Toughie 610

Toughie No 610 by Notabilis

Hints and tips by Prolixic

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

Tilsit is receiving treatment for his leg today so it falls to me to blog a proper Friday outing from Notabilis. This was highly enjoyable with smiles and groans on the way. Often, even where the answer was obvious, the wordplay in places displayed all of Notablis’s cunning. It took Gnomes’ law to work out 27d. If Notabilis has included one of his trademark ninas in today’s grid, I have not been able to spot it.  {Many thanks to Libellule for pointing out what was staring me in the face all the time. See his comment below.]

Many thanks to Notabilis for an excellent crossword. I have highlighted my favourite clues in blue though top of tree today were 29a and 18d.

Across
1a Crashing bus in front of Abbey Road is ludicrous (6)
{ABSURD} – An anagram (crashing) of bus inside the first letter (front) of Abbey and an abbreviation for Road gives a word meaning ludicrous.

4a Possible means of spreading poison or spleen, through phone mostly (8)
{BLOWPIPE} – A means of firing poisoned darts comes from an old fashioned word for a telephone with the final letter removed with a word meaning spleen (as anger or annoy) inside it.

9a Short-termism is the author’s one answer about work (6)
{MYOPIA} – A word for short-termism comes from a word for the author’s (here meaning the setter’s), an abbreviation for work and a final pair of letters represented by one and the abbreviation for answer.

10a Going down without son is rude (8)
{INDECENT} – A word rude comes from a phrase (2,7) meaning going down from which the S (son) in the second word is removed.

12a Even parts of The South turned calm (4)
{HUSH} – A word meaning calm comes from the even letters reversed in The South.

13a Readies a bit of balm on eyes (5)
{MONEY} – A word for readies (as in cash) is hidden inside balm on eyes. I slowed myself down on this clue by originally having bread with b (a bit of balm) and read (eyes).

ARVE Error: need id and provider

14a Foolish rage, receding with time (4)
{DAFT} – A word for foolish comes from a word meaning rage (as in the in thing) reversed (receding) followed by an abbreviation for time.

17a Helpful turn is somehow ridiculous (12)
{INSTRUMENTAL} – A word for helpful (as in helping to achieve something) comes from an anagram (somehow) of “turn is” followed by a word meaning ridiculous (or mad).

20a Realistic shooting’s popular with them during hollow ceremony (6,6)
{CINEMA VERITE} – A term for a realistic form of film comes from a word meaning hollow (like a grotto) inside which is put a word meaning popular and an abbreviated form of them followed by a four letter word for a religious ceremony.

23a Now I see bachelor obsessed captain (4)
{AHAB} – This captain of Moby Dick fame comes from a word meaning “Now I see” followed by an abbreviation for bachelor.

24a Prison guard succeeded with gang (5)
{SCREW} – An slang expression for a prison guard comes from an abbreviation for succeeded followed by a word for a gang.

25a Arts graduate’s going to Globe (4)
{BALL} – A word for a globe comes from the description of the degree held by an arts graduate followed by a LL (as in a shortened form of will).

28a Refuge means getting behind hospital plan (8)
{HIDEAWAY} – A word for a refuge comes from an abbreviation of hospital, followed by a word meaning a plan and a word meaning means (as in the ability to be able to do something).

29a Gesture to expose the rear (object to the rear being covered) (6)
{MOTION} – A word for gesture comes from a word meaning to expose the rear inside which it put a two letter word for an object which have been reversed).

30a Italian town’s medical department in endless misery (8)
{SORRENTO} – The name of a town in Italy comes from a word meaning misery from which the final letter has been removed with the abbreviation for the ear, nose and throat department included.

31a Pumpkin eater taking wife for a mug? (6)
{PEWTER} – The name of a legendary pumpkin eater has a W for wife included in it to give a word for a mug (or more correctly what it is made from).

Down

1d Amateur’s roguish manner drawing in master (8)
{ARMCHAIR} – A word for amateur comes from a phrase (4,3) meaning roguish manner inside which is put an abbreviation for master.

2d Maker of many films, at least forty including singular European (8)
{SCORSESE} – This film maker (first name Martin) comes from a description of a number that must be at least forty (but could be sixty, eighty, etc) inside which is put an S for singular. Add a final E for European to get the answer.

3d After regular deprivations, Freudian’s a wreck (4)
{RUIN} – A word for a wreck comes from taking away the odd letters of Freudian

5d Custom dentalware masks a state possibly requiring maxillofacial work (7-5)
{LANTERN JAWED} – A medical condition that may require reconstructive surgery to the lower part of the face comes from an anagram (custom) of dentalware inside which has been put the abbreviation for the state of New Jersey.

6d What for energy must go into dairy product (4)
{WHEY} – A type of dairy product comes from a word meaning what for inside which is put the abbreviation for energy.

7d Victim of global warming in current century, with rising speed? (6)
{ICECAP} – This victim of global warming is receding at the North and South poles. Take the abbreviations for current and century and follow them with a word meaning speed that has been reversed.

8d Being led away from having the right variable (6)
{ENTITY} – A word for a being comes from a word meaning having the right from which the final LED has been removed followed by a Y (variable).

11d Pessimist’s repeated utterance after Madame blocks entry (4-8)
{DOOM MERCHANT} – A word for a pessimist comes from a word for an entry inside which is put a three letter abbreviation for Madame. This is followed by a word for a repeated utterance.

15d Issue patch with internal binary value flipped (5)
{FRUIT} – A word for issue (as offspring) comes from the reversal of a word meaning patch or manor inside which is put one of the binary numbers (0 or 1).

16d Confronted with unstimulating drink, got up (5)
{FACED} – A word for confronted comes from the reversal of the name of a drink from which caffeine has been removed.

18d Perhaps Dutch collector’s gambit is scuppered (8)
{BIGAMIST} – A word for a person who collects a number of wives (Dutch collector) is an anagram (scuppered) of gambit is.

19d Matted lint clogs heckle but it goes fast (8)
{JETLINER} – A word for a fast means of transport comes from an anagram (matted) of lint inside a four letter word meaning heckle. For those wondering about the surface reading of this clue, the verb to heckle is to comb out flax or linen and the iron toothed brush used to do so is also referred to as a heckle.

21d Map-makers following track’s pitiable quality (6)
{PATHOS} – A word describing a pitiable quality comes from a word for a track followed by the abbreviation for Ordnance Survey (map-makers).

22d Rag day organised to make sense of Orientation? (6)
{GAYDAR} – An anagram of rag day gives an informal term used to describe someone who can reputedly tell a persons sexual orientation.

26d Compressed mass is about kinetic energy (4)
{CAKE} – A word for a compressed mass comes from the abbreviations for about and kinetic energy.

27d Stately edifice rising third (4)
{DOME} – This stately edifice (a hit in Xanadu but a flop in Greenwich) comes from the two musical notes in a rising third.