Toughie 751

Toughie No 751 by Warbler

Goodbye!

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

If you are in Scotland (or lots of other places!) and have been given Toughie 758 by mistake, drop me a line and I’ll send you a pdf of today’s puzzle!

The puzzle published as Toughie 758 is now available online as GK 7588 – available via latest puzzles.

Warbler has given us the usual fairly easy start to the Toughie week. There are two sets of answers which are linked to 14 across and 19 down respectively.

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Across

1a    Criticise faulty camera in airline (3,8)
{PAN AMERICAN} – start with a verb meaning to criticise and then add an anagram (faulty) of CAMERA IN to get this defunct airline

9a    Biblical priest with power as a form of protection (5)
{APRON} – start with a biblical priest, the older brother of Moses, and insert a P(ower) instead of the second A to get a form of protection from dirt

10a    Reptile family’s finally flourishing with firm support (4,5)
{KING COBRA} – this reptile comes from a charade of family (3), the final letter of flourishinG, a firm or business (2) and a female support garment

11a    Canoe adrift encounters a lot of ice wide as the sea (7)
{OCEANIC} – an anagram (adrift) of CANOE followed by a lot of IC€ gives an adjective meaning wide as the sea

12a    Old carriage makes erratic circle around the outskirts of Uttoxeter (8)
{CURRICLE} – to get this old two-wheeled open chaise, drawn by two horses abreast, put an anagram (erratic) of CIRCLE around the outside letters (outskirts) of UttoxeteR

14a    See you! In autumn we’re moving (8)
{FAREWELL} – this word meaning “see you!” is derived by putting another word for Autumn (in America) around an anagram (moving) of WE’RE

15a    Deposit losing all rights of 14 (2-2)
{TA-TA} – start with a deposit of calcium phosphate and other matter on the teeth and drop (losing) the R(ight)s to get another way of saying 14 across

17a    Encourages transfers to another post (7)
{SECONDS} – a double definition – verbs meaning encourages or backs and a transfers to another post or position

19a    French article follows state in 14 (4)
{VALE} – the French definite article follows the abbreviation of a US state to get a way of saying 14 across in Ancient Rome

20a    Catastrophic pay cuts involve hardships essentially for weak fellow (5-3)
{PUSSY-CAT} – put an anagram (catastrophic) of PAY CUTS around (involve) the final letter (essentially) of hardshipS to get a weak fellow

21a    Special male adult’s taken in by helpful member of gang maybe (8)
{SKINHEAD} – start with S(pecial) and then put the male pronoun and A (adult as a film classification) inside (taken in by) an adjective meaning helpful to get someone who may be a member of a gang

23a    Insects covering enclosure leave (7)
{LICENCE} – put some insects around ENC(losure) to get leave or permission

25a    With cold, old stains spoiled panels (9)
{WAINSCOTS} – an anagram (spoiled) of W(ith) C(old) O(ld) STAINS gives these panels on an interior wall

26a    Muslim prince is consistently warm to English queen (5)
{AMEER} – to get this Muslim prince start with the even (consistently) letters of wArM and then add E(nglish) and the cypher for Queen Elizabeth

27a    In a rage American driver abandoned man in 14 (11)
{ARRIVEDERCI} – an anagram (in a rage) of A(M)ERIC(AN) DRIVER without (abandoned) the letters of MAN gives a way of saying 14 across in Italy

Down

2d    Languish in a posh 14 (5)
{ADIEU} – put a word meaning to languish or xxx between the A from the clue and a single-letter for posh to get a way of saying 14 across in France

3d    Unusually large island area in country (7)
{ALGERIA} – an anagram (unusually) of LARGE is followed by I(sland) A(rea) to get a North African country

4d    Without settling score I drive away (8)
{EXORCISE} – a two-letter prefix for without is followed by an anagram (settling) of SCORE I to give a verb meaning to drive away an evil spirit

5d    NEC quits mounted 11 for 14 (4)
{CIAO} – an anagram (mounted) of the answer to 11 across without (quits) the letters NEC gives another way of saying 14 across in Italy

6d    Description of band as bad? (8)
{NAMELESS} – the answer describes the difference between baNd and bad

7d    Country initiating senior cinematic award for Ms Annis (9)
{FRANCESCA} – a European country is followed by the initial letters of three letters in the clue to get the first name of actress Ms Annis

8d    Being stoned, hunk lacked inner energy. What an idiot! (11)
{KNUCKLEHEAD} – start with an anagram (being stoned) of HUNK LACKED and then insert (inner) E(nergy) to get an idiot

12d    Provide support for type of 19D (11)
{CATERPILLAR} – a charade of a verb meaning to provide and an architectural support gives a type of 19 down that runs on endless articulated tracks

13d    Struggles with fellow in tangled forest (7)
{EFFORTS} – these struggles are derived by inserting F(ellow) inside an anagram (tangled) of FOREST

16d    Elevated RC service location is hush-hush (3,6)
{TOP-SECRET} – reverse a Roman Catholic service, traditionally said (or chanted) at the third hour of the day (i.e. 9 a.m.), and a location to get an adjective meaning hush-hush

17d    14 for example’s willing to join Australian gunners (8)
{SAYONARA} – to get how to say 14 across in Japan start with a word meaning “for example” and follow it with a word meaning willing or xxx, A(ustralian) and the abbreviation of the regiment of gunners

18d    Trembling I faced new, ultimately supreme challenge (8)
{DEFIANCE} – an anagram (trembling) of I FACED N(ew) followed by the final letter (ultimately) of supremE challenge to combat

19d    See what I regularly called HGV perhaps (7)
{VEHICLE} – the abbreviation of Vide, the Latin for see, hasn’t come up for a while – follow it with an exclamation meaning “what?”, I and the odd letters (regularly) of CaLlEd to give, for example (perhaps) an HGV (or a 12 down or 22 down)

22d    Type of 19D could become very cold with the addition of carbon (5)
{ARTIC} – if this type of 19 down has C(arbon) inserted then it becomes very cold

24d    Middle of 14 overturned vessel (4)
{EWER} – start with the middle four letters of 14 across and then reverse them (overturned in a down clue) to get a large water jug with a wide spout

The high anagram count actually makes this puzzle easy to solve!