We find Hoskins in the Wednesday Independent slot this week.
It wouldn’t be a true Hoskins puzzle without reference to naughtiness, sex, drugs, alcohol and bodily functions. We have plenty of these in the clues today.
I also wonder whether Hoskins is expressing his opinion of Independent management’s decision to end the cryptic series, given some of the entries, TOERAG, SATURNINE, ODIOUS, VAPID, REPUGNANT and BLEEDERS, for example.
COPACETIC was a new word for me, possibly one I will forget very quickly.
| No | Detail |
| Across | |
| 1 | Energy-filled paintings found around 505 AD (6)
ADVERT (AD) (ART [paintings] containing [filled] E [energy) containing DV (Roman numerals for 505) A (DV) (E) RT |
| 4 | Hoskins is normal, Independent admitted … my boss? Defective! (8)
IMPAIRED (defective) I’M (I am; Hoskins [the setter is]) + (PAR [normal] containing I [independent]) + ED (the crossword editor, Hoskins’ boss) IM PA (I) R ED |
| 10 | Excellent American officer gets jerk snorting whizz (9)
COPACETIC (American informal term meaning excellent) (COP [policeman; officer] + TIC [jerk]) containing ACE (a talented person; a whizz) COP (ACE) TIC |
| 11 | Drink beer to get half out of it? Wicked! (5)
SUPER (wicked is a slang term for excellent or super) SUP (drink) + ER (beER after two of the four [half] letters, BE have been removed [out of it]) SUP ER |
| 12 | I help vacuous neo-Nazi to change ways (5)
INDIA (INDIA is the international radio communication codeword for the letter I) (AID [help] + NI [letters remaining in Neo-nazI when the central letters eonaz are removed [vacuous]) all reversed (change ways) (IN DIA)< |
| 13 | One full of gas going red when turned on by hooker (4,5)
NEON LIGHT (an electric discharge LIGHT containing NEON gas; one full of gas) NEON LIGHT (reference ‘red light districts’where prostitutes [hookers] indicate they are available to customers by displaying [turning on] a red light) I realise ‘turned on’ can also be interpreted in an additional way. NEON LIGHT |
| 14 | Earned bucks (around grand) with fewer clothes on! (7)
NAKEDER (with fewer clothes on) Anagram of (bucks) EARNED containing (aound) K (one thousand; grand is a slang term for £1000) NA (K) EDER* |
| 16 | Little piggy possibly seen with kid and swine (6)
TOERAG (despicable person; swine) TOE (piggy is a child’s term for a TOE) + RAG (banter; kid) TOE RAG |
| 18 | Where a painter might do white lines to some extent (2,1,3)
IN A WAY (to some extent) A road painter may paint some white lines IN A roadway (WAY), white lines also relate to drugs. IN A WAY |
| 20 | Union-based strike rejected by Congress and a Liberal (7)
MARITAL (relating to a marriage or union; union based) RAM (strike) reversed (rejected) + IT ([sexual] congress) + A + L (Liberal) MAR< IT A L |
| 23 | Dear old Hoskins has put on pound by end of binges (9)
EXPENSIVE (dear) EX- (former) + PEN (enclosure; pound) + S (last letter of [end of] bingeS) + I’VE (Hoskins [the setter, I] has) EX PEN S IVE |
| 25 | Zapata? A revolutionary led by original bit of thinking! (5)
TACHE (mousTACHE; a zapata is a type of flowing mousTACHE drooping down on each side of the mouth) T (first letter of [original bit of] Thinking) + A + CHE (reference CHE Guevara [1928 – 1967], Argentinian Marxist revolutionary) There was also a Mexican revolutionary Emiliano ZAPATA [1879 – 1919] T A CHE |
| 27 | What yours truly does to save a couple of bums? (5)
SEATS (a couple of bottoms [seats] SETS (what Hoskins [the setter] does to create a crossword) containing (to save) A SE (A) TS |
| 28 | Dismal piece from Nyman? Took the piss about that! (9)
SATURNINE (gloomy; dismal) (SAT [took [an exam] + URINE (the piss]) containing (about) N (first letter of [piece from] Nyman SAT UR (N) INE |
| 29 | Places one might see some sauce or hand in knickers (8)
PANTRIES (places where one might find cooking or other sauces) R (right hand) contained in (in) PANTIES (knickers) PANT (R) IES |
| 30 | Offensive old actor’s admission repelled American (6)
ODIOUS (offensive) (O [old] + I DO [an actor is a person who does something and therefore might say I DO; actor’s admission]) all reversed (repelled) + US (United States; American) (OD I O)< US |
| Down | |
| 1 | Places lots might go in suits around university (8)
AUCTIONS (lots [sets of things offered for sale] are entered for sale at AUCTIONS) ACTIONS (legal suits) containing (around) U (university) A (U) CTIONS |
| 2 | Very quick to go topless, being tasteless (5)
VAPID (insipid; tasteless) V (very) + rAPID (go quickly; quick to go) excluding the first letter (topless) R V APID |
| 3 | Dick about in Bible study? That’s not easy! (7)
RICHARD (Dick is an abbreviated form of the name Richard) C (circa; about) contained in (in) (RI [religious instruction; bible study] + HARD [that’s not easy]) RI (C) HARD |
| 5 | Butch physicist who worked on speed and bit of oxy (5)
