As is normal for an Independent Friday, we have a puzzle from Phi.
I often mutter to myself about the large number of clues that have their definitions at the start. Today, I’m pleasantly surprised to find we have nineteen out of thirty definitions at the end of the clue.
I wonder how often people use TON for fashion in everyday conversation. I don’t think I have come across it outside crossword clues where it is a frequent usage.
I liked the clue for BUSHRANGER involving the American Presidents. I also liked the succint clue for BULL with its use of cow.
| No | Detail |
| Across | |
| 1 | Former US President – R Reagan – mistakenly ignoring a backwoodsman (10)
BUSHRANGER (backwoodsman) BUSH (reference George H W BUSH [1924 – 2018], US President from 1989 to 1993, and George W BUSH [born 1946], US President from 2001 to 2009) + an anagram of (mistakenly) R REAGaN excluding (ignoring) an A. Ronald Reagan [1911 – 2004] was also a US President from 1981 to 1989. BUSH RANGER* |
| 6 | Beer initially on verge of running out? Calamity (4)
BLOW (sudden misfortune or calamity) B (first letter of [initially] Beer) + LOW (of supplies, on the verge of running out) B LOW |
| 9 | Lack of coverage from tin spikes on board ship (10)
SCANTINESS (lack of coverage, of clothing for example) (CAN [tin] + TINES [spikes]) contained in (on board) SS (steamship) S (CAN TINES) S |
| 10 | Cow without tail? Nonsense (4)
BULL (nonsense) BULLy [to threaten; to cow] excluding the last letter (without tail) Y BULL |
| 11 | Description of job, with story about cocaine – a remarkable thing (9)
SPECTACLE (a strange or interesting object; a remarkable thing) SPEC (SPECification; job description) + (TALE [story] containing [about] C [cocaine]) SPEC TA (C) LE |
| 16 | New take on music: bit of opera follows version, one in fashion (9)
VARIATION (transformation of a musical theme by means of new figures in counterpoint, florid treatment, changes in tempo, key, etc; new take on music) V (version) + ARIA (song from an opera; bit of opera) + (I [Roman numeral for one] contained in [in] TON [fashion]) V ARIA T (I) ON |
| 18 | Green is erratic, partly reflecting amber? (5)
RESIN (amber is a yellow or yellowish-brown hard translucent RESIN) RESIN (reversed [reflecting] hidden word in [partly] greeN IS ERratic) RESIN< |
| 19 | Attacker offing one horseman (5)
RIDER (horseman) RaIDER (attacker) excluding (offing) A (one) RIDER |
| 20 | Failed battery starts to endanger substantial amounts of data (9)
TERABYTES (a large amount of data) Anagram of (failed) BATTERY + ES (first letter of [starts to] each of Endanger and Substantial) TERABYT* E S |
| 21 | Races including contest chasing American cars? (9)
RUNABOUTS (small cars) RUNS (races) containing (including) (A [American] + BOUT [contest]) RUN (A BOUT) S |
| 26 | Dam that is put back in Western Region (4)
WEIR (dam across a river) IE (id est; that is] reversed [put back] and contained in [in] WR (Western Region) W (EI<) R |
| 27 | Fix a drink, getting US lawyer a cocktail (4,6)
PINA COLADA (a cocktail) PIN (fix) + A + COLA (a drink) + DA (District Attorney; US lawyer) PIN A COLA DA |
| 28 | Elevated area cold? Skip the top (4)
HILL (an elevated area) cHILL (cold) excluding the first letter (skip the top) C HILL |
| 29 | Complain train’s getting rackety? Prepared to limit volume internally (10)
ANIMADVERT (comment critically; complain) Anagram of (rackety) TRAIN containing (internally) (MADE [prepared] containing [to limit] V [volume]) ANI (MAD (V) E) RT* |
| Down | |
| 1 | Wild country? Public transport heading for home (4)
BUSH (wild uncultivated country covered with bushes, trees, etc) BUS (public transport) + H (first letter of [heading for] Home) BUS H |
| 2 | Playwright‘s maxim about hearts (4)
SHAW (reference George Bernard SHAW [1856 – 1950], Irish playwright) SAW (wise saying, maxim or proverb) containing (about) H (hearts) S (H) AW |
| 3 | List eighteen letters in reverse order (4)
ROTA (list of names showing the order in which people take their turn to perform certain duties) A TO R (a run of eighteen letters of the alphabet) reversed (in reverse order) (R OT A)< |
| 4 | Note Spanish girl’s standard of perfection? (5)
NINES (reference the phrase ‘dressed to the NINES‘ [dressed to an elaborate standard]) N (note) + INES (Spanish girl’s name) N INES |
| 5 | English more authoritarian about a person from the Orient (9)
EASTERNER (person from the Orient) (E [English] + STERNER [more authoritarian]) containing (about) A E (A) STERNER |
