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T |
WO reasonably familiar
political leaders from the last century are the only general knowledge
references in this month’s competition puzzle. Azed enjoys deploying several
original or unexpected wordplay ideas throughout the puzzle that might lead to
more than the usual amount of head-scratching for the solver,
and do lead to more than the usual amount of explanation from Dr Watson.
Followers of the Crossword
Centre’s clue-writing competition will find Azed’s
choice for this month’s competition word uncannily familiar.
3. In
pash being thwarted by female, showing cunning about that aid to better sex
SPANISH FLY (anag. + f, all in sly) Azed’s
not shy of this kind of surface, and this isn’t his raciest by a long way (in
fact Dr Watson’s not quite sure what’s going on). ‘Showing cunning about that’
indicates ‘sly’ going around the result of all the previous wordplay.
12. It
lurks in the everglades from Georgia to heart of Florida GATOR (GA to (Flo)r(ida)) A tidy semi-&
lit. clue with the easily-overlooked ‘to’ a key component.
13. Fellow
managed prison (all names withheld) – it maintains a lively rhythm MARACA (ma(n)
ra(n) ca(n)) The two halves of the clue don’t fit together
very well, but the opportunity of an unusual wordplay is eagerly grasped.
14. Site
that is missing a prisoner? Not one for that kind
STALAG (site less i.e. + a lag) The inference being that a Stalag would house
a PoW rather than a regular lag.
22. Aids
this barge being refitted – lakeside possibly KEEL (comp. anag.) There’s
a loose & lit. element to this comp. anag. ‘Aids
keel’ is an anagram of ‘lakeside’, where a barge might be refitted. Keel2
is a type of boat, ironically one lacking a keel1.
26. Can’t stand
to let off e.g. MOT?
DETEST (i.e. de-test) Setters are allowed this fanciful sort of pun. If Shakespeare
could do it…
29. Former PM in
charge of ideal state (before fall) EDENIC
(Eden i/c) A well-realised reference to the short career
and downfall of Anthony
Eden, though perhaps his state was less ideal than God’s Eden.
31. Ex-president
(English not American) has installed Chinese interpreters TRUCHMEN (Ch in Truman with E for
A) Another
mid-20c leader in the shape of Harry Truman. ‘Truchmen’
is a falsely inferred plural of ‘truchman’, derived from a Turkish-Arabic word,
though less egregious than a commentator’s description Dr Watson heard of a
female footballer as ‘the team’s taliswoman’.
32. Permit (one
assumes) required before start of excavating Turkish borate PANDERMIT (i.e. p and ermit + e) Azed enjoys his reverse cryptics,
where the solution must be interpreted as wordplay, but to see it as part of a
charade is unexpected. Azed acknowledges this by providing ‘permit’ rather than
a synonym, and the guidance of ‘(one assumes)’.
3. Never
stood for spicy meat en brochette SATAY (i.e. sat ay3) Another wordplay opportunity
taken, this time a synonym leading to a phrase rather than a word. ‘Ay3’
meaning ‘forever’ is commonly found in clues, though Chambers gives it only as
an alternative spelling of a Scottish and dialect word. A brochette, for avoiders
of barbecues, is a meat skewer.
5. What’s
mass of clay in New York, producing a sort of ‘bong’? NARGILY (argil in NY) The sort of bong referred to here is a cannabis pipe that
functions in the same way as a hookah, as does a nargily,
narghile or any of six other spellings.
6. Water
running into shore’s rotten – could be ‘dead’ hippo SEAHORSE (ea
in anag.) The quote
marks don’t imply Schrödinger’s
hippo, but the obsolescence of this meaning of seahorse, also once a name for a
walrus.
9. Recommended by dieticians –
unlike much of what it serves? LOCAL (i.e. lo-cal) Gone are the days when Guinness was ‘good for you’, though you’d
find low calorie mixers in any local that’s still open.
11. Falconer’s
bird? Deal in the latest, cracking experience mostly TASSELL-GENT (sell gen in tast(e)) It
took Dr Watson a while to parse this one, as an anagram of ‘latest’ sticks out
of the solution, but proves to be a red herring.
16. Awful mess –
double-headed besom’s wielded with it BOMBSITE (anag.
of b-besom it) Interesting to see Azed avoiding the usual stammering delivery that
indicates a double initial letter.
18. Beneficiary
set up a limit for trust maybe LEGATEE (gel, rev. + a tee) A very cogent
surface, and more tricky wordplay requiring extra thought. ‘Set up’ often
indicates a down reversal on its own, but here a synonym of ‘set’ is hoisted. ‘Tee’
is the T found at either end of ‘trust’.
22. King set out
for audience, one resisting conquerors from abroad KLEPHT (K + ‘left’) Dr Watson has an
inkling that Azed would once have avoided this kind of homophone-charade
combination, as the pronunciation of a part-word may not be definitive. In this
case though it presents no problems. A Klepht was a Greek resisting the 15c Ottoman
occupation.
25. Jock’s stall
– is this his den ransacked for merchandise?
CRAME (comp. anag.) Azed can’t quite get a satisfactory & lit. out of the anagram
pair of ‘merchandise’ and ‘crame his den’.
Other solutions:
Across: 10. NEAR GALE (anag. + ale); 15. CHARAS (a in chars); 16. BIFOCALS (anag.
less e); 17. RAGG
(rag(in)g); 18. TREBLE (tre(m)ble); 20. IGNOMY ((s)ign +
o my!); 23. DRAMBUIE (anag. + i.e.); 28. TOERAG; 30. SPATE (anag.
less N).
Down: 1. ANGST-RIDDEN (anag. incl. d); 2. PEAT-HAG (anag.
in gap, rev.); 4.
PROLEG (pig with role for I); 7. HORACE
(comp. anag. incl. L); 8. FEAR (anag.
less I); 18. TRITIUM
(it in trium(pH));
21. OMENED (men in OED (Oxford English Dictionary)); 24. REDIA (aider, rev.); 27. TERN ((sh)er(ry) in TN; tern2).
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