows, we may be sitting next to each other and never know!