Toughie 347

Toughie No 347 by Kcit

Tales of the Spanish Main

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

Today’s Toughie from Kcit is only marginally harder than the average daily cryptic, but there are some clever clues. A handful of minor grumbles fail to spoil the enjoyment of this puzzle.

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Across

9a    Claim of innocence from one entering Britain? That’s not on (5)
{ALIBI} – this claim of innocence by having been elsewhere at the relevant time comes from putting I (one) inside an old name for Britain without the last two letters (not ON)

10a    In endless amatory tangles – a paramour (9)
{INAMORATA} – IN together with an anagram (tangles) of AMATOR(Y) without the final letter (endless) and A give a paramour

11a    Surgical tool’s power and energy in surgeon’s primary vocation (7)
{SCALPEL} – a surgical tool is derived by putting P(ower) and E(nergy) inside S (Surgeon’s primary / first letter) and a vocation – the word used for a vocation should really be suffixed by –ing; Bradford’s has a single entry shared by both words, so naturally vocation appears in the list but neither Chambers Thesaurus nor Chambers Crossword Dictionary give this as a synonym

12a    One regularly seen somewhat in shade (7)
{HABITUÉ} – the definition here is “one regularly seen” and it I derived by putting somewhat (two words) inside a shade of colour

13a    Foreign novel one formerly would have written in Latin (5)
{ROMAN} – a word meaning a novel or a tale of chivalry would once, perhaps, have been written in Latin by this foreigner

14a    Bathroom fitment: was wrong to install hard black one (9)
{WASHBASIN} – a bathroom fitment is made up from WAS and a wrong around (to install) H(ard) B(lack) and A (one)

16a    A paragon on stern at sea, or not wanted on voyage? (7,3,5)
{PERSONA NON GRATA} – an anagram (at sea) of A PARAGON ON STERN gives someone who is not wanted – “on voyage” seems to be padding that improves the surface reading

19a    Attack on street suppressing expression of enjoyment (9)
{ONSLAUGHT} – an attack is built up from ON and an abbreviation for a street placed around an expression of enjoyment

21a    Quick – run to get help after Prince’s trapped (5)
{RAPID} – a word meaning quick comes from R(un) and help around (trapped) a P(rince)

23a    Launch part curtailed by hooligan (7)
{ROLLOUT} – a launch of a new product is a charade of a part in a play, without its last letter (curtailed) and a hooligan

25a    Angry drunk’s after drink (not first) (7)
{rd meaning angry comes from being drunk after a word meaning to drink without its first letter (not first)

27a    No winning after first thUPTIGHT} – a woree get away, that’s well-known, unfortunately (9)
{NOTORIOUS} – NO is followed by a word meaning winning, without its first three letters (after first three get away), to give a synonym for famous or well known, typically for some bad quality or deed

28a    Editor bringing in workers to edit (5)
{EMEND} – put ED(itor) around these workers to get a word meaning to edit

Down

1d           Succeed, being not entirely out-of-date (4)
{PASS} – to succeed in an examination is most of a word meaning out-of-date

2d           Right, when bowled over, to be taken in by obscure charm (6)
{DISARM} – put R(ight) and a synonym for when, reversed (bowled over), inside a word meaning obscure to get a verb meaning to charm

3d           An island in disputed Polish area? Yes and no (10)
{HISPANIOLA} – this island in the Caribbean was discovered by Columbus in 1492 – you can find it by putting AN I(sland) inside an anagram (disputed) of POLISH and then adding A(rea)

4d           Wrong to get in front of ship’s wave (6)
{BILLOW} – put wrong, in the sense of evil, inside the front of a ship to get a wave or surge

5d           A measure of speed is second concern of many men? (8)
{MACHISMO}- a charade of a measure of the speed of sound, IS and a second or instant gives the cult of male virility and masculine pride (concern of many men)

6d           Horse covering miles in search (4)
{COMB} – put a short-legged strong horse around M(iles) to get a word meaning to search methodically and thoroughly

7d           Disney film buff heading for the continent (8)
{FANTASIA} – an animated Disney film is a charade of a buff, or enthusiast, T (heading for The) and a continent

8d           Organise receipts not yet banked? (4,2,4)
{TAKE IN HAND} – a cryptic definition of phrase that means to organise

13d         Wild scoundrel very keen about love (3-7)
{RIP-ROARING} – a word meaning wild, as perhaps an Errol Flynn movie might be described, is built up from a rogue and a word meaning very keen, or full of enthusiasm and sense of urgency, around O (love)

15d         Worry about one European country King becoming despotic ruler (3,7)
{BIG BROTHER} – put a worry around I (one) and our home island (European country?) and a King to get the despotic ruler of  Oceania in George Orwell’s novel Nineteen Eighty-Four – the country referred to consists of the three home countries, and is part of the United Kingdom!

17d         Nothing in poorly set rule is set (8)
{RESOLUTE} – put o (nothing) inside an anagram (poorly) of SET RULE to get a word meaning set, in the sense of having a fixed purpose

18d         Historic scientist’s worry over computer memory (8)
{ÅNGSTRÖM} – the scientist, after whom a unit used in expressing wavelengths of light, ultraviolet rays, X-rays, molecular and atomic distances is named, is a charade of a worry over computer memory whose contents cannot be altered by a programmer

20d         Commonplace sport is covered by trademark (6)
{TRUISM} – a commonplace, in the sense of a platitude comes from a sport and IS inside (covered by) the abbrev for trademark

22d         Lodger allowed to bring in one small creature (6)
{PIGLET} – put a Paying Guest (lodger) and a word meaning allowed around (to bring in) I (one) to get a young farm animal (small creature)

24d         I turned up to throttle Frankenstein’s second monster (4)
{OGRE} – start with I, in the sense of that which is conscious and thinks, and reverse it (turned up -–this is a down clue) around R (Frankenstein’s second) to get a monster

26d         Considerable time — one day followed by year (4)
{TIDY} – a word meaning considerable, in this sense it is usually followed by sum, is a word-sum of T(ime) I (one) D(ay) and Y(ear)

Don’t forget that several of your favourite bloggers, including Tilsit, Anax, Prolixic and Gnomethang, will be joining me at the White Horse in Parson’s Green this Saturday (8^th May) between 11;00m and 7:00 pm.  All are welcome. Fuller details later.