Toughie 2847 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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Toughie 2847

Toughie No 2847 by Beam

Hints and tips by Gazza

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

Beam is being particularly gentle with us today – I got through this one faster than I solved the back-pager. Thanks to him for the enjoyment.

Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you thought of the puzzle.

Across Clues

7a Prospect in waterway containing gold (8)
PANORAMA: a well-known waterway contains a tincture of gold.

9a Fish from Billingsgate perhaps going off? (6)
ERRING: a silvery fish as a Cockney would pronounce it. Billingsgate is the name of the London fish market currently sited in Canary Wharf.

10a Theatrical  group (4)
CAMP: double definition, the second being a faction.

11a Nosed around, over cocky, having grounds? (10)
PROPERTIED: a verb meaning nosed or was a busybody contains the cricket abbreviation for ‘over’ and an adjective meaning cocky or brazen.

12a Life line? (6)
CAREER: cryptic definition of one’s long-term profession.

14a Embroiled in disaster is known star (8)
ASTERISK: hidden.

15a Good view from French tower, reportedly (6)
EYEFUL: this sounds like a famous Parisian landmark.

17a Colour of cherry in seed, oddly (6)
CERISE: odd letters of ‘cherry in seed’.

20a Pawn, possibly a piece (8)
PARTICLE: the chess abbreviation for pawn and what ‘a’ is an example of grammatically.

22a Producer of empty beer vessel? No! (6)
BREWER: the outer letters of beer and a sort of jug.

23a Monkeys about with allowance for divorce (10)
SEPARATION: reverse what monkeys are and add a synonym of allowance. Strictly speaking monkeys and the required primates are not that closely related.

24a Sweetheart trapping small bug (4)
PEST: another endearment for sweetheart contains the clothing abbreviation for small.

25a For accommodation, send the invoice, say (6)
BILLET: split 4,2 this sounds like what you’d say to a supplier if you didn’t want to pay for your purchase on the spot.

26a Sportsman’s first sporting, using bad language (8)
SWEARING: the first letter of sportsman and a present participle meaning sporting or donning.

Down Clues

1d Beetle has one motor at full speed (8)
CARAPACE: join together what motor is an informal word for and a literary adverb meaning ‘at full speed’.

2d Pigeon sound, quiet where pigeons live (4)
COOP: the sound a pigeon makes and the musical abbreviation for quiet. Bigger birds usually live here with a pigeon’s traditional home being a different 4-letter word.

3d Hit by musician (6)
RAPPER: charade of a verb to hit and a preposition, from Latin, meaning by or by means of.

4d Write article supporting new Ecstasy drug (8)
NEPENTHE: a verb to write and our definite article follow abbreviations for new and Ecstasy.

5d Female judge on stand employing name associate (10)
FRATERNISE: assemble the abbreviation for female, a verb to judge or assess and a verb to stand up containing the abbreviation for name.

6d Hospital department’s purchasing Queen records (6)
ENTERS: a hospital department and its S contain our Queen’s regnal cipher.

8d In France the European capital turning shameless (6)
AMORAL: stick together one of the French words for ‘the’ and a European capital (as the natives spell it) then reverse everything.

13d Level match holding United finally (10)
EVENTUALLY: an adjective meaning level and a verb to match or correspond holding an abbreviation for united.

16d Endless lunch as tea? It’s indecent! (8)
UNCHASTE: our second hidden word.

18d Service is, nevertheless, no good (8)
EVENSONG: a phrase (4,2) meaning nevertheless and the abbreviation for ‘no good’.

19d Intellectual one in class (6)
GENIUS: insert the Roman numeral for one into a taxonomic class.

21d Topping on minute unfinished tart (6)
ACETIC: an adjective meaning topping or excellent precedes a minute or small period of time without its last letter.

22d Wind up supporting British sausage (6)
BANGER: a verb to wind up or infuriate follows one of the abbreviations for British.

24d Peel and remove exterior, initially (4)
PARE: an initial letters clue.

For my podium I’ve selected 12a, 20a and 22d – which one(s) got your vote?

20 comments on “Toughie 2847

  1. Not overly tough but very enjoyable indeed from the Thursday maestro, whichever page he appears on you know it’s going to be fun.
    The excellent 12a my last one in and it takes today’s honours along with 9&10a plus 2d but runaway winner for me has to be the brilliant 20a.
    Many thanks to Beam and Gazza for the top notch entertainment.

  2. A steady solve with no real hold ups. I liked 11a, 12a and 20a.

    Thanks to Gazza and Beam.

  3. Great fun from start to finish but, to tell the truth, I wasn’t expecting anything less. It certainly wasn’t particularly tough with just a couple or so needing a bit of teasing out.

    20a was my favourite.

    Many thanks to Beam and to Gazza.

  4. Very enjoyable if perhaps a little benign for a Thursday – faves 9a and 3d. Surprised to find the monkeys supported by Chambers, as first definition no less, so my one possible quibble has to be withdrawn! Thanks Beam & Gazza

  5. Beam is always a joy whether difficult or not. Favourite was 15a. Thanks to Beam and Gazza.

  6. As Stephen commented – you know it’s going to be fun no matter which page our Thursday maestro graces.
    Podium places today going to 12,15&22a plus 22d.

    Devotions as ever to Mr T/Beam and many thanks to Gazza for the review – the cartoon about the All Day breakfast made me smile.

  7. Good puzzle, which I possibly found a little more testing overall than other commentators, spending as much time on the last four clues in the NW as on the rest combined. Having said that, a benign Bean for a Thursday and most enjoyable. Honours to 17a with special mentions to 9a, 17a and 25a.

    Many thanks to RayT and to Gazza.

  8. Just squeezed over the finishing line, held up by 3d whom I would never put in the category of “musician”! However, thanks to both Mr T and Gazza, whose parsings I will now peruse to make sure we match.

  9. Puzzle of the week for me, just wonderful stuff. A fast finish but much joy all the way through, with 1d, 11a, 20a, 10a, 15a & 5d all vying for top honours. Hard to pick a winner, so I’ll just go with the whole kit and kaboodle. A rose by any other name–Ray T or Beam–is just as sweet, so thanks to our illustrious setter and to Gazza for the review.

  10. Coming in at end of day to see what others found easy and I found impossible. I just am never on this setter’s wavelength. Surely I’m not the only one?

  11. Found it easy at first but came to a stumbling block in 3d and 12a.
    How do I know that a definition that looks like a double def is in fact cryptic?
    Agree with JB about 3d though. More a singer than a musician.
    Not being critical as I like our French resident.
    Thanks to Beam and to Gazza for the help.

    1. Hi JL
      Re 12a, cryptic or double definition….the question mark indicates that it’s the former.

  12. Lots of ticks as ever for this setter.
    9a did not come to mind very quickly so wins our top prize.
    Thanks Beam and Gazza.

    1. When I had The Garrick in Covent Garden I used to go down to the fish market in Billingsgate at 5am. Such a joy but what a hustle. Preferred to have the fish delivered after a while.

  13. A cracking Toughie from one of our favourite setters. 20a was head and shoulders ahead of the field, a terrific and clever clue. Great fun.

    Thanks to Mr T and Gazza.

  14. Morning all. With apologies for my tardiness, thanks to Gazza for the review and to all for your comments.

    RayT

  15. Just finished it over breakfast, I needed help for 3d and 23a. I suspect 18d may be an old chestnut but it was a perfect cryptic clue. I loved it. Many thanks to Beam & Gazza for entertaining an insomniac!

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