Moo has an effortless style that makes these puzzles a pleasure to write up.
I was about to describe this solve as “smooth sailing,” but I found the solutions gradually getting harder as I worked my way through.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | TRESPASS |
Amorous advance on Nancy’s very wrong (8)
|
| TRÈS (very, of Nancy, France, i.e., in French) + PASS (amorous advance) | ||
| 6 | STASIS |
Sitting back in MI6? Things here just the same (6)
|
| SAT (sitting) reversed (back) and inside (in) SIS (MI6) | ||
| 9 | UNSEAT |
Chuck out Austen novel (6)
|
| Anagram of (novel) AUSTEN | ||
| 10 | ANECDOTE |
Amusing tale one acted out (8)
|
| Anagram of (out) ONE ACTED | ||
| 11 | MEET |
Get together with Moo, an otherworldly figure (4)
|
| ME (Moo) + ET (an otherwordly figure) | ||
| 12 | MEDITATION |
Thought and time going into peacemaking attempt? (10)
|
| T (time) inside (going into) MEDIATION (peacemaking attempt) | ||
| 14 | EDUCATOR |
Trainer of English soldiers concealing old coin (8)
|
| {E (English) + OR (soldiers)} around (concealing) DUCAT (old coin) | ||
| 16 | OMEN |
Sign captain’s on way back (4)
|
| NEMO (captain) reversed (on way back) | ||
| 18 | EL AL |
Articles in Libération about Middle Eastern carrier (2,2)
|
| {LE + LA} (articles in Libération, i.e., in French) all reversed (about) | ||
| 19 | ELONGATE |
Draw out Musk scandal? (8)
|
| Double/cryptic definition | ||
| 21 | OVERWEIGHT |
Fat old vicar returned with cardinal (10)
|
| O (old) + REV. (vicar) reversed (returned) + W (with) + EIGHT (cardinal [number]) | ||
| 22 | TO-DO |
Half of Tory party makes a fuss (2-2)
|
| [First] half of TO[RY] + DO (party) | ||
| 24 | FRASCATI |
White Fiat car’s broken down (8)
|
| Anagram of (broken down) FIAT CAR’S, referring to the white wine | ||
| 26 | EXEUNT |
They go out theatrically (6)
|
| Cryptic definition. This is a straight definition that is susceptible to a cryptic reading. | ||
| 27 | ADHERE |
Mad heretic carrying stick (6)
|
| Hidden in (carrying) [M]AD HERE[TIC] | ||
| 28 | HARASSED |
Under pressure, ran to grab dope (8)
|
| HARED (ran) around (to grab) ASS (dope) | ||
| DOWN | ||
| 2 | RINSE |
Get up around noon and wash (5)
|
| RISE (get up) around N (noon) | ||
| 3 | SPECTACULAR |
Magnificent carpet Lucas designed (11)
|
| Anagram of (designed) CARPET LUCAS | ||
| 4 | AUTOMATE |
China supporting vehicle manufacture using robotics (8)
|
| AUTO (vehicle) + MATE (China) | ||
| 5 | STANDARD ENGLISH |
Flag The King’s Speech as model of its kind? (8,7)
|
| STANDARD (flag) + ENGLISH (the king’s speech, i.e., the language spoken by the king), being “the form of English . . . used . . . by the majority of educated English-speakers,” according to Chambers | ||
| 6 | SIESTA |
Some Aussies taking a nap (6)
|
| Hidden in (some) [AUS]SIES TA[KING] | ||
| 7 | ADD |
Cockney’s deceived count (3)
|
| Unaspirated (Cockney’s) homophone of ‘AD (deceived) | ||
| 8 | INTROVERT |
Shy person’s opening mostly very tense (9)
|
| INTRO (opening) + VER[Y] minus last letter (mostly) + T (tense) | ||
| 13 | THOUGHTLESS |
What Socrates maybe did in his declining years? It’s inconsiderate (11)
|
| Cryptically THOUGHT LESS (What Socrates maybe did in his declining years?) | ||
| 15 | DELIVERED |
Rescued, as Hannibal Lecter victim might have been? (9)
|
| Cryptically DE-LIVERED (as Hannibal Lecter victim might have been), referring to the cannibalistic serial killer character | ||
| 17 | FOOTWEAR |
A wet roof, slippery in wellies? (8)
|
| Anagram of (slippery) A WET ROOF | ||
| 20 | FEMALE |
One who’s unlike Iron Man? (6)
|
| &lit and FE (iron) + MALE (man) | ||
| 23 | DANTE |
Poet departs on steamer, heading north (5)
|
| D (departs) + [Mount] ETNA (steamer) inverted (heading north) | ||
| 25 | SUE |
Short fat girl (3)
|
| SUE[T] (fat) minus last letter (short) |
Cineraria summed up the experience nicely for me. I really enjoyed this puzzle, and ticked UNSEAT, SIESTA, FOOTWEAR,, ADHERE, and MEDITATION. I bet I am not the only one who groaned at DELIVERED and STANDARD ENGLISH.
