Toughie 1148

Toughie No 1148 by Dada

Hints and tips by Bufo

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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***

Another disappointingly easy puzzle from Dada. It was only a slight hold-up in the NE corner that prevented me awarding it * for difficulty

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Across

8a    Town’s free to build national park (3,6)
{NEW FOREST} An anagram (to build) of TOWN’S FREE

10a    Pub is the wrong way — what to enter? (5)
{REHAB} A reversal of a pub goes round ‘what!’. The answer is what you might enter if you had been drinking far too much in the pub

11a    Exciting broad getting warmer in bed (8,7)
{ELECTRIC BLANKET} Exciting + broad (applying generally or covering all cases) = something that keeps you warm in bed

12a    Holiday destination serving meat wrapped in sheep’s tongue? (7)
{BAHAMAS} Meat from a pig goes inside noises that sheep make

13a    Remove more cut edges (7)
{EXTRACT} More + the first and last letters (edges) of CuT

15a    Pressure is far off around commercial district for Australian holidaymakers (7,8)
{SURFERS’ PARADISE} An anagram (off) of PRESSURE IS FAR round a commercial gives an area of the Gold Coast in Queensland

19a    River bug, most affected (7)
{CAMPEST} The river that flows through one of our university towns + a bug

22a    Defensive line sees dog jumping from aeroplane? (7)
{PARAPET} When split (4,3) it might describe a dog (or a cat) jumping from an aeroplane

24a    Fast food a smashing thing in military accommodation (7-8)
{QUARTER-POUNDERS} Hamburgers sold by McDonald’s = a smashing thing inside military accommodation

26a    Hand out each book (5)
{ALLOT} ‘Each’ + a part of the Bible

27a    Break two points in embankments by explosion, primarily (9)
{ELEVENSES} A morning break for tea and biscuits = E (first letter of explosion) + two points of the compass inside ’embankments,

Down

1d    A little frustration certainly in the past (4)
{ONCE} Hidden in frustratiON CErtainly

2d    Titania’s desire in bed (6)
{BOTTOM} 2 meanings: the mechanical in A Midsummer Night’s Dream that Titania falls in love with / a bed (base)

3d    Information one employs for great minds (8)
{GENIUSES} Information + I (one) + ’employs’

4d    Horses / far from bats? (6)
{STABLE} 2 meanings: a set of horses kept together / far from bats (mentally sound)

5d    Macerate awfully posh food (5,3)
{CREAM TEA} An anagram (awfully) of MACERATE

6d    Item of footwear — one of six usually for a sportsman and his horse? (6)
{CHUKKA} 2 meanings: A type of ankle-length boot / a period of play (usually one of six) in polo

7d    The last word in disappointment for an angler? (4)
{OBIT} This last word is written after someone has died. The disappointment for the angler is that nothing (O) nibbled at the bait

9d    If a British obsession, it’s talked about (7)
{WHETHER} A homophone of what the British are said to always talk about

12d    Degree thus vital (5)
{BASIC} A first degree + thus (Latin)

14d    Aim of babies to grab back of door handle (5)
{TREAT} That part of its mother’s anatomy that a baby attaches itself to goes round R (last letter of door)

16d    Gummy old politician, name associated with art (8)
{EDENTATE} A term describing animals with no teeth = a prime minister of the 1950s + the name of an art gallery

17d    Funny shape, old plant (8)
{ASPHODEL} An anagram (funny) of SHAPE OLD = a plant of the lily family

18d    Influence the demon queen? (7)
{IMPRESS} the answer means ‘to influence’. Take a word for a queen and change the first letter. The first three letters now spell out a demon and so you could consider the whole word as a fanciful term for a demon queen

20d    Contemptibly small and spotty (6)
{MEASLY} 2 meanings: contemptibly small / infected with a certain disease and so covered with spots

21d    One often getting stuffed, a failure (6)
{TURKEY} 2 meanings: one often getting stuffed (though each one of these only ever gets stuffed once) / a play, film, etc. that is a complete failure

23d    One calling for a double (6)
{RINGER} 2 meanings yet again: One calling (on the telephone) / a double (as in dead ******)

24d    Dock crucial, by the sound of it (4)
{QUAY} A homophone of ‘crucial’

25d    Average brat, and getting expelled (2-2)
{SO-SO} Remove (expel) AND from a brat (2-3-2)

I’m still awaiting a real toughie Toughie from Dada