| 7 | A name involved with this clue? Cape Canaveral, perhaps (6,4)
LAUNCH SITE (Cape Canaveral is a launch site for many space exploration expeditions) Anagram of (involved) A and N (name) and [with] THIS CLUE LAUNCH SITE* |
| 8 | Playwright with point about river and wasteland (10)
WILDERNESS (desolate tract or area; wasteland) (WILDE [reference Oscar WILDE {1854 – 1900}, Irish playwright] + NESS (headland; point]) containing (about) R (river) WILDE (R) NESS |
| 12 | Beats first couple of thieves with sacks (6)
THROBS (beats) TH (first two letters of [first couple of] THieves) + ROBS (steals; sacks) TH ROBS |
| 13 | Government dispute blocking blatant hospital extension beyond limits (10)
OVERGROWTH (vegetation that has extended beyond limits) (G [government] + ROW [dispute]) contained in (blocking) (OVERT [public; blatant] + H [hospital]) OVER (G ROW) T H |
| 14 | Puritan translation of Latin is circumspect (10)
PRUDENTIAL (cautious and wise in conduct; circumspect) PRUDE (puritan) + an anagram of (translation of) LATIN PRUDE NTIAL* |
| 15 | South Africa’s composer turning up in Croatian city (6)
ZAGREB (capital city of Croatia) ZA (international vehicle registration and internet domain for South Africa) + BERG (reference Alban BERG [1885 – 1935], Austrian composer) reversed (turning up; down entry) ZA GREB< |
| 17 | Interruption popular in tours? Wrong (9)
INTRUSION (interruption) IN (popular) + an anagram of (wrong) IN TOURS IN TRUSION* |
| 22 | Succeeded in blocking annoying emails in abrupt movement (5)
SPASM (sudden convulsive movement; abrupt movement) S (succeeded) contained in (blocking) SPAM (electronic junk mail; annoying e-mails) SPA (S) M |
| 23 | Court decision offering only opening for club (4)
WOOD (a golf club) WOO (court) + D (first letter of [taking only the opening] Decision) WOO D |
| 24 | Prison reporting not concluded (4)
CAGE (prison) CoverAGE (news reporting) excluding (not) OVER (concluded) CAGE |
| 25 | Separate opportunity for actor (4)
PART (separate) PART (role; opportunity for an actor) double definition PART |
Beaten today by the combo of CAGE – a very tricky deletion indeed – and the nho ANIMADVERT, both of which I had to reveal. Had I ever encountered the latter, I would have taken it to be a neologism perhaps describing those TV promotions for loo roll with the puppy or the teabags with the monkeys. I was slightly surprised to encounter two BUSHes sharing the initial B as well as two playwrights being playwrights. TERABYTES, RUNABOUTS and PRUDENTIAL (COTD) my podium today.
Thanks both
I was also a bit taken aback by the use of BUSH in both 1a and 1d, not sure if there is a particular reason for the duplication, there are plenty of alternatives that would fit 1d. Did like the clue for 1a though.
I did wonder why a bull would not have a tail, but the blog cleared that up.
Put in NINES without being familiar with the Spanish girl’s name, and also wondered why it would be a standard of perfection when a Ten surely would be. Dressed to the nines wouldn’t necessarily be perfection, hmm
NHO Animadvert and couldn’t fathom the wordplay so failed on that one.
Glad I wasn’t the only one to fail with ANIMADVERT + CAGE.
I feel there must be some kind of abstruse Phi theme here, with the two Bushes, (Peter) Weir, Shaw, Wilde, (John?) Cage. Hill and Wood can also be surnames. However I can’t see the link.
The last two (ANIMADVERT and CAGE) were tricky indeed; I couldn’t parse the latter after trying hard to equate “cagey” with “reporting”. Didn’t know the NINES phrase, so it was also a guess after figuring that “niña”, Spanish for “girl”, doesn’t fit. Thanks Phi and Duncan!
Between overgrowth, wilderness, hill, weir, wood and two bushes, I think Phi may have been on a nature walk.
Large number of four-letter composers here. Alan BUSH, John BLOW, Caroline SHAW, Nina ROTA, John BULL, Judith WEIR, Hugh WOOD, John CAGE.
I do know ANIMADVERT, just couldn’t see it.
This was one for Dormouse to spot and he did. Throw in the Kiwi Alfred HILL, and add an umlaut for Arvo PÄRT, and all the four letter answers are composers. There are even alternative composers for BUSH and WOOD.
And thus the double BUSH, of course. There aren’t that many 4-letter composers…
Ah yes, Geoffrey Bush. I recall his Yorrick overture was a portrait of Tommy Handley of ITMA fame. Didn’t spot Arvo Pärt.
Of course, there are several composers called Bach.
Also defeated by the ANIMADVERT and CAGE combo. The rest of it seemed unusually benign but beaten fairly in the end.