MPP 118 – Review

Monthly Prize Puzzle No 118 – Review

March 2022

Mates by Phibs

Phibs said: I wanted to include eight pairs of similarly linked items in the grid, but two of the sixteen had to be hidden slightly differently from the rest. Which are they?

I noticed fairly early on in the solving process that there were pairs of male and female animals (mates) appearing in the solutions: COB and PEN; COCK and HEN; COW and BULL; BOAR and SOW; STAG and HIND; EWE and RAM; MARE and STALLION; TOM and QUEEN. The majority of them appear as part of a solution, but STALLION and QUEEN both appear as part of crossing solutions, in 7d/22d and 19a/21a so these were the ‘differently hidden’ items that were the answer to be submitted.

Congratulations to Jepi – this month’s winner of a Telegraph Crossword Book of their choice

Across

1 NA tribe once regularly repulsed dangerous reptile (5)
COBRA – The letters found regularly in a reversal (repulsed) of nA tRiBe OnCe

4 Initially Brown and partner landing large contraption in reservoir (8)
BALLCOCK – The initial letter of Brown and his partner in the early days of manned flight – ALCOCK – into which is inserted (landing) L (large)

8 Frittering away salary entertaining a vacuous starlet (7)
WASTAGE – WAGE (salary) ‘entertaining’ A (from the clue) and the outside (vacuous) letters of StarleT

9 Absurd lies and contradictions (7)
DENIALS – An anagram (absurd) of LIES AND

11 Deplores guidelines lacking latitude (4)
RUES – RulES without the L (lacking [the abbreviation for] Latitude)

12 What stops Julian being Julia soon afterwards? (4)
THEN – What stops Julian being Julia is, of course, THE N

13 Following where M4 takes Englishman delivering ales (2,3)
IN TOW – The M4 would take an Englishman INTO Wales – ‘delivering’ telling you to omit the ALES

14 Block dating app husband opens for short time (6)
HINDER – Change the T (short or abbreviated time) at the start of TINDER (dating app) and replace with H (husband)

16 Order book about enthralling origin of unusual slug (6)
BULLET – TELL (order) and B (book) reversed (about) and then ‘enthralling’ the ‘origin’ of Unusual

19 Answer question in largely accessible cryptic (6)
OPAQUE – A (answer)and QU (question) inserted into most of (largely) OPEn (accessible)

21 Paint sample from possible Manet sent back (6)
ENAMEL – Hidden in reverse (sample … sent back) in possibLE MANEt

24 Take every pass (5)
REACH – R (take) EACH (every)

25 Substantial draught ultimately dislodges hairpiece (4)
SWIG – The ultimate letter of dislodgeS and WIG (hairpiece)

26 Great work as far as Phibs is concerned? (4)
TOME – TO ME (as far as Phibs is concerned)

28 Dines out, devouring a river fish (7)
SARDINE – An anagram (out) of DINES ‘devouring’ A (from the clue) and R (river)

29 Apart from backtracking, one’s devious (7)
EVASIVE – A reversal (backtracking) of SAVE (apart from) followed by IVE (one has)

30 Accepted millions don’t drink ordinary liqueur (8)
AMARETTO – A (accepted) M (millions) ARE TT (don’t drink) O (ordinary)

31 Gather Prince consented to embracing American (5)
PLEAT – P (Prince) LET (consented to) ’embracing’ A (American)

Down

1 Eccentric fellow crossing duck with chicken (6)
COWARD – CARD (eccentric fellow) ‘crossing’ O (duck in cricket scoring) W (with)

2 Solicit second rate cheese spread (7)
BESEECH – B (second rate) and an anagram (spread) of CHEESE

3 One on the lookout drops right off (4)
AWAY – A (one) WA[r]Y (on the lookout) ‘drops’ R (right)

4 Brent erupting about HR backing for Office colleagues (8)
BRETHREN – An anagram (erupting) of BRENT goes about HR (from the clue) and the ‘backing’ for officE

5 Packed Hollywood hideaway? (5)
LADEN – LA (Los Angeles, the home of Hollywood) DEN (hideaway)

6 Against wearing uniform introduced by corporation – it’s seamless (9)
CONTINUUM – CON (against) and IN (wearing) U (Uniform in the NATO Phonetic Alphabet) ‘introduced’ into TUM (corporation)

7 Adjoining main street, area bordered by very old wood? (7)
COASTAL– ST (street) and A (area) ‘bordered’ by COAL (very old wood!)

10 SA township extremely damp, essentially flooded (6)
SOWETO – SO WET (extremely damp) and the essential letter of floOded

15 Check set up to catch anything more risqué (9)
NAUGHTIER – A reversal (set up) of REIN (check) to ‘catch’ AUGHT (anyting)

17 Puts up panels (6)
BOARDS – Double definition

18 Confused re oath in Hamlet perhaps (4-4)
ANTI-HERO – An anagram (confused) of RE OATH IN

20 Result of a large naked man running amok? (7)
ANAGRAM – A (from the clue) following by an ANAGRAM (running amok) of the inside (naked) letters of lARGe and MAN

22 Honour Luxembourg international, one breaking into French XI (7)
LIONIZE – L (IVR code for Luxembourg) I (international) and I (one) ‘breaking into’ ONZE (the French word for eleven – XI)

23 Most recent amalgamation of the Yorkshire Ridings? (6)
NEWEST – The Yorkshire Ridings are North, East and West – so amalgamated they are N E WEST

25 Consumed odds and ends from outside Indian restaurant (5)
SPENT – SP (Starting Price, odds) and the ‘ends’ from outsidE IndiaN restauranT

27 One’s inclined to stomp but not tango (4)
RAMP – tRAMP – stomp without the T (Tango in the NATO Phonetic Alphabet) – I’m not sure whether the sheep are in a ménage à trois, but the EWE in 23a appears to have two ‘mates’ in the solutions, here and in 20d

Many thanks once again to Phibs and to the BDs