You’d better do this puzzle if you don’t want to wake up with a horse’s head in your bed… Find it to solve online or download and print at ft.com/crossword
The standard preamble:
A cryptic puzzle themed on one particular place in the world. Its name should be inserted at 27. Work out the place by solving the * asterisked clues. Their solutions have some relevance to the place, such as famous people, locations and culture
Today Gaff is transporting us to the Mediterranean island of Sicily for our cruciverbal fun. Nothing too obscure here, I think. A nice crossword for a Sunday morning. Thanks, Gaff!
Definitions are underlined in the clues below. Thematic clues are marked with an asterisk and have no further definition.
| ACROSS | ||
| 1 | IMPINGES |
Gaff ’s alert to extremely egregious trespasses (8)
|
| I’M (Gaff’s) + PING (alert) + first and last letters (extremely) of EgregiouS | ||
| 6 | MOSAIC |
Spies a few unfinished, rejected tiles (6)
|
| CIA (spies) + SOM[e] (a few, unfinished), all reversed (rejected) | ||
| 9 | UNCLAD |
Short relative these days is naked (6)
|
| UNCL[e] (relative, shortened) + AD (these days) | ||
| 10 | AFFIANCE |
Ball not headed after Fifa’s broken promise (8)
|
| [d]ANCE (ball) less the first letter (not headed) after an anagram (broken) of FIFA | ||
| 11 | NERO D’AVOLA |
* Emperor and lawyer book third class (4,6)
|
| NERO (emperor) +DA (lawyer) + VOL (book) + third [letter of] clAss
The most important red wine grape grown in Sicily |
||
| 12 | ETNA |
* Mid-nineties national leaders (4)
|
| Middle letters of ninETies + first two letters (leaders) of NAtional
Active volcano on the island of Sicily |
||
| 13 | MENSCH |
Person who is responsible for content of aldermen’s church (6)
|
| Hidden in (content of) alderMEN’S CHurch | ||
| 15 | MALVASIA |
* A lama is very drunk (8)
|
| Anagram (drunk) of A LAMA IS V (very)
Another grape variety grown in Sicily |
||
| 18 | OVERTRIM |
Cut too much from unconcealed edge (8)
|
| OVERT (unconcealed) + RIM (edge) | ||
| 20 | MOTIVE |
Manoeuvre secures half-time goal (6)
|
| MOVE (manoeuvre) contains (secures) half [the letters of] TIme | ||
| 21 | FIRM |
Tree on left of motorway causes concern (4)
|
| FIR (tree) to the left of M (motorway) | ||
| 23 | PERSEPHONE |
* Dark blue galaxy, perhaps (10)
|
| PERSE (dark blue) + PHONE (eg Samsung’s Galaxy)
Ancient Greek goddess who was worshipped in Sicily |
||
| 25 | SEMOLINA |
* Strange aliens’ home lacks hydrogen (8)
|
| Anagram (strange) of ALIENS + [h]OME less H (hydrogen)
Coarse wheat flour, used in Sicily to make a bread flavoured with sesame seeds. There’s a spare E left over from the letters for the anagram – maybe helium would have worked better in the clue than hydrogen |
||
| 26 | UNVEIL |
Reveal back story of midwives’ character (6)
|
| Reversal (back) of LIE (story) + middle letter of wiVes + NU (Greek character) | ||
| 27 | SICILY |
[See Notes] (6)
|
| The place to which the solutions of all asterisked clues are connected | ||
| 28 | ARANCINI |
* A first-rate party in mid-air (8)
|
| A + first [letter of] Rate + ANC (South African political party) + middle letter of aIr
Stuffed deep-fried rice balls, a staple of Sicilian cuisine |
||
| DOWN | ||
| 2 | MENDELEEV |
Eleven and a half medics confused by chemist (9)
|
| Anagram (confused) of ELEVEN and half the letters of MED[ics] | ||
| 3 | IGLOO |
Wig looks to provide cover in the cold (5)
|
| Hidden in wIG LOOks | ||
| 4 | GODFATHER |
* “Our Dear Father” opening in collect (9)
|
| First letters (opening) of Our Dear Father in GATHER (collect)
Book by Mario Puzo and film by Francis Ford Coppola about Sicilian-born mob leader Vito Corleone |
||
| 5 | SEA ROOM |
Off Moorea’s plenty of space for ships (3,4)
|
| Anagram (off) of MOOREA’S | ||
| 6 | MAFIA |
* Part from a Fiat (5)
|
| Part of froM A FIAt
Family-run crime organisation that originated in Sicily |
||
| 7 | SPARE PART |
Small paper folded with skill makes extra piece (5,4)
|
| S (small) + anagram (folded) of PAPER + ART (skill) | ||
| 8 | INCAN |
Old South American oil location? (5)
|
| “IN CAN” (oil location) | ||
| 14 | STROMBOLI |
* A lot of brass involved in detailing mistake (9)
|
| TROMBO[ne] (brass, a lot of it) involved in SLI[p] (mistake) less the final letter (detailing)
Active volcanic island off the coast of Italy |
||
| 16 | LAMPEDUSA |
* Zeppelin carrying speaker over country (9)
|
| LED (as in Led Zeppelin) containing (carrying) AMP (speaker) over USA (country)
Mediterranean island, part of the Sicilian province of Agrigento |
||
| 17 | INVENTION |
Story of creation (9)
|
| Two definitions | ||
| 19 | MARSALA |
* Unfortunately, pack turns up (7)
|
| ALAS (unfortunately) + RAM (pack) reversed (turns up)
Port town in Sicily. best known for its fortified wine |
||
| 22 | ICENI |
Kill Ulster tribe (5)
|
| ICE (kill) + NI (Northern Ireland = Ulster) | ||
| 23 | PRIVY |
Can be secret (5)
|
| Two definitions
Can in the sense of toilet |
||
| 24 | HAVOC |
Originally, how antisocial vandals openly caused chaos (5)
|
| First letters (originally) of How Antisocial Vandals Openly Caused |
Most enjoyable puzzle that brought back memories of a holiday in Sicily. Nho perse otherwise pretty straightforward . Thanks Gaff and Wifdersbel.
Giovanni di LAMPEDUSA was also the author of The Leopard. I was hoping to see another giant of Sicilian literature, so I was one character in search of an author. In vain, as there was no Pirandello.