MACHO (aggressively male; butch) MACH (reference Ernst MACH [1838 – 1916], Austrian physicist who worked on shock waves. The ratio of the speed of a flow or object to that of sound is named the MACH number in his honour. MACH 1 is the speed of sound) + O (first letter of [a bit of] Oxy) MACH O |
| 6 | Let off bangers primarily with a crack outside (7)
ABSOLVE (pardon; let off) (A + SOLVE [crack]) containing (outside) B (first letter of [primarily] Bangers) A (B) SOLVE |
| 7 | Pressure to charge at gunner ordering offensive (9)
REPUGNANT (offensive) P (pressure) contained in (to charge) an anagram of (ordering) AT GUNNER RE (P) UGNANT* |
| 8 | Some aficionado rating a Hungarian music producer (6)
DORATI (reference Antal DORATI [1906 – 1988], was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalised American citizen in 1943; Hungarian music producer) DORATI (hidden word in [some] aficionaDO RATIng) DORATI |
| 9 | Policeman seen with Shaft can be a venomous beast (8)
STINGRAY (venomous fish with a formidable barbed dorsal fin on its tail) STING (reference Gordon Sumner [born 1951], known as Sting, a leading member of the musical group Police; policeman) + RAY (shaft of light) STING RAY |
| 15 | Charles is one man to catch rare crustacean (4,5)
KING PRAWN (a crustacean) KING (reference KING Charles III) + (PAWN [chess piece; man] containing [to catch] R [rare, given as an abbreviation in Collins Dictionary]) KING P (R) AWN |
| 16 | English politician in trials creates uproars (8)
TEMPESTS (violent commotions; uproars) (E {English] + MP [Member of Parliament; politician]) contained in (in) TESTS (trials) T (E MP) ESTS |
| 17 | Bloody people can be despicable individuals (8)
BLEEDERS (people emitting blood) BLEEDERS (despicable individuals) double definition BLEEDERS |
| 19 | The Royal Family‘s flatulence painful? Take drug! (7)
WINDSOR (The House of Windsor is the current royal house of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms) WIND (flatulence) + SORe (painful) excluding (take) E (ecstasy; drug) WIND SOR |
| 21 | Weary, on being taken by revolutionary in the sack? (7)
RETIRED (gone to bed; in the sack) RE (with reference to; on) + TIRED (weary) RE TIRED |
| 22 | Dope more expensive, society found in studies (4,2)
GENS UP (studies in detail to become conversant with) S (society) contained in (found in) (GEN [information; dope] + UP [increased in price; more expensive]) GEN (S) UP |
| 24 | What might stem a leaky hooter? Timeless problem! (5)
ISSUE (a concern; a problem) tISSUE (piece of soft absorbent paper used to steam a leaky nose [hooter]) excluding (-less) T (time) ISSUE |
| 26 | Commanding Officer has trapped wind in foreign capital (5)
CAIRO (capital city of Egypt; foreign capital, [unless you are an Egyptian]) CO (Commanding Officer) containing (has trapped) AIR (wind) C (AIR) O |
Thanks both. Found this a bit trickier than normal for Hoskins. For RETIRED, I took weary as a verb TIRE surrounded by “taken by” revolutionary RED.
I originally had MUGS UP for 22 down, which works just as well.
I agree with NeilW about RETIRED.
I felt this lacked the normal Hoskins zip and the I DO part of 30a seems rather unconvincing.
I parsed RETIRED in the same way as NeilW @1.
Thanks to Hoskins and to Duncan.
Agree with the others for RETIRED and also had MUGS UP delaying completion. I’d come across COPACETIC in American novels where the meaning has always been ‘fine’ or ‘all good’, I daresay a dictionary can be found that also lists ‘excellent’ though so a minor nit pick. I see we also have 24d in another place today and isn’t NAKEDER a clumsy word!
However I always look forward to Hoskins and still a pleasure to find him any day of the week.
So thanks both.
NAKEDER is, indeed, a weird word. Surely you either are or are not naked so I don’t see how a comparative can come into it. But it’s obviously in a dictionary somewhere. As is the nho COPACETIC. I took NEON LIGHT to be a straight – well, as straight as Hoskins can be – cryptic def. No particular faves today.
Thanks both
Nothing too tricky, but needed the blog for ODIOUS… had to look up the NHO Yank excellent, which hasn’t, as yet, made an appearance in my literary, or Hollywood experience, I look forward to that day… agree with all comments on NAKEDER, and the overall sentiments, if our blogger’s comments are correct…
Thanks Hoskins and ducansheill
Goddamit, over time I’ve grown to love the Hoskins style of Seaside Postcard naughtiness, and now it’s going to be a case of ” wish you were here”.
13(ac), NEON LIGHT, is a triumph of setting, and I did actually laugh when the whole thing clicked.
I was hoping that STINGRAY, placed alongside (Troy) TEMPEST (s) was turning into a theme. May be another day.
NAKEDER, 14(ac), [upsetting adult content alert].
I frowned at this, since ” naked ” is surely an absolute state? Then I thought, if I take all my clothes off, but I keep my cap on, you’d call me naked. Or not call me, probably. If I toss my cap off, ( well, it is a Hoskins), then I must be nakeder.
Only COPACETIC seemed a cop out, but even then, I liked it.
Bob-on Hoskins, and duncan