Toughie 718

Toughie No 718 by Firefly

Hints and tips by Tilsit

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

Greetings from the Calder Valley. Our Friday Fiend is Firefly who has produced an interesting and challenging puzzle that will delight some, and perhaps infuriate others. I found it more enjoyable than some of his recent offerings but I found a couple of clues that could only be solved once I had the answer, which isn’t the point of a crossword, as far as I am aware, in other words a bit too clever for their own good. I’d be interested to see if anyone managed to solve 12 across without getting all the intersecting letters. Lots of clever surface readings but again the odd one that doesn’t quite work for me.

I looked around for a theme, or a Nina, especially given the grid used, but couldn’t see anything other than a linked clue.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post. Favourite clues are shown in blue.

Across

7a    Ken Littlehill, we hear, is ‘nervous’ (9)
{KNOWLEDGE] This was one of those clues I mentioned that I solved the clue after I got the answer. All over the country Kenneth Littlehills (if any exist) are thrilled they are the subject of a crossword clue. A word that means “ken” is found by taking a homophone (indicated by “we hear”) for a small hill (think of the expression ‘grassy ____’) . To complete the clue you need an expression that means nervous, i.e. “on ___” with the ‘on’ being used to tell you to add it to the homophone. Are you with me? Then please explain it to me!

8a    Rover! Not so daft! (5)
{NOMAD} A word for someone who is a rover or wanderer is found by taking a word that means the same as the expression ‘not so’, and adding a word meaning daft.

10a    Seal’s resting, head hidden, in rocky situation (6)
{SIGNET} Something that means a ring that is used for sealing documents is an anagram of RESTING, minus its first letter (head hidden)

11a    Arms manufacturer’s comfortable in retrospect with broadcast fiction (8)
{GUNSMITH} The name for someone who make arms and weapons is found by reversing a word for comfy and warm, and adding a homophone (indicated by broadcast) for a fable or fiction.

12a    Yank in St Paul’s briefly, perhaps? (6)
{WRENCH} I defy anyone to solve this without the intersecting letters. St Paul’s could be described briefly by splitting the answer as (4,2) which gives a yank or pull

14a    Binding contracts kaput; Teesside … (6)
{PUTTEE} Something I know only too well, as those who know me will confirm! The name, derived from Hindi, of a type of knee to toe bandage is hidden in “kaput, Teesside”

16a    … waste-yard odour regularly borders on mishap (4)
{DUMP} The name for a waste – yard is revealed by taking alternative letters from ODOUR and adding the end letters (borders) of MISHAP

17a    Trail for ‘The Sopranos’ upsetting — feverishly hasten to remove (5)
{SPOOR} Another clue similar to 10ac. Take a word meaning ‘hasten (shouldn’t this be hastened?) Drop the assorted letters (feverishly … to remove) of HASTEN from THE SOPRANOS and then rearrange what’s left (upsetting) to get a scientific word for a trail or track of an animal.

18a & 19a    His 7 is essential charge on International club (4.6)
{TAXI DRIVER} In London, one of these people needs 7 ac to carry out his job, a colloquial expression that refers to the information base he needs. A word for a charge is added to I (international) and to this goes a type of golf club.

19a    See 18 across

21a    Scorer’s name announced (6)
{HANDEL} A famous composer (writer of scores) with the name Georg Frederick is a homophone for the colloquial word for a name or title.

24a    Holder’s last in group to enter account after break-up (8)
{OCCUPANT} Nothing to do with the band Slade. The word for a holder or possessor is an anagram of ACCOUNT with P (last in group) inside.

26a    Aim for snake, with exasperation (6)
{ASPIRE} A type of snake, associated with Cleopatra, is added to something that means exasperation or anger to give a word that refers to aim or hope.

27a    Number one college — Trinity — unoccupied (5)
{UNITY} A word for an individual, as in ‘looking after number one’, is found by taking an abbreviation for a further education establishment and then taking the ends (unoccupied) of TRINITY
and adding them.

28a    Boris cops perfidious snitch (9)
{PROBOSCIS} An anagram (indicated by perfidious) of BORIS COPS gives you a word for a part of the body for which ‘snitch’ is a slang word.

Down

1d           BBC head’s departing for free (5)
{UNTIE}   A word meaning to free is found by taking the colloquial nickname for the BBC and removing the first letter

2d           Carry off Prince in finest aircraft (4-4)
{TWIN-PROP}   Something that means to carry off something is added to PR (abbreviation for  Prince) and this goes in something that means best or finest.  Altogether this gives a type of aircraft.

3d           Greek currency soared, we hear, subject to … (6)
{LEPTON}   Think this should have had ‘old or former’ at the start of it as the currency is no longer in use.  A homophone for jumped or soared (upwards) is added to a short word meaning ‘subject to’ or  ‘about’.  This gives you the name of the former Greek currency.

4d           … a constant outlay upfront — government on tenterhooks (4)
{AGOG}  A short word that means on tenterhooks is found by taking A, adding to it G (a constant – gravity), plus O the first letter of OUTLAY and G (Government)

5d           Witticism from upstart male toff (3,3)
{BON MOT}  A French expression for a witticism is found by taking the name of a man (think of Thumb, O’Connor or Cruise) [or a male cat!  BD] and the name of someone well-heeled or posh.  Reverse them both for the solution.

6d           Dragon races in Elba sadly getting chop (6-3)
{BATTLE-AXE}  The name for a dragon or aggressive woman, as portrayed in film and TV by actresses like Dame Peggy Mount, is found by taking the initials of the famous Isle of Man motor cycle races and placing them inside an anagram of ELBA.  Add to this a word meaning to chop.

9d           Marksman holds up fire — pin stuck a bit (6)
{SNIPER}  Hidden back inside   FIRE PIN STUCK is a word for a marksman.

13d         Hospital rings chaplain for potent solution (5)
{HOOCH}  The word for a potent brew is found by taking H (hospital) adding OO (RINGS) and CH (CHAPLAIN).

15d         Setter’s unable to bear hints of lactose used by restaurants as sweetener (9)
{LUBRICANT}  Take the first letters (hints) of “Lactose Used By Restaurants” and add to this what the setter would say if they were unable to do something.  This gives you something euphemistically called a sweetener to make something happen.

17d         100% or 75% starkers, performing this? (6)
{STREAK}  Probably my favourite clue today.  A word, rather cryptically defined by the whole clue is found by taking the first six letters (75%) of STARKERS and rearranging them to describe something done when you are so,

18d         Very French way to sin (8)
{TRESPASS}  A word meaning to sin is found by taking the French word for ‘very’ and adding it to something that means a mountain road.

20d         Vet checking relative’s crows (6)
{VAUNTS}   Something that means to boast or crow about is found by taking V (veteran) and adding the name for your mother’s sister along with the S from ‘S.

22d         Barney’s turned out to be handy (6)
{NEARBY}   An anagram of BARNEY reveals a word meaning handy, or appropriate.

23d         Empty ex cathedra injunctions (5)
{DRAIN} A word meaning to empty is hidden inside, presumably indicated by “ex”, the clue

25d         No point in plot for ‘C’? (4)
{TORY} Drop the initial S (South) from a plot or tale to get someone whose politaical party is indicated by “C”, i.e. Conservative

Thanks to Firefly for today’s  teaser.  See you next Friday.