Cyclops gives us another puzzle full of surface readings to make us laugh out loud.
I found solving this slightly tougher than average with about half cold solved and needing more than just one more pass with checking letters to fill in the gaps.
Last corner was top right where despite getting 7d REACH early on, the other clues resisted for some time. Like all clues here, when the answers are spotted you realise the clue is solid.
Last in was 8d. Now, as usual, I cannot put my finger on why this clue’s wordplay was so misleading. Nevertheless I will give it my top clue badge.
| Across | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PROVISO | Rider is strangled by paramilitary (7) IS inside (strangled by) PROVO (paramilitary) Surface reading evokes a scene from Where Eagles Dare or similar |
| 5 | OSIRIS | Eye feature going after sailor – God! (6) IRIS (Eye feature) after OS (sailor, Ordinary Seaman) This clue had me trying to think of all the usual columns that appear in Private Eye and was one of the last solved. |
| 10 | AWOL | A sexual predator, female’s gone missing (4) A WOL[f] I think “Wolf” is a misplaced simile. I suggest wolves are more interested in eating than other urges. |
| 11 | SPECULATOR | Ponderous type of crypto trader? (10) Double Definition. The North Korean hackers are not ponderous – very quick on their fingers. |
| 12 | PRINCIPLED | Nipple smeared with cider’s missing the end – honest! (10) (NIPPLE + CIDER – [th]E)* AInd: smeared. Waste of good cider! |
| 13 | HOBO | Support for chef with round bum (4) HOB (Support for chef) O (round) In my experience you don’t want to accidentally put your bum on the hob. |
| 14 | EXPANSIONISM | Pension max. is devious Trump’s global policy? (12) (PENSION MAX IS)* AInd: devious. Trump’s global policy isn’t devious. It’s clear he just wants everything named after himself. Maybe for the next couple of years Melania could engineer a secure environment where he thinks he’s getting all that, like Maria de Jesus Caetano Freire did for Antonio Salazar after Caetano took over. |
| 18 | ESTRANGEMENT | Disaffection of pissed partner, excluded from highest range, mentally (12) Hidden (HInd: from) in highEST RANGE, MENTally. “Pissed” could be intended in the British or US meaning, or both! |
| 21 | BEEF | Complaint from bishop: payment overturned (4) B[ishop] FEE< (payment, overturned) Is a fee same as a payment? Fee is what is requested. Payment is what is given. Granted, they should be equivalent amounts. |
| 23 | TERRORISTS | Freedom fighters, to some – or stupid tits holding misconception to a point (10) (TITS)* AInd: stupid, making T..IST around (holding) ERROR (misconception), then S[outh] (point) The definition of what constitutes a terrorist seems to have been expanded enormously in my lifetime. |
| 25 | ROLLING PIN | Spouse’s improvised weapon giving drunk stick? (7,3) ROLLING (drunk) PIN (stick) This kindles an image of a 1960’s Andy Capp strip. |
| 26 | ESPY | Psychic power applied to Ray’s backside spot (4) ESP (Psychic power) [ra]Y Very difficult to espy ESP. |
| 27 | DINNER | Archer’s hit after Democrat consumer event (6) INNER (Archer’s hit) after D[emocrat] Not that Archer. He would never appear at a Democrat event. (Certainly not now) |
| 28 | NEW YORK | Wonky, er, unstable location for a Trumpian penthouse (3,4) (WONKY, ER)* AInd: unstable. Surely Trumpian and unstable are synonymous. |
| Down | ||
| 2 | REWARD | Compensation when knickers cut up (6) DRAWER[s]< (knickers cut, i.e. shortened) RevInd: up. It amuses me when senior managers’ salary is called compensation, it implies they have been done some wrong. |
| 3 | VOLUNTEER | Helping hand from true love wantonly grabbing man’s rear (9) (TRUE LOVE + [ma]N)* AInd: wantonly. True love’s gotta do what true love’s gotta do! |
| 4 | SUSHI | American brought up his fancy foreign food (5) US< (American, brought up) (HIS)* AInd: fancy. I have the same reaction to American cheese. |
| 6 | SOUNDBITE | Healthy prick that’s a good length for politician on TV? (9) SOUND (Healthy) BITE (prick) I thought “bite” was very much French slang? Is that “allowed”? |
