Toughie 334

Toughie No 333 by Notabilis

Sheer Elegance!

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BD Rating – Difficulty **** – Enjoyment *****

A terrific end to the week from one of my favourite setters and a puzzle that actually is worthy of the title of Toughie. Some delicious clues to make your mind go into overdrive, but all extremely fair. I also encountered a couple of new words that I was unfamiliar with and needed a check in Chambers to make sure.

If you are around tomorrow, the Saturday website puzzle is one of my own creations and I hope that you’ll all give it a try.

[Tilsit has done this review as Anax is away this week in Italy.  BD]

Across

1a           Dreadful opening in Cannes, one’s first in competition of film-makers (11)
{DIRECTORIAL}  We start with a word sum.  A word meaning dreadful + C (opening in Cannes) + O (one’s first) inside a word meaning competition or test.  This will give you a word meaning relating to film-makers.

9a           Vegetable from the east edge of Hull (4)
{KEEL} This is one of those clues where you could enter the answer two ways.  It’s a word for a vegetable that when reversed leads to a word for the hull or base of a boat.

10a         Difficulty going outside circle in a diagram, circle with reduced distortion? (11)
{AGORAPHOBIA} A word that means a diagram, such as a pie chart has O (circle) inside, and to this is added O (circle, again) plus a word meaning distortion or favour with the last letter missing.  This produces a word meaning “difficulty (or fear of) going outside”.

11a         Stuttering cry over a superior (4)
{BOSS}  An amusing clue.  If you cry, you SOB, and if you stuttered as you cry it would be S-SOB, and then reverse it (indicated by over) to get a word for a superior at work.

14a         Pardon little woman for decorating home (7)
{AMNESTY}  Little woman’s name (one of the ones as in Louisa May Alcott’s book) with a word meaning a (bird’s) home inside giving something that means a pardon. You might find this device in evidence in another crossword over the weekend!

16a         Seethe about bat sent out, cut short (7)
{BOBTAIL}  An anagram (indicated by sent out) of BAT inside a word for seethe (BOIL).  This gives a word meaning to cut short.

17a         Western Colorado, a territory only partly seen (5)
{OATER} A hidden answer “…Colorado, a territory…”.  A word I hadn’t heard of meaning a Western, a horse opera.

18a         Man brought in to compare with Kitchener? (4)
{CHEF}  The definition is Kitchener? (note the question mark), so you may be looking for something a little unusual.  Hence, someone found in a kitchen.  HE (man) goes inside the abbreviation for ”compare” (C.F.)

19a         Far from firm line taken with brat (4)
{LIMP}  A word sum. L (line) +IMP (brat) = far from firm.

20a         Not soppy tune composed about wife (5)
{UNWET} An anagram (composed) of TUNE with W(for wife) inside.

22a         Military governors said to display firearms (7)
{SHOGUNS} A homophone of show, plus a word meaning firearms gives the name for Japanese rulers.

23a         Eternity in a row could make you catty in a big way (7)
{LEONINE}  EON (eternity) inside a word for a row of things gives you a word meaning like a big cat.

24a         Some resistance shown on Royal Mail? (4)
{OHMS}  An abbreviation for something  found on official envelopes is the same as the scientific unit representing resistance, named after its discoverer.

28a         Reaction is mixed with USA making flight study (11)
{AERONAUTICS}  An anagram (mixed) of REACTION and USA gives you the word for the study of flight.

29a         End of demonstration occupying centre of Red Square (4)
{NINE}  N ( the last letter of demonstration) + IN (occupying) + E (centre of Red) = a square number = NINE

30a         Textured paper of short epistle containing a reassuring word (11)
{LEATHERETTE} The definition is “textured paper” – LETTE(R) (a short epistle) around A and THERE (reassuring word)

Down

2d           One in the past who gave treacherous advice (4)
{IAGO}  I +  AGO (in the past) leads to Othello’s treacherous colleague.

3d           Ready for French from the south to regret nothing? (4)
{EURO}   If you regret something, you RUE it and as “it’s from the south” it’s reversed and add O to get “ready” (money) for the French.

4d           Touring Peru’s capital, spoil old hack? (3,4)
{TAP INTO} If you spoil something you TAINT it and insert a P (Peru’s capital) and add an O for a word meaning to hack.

5d           Swindle a man moving over rank and file (4)
{ROOK}  A double definition meaning to con, and a piece that sits on the back row of a chess board.

6d           Area going through peak, showing exponent of 28? (7)
{AVIATOR}  A (area) + VIA (going through)+ TOR (peak) =  a word for someone experienced in the answer to 28 across.

7d           I’m amiable – or smashing things with valued associations (11)
{MEMORABILIA}  An anagram  (smashing) of  I’M AMIABLE OR gives a word meaning things that bring back memories.

8d           Reluctant to speak and fail in description of abrupt pronunciation (5-6)
{CLOSE-LIPPED) LOSE (fail) inside CLIPPED( a type of pronunciation) gives a word meaning reticent.

12d         French city body running outskirts of Nice (11)
{CARCASSONNE}  A word sum.  Body (CARCASS) + ON (running) + NE (outskirts of Nice) = a French city.

13d         Surrounding manoeuvre to cut off players in sporting event? (11)
{ENVELOPMENT}  An anagram (sporting) of EVENT includes LOP (to cut off) + MEN (players)

15d         Overturned tin really is wide open (5)
{YAWNS}  SN (Sn – chemical symbol for tin) + WAY (really) – all reversed, gives a word meaning gapes.

16d         Risk peel from epidermal stimulant (5)
{BETEL} BET (risk) together with the outside letters (peel) of epidermal gives a leaf which is chewed as a mild stimulant

20d         Unexpected revenue to get out of a hole? (7)
{UNREEVE}  An anagram of REVENUE gives a word meaning to escape.

21d         European pesterer splitting support in youth (7)
{TEENAGE}  E NAG (European pesterer) inside TEE (support) gives a word meaning youth.

25d         Bump and pound in scrap (4)
{JOLT}  L (pound) inside JOT (scrap) gives a word meaning to bump.

26d         Some nasty eyesore? (4)
{STYE} A hidden answer  in a nice self-defining clue.  “…nasty eyesore”

27d         Took a seat, holding Conservative off! (4)
{SCAT}  SAT (took a seat) with C (Conservative) inside gives a command meaning “Be off!”

Thanks to Notabilis for a lovely puzzle.  Here’s to the next one!

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