AZED CROSSWORD 2573

HANDS-ON

1.  D. F. Manley: Second to Chambers one must get Don’s fantastic Manual! (h + an + anag.; ref. Chambers Crossword Manual).

2.  L. Ward (USA): Massage is so lovely yours truly drops off at end of session (handso(me) + n).

3.  C. A. Clarke: Manual worker numbers needing to be contracted going up (hand + nos (all rev.)).

VHC

M. Barker: In part selfish and so not getting involved (hidden).

M. Barley: See osteopath, and so necessarily secure such treatment (hidden & lit.).

T. C. Borland: Short of time, don hasn’t prepared practical (anag. less t).

E. Dawid: Getting stuck in, one’s tucking into hot cross bun’s last bit (an in h dso + n).

Dr I. S. Fletcher: Manual? What’s needed for clutch, perhaps, is one’s left leg (hand + (I)s + on).

R. J. Fletcher (Belgium): Practical, good-looking and a tad naïve. Not me! (handso(me) + n).

R. J. Heald: Having manual control cuts times of Honda NSX when racing (anag. less x; ref. sports car).

M. Hodgkin: Using manipulative means, Henry gets an heir after daughter (H + an + d + son; ref. Henry VIII).

J. C. Leyland: Playing up-front parts in activities, holding no sinecure or non-executive directorship? (anag. of first letters & lit.).

P. W. Marlow: Here’s opener, English cricketer, scoring England’s first runs, getting actively engaged (h + And(E r)son; ref. James A.).

K. Milan: Down-to-earth and so nuts-and-bolts. Does that cover it? (hidden & lit.).

C. G. Millin: Food informally served up, and consumed using your fingers? (and in nosh (rev.)).

J. Pearce: Have old version of Don’s Manual (han + anag.).

W. Ransome: Doing practically enough and so nearly providing the answer (hidden).

A. J. Shields: Promoting activity is essential to health – and so necessary (hidden).

J. R. Tozer: Order Navy to take on Chinese, favouring action over words (Han + DSO + N; ref. S. China Sea).

A. J. Wardrop: Midwife needs such experience to deliver a child (hand + son).

R. J. Whale: Something in Alpino’s DNA helps when on the ascent, seeing action? (hidden rev.).

G. H. Willett: Like some masseuses’ technique, hot as well as very nice, no holding back (h and so n(ice)).

HC

T. Anderson, D. & N. Aspland, A. Brash, C. J. Brougham, Dr J. Burscough, D. Carter, T. Clement, M. Coates, P. Coles (Ireland), N. Connaughton (Ireland), W. Drever, P. Finan, H. Freeman, A. Gerrard, R. Gilbert, J. Hood, M. Jordan, D. Kenning, A. MacDougall, L. F. Marzillier (USA), P. McKenna, Rev Prebendary M. R. Metcalf, T. J. Moorey, T. D. Nicholl, D. J. R. Ogilvie (USA), K. Parekh, A. Plumb, J. M. Rees, Dr J. B. Reid, A. D. Scott, R. J. Sharkey, Dr S. J. Shaw, J. Smailes, P. L. Stone, R. C. Teuton, A. J. Varney, J. Vincent & Ms R. Porter, Mrs A. M. Walden, Ms S. Wallace, J. D. Walsh, T. West-Taylor, D. Whisstock (Italy), K. & J. Wolff, A. J. Young.
 

Comments
148 entries. The only error I spotted resulted from failure to solve POPSOCK. Several said they hadn’t understood the clues to ARIL (a composite anagram) and PELF, which depended on knowing that ‘elf’ is German for ‘eleven’. I do allow myself occasional references to commoner words in foreign (almost always European) languages, so be warned. Of the 16 words mentioned as favourites this month the clear winner was ‘Region of SW France suggested by the French?’ for LANDE (foreign languages again!).
 
A thoroughly good competition this month, with a clue word that proved to offer more possibilities than might first have looked possible. I was quite happy to accept clues for HANDS ON as a phrasal verb meaning ‘passes to another’ or ‘bequeaths’. As I’ve mentioned before, the asterisked ‘definition’ is not meant to prescribe the meaning required for your clue. (And I apologize, by the way, for the misprint that yielded ‘Favouring active involving’ in the printed version of the paper, though I was promised a correction, which did make it into the online version.) A special comment is due for Mr Manley’s self-referential first prizewinner. Such opportunities come very rarely, and in this instance resulted in an irresistible clue. (He did apologize, and the exclamation mark was for once appropriate!)
 
Another procedural change, prompted by a polite query from a regular. The Rules and requests paragraph has always, going back to the Ximenes era, included the sentence, ‘Entries should be postmarked no later than Saturday’, though the Royal Mail’s franking of mail has for years been a pretty hit-or-miss affair. In future I plan to change the deadline request to read ‘Entries should be received no later than Monday week’.