Toughie 787 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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Toughie 787

Toughie No 787 by Kcit

Hints and tips by Big Dave

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BD Rating – Difficulty **Enjoyment ***

Typical Tuesday Toughie fare from Kcit. While not trivially easy, it should be solvable by those who usually give the Toughie a wide berth.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five stars at the bottom of the post.

Across

1a    Lad and workman going around in an unpredictable path (6,4)
{RANDOM WALK} – an anagram (going around) of LAD and WORKMAN gives an unpredictable path or, according to Chambers, “a series of processes, quantities, variables, etc. following no discernible pattern”

6a    Long story recalled a very entertaining event? (4)
{SAGA} – reverse (recalled) this long story and it could be a very entertaining event (1,3)

9a    The sound of a horseman after sunset? (5)
{NIGHT} – what sounds like a man who performed mounted military service in the Middle Ages is actually the period of time that follows sunset

10a    Uninterrupted in various instances (9)
{INCESSANT} – this adjective meaning uninterrupted is an anagram (various) of INSTANCES

12a & 21a    Here’s the finest belief, I grant (extraordinary attitude towards economy) (3,4,6,2,4,3,4)
{THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE FREE} – Well done if you solved this as an anagram (extraordinary) of HERE’S THE FINEST BELIEF I GRANT rather than guessing it from the checking letters – the answer is an “attitude towards economy”

14a    Energy tax, in part withdrawn, would do for skyscraper feature (8)
{ELEVATOR} – put E(nergy) and a tax inside a part in a play reversed (withdrawn) to get a necessary feature of a skyscraper

15a    Publishing employee recalled season of reissues initially (6)
{EDITOR} – this employee of a publishing business is derived by reversing a poetic word for a season and adding the initial letters of two words in the clue

17a    Naval craft prepared? Only a section (6)
{SUBSET} – a charade of a shortened form of an underwater naval craft and a word meaning prepared gives a section of a larger group

19a    Bloke, hot in appearance, going round German city (8)
{MANNHEIM} – get your atlas out! – start with a bloke (3) and then put H(ot) inside the reversal () of an appearance to get this German city at the confluence of the Rhine and the Neckar in Baden-Württemberg, SW Germany

21a    See 12 across

24a    Circus performer bent iron metal (4-5)
{LION TAMER} – this circus performer is an anagram (bent) of IRON METAL

25a    You’ll find the reverse of it in ‘join’ (5)
{UNTIE} – take a word meaning to join and reverse the letters IT to get the reverse of to join

26a    Island’s atmosphere presented in radio feature? (4)
{SKYE} – this Scottish island sounds like (presented in radio feature) the atmosphere

27a    Old cut in middle of winter could be chronic (10)
{INVETERATE}- start with a word meaning old, as in an old soldier, and drop the final letter (cut) and then put what’s left inside the internal letters (middle) of wINTEr to get an adjective meaning chronic

Down

1d    Fifth execution of program producing mysterious character (4)
{RUNE} – split as (3,1) this could be the fifth execution of a program bit it’s actually a mysterious character based on the futhork or ancient Germanic alphabet

2d    Close to fastening item of lingerie (7)
{NIGHTIE} – a charade of a word meaning close to and a fastening gives an item of lingerie – eat your heart out Gazza!

3d    Apparently where a clock’s hands are located (2,3,4,2,2)
{ON THE FACE OF IT} – this phrase meaning apparently also describes where a clock’s hands are located

4d    Hard squeezing into end of shoe, laid up after little blistering (5-3)
{WHITE-HOT} – put H(ard) into the front end of a shoe, reverse the lot and put a four-letter word meaning a little on the front to get an adjective meaning blistering

5d    Literature includes one chapter following the rules (5)
{LICIT} – put LIT(erature) around (includes) I (one) and C(hapter) to get an adjective meaning following the rules

7d    Not supporting rise in tax mostly limiting profits (7)
{AGAINST} – an adjective meaning not supporting is derived by reversing (rise in a down clue) most of TA(X) around (limiting) profits

8d    Blast of steam ruins medicinal substances (10)
{ANTISERUMS} – an anagram (blast) of STEAM RUINS gives these medicinal substances

11d         Enjoying misfortune, hence sad, conflicted when probed by psychologist (13)
{SCHADENFREUDE} – the malicious pleasure in the misfortunes of others is derived from an anagram (conflicted) of HENCE SAD around (when probed by) a famous psychologist

13d         Poetry, including excellent lines depicting palace (10)
{VERSAILLES} – put some poetry, in the plural, around the two-letter abbreviation for excellent  and a couple of L(ine)s to get a palace south-west of Paris

16d         Acre dug up without charge — that should make you happy (8)
{CAREFREE} – an anagram (dug up) of ACRE is followed by an adjective meaning without charge to get the feeling that should make you happy

18d         Element of coastline around lake: study ledge (7)
{BALCONY} – put a inlet of the sea  (element of coastline) around L(ake) and a verb meaning to study to get a ledge

20d         Pick artist that’s portrayed Greek heroine (7)
{ELECTRA} – a charade of a verb meaning to pick and the usual artist gives this Greek heroine

22d         Promoters promoting American amongst German women (2-3)
{AD-MEN} – to get these promoters start with the German for women and “promote” the A(merican) by moving it to the start of the word

23d         Present poster failing to stick (4)
{HERE} – a word that can be spoken to indicate one is present at a gathering is derived by dropping the AD (poster) from a verb meaning to stick

Sorry for the delay, but my internet connection vanished for about an hour.

18 comments on “Toughie 787

  1. Workmanlike puzzle from todays setter, last one in 17a favourites 1d 4d and 27a thanks to Kcit and to Big Dave for the comments.

  2. No real problems in this one; last one in was 4d, and 11d was a new word to me.
    Thanks to Kcit for a nice puzzle, and to BD for the review.

  3. Nice start to the Toughie week, started off thinkiing it would be diffficult., got to the downs and was away. Lots of lovely penny dropping moments. Thanks to Kcit and BD.

  4. Almost did it again! Couldn’t “see” 1A or !D until I read the hints –thank you B.D. The rest fell into place and gave me much pleasure, thank you Kcit for being my Monday hero!!

  5. A fine start to the Toughie week in my opinion. I came to this late (lunch) then finished it off on the Train with the last two across clues holding out for a bit. Thanks to Kcit and to BD!

  6. Two pretty straightforward toughies on the trot now from the backward tick. Enjoyable all the same though.

  7. Thanks to Kcit and Big Dave. I actually found this in the doable bracket, ended up four answers short , needed three hints as I got one from the checkers. Very entertaining , favourite was 12&21 across. Had g-string for 2d at one point :-)

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