A mostly straightforward puzzle from Gozo today.
I don’t dare publish a blog for a Gozo puzzle without scanning for themes or ninas, but try as I might, I cannot see anything extra in this one.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | TAKE COVER |
Arrange insurance and head for shelter (4,5)
|
| TAKE (arrange) + COVER (insurance) | ||
| 6 | SEÑOR |
European’s address from individuals backing Republican (5)
|
| ONES (individuals) reversed (backing) + R (Republican) | ||
| 9 | OEDIPUS |
Dictionary (American) includes one page on tragic figure (7)
|
| {OED (dictionary) + US (American)} around (includes) {I (one) + P (page)} | ||
| 10 | BULLION |
Gold signs overlap (7)
|
| BULL overlapping with (overlap) LION ([astrological] signs, i.e., Taurus and Leo) | ||
| 11 | STAIR |
Steps look sound (5)
|
| Homophone of (sound) STARE (look) | ||
| 12 | ON PURPOSE |
Beating snooper up intentionally (2,7)
|
| Anagram of (beating) SNOOPER UP | ||
| 14 | WAS |
Had been noticed, on return (3)
|
| SAW (noticed) reversed (on return) | ||
| 15 | GRAPEFRUITS |
Prague first ordered citrus foods (11)
|
| Anagram of (ordered) PRAGUE FIRST | ||
| 17 | SANCTUARIES |
Strange Tuscan sign for churches? (11)
|
| Anagram of (strange) TUSCAN + ARIES (sign) | ||
| 19 | KIP |
Sleep in khaki pyjamas (3)
|
| Hidden in (in) [KHA]KI P[YJAMAS] | ||
| 20 | ENCHILADA |
Woman cuddling baby, eating a hot snack (9)
|
| ENA (woman) around (cuddling) {CHILD (baby) around (eating) A} | ||
| 22 | KNOLL |
Hillock seen returning from hill on Kerrera (5)
|
| Hidden in (seen . . . from) [HI]LL ON K[ERRERA] reversed (returning) | ||
| 24 | FELLERS |
Those lumberjack chaps! (7)
|
| Cryptic/double definition | ||
| 26 | ELEGANT |
Graceful and neat, oddly concealing limb (7)
|
| Anagram of (oddly) NEAT around (concealing) LEG (limb) | ||
| 27 | REEVE |
Bird will change course back by far end of lake (5)
|
| VEER (change course) reversed (back) + last letter of (far end of) [LAK]E | ||
| 28 | MOTHBALLS |
Postpones work on the two arcades, according to Spooner (9)
|
| Spoonerism of BOTH MALLS (the two arcades). I don’t think this quite works–graphically, yes, but phonetically, no. | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 1 | TOOLS |
Sadly lost ring in workman’s gear (5)
|
| Anagram of (sadly) {LOST + O (ring)} | ||
| 2 | KIDNAPS |
Captures youngster and dozes (7)
|
| KID (youngster) + NAPS (dozes) | ||
| 3 | COPYRIGHT |
Protection from officer by end of day — and no mistake (9)
|
| COP (officer) + last letter of (end of) [DA]Y + RIGHT (no mistake) | ||
| 4 | VASCO DA GAMA |
Portuguese explorer at first very assured skinning fish and lizard (5,2,4)
|
| First letters of (at first) {V[ERY] + A[SSURED] + S[KINNING]} + COD (fish) + AGAMA (lizard) | ||
| 5 | RIB |
Found in cage in tribunal (3)
|
| Hidden in (in) [T]RIB[UNAL] | ||
| 6 | SOLAR |
Notes first of rays coming from the sun (5)
|
| {SO + LA} (notes) + first [letter] of R[AYS] | ||
| 7 | NAIROBI |
Rain spoilt outside broadcast, one at African capital (7)
|
| Anagram of (spoilt) RAIN + OB (outside broadcast) + I (one) | ||
| 8 | RUNNERS-UP |
They haven’t won, but have a drink with athlete (7-2)
|
| RUNNER (athlete) + SUP (drink) | ||
| 13 | PREDICAMENT |
In trouble, prophesy about church’s response (11)
|
| PREDICT (prophesy) around (about) AMEN (church’s response) | ||
| 14 | WISHED FOR |
Who is Fred? Badly desired! (6,3)
|
| Anagram of (badly) WHO IS FRED | ||
| 16 | ROSA KLEBB |
Ian Fleming character reviewed Blake Bros. (4,5)
|
| Anagram of (reviewed) BLAKE BROS., a villain in From Russia With Love | ||
| 18 | NACELLE |
Streamlined housing getting energy from sodium battery first (7)
|
| NA (sodium) + CELL (battery) + E (energy), with “first” indicating the order of the wordplay | ||
| 19 | KNOW-ALL |
Cocky type, 22, was almost captured (4-3)
|
| KNOLL ([solution to] 22[A]) around (captured) WA[S] minus last letter (almost) | ||
| 21 | IRENE |
Peaceful girl, alluring one, topless, at end of promenade (5)
|
| [S]IREN (alluring one) minus first letter (topless) + last letter of (end of) [PROMENAD]E | ||
| 23 | LOTUS |
Sports car for such idle eaters (5)
|
| Double definition, the latter referring to the Odyssey | ||
| 25 | SUM |
I am Caesar’s dim follower. Problem? (3)
|
| Triple definition |
Yes, Cineraria, I spent a few minutes looking at the grid. I saw ‘take cover, señor’, on the top row and it made me think of 70s sitcoms but nothing jumped out, really.
