Toughie 300

Toughie No 300 by Excalibur

Not a Load of Laughs

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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **

There’s not a lot of variety in today’s puzzle with a lot of clues being container types, where you have to put x (or an anagram of it) inside y (or an anagram of it). Actually with this setter they’re mostly expressed backwards, as “y, x included”. I didn’t really enjoy it that much, though there were a few nice clues.
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Across Clues

1a  Type ‘A secret I foolishly try to hide’ (10)
{CATEGORISE} – the definition is type, as a verb meaning to classify, and it’s an anagram (foolishly) of A SECRET I with a short word for a try or attempt inside (to hide).

6a  Cheat one into providing money (4)
{COIN} – you need to rearrange “cheat one into” into “one into cheat” to realise that you need to put I (one) inside a verb meaning to cheat.

9a  Belief in decorating? A semi conversion (5)
{CREDO} – take the first half (a semi) of DECORating and make an anagram (conversion) from it to get a personal statement of belief.

10a  A fool but no trouble: not unruly (9)
{SIMPLETON} – follow something that’s easy (no trouble) with an anagram (unruly) of NOT to get a synonym for fool.

12a  Sickness, when waters abate, will go round (7)
{DISEASE} – waters are SEAS – put a verb meaning to abate or wither away round it and you have an ailment or sickness.

13a  Tennis court not equipped for the players’ performance? (5)
{NONET} – a musical composition for nine voices or instruments, which, if redefined as (2,3), might describe a significant deficiency in a tennis court.

15a  Clothing I am untidily ramming into breach (7)
{RAIMENT} – put an anagram (untidily) of I AM inside a breach or tear.

17a  Tell nobody — say ‘Keep things dark’ (7)
{SHUTTER} – a charade of SH (don’t say anything!, tell nobody) plus a synonym for to say produces a verb meaning to block out the light at a window.

19a  Fools are wise, contriving to take everybody in (7)
{WALLIES} –  put ALL (everybody) inside (to take in) an anagram (contriving) of WISE.

21a  Transferring our bag, about to go on a spree (7)
{CAROUSE} – an anagram (transferring) of OUR with a type of bag outside (about) produces a verb meaning to have a noisy, drunken time (go on a spree).

22a  Criticise star performing (band included) (5)
{ROAST} – put O (band, because it’s round) inside (included) an anagram (performing) of STAR to get an informal verb meaning to criticise or reprimand.

24a  Capturing power I’m hurt badly but succeed (7)
{TRIUMPH} – an anagram (badly) of I’M HURT with P(ower) inside (capturing) produces a verb meaning to win or succeed. The ‘but’ is just padding.

27a  Banished for a while, died out (9)
{DISPELLED} – find a synonym for a short time (a while) and put DIED out(side) to get a verb meaning drove away or banished.

28a  Jewel that, misguidedly, the nest egg went into (5)
{STONE} – this clue has exactly the same structure as 22a. This time you want an anagram (misguidedly) of NEST and the included O is an egg rather than a band. The ‘the’ contributes nothing and is not needed.

29a  Be paid, reportedly, as a high flier (4)
{ERNE} – another word for a sea-eagle (high flier) sounds like (reportedly) a verb meaning to be paid for work done.

30a  With spirit, say angrily ‘You can eat it’ (6,4)
{BRANDY SNAP} – put together a distilled alcoholic spirit and a verb meaning to speak sharply (say angrily) to get a thin crisp biscuit flavoured with ginger.

Down Clues

1d  Just goes to show which way the wind blows, mate (4)
{COCK} – double definition. Something that rotates freely (just goes) to indicate the wind direction is also a slang term (often preceded by “my old”) for a mate. My favourite clue, with a smooth surface reading.

2d  Until dream shatters, going through daily grind (9)
{TREADMILL} – start with a preposition which is a less formal way of saying until, and inside (going through) put an anagram (shatters) of DREAM. You end up with a machine which goes continuously, which is a metaphor for routine drudgery (daily grind).

3d  To make money is disgusting (5)
{GROSS} – double definition, the first a verb meaning to make an amount of money before any deductions for tax, etc.

4d  Get going again and others pitch in (7)
{RESTART} – put a word meaning the others around a dark, viscous mixture (pitch).

5d  ‘When tourists abound,’ they add (7)
{SUMMERS} – double definition – the season (in the plural) when there are lots of tourists is also a word which you could use (if you were desperate) to describe people doing additions. The chance to make an amusing clue based on the name of a chain of shops selling sexy lingerie has been missed, so, sadly, no opportunity for pictures!

7d  Not once has one slid foot inside (5)
{OFTEN} – an anagram (slid) of ONE with the abbreviation for foot inside.

8d  Not a novice? It’s not running (3-7)
{NON-STARTER} – double definition – someone with a bit of experience is also the term applied to a horse which was entered in a race but withdrawn before the “off”.

11d  Having muffed goal, run with depleted energy (7)
{LANGUOR} – an anagram (muffed) of GOAL RUN produces a noun meaning listlessness (with depleted energy).

14d  Strong defence to tie the game (10)
{DRAWBRIDGE} – this strong defence for a mediaeval castle is formed from a charade of a synonym for tie (in a sporting sense) and a card game.

16d  ‘Dispatch’ I spelt otherwise; with an E (7)
{EPISTLE} – a dispatch, in the sense of a letter, is an anagram (otherwise) of I SPELT followed by E. The surface reading is quite clever, referring to the alternative way of spelling dispatch.

18d  Score and feel low (9)
{TOUCHDOWN} – the act of scoring in rugby or American Football is a charade of a synonym for to feel and an adjective meaning low or depressed.

20d  Has he put paid to his days of wandering? (7)
{SETTLER} – double definition – someone who has paid his debts and put down roots.

21d  Ticked off child when I’d got home (7)
{CHIDDEN} – this seldom-used past participle meaning ticked off or rebuked is put together from an abbreviation for child, I’D and a home or lair.

23d  Hears he left on, starting a fire (5)
{ARSON} – remove the first two letters from (he)ars (he left) and add ON.

25d  Gracious, it’s fuzzy inside. Hard to see (5)
{MISTY} – an interjection expressing surprise (gracious!) with an anagram (fuzzy) of IT’S inside.

26  Observe, when you turn to look (4)
{KEEP} – reverse (turn) a verb meaning to steal a look to get another verb meaning to comply with or observe.

I liked 13a, 19a and 16d, but my favourite clue today is 1d. What about you? Leave us a comment with your views.