Big Dave's Crossword Blog

Toughie No 1368 by Osmosis

Rockin ‘n’ Rollin’

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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **

There were rather too many (five of each, highlighted in yellow below) first/last letter constructs to lift the enjoyment level of this otherwise competent puzzle.

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Across

1a    I’m afraid adverse vision restricts Charlie dressing (5,5)
SALAD CREAM: the reversal (adverse) of a four-letter word meaning “I’m afraid” or “regrettably” is followed by a vision around (restricts) the letter represented by Charlie in the NATO Phonetic alphabet

6a    Domestic entrance shortened (4)
CHAR: drop the final letter (shortened) from a verb meaning to entrance

9a    Centre of exhibition consumed music fan escorted by bird (4,6)
TATE MODERN: a verb meaning consumed or ingested and a sixties music fan, one who typically rode a scooter, inside (indicated weakly as escorted by) a bird

10a    Standard‘s left — bother to pick it up? (4)
FLAG: L(eft) inside (to pick it up) a bother or nuisance

12a    Stars lacking one figure of worship (4)
ARES: drop (lacking) the I (one) from a constellation (stars) to get the Greek God of War

13a    Self-proclaimed soldier not fanciful (9)
IMAGINARY: a self-proclaimed US soldier (1’1,1,2) followed by a dialect word meaning not

15a    At festival site, one creates powerful punch (8)
HAYMAKER: the site of a literary festival followed by a noun meaning one who creates

16a    Extremists in Greenwich start to incite popular leader (6)
GANDHI: the outer letters (extremists) of G[reenwic]H, expressed as (1,3,1) followed by the initial letter of (start to) I[ncite]

18a    Accountant and lawyer the latest in company to drop in (4,2)
CALL BY: a Scottish (or Canadian) Chartered Accountant followed by a legal qualification and the final letter (latest) of [company]Y

20a    Aquatic life centre in acres, open space around cafe oddly lacking (3,5)
RED ALGAE: the middle letter (centre) of [ac]R[es] followed by the reversal (around) of an open space or clearing and [c]A[f]E without (lacking) its odd letters

23a    Thief‘s monetary handout grabbed by criminal baron (9)
BANDOLERO: a monetary handout to the unemployed inside (grabbed by) an anagram (criminal) of BARON

24a    ID of evasive revolutionary (4)
VISA: hidden (of) and reversed (revolutionary) inside the clue

26a    Vehicle service contract’s ending (4)
RAFT: a military service followed by the final letter (ending) of [contrac]T

27a    Gran joins ritual dancing involving three people? (10)
TRIANGULAR: an anagram (dancing) of GRAN with RITUAL

28a    Educational institution‘s security device (4)
YALE: two definitions

29a    Don, Sheffield’s foremost river in which triathletes swim (10)
SPORTSWEAR: a verb meaning to don or display followed by the initial letter (foremost) of S[heffield] and a river in the North East of England

Down

1d    Retreat outside in sunshine and dry (4)
SETT: the outer letters of S[unshin]E followed by an abbreviation meaning dry or abstemious

2d    To stop bug, computer department provides service (7)
LITURGY: inside (to stop) an alternative spelling of Spike Milligan’s favourite bug put the two-letter abbreviation for the computer department to get a service in church

3d    Large-scale survey some organised during critical time on reserve (8,4)
DOMESDAY BOOK: an anagram (organised) of SOME inside (during) a critical time, especially 6 June 1944 in WWII, followed by a verb meaning to reserve

4d    Paper’s stern editors, holding nothing back, checked thus? (3-5)
RED-LINED: the final letter (stern) of [pape]R followed by a pair of ED(itor)s around (holding) the reversal (back) of a three-letter word meaning nothing

5d    Display appropriate cushion (6)
AIRBAG: a charade of verbs meaning to display and to appropriate or steal

7d    Rope that’s eighteen inches when foot’s added? (7)
HALYARD: split this answer as (3,4) and add F(oot) to the first part and the result measures up to eighteen inches

8d    School providing reflective singlet curtailed game (5,5)
RUGBY FIVES: the school where this game was first played followed by the reversal (reflective) of a two-letter word meaning providing and a singlet without its final letter (curtailed)

11d    Gambler seen here sticks with six, five and a picture of the King? (4,3,5)
VIVA LAS VEGAS: the US city that is a magnet for gamblers preceded by the Roman numerals for six and five and the A from the clue to get a picture / film that starred Elvis Presley, the King of Rock’n’Roll

14d    Rock ‘n’ roller‘s fling with X being bound to slip up (5,5)
CHUCK BERRY: this rock ‘n’ roller, nicknamed Crazy Legs, is derived from a fling or throw followed by the two-letter word that that X can represent in mathematics around (bound) a verb meaning to slip up or make a mistake

17d    Courteous and elegant, dressed up to attract upstanding Scot (8)
DEBONAIR: the reversal (up in a down clue) of an adjective meaning dressed or clothed around the reversal (upstanding, also in a down clue) of a typical Scottish forename

19d    Learners going about martial arts class topless getting much fresh air? (7)
LUNGFUL: a pair of L(earner)s around a martial art (4,2) without its initial letter (topless)

21d    Ballet shoe’s binding, during breather, examined primarily (7)
GISELLE: the outer letters (binding) of S[ho]E inside the respiratory organ of fish (breather) and followed by the initial letter (primarily) of E[xamined]

22d    Soldier on bar doing pull-up receives appreciation (4,2)
BEAR UP: the reversal (doing pull-up) of a bar or inn around (receives) some appreciation or attention

25d    Indication of iciness from head of Biology — pupils soon learn this? (4)
BRRR: the initial letter (head) of B[iology] followed by the three-letter abbreviation for academic studies

Watch out for an announcement about Sloggers and Betters 12 – coming soon!