MPP 101 – Review

Monthly Prize Puzzle 101 – Review

October 2020

A Puzzle by Radler

 

Congratulations to our October winner– David Broatch – who wins a Telegraph Crossword Book of his choice

The instructions said:

Visible among the across solutions are the partial names of four characters and the title of the TV programme they were in. Count the instances of the letter mentioned in that title in the completed grid

The usual tricky Radler prize puzzle, not least because although I’d seen quite early on the name of one of the A Team at the bottom of the grid, I then had to struggle to solve the SW corner of the crossword in order to make sure that I’d found all the [16] instances of the letter A in the completed grid

Across

1a    Find dog unconscious on the way back (3,2)
DIG UP – A reversal (on the way back) of PUG (dog) ID (unconscious)

4a    Subject to representation (5)
TOPIC – TO (from the clue) PIC (representation)

7a    End of road for Scotland? (3)
AIM – The road to Scotland is the A1 M

9a    Top knight declared fine champion (7)
SURFACE – A homophone (declared) of SIR (knight), the abbreviation for Fine and ACE (champion)

10a    Box discovered in stable containing a head (7)
MANAGER – MANGER (box discovered in stable) ‘containing’ A (from the clue)

11a    “Confronting rumours” I said to myself (3,2,3)
EYE TO EYE – A homophone (rumours) of I, TO (from the clue) and another homophone (said) of I

12a    Fancy that, it’s a repeat! (4,2)
DÉJÀ VU – A cryptic definition

14a    Les anglais et leur boisson à Paris? (3)
THE – The English definition article is the French word for tea

16a    One ultimately can’t be bothered (3)
ATE – A (one) and the ultimate letters of can’T and bE

17a    “Sorry” means hear case for pardon (7)
AMNESTY An anagram (sorry) of MEANS and the outside letters (case) of TrY (hear)

18a    Judge requires early conclusion in perjury (3)
ELI – A Biblical Judge is obtained by taking LIE (perjury) and moving the letter at its conclusion to the front of the word

19a    Once more car outside hospital for International religious leader (3,4)
AGA KHAN – AGAIN (once more) into which is inserted KA (Ford car) and then replace the I (international) with an H (hospital)

21a    Posh person in ditch switching banks (3)
NIB – So we’ve all heard of nobs but I didn’t know nibs – switch the banks or outside letters of BIN (ditch)

23a    Quantity of unusual pistols used by one in range (3)
ALP – Hidden as a quantity of unusuAL Pistols

25a    Ruled out in place of evil (6)
FORBAD – FOR (in place of) BAD (evil)

26a    Pose by short couple performing duet (8)
ATTITUDE – AT (by) Tie (short or truncated couple) and an anagram (performing) of DUET

29a    Go back into alehouse at close, boring landlady (7)
REENTER – The ‘close’ of alehousE ‘boring’ RENTER (landlady)

30a    They dropped off fish (7)
KIPPERS – People who dropped off to sleep or fish

31a    Turn over stuff to Glaswegian (3)
TAE – The Scottish way of saying to is a reversal (turn over) of EAT (stuff)

32a    Reserved all bar last object (5)
DEMUR – DEMURe (reserved) all bar its last letter

33a    Bob’s place by the waterfront (5)
DOCKS – Bobs in the sense of cutting hair

Down

1d    Line becoming square inside (7)
DESCENT – DECENT (becoming) with S (square) inside

2d    Base of flowering hybrid rose bush (5)
GORSE – The last letter or base of flowerinG and an anagram (hybrid) of ROSE

3d    Good loan goes bad, depressing amateur player (7)
PIANOLA – PI (good) and an anagram (goes bad) of LOAN, ‘depressing’ or going on top of [in a Down solution’ A (amateur)

4d    Small American city heads slash state support first (5-5)
TEENY-WEENY – NY (New York, American city) precedes (heads) WEE (slash) NY (state) with TEE (support) going first

5d    Trainer‘s full line-out (4)
PUMP – Remove the L (line ‘out’) from PLUMP (full)

6d    Stopping studies, money to blame (7)
CONDEMN – M (money) ‘stopping’ or going between two words meaning study CON and DEN

7d    Addicts drinking e.g. rum seen guzzling a Greek drink (6,3)
AEGEAN SEA – AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) ‘drinking’ EG (from the clue) and an anagram (rum) of SEEN ‘guzzling’ A (from the clue)

8d    Freddie a little under the influence, admits copper (7)
MERCURY – MERRY (a little under the influence) ‘admits’ CU (chemical symbol for copper)

13d    I’m careful! Having removed top in dark, off with panties (10)
PAINSTAKER – Remove the ‘top’ or first letter of dark and then an anagram (off) of ARK and PANTIES will produce your solution

15d    In rear: here after first being translated (2,7)
EN ARRIERE – An anagram (being translated) of IN REAR hERE (‘after first’ indicating not to use the H)

19d    What limits space inversely and time originally (2,5)
AT FIRST – AS (what) ‘limits’ a reversal of RIFT (space) and then T (time) is added at the end

20d    Mark wrapping gift, seated in the middle (7)
HEARTED – HEED (mark) wrapping ART (gift)

22d    Kissed after Bishop made unexpected aberration (7)
BLIPPED – LIPPED (kissed) goes after B (Bishop in chess notation)

24d    Contents from power contracts (7)
PLEASES – P (power) LEASES (contracts)

27d    Sample from impure icicles of liquid waste (5)
UREIC – A sample from impURE ICicles

28d    Much amusement about haircut (4)
TRIM – A reversal (about) of much of MIRTh (amusement)

 

 

Thanks as usual to Radler and the BDs