| 7 | REACH | Extent of care, roughly, taken with hard on (5) (CARE)* AInd: roughly, H[ard] Trinity Mirror thought it was a great idea to rename themselves Reach (plc) in 2018. Using a Marketing/advertising metric. Not reaching so far these days, eh readers. |
| 8 | SLOBBISH | Second fling with primate short of work is messy (8) S[econd] LOB (fling) BISH[op] (primate, shorn of OP (work)) Another bishop bashing his end off in this wordplay. |
| 9 | BERLIN | It used to be divided in December, lingerie (6) Hidden in DecemBER LINgerie “Years ago in Germany when I was a very small boy …” (as told to Frank Zappa in 1969) |
| 15 | PENITENCE | Remorse of coppers ingesting dope and ecstasy (9) PENCE (coppers) around NIT (dope) and E[cstasy] I think of dope (as idiot) as an Americanism, whereas copper for pence is very British. Got me thinking of more Zappa material now such as the Idiot Bastard Son. Did someone mention Mike P? |
| 16 | NOT LIKELY | As Labour leader is got around by Tony, perhaps? Don’t bet on it (3,6) LIKE (as) L[abour] inside (TONY)* AInd: perhaps. Distinct lack of Tonys in the Cabinet these days. Thought there are currently three Angelas. Probably an improvement (discuss) |
| 17 | ASTEROID | Not much of a heavenly body, so do it arse about? (8) (DO IT ARSE)* AInd: about. If landing on on an asteroid, probably best to back in, very slowly. |
| 19 | EUROPE | Le Pen’s way rejected, work with eastern group of nations (6) RUE< (Le Pen’s way, i.e. road in French, rejected) OP (work) E[astern] Europe is very diverse. Today I discovered yet another putative micronation in Moldova: Gagauzia |
| 20 | STUPOR | State of shock – pisspoor support with Pence gone (6) (SUP[p]ORT)* AInd: pisspoor. Not that Pence again. |
| 22 | FELON | Safe London houses – criminal (5) Hidden in SaFE LONdon HInd: houses. The trouble with safes in London is they attract felons, especially at Easter (Hatton Garden heist) |
| 24 | OUNCE | The one time in which you texted “Cat!” (5) U (you, texted) in ONCE (the one time) It’s that [crossword] cat again. |
This week I could not find my Thesaurus.
I’m gutted. Gutted I say. Absolutely gutted.
Thanks for the blog , quite tricky in parts , some deceptive wordplay and definitions . SPECULATOR has neat use of ponder-ous . Support for chef = HOB is very clever . DINNER very misleading for INNER with the fake capital at the front plus a deceptive definition .
[ My parents passed on all their vinyl albums to me including We’re Only in it For The Money , with the original “flipped” cover , I do not think there are many around . ]
This was a slow (the pint that is), one-pint solve.
I had BITE = prick in the sense of insect bite, but this was one which I pondered for some time.
I liked SLOBBISH in particular.
Thanks bm.
A bit tricky in places, but ultimately a very satisfying solve.
Like Etu & beermagnet, I was rather taken with SLOBBISH.
Many thanks Cyclops and beermagnet
Roz at #1: Thanks for drawing my attention to the “flipped” cover version. I had no idea about this and have just googled it to find how much these things are worth now! I will have to fight through a stack of boxes to get down to where my few remaining vinyl records are stored – I will probably manage that within the next 2 years – and will remember to check (a) if I still have that one and (b) what version of the cover it has. I know there was the Sgt Pepper parody picture but cannot remember if it is on the inside or outside.
Beermagnet @4 it actually folds both ways so you need to check the spine , the original has a spine on the yellow band photo side . Text on the spine gives the band name and the title and VERVE SELECT . The inside is the parody of Sgt Pepper .
I only listen to vinyl and my parents and in-laws have been very generous .
Is that the release with “What’s the ugliest part …” etc? Like beermagnet @4, I’d have to unearth boxes in the cellar…
Yes Grant and The Idiot Bastard Son which started this off .
My favourite is Bow Tie Daddy , very brief and sort of music-hall pastiche .
[Terrific satire. We had a great gonzo tv guy, aka Norman Gunston, who wove in the ABC News Fanfare (on harmonica) while jamming with Zappa in an interview. Don’t know how to do links, but it’s out there ..]