All parsed, but I do have a couple of questions. Does AUTOMATE really equate to manufacture using robotics? I do not automate a car if I manufacture it using robotics. I also wondered about the equivalence of SAT and sitting in STASIS. I am sure someone can find the appropriate examples to show their equivalence.
Thanks Moo and Cineraria
Martyn@1: The process of automation reduces human involvement, for example, by replacing people with robots. I think “sitting,” “sat,” and “seated” are basically equivalent, in the right context.
Yes, I agree with Cineraria’s experience; Martyn’s picks – FOOTWEAR and UNSEAT – along with OMEN, FRASCATI and RINSE all made this a typically light and breezy solve from Moo.
As regards ‘sat’/’sitting’, some English dialects do use phrases like ‘I was sat there minding my own business’ in lieu of ‘sitting’, in speech, anyway.
Short and sweet but nonetheless enjoyable. Thanks Moo and Cineraria.
Thanks both
Liked this, especially unseat, elongate, spectacular, female.
However 13d’s suggestion that Socrates had any declining years is a slip. He was famously executed for heresy at the height of his philosophical powers by being made to drink hemlock.
Thanks both in any case, this was a cracker.
Liked UNSEAT, ANECDOTE, ADD, THOUGHLESS and DELIVERED.
Thanks Moo and Cineraria.
James P@5
Socrates THOUGHT LESS: Took it as a whimsical or a witty wordplay.
19 ac Musk-Elon,Scandal-gate together make Elongate.
In generalspeak, meditation is ok for thought, though meditators might point out that in fact it’s about stilling one’s thoughts. Nice pleasant stroll, thanks MOO and Cineraria.
Very nice. ELONGATE and DELIVERED both made me chuckle. I liked FEMALE too. I have to agree with JP@5, Socrates is a bad example for declining mental acuity.
Yes. This puzzle was a pleasure with a blog to match.
I think one of cannibal’s meals was liver and fava beans with an Amorone. Mr Lecter had refined tastes.
Thanks to Moo and Cineraria.
Excellent puzzle, excellent blog. Some very crafty devices from the setter, with enough difficulty to test the little grey cells, amidst many clues on the easier side.
I think Socrates was 70 when he took the poison chalice, and being the same age, I think a bit of a drop-off is a fair expectation! But anyway, it’s a novelty clue, not to be taken literally. Actually, my favourite.
Great stuff, Moo & Cineraria
@1,2,3: My 1996 edition of Fowler’s Modern English Usage has an entry for “sat” as a present participle equivalent to “sitting”. After saying this was once a standard use that became regionally restricted, mainly to parts of north and west England, it notes that “its currency on the fringes of standard English is increasing”. I would say that since 1996 it has advanced beyond the fringes. But “they were sat” still jars with me, probably because I haven’t moved with the times.
Thanks Moo and Cineraria. I held myself up for some time on 26ac and 28ac because I had the erroneous FOOTWARE instead of the obviously correct FOOTWEAR at 17dn for quite some time until I realised my error.
6ac further to earlier comments: The 2015 updating of Fowler continues the trend suggested by Hector @12 and comments “even a paper as starchy as the Telegraph occasionally slips it in” (p 723), citing an example dated 2012 beginning “Both Mr Swinney and Mr Russell were sat near the First Minister”.
13dn: Oxford Dictionary of Quotations 8th edition (2014, p 737) gives the dates of Socrates as 469-399 BC, so Ian@11 definitely has a point.
Surely “a nice Chianti” SM @10!
I was off to a slow start here but then had flurries of write-ins.
There were 3 or 4 (FOOTWEAR, DANTE, TRESPASS(ES) and ADHERE) that I’ve seen extremely recently elsewhere, but with different clues.
I liked TRESSPASS, EDUCATOR and THOUGHTLESS among many.
Thanks Moo and Cineraria.
Agree with all the above. Really made us smile, particularly ELONGATE at 19a.
Thanks to Moo and Cineraria.
@6D Are introvert and shy person the same thing? Great puzzle and blog. Thanks.