Paul sets the midweek challenge, with a reasonably accessible puzzle, which I found quite amusing to solve, with a good variety of clue types, including two pairs of wittily ingenious constructions at 11/12 and 26/27 across. I also smiled at 17ac.
Other ticks were for 9ac NANNY GOAT, 14ac DUSSELDORF, 1dn ON SPEAKING TERMS and 18dn LOLLIPOP.
Thanks to Paul for the puzzle.
Definitions are underlined in the clues.
Across
9 Big Apple’s best ever on bread – and butter (5,4)
NANNY GOAT
NAN (bread) + NY (New York – Big Apple) + Greatest Of All TIme (best ever)
10 Possible sickener, incomplete story of environmentalism? (1,4)
E COLI
ECO LI[e] (incomplete story of environmentalism)
11 Father, forward in motion … (4,3)
POPE LEO
PELE (forward) in POO (motion)
12 … priest entering job (7)
PREVOST
REV (priest) in POST (job) – Pope Leo was born Robert Francis PREVOST
13 Deputy Viking perhaps flayed (4)
AIDE
[rAIDE[r] (Viking perhaps), ‘flayed’, i.e. with its ‘skin’ stripped
14 European city recovering from disappointment, investing not as much (10)
DUSSELDORF
A reversal (recovering) of FRO (from) + LESS (not as much) in DUD (disappointment)
16 A burden for a Titan in debt – Lord have mercy! (1,3,3)
I ASK YOU!
A SKY (a burden for a Titan) in IOU (debt) – thanks to Loiner @3
17 Describing a vessel – whimsically or not? (7)
JUGULAR
Whimsically, describing a jug, a vessel for carrying water, etc; not whimsically, describing one of the blood vessels in the neck
19 Kid’s knocked over shed one rebuilt – a wind-up for the horticulturalist? (6,4)
GARDEN HOSE
A reversal (knocked over) of RAG (kid) + an anagram (rebuilt) of SHED ONE
22 Building unit razed to the ground? (4)
FLAT
Double definition
24 After embroidering, sender wraps uniform for purchaser (3,4)
END USER
An anagram (after embroidering) of SENDER round U (uniform)
25 Pink paper is tucked inside permit, red (7)
LEFTIST
FT (Financial Times – pink paper) + IS in LET (permit)
26 I don’t want you, old bean, in fruit … (5)
MANGO
MAN, GO! (I don’t want you, old bean) …
27 … and similarly in veg? (9)
MANGETOUT
… and similarly MAN, GET OUT!
‘Old bean’ is an (old-fashioned) playful or affectionate form of address, as MAN can be
Down
1 Quite friendly person playing with mates, man paying a visit (2,8,5)
ON SPEAKING TERMS
An anagram (playing) of PERSON + MATES round (paying a visit) KING (chess man)
2 How one might make bid, terribly (2,6)
IN SPADES
Double definition
3 Revolution trammelled by democracy, clearly (5)
CYCLE
Hidden in democraCY CLEarly
4 Old drama served up with opera in state capital (8)
HONOLULU
A reversal (served up, in a down clue) of O (old) NOH (Japanese drama) + LULU (opera)
5 Small strips in small bone (6)
STAPES
S (small) + TAPES (strips)
6 Descent as intolerance of spirit reported? (9)
GENEALOGY
Sounds something like (reported) ‘genie allergy’ (intolerance of spirit) – no further comment, after yesterday’s in-depth discussion
7 Country in defeat like that, 5-0 (6)
KOSOVO
KO (knockout – defeat) + SO (like that) + V (five) O
8 LIST, say, how Trump sees Canada? (5-5,5)
FIFTY-FIRST STATE
L (fifty) + IST (first) (+ STATE (say) – thanks, Matthew Newell @6 for pointing out my omission)
15 Book in cypher so encrypted for etailer (9)
CYBERSHOP
B (book) in an anagram (encrypted) of CYPHER SO
17 Fraction outside of second, swimmer pushing hard? (8)
JOSTLING
JOT (fraction) round S (second) + LING (swimmer)
18 Something possibly sugared in water turned up, sweet (8)
LOLLIPOP
A reversal (turned up) of PILL (something possibly sugared) in POOL (water)
20 Sound clothes I had on (6)
RIDING
RING (sound) round (clothes) I’D (I had)
21 Run over manuscript for secluded groups (6)
HAREMS
HARE (run) + MS (manuscript)
23 Routinely concerned with all one’s toes? (5)
OFTEN
OF TEN (concerned with all one’s toes?) – my least favourite clue to end with: perhaps I’m missing something
Another brilliant offering from Paul with his usual mix of witty clues. Favourites were E COLI, POPE LEO, I ASK YOU, GARDEN HOSE, END USER, LEFTIST, LOLLIPOP, the two long down clues, but a special shout out for the superb duo, MANGO and MANGETOUT. I couldn’t parse DUSSELDORF, thinking it was something to do with dust off, as in recover, so thanks for that. I agree that OFTEN was a bit meh.
Ta Paul & Eileen.
Very enjoyable. MANGO and MANGETOUT made me want my breakfast. 8ac was a favourite – echoes of Qaos there. Thanks Paul and Eileen.
I think the allusion in 16a is to Atlas, the Titan holding up the sky.
Thanks Paul and Eileen
Loiner @3 – of course it is! Whatever was I thinking of? Will amend now, thanks.
I think SKY is the burden for the Titan who holds it up.
8a. Say -> State
Great crossword
Thanks Paul and Eileen
Much to enjoy here – POPE LEO being one of my highlights (despite failing to pick up that 12A was a follow-on clue). Also enjoyed LOLLIPOP (last one in for me), ON SPEAKING TERMS, HONOLULU, I ASK YOU. Took far too long to get GENEALOGY. MANGETOUT isn’t a term used in the antipodes – only knew it from crosswording.
Not sure that ‘terribly’ would’ve been my choice as a definition for IN SPADES but otherwise this was good clean fun.
Didn’t know that about Pope Leo: I was muttering about being expected to remember the French author Abbe Prevost, who I wouldn’t have known if we hadn’t studied Manon Lescaut at uni.
A loud OUCH for the ginny allergy..
The first time ever for me getting through a Paul in under 30 minutes. And loads of fun.
Learnt about Atlas holding up the sky as a kid; the olds were into Schubert who adapted a Heine poem about it. Yes the allergy to genies was a proper groaner. Fun. Ta PnE.
Not too hard to play “guess the setter” today. In addition to the highlights others have mentioned, I thought RIDING was very neat.
I saw JUGULAR as another Paul soundalike for jocular [Mad magazine used to describe itself as humour in a jugular vein] but Eileen’s version is better.
That was a challenge. Like others wasn’t convinced by 23D OFTEN, and took a long time to spot 3D CYCLE as the clue was split, at the comma, over 2 lines in the App.
[iPhone App has been updated so that you can now navigate correctly between the clues].
I know more about opera than popes, so came to the same conclusion as Gladys@8.
Paul on top form. I thought we were going to miss out on an outrageous soundalike but GENEALOGY snuck in at the end to save the day 🙂
And ellipses that actually meant something – twice! My cup runneth over
Cheers E&P