Sunday Toughie No 88 by
Robyn
Review by Sloop John Bee
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This puzzle was published on the 1st of October 2023
Across
7a Represented Macbeth, say, with ease, considering the circumstances (2,3,4,3,2)
AS THE CASE MAY BE; I am supposed to hint at the first clue but it is an anagram indicated by (represented), of three of the next four MACBETH SAY with EASE, to fit the definition considering the circumstances
9a Wee drop of Drambuie, then four in 60 seconds (10)
DIMINUTIVE; Drop all bar the initial letter of Drambuie, then put a Roman four in a period of 60 seconds D + 1MINUT(IV)E DIMINUTIVE or WEE
11a Little boy creating current agitation (4)
EDDY; An agitation in the current, also a diminutive or little name for boys named Edward or Edmund
12a He perhaps has dip from the east (3)
GAS; He perhaps is a definition by example, but He is not the nominative pronoun, rather the chemical symbol for Helium, take a synonym of dip (SAG) and reverse it (from the east in an across clue) and although you may be thinking of a bloke who has overindulged on the Refried-Beans it is the state of He or similar at normal temperatures
13a Jack Anthony Fitzgerald who sang dance tune (10)
TARANTELLA; Three bits of Lego here, start with another Jack or Sailor TAR, add a diminutive name of someone whose forename is Anthony ANT (McPartlin perhaps) and finish with ELLA a Fitzgerald who sang
16a Get back from market with rug (4)
TWIG; The back of market and the sort of rug that is used to conceal baldness – I get it now!
17a Creative, impractical and rather risqué broadcaster (4-3)
BLUE-SKY;The kind of creative but ultimately impractical thinking that comes from combining risqué or BLUE jokes and a satellite broadcaster SKY
18a Did water sport around middle of lido in Split (7)
DIVIDED; The past tense of a water sport that Tom Daley is known for DIVED, around the middle letters of lido ID, The capitalisation of Split is deceptive
20a Mount Everest and then Niagara on vacation (4)
ETNA; The mountain and the waterfall when vacated give us a different mountain EveresT and NiagarA leaves ETNA
21a E.g. pages in books covered with data sent out (10)
ATTENDANTS; Another definition by example, an anagram of DATA SENT around a collection of biblical books NT
23a Does this suggest singular rather than plural refusals? (3)
NOS; The absence of a certain letter NO ESS, usually indicates the singular, here we have the plural to indicate several refusals or NOS
24a A Wimbledon favourite spotted speaking incorrectly? (4)
SEED; How someone whose grammar is not yet perfect may say the adjective spotted
25a Criminal errs, a woman PC’s possible extortioner (10)
RANSOMEWARE; An anagram (criminal) of ERRS A WOMAN PC here is a Personal Computer rather than a Police Constable
28a A faff after a military corps defends attack very well (2,3,2,1,6)
AS FIT AS A FIDDLE; A from the clue, a military corps S A S around an attack or convulsion FIT, all followed by the other A from the clue and a synonym of faff FIDDLE
Down
1d E.g. Moscow correspondent’s writings in USSR, say (7,7)
CAPITAL LETTERS; Two definitions by example here (E.g. and say), What Moscow was to the former USSR, and the writings of a correspondent are the form of script used in the abbreviation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
2d Dig up tree from the south, oddly missing needles here (4)
ETUI; Remove the odd letters from the first three words and reverse them (from the south in a down clue) Such an old favourite place for needles that I don’t think this is a candidate for THE LIST
3d The two of us, informally, giving option list (4)
MENU; An informal way of saying the two of us ME ‘N YOU give us the options list for dining or computer dropdowns MENU
4d Queen American philosopher interrupts roughly (7)
CAMILLA; A for American and an English philosopher and politician John Stuart MILL, who according to Monty Python, of his own free will on half a pint of shandy was particularly ill, goes in (interrupts) one of our usual roughly or about’s CA
5d Fate of poor team helping to overwhelm English cricket side (10)
RELEGATION; E for English and one of the sides in cricket LEG, go into a helping or allowance RATION, Leeds United’s fate last season
6d Least colourful painter entertains popular composer (10)
PALESTRINA; The letters that a painter who is shown at the Royal Academy may use RA, contains (entertains) a hip synonym of popular IN, follow something that is the least colourful or PALEST to give us an Italian composer of the Renaissance A Tad obscure but all the YouTube links plaster his name everywhere you may have to resort to Mr Google
8d Plot by politicians creating fictions after retiring (7,7)
BEDTIME STORIES; More Lego – The plot that you may grow roses in BED, a mathematical synonym of by TIMES and an informal name for politicians that lean to the right TORIES, are the fictions you may read after retiring for the night
10d Woman kept in order? Not a single one, it’s said (3)
NUN; A homophone (it’s said) of not a single one, I am not sure I pronounce NONE and NUN the same, close but no cigar
14d Port Bezos’s assistant consumes along with fruit, occasionally (10)
ALEXANDRIA; The virtual assistant that Jeff Bezos developed for Amazon ALEXA, around, a conjunction for along with AND, and occasional letters of fruit R I, give us the largest Mediterranean port city ALEX(AND)(RI)A
15d Presume working at a desk involves dealing with admin, primarily (4,2,4)
TAKE AS READ; A preposition for dealing with or concerning RE, the primary letter of admin A, and an anagram of (working) AT A DESK
19d Irrelevant current message about BoJo, say (7)
ETONIAN; Another Definition by example – An abbreviation for irrelevant N/A, the physics symbol for current I, and a brief message NOTE, are reversed (about) to define someone who attended the same school as Boris Johnson an old ETONIAN
22d Vocally curse woman who has children (3)
DAM; A mother who has children (usually horses or cattle) is a homophone (vocally) of a mild curse word DAMN becomes DAM
26d Drop writing implement taken from Open University (4)
OMIT; Remove the writing implement from Open, and add an abbreviated American University in Cambridge The Massachusetts Institute of Technology or M.I.T.
27d Makes vows in the middle of the working week (4)
WEDS; An abbreviated day in the middle of the week WEDneSday, also makes vows at a marriage or WEDS