Toughie 1052

Toughie No 1052 by Dada

A Walk in the Park

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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***

Once again I was right on Dada’s wavelength and thought that this one was probably the easiest Dada Toughie yet. There are some nice clues but I find it impossible to give more than 3 stars for enjoyment when the puzzle takes up so little time

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.

Across

9a    Couple having shaken leader getting over, one after another? (5)
{WOOER} A couple with the first letter removed + an abbreviated form of ‘over’ = someone trying to win the affection of another

10a    Model dares to go for opening in the theatre (5,4)
{STAGE DOOR} An anagram (model) of DARES TO GO

11a    Architect back in kitchen, one smoothing walls (7)
{PLANNER} The last letter of kitcheN goes inside (is walled by) someone who smooths wood

12a    Energy gained from unknown twins following high-carb diet? (7)
{PIZZAZZ} Put two occurrences of a letter that denotes an unknown quantity after a high-carb foodstuff (which you might ring up for and have delivered)

13a    Loser thus keeping count (5)
{SADDO} ‘Thus’ goes round ‘to count’

14a    Door man — or hairdresser? (9)
{LOCKSMITH} This is a workman who deals with one part of a door. It could also be a fanciful word for a hairdresser

16a    Naked dancing here, late tonight (2,3,10)
{IN THE ALTOGETHER} An anagram of HERE LATE TONIGHT

19a    Conservative denied a right, Mennonite easily shocked (9)
{SQUEAMISH} A word meaning ‘conservative’ with A R (right) removed + Mennonite

21a    Sample / one’s cup of tea? (5)
{TASTE} 2 meanings: to sample/what appeals to one

23a    Confrontation of fool by devil ending in tense deadlock (7)
{IMPASSE} Devil + fool + the last letter of tensE

25a    Why / a scolding? (4,3)
{WHAT FOR} 2 meanings: why?/a scolding

27a    Creature that’s ten-pieced? Unlikely (9)
{CENTIPEDE} An anagram (unlikely) of TEN-PIECED gives a creature made up of more than ten segments

28a    Pushing hard into second, struggling to get to Cambridge? (5)
{THICK} H (hard) goes into a second (short period of time) to give ‘not very intelligent’

Down

1d    Hands up for change! (4)
{SWAP} A reversal of ‘hands’

2d    Chicken fighting among fish (6)
{COWARD} A chicken (faint-hearted person) = fighting in a food fish

3d    One sending elderly relative to sleep, perhaps, before a dramatic performance (5,5)
{GRAND OPERA} An elderly female relative + someone who may administer a drug (and hence put someone to sleep) + A

4d    Stellar creative skills in Hollywood served up (6)
{ASTRAL} A reversal of creative skills inside the city where Hollywood is

5d    There’s a shortage in food under poor leader in Middle Eastern city — soup (8)
{GAZPACHO} Food with the last letter removed goes after P (first letter of Poor) inside a Palestinian city

6d    Live with Antipodean motor manufacturer (4)
{BENZ} ‘To live’ + Antipodean = the surname of a German engineer who was first the first person to patent an automobile

7d    Desire to embrace nation of ladies (8)
{WOMANISH} A desire goes round a Middle-Eastern nation

8d    He brave — or she, it’s suggested? (5,5)
{CRAZY HORSE} A Sioux military leader . The second word is an anagram of OR SHE and the first word is an anagram indicator

13d    Application of needle, mistake that’s painful (4,6)
{SLIP STITCH} A mistake + a sharp pricking pain in the side

15d    Terrible waste, useless garment (10)
{SWEATPANTS} An anagram (terrible) of WASTE + useless

17d    Terrific / beating (8)
{THUMPING} 2 meanings: terrific/beating

18d    One hanging around Queens, one among great number further north? (8)
{LOITERER} Two occurrences of the abbreviation denoting our queen go after I inside a great number

20d    Wolf’s big mistake (6)
{HOWLER} Something or someone that makes a noise like a wolf

22d    Architectural feature has gone in place (6)
{SOFFIT} ‘Gone’ goes inside ‘to place’

24d    Go with one of four (4)
{SUIT} One of the four divisions of a pack of cards

26d    Debauched type, toothy thing? (4)
{RAKE} 2 meanings: a debauched man/a garden implement with teeth

I look forward to the day when I have a tough Dada Toughie to solve.