Sunday Toughie 59 (Review)

 Sunday Toughie No 59 by proXimal

Review by Sloop John Bee

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This puzzle was published on the 12th of March 2023

 

Across

1a Drawing attention to sum of money insulting nurses (12)
SPOTLIGHTING: An informal sum of money POT, goes in a synonym of insulting SLIGHTING

9a Involved in musical, director informally gossips (9)
CHITCHATS: The synonym of gossips comes from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical CATS, Around the informal nickname for the film director Alfred HITCHcock

10a Pair band has let go (5)
BRACE:.  10a comes from bracelet (band) with the LET removed.

11a Ignorant of principles, speaking to teacher in the morning? (6)
AMORAL: A spoken test to a teacher ORAL, follows AM for morning,  AMORAL to ignore morals or principles

12a Mostly calm before frenzy leading to clout (8)
LEVERAGE: Most of a five-letter synonym of calm LEVE(L) precedes a frenzy RAGE, LEVERAGE the clout needed to achieve a further objective

13a Unemotional police officer many backed (6)
STOLID: The police officer is a Detective Inspector or DI, many is LOTS, reverse the lot (backed) we have STOLID or unemotional

14a Insignificant guy’s first to enter place for boats beside lake (8)
MARGINAL: A first letter of guy G, enters a place for boats MARINA, and beside an abbreviation for lake L to give us something MARGINAL or insignificant

17a Pot with me in centre of olive that’s stoned? (8)
PIMIENTO: An anagram of three words in the clue POT ME IN  and the middle letter of (ol)I(ve) PIMIENTO an olive that has been stoned and replaced with a bit of pimento pepper

19a This soup et al could be concoction of Batchelors (6)
BORSCH: A trademark proXimal extraction here, the soup we require plus et al from the clue could be an anagram of Batchelors, a UK based manufacturer of soup. Remove ET AL from B(at)CH(el)ORS and anagram what remains for the soup. I would always spell the soup with the T either BORSCHT or BORTSCH but the BRB says it is optional

22a Dam is prop against water (8)
RESTRAIN: A prop or REST against the water that falls from the sky RAIN. RESTRAIN to block or dam water in a reservoir

24a Rush home with fine treat reduced by 50 per cent (6)
INFLUX: Our usual synonym of home IN, a pencil based abbreviation of fine F, and 50% of a synonym of treat LUX(ury), a sudden rush or INFLUX of migrants perhaps

26a Gold particle that’s found in space (5)
ORION: OR is the heraldic symbol for gold, I think some of you had the particle as a BIT but we actually need the subatomic particle the ION

The picture is of Thornborough Henge – The Yorkshire Stonehenge, the three circular mounds are supposed to be aligned to correspond with ORION’s belt

27a Emotional change as detective’s caught by low branch (4,5)
MOODSWING: Low in crosswords usually leads to the noise that a cow makes MOO, followed by a Detective Sergeant or DS and a breach or WING. Caught by indicates that the DS is caught between the lowing cattle and the branch

28a City’s cruel guards turned old harbour ablaze (12)
METROPOLITAN: An adjective relating to cities is a synonym of cruel MEAN, around a generic harbour PORT, reversed (turned), O for old and a synonym of ablaze LIT,  ME-TROP-O-LIT- AN. definitely a bung-in and parse afterwards clue

Down

1d One function set up; contracted as well for parties (7)
SOCIALS: The letter that looks like 1, and abbreviated mathematical function COS(ine), are reversed SOCI before a contracted synonym of as well ALSo, SOCIALS a synonym of parties

2d Edges out fully from Goring Lock for river (7)
ORINOCO: The first four words are the instruction, the last word is the definition. apply the instruction to the other three words and a river and eponymous Womble should remain. (G)ORIN(g) (L)OC(k) (f)O(r)

3d Successful cruciverbalist anagrammed without fancy cribs (9)
LUCRATIVE: Another extraction anagram that proXimal is quite open about, take a fourteen-letter word without a five-letter word  CRUCIVERBALIST  – CRIBS leaves the fodder for an anagram of something financially successful or LUCRATIVE

4d Insect making natural circles (4)
GNAT: A reverse lurker indicated by circles, circles is a containment indicator and the reversal indicator I think

5d With organ tips from experts, compose elevated classical pieces (8)
TESSERAE: Take one of the organs that stop your spectacles from falling off EAR, the outer letters of E)xpert(S and a synonym of compose a crossword perhaps SET then reverse the lot (elevated in a down clue) and you have the pieces of a classical Roman floor

6d Handle expelling king, the French aristo (5)
NOBLE: A handle or KNOB expels the K for King and adds a French article LE

7d Knight using advantage to snaffle unprotected pawn (6)
GAWAIN: This Arthurian Knight is a synonym of advantage G_AIN around what remains of a (p)AW(n) when unprotected

8d Happened to live on upland tract (6)
BEFELL: To live or BE and an upland tract or FELL

15d Rings brought in to support climbing plant (9)
GROUNDSEL: The support for a table perhaps is reversed (climbing in a down clue) LEG become G_EL, around to ring or envelop in the plural ROUNDS
The following tool is useful for eradicating this weed

16d Small comparatively well-kept cutting tool (8)
STRIMMER: S for small and the comparative for well kept or TRIM

17d A vocal refusal for alcoholic drink (6)
PERNOD: The for gives us PER the refusal is a NO, the vocal part allows the D to remain silent

18d Habitual response of parent finding gum (6)
MASTIC: That belonging to a female parent or MA’S plus a habitual response or TIC, MASTIC a gummy substance used for many sealing purposes

20d Son raised in capital is Tottenham’s top player (7)
SOLOIST: A Scandinavian capital OSLO, has the letter that son represents raised one position SOLO, followed by IS from the clue and the top letter of (T)ottenham

21d