I was happy, though, to see a Gozo puzzle and my favourites were BULLION, GRAPEFRUITS, MOTHBALLS (though, as Cineraria says, it only really works when writen) and, of course, ROSA KLEBB.
Short of duration but sweet as always.
Thanks Gozo and Cineraria.
Enjoyable, and nothing too taxing. I’d not heard of an igama, nor REEVE, nor NACELLE. Couldn’t parse SUM, but now see it’s quite clever.
I had a much easier and better time with today’s puzzle and enjoyed it. I best liked KIP, BULLION, WISHED FOR, SANCTUARIES, and PREDICAMENT. I almost also ticked the Spoonerism.
And, for sentimental reasons, like Diane I gave three ticks to ROSA KLEBB
I could not parse SOLAR. NAVELLE was a new one on me. ENA for woman too. And I thought the god of peace is Eirene in English – no?
Thanks Gozo and Cineraria
Fortunately, NACELLE appeared quite recently and so I was only briefly misled by ‘housing’ this time.
As for Ena, I will forever associate that name with the Ms Sharples of Coronation Street though I was but a child.
A few dnks — the bird (thought a reeve was like a magistrate), the streamlined housing, and the lizard bit of Vasco da Gama. [A lovely Oz cartoonist called Leunig had a restless spiritual voyager called Vasco Pajama]. Enjoyable puzzle, ta Gozo and Cineraria.
Rosa Klebb is among my favourite setters of FT crossies. Colin was also a fan I think.
Comment #7
Having recently reread the Bond novels, ROSA KLEBB was timely. I only knew NACELLE from previous crosswords, and the Spoonerism was last to drop as usual (if it drops at all).
SUM was my favourite with it’s generous double wordplay. Maybe Spooner was also noted for his affected pronunciation?
Thanks both,
I have been to Kerrera which is a pleasant island near Oban.
Very enjoyable.
If you are a Trekkie then you will know that “A nacelle was an outboard housing structure that contained warp coils and other components that together made a starship’s warp engine. In contrast Impulse nacelles of a sublight shuttlecraft housed the ship’s impulse drive engines.”.
Thanks @GOZO
Thanks both,
I have been to Kerrera which is a pleasant island across from Oban.
Sorry about the duplication.
Thanks Gozo. I searched in vain for a Nina, theme, or other trickery but I came up with nothing. Still, who couldn’t like a puzzle with one of the solutions being ROSA KLEBB! Other favourites included BULLION, STAIR, WAS, SOLAR, and RUNNERS UP. I failed with NACELLE, a new word for me. Thanks Cineraria for the blog.
Thanks for the blog , good set of clues , IRENE seems to know how to enjoy herself . NACELLE is popular in Star Trek , the two bits sticking out at the back .
My days as a lad building ‘Airfix’ models stood me in good stead today. Nacelle was no problem. (Unlike ‘sum’ – i am still none the wiser).
Expire@16 it is a triple definition .
SUM in Latin means I am – cogito ergo sum .
Dim follower gives dim SUM , very tasty .
Problem is a maths SUM
Expire@16: The three definitions are:
1. SUM in Latin (thus “Caesar’s) = I am.
2. Dim SUM is a style of Chinese food.
3. SUM is a math “problem.”
Very enjoyable. The top half flew in; slightly longer in the bottom, where I was held up by Irene and Nacelle
Bullion needed explaining.
Thanks all.
Not only have we had a NACELLE recently, Gozo himself dished one up in July. I’m with Expire @16 in knowing the word from an Airfix childhood.
I found this very straightforward but I enjoyed it. I looked up REEVE in the dictionary, just for extra detail.
Thanks Gozo and Cineraria.
Very enjoyable – good fun.
I also failed on NACELLE. 4D was straightforward but hadn’t heard of an AGAMA.
Appreciated the parsing for 25D – a lot of clue for three letters!
Faves were FELLERS, KIDNAPS and…the Spoonerism.
Many thanks to Gozo and Cineraria.
Thanks Gozo and Cineraria
21dn replying to Martyn@3: Irene as an English name is derived from the Greek word (usually transliterated eirene) meaning “peace”, hence the definition “peaceful girl”. Chambers 2016 p 1883 (in the section “Some first names”) allows it three different pronunciations.
25dn: I agree with the explanations given by Roz@17 and Cineraria@18 for the three parts of this clue. Personally I would call the middle one a cryptic indication rather than a definition, as it does not really explain any meaning of the word SUM, but that is a matter of very little importance.
My COD NAIROBI of course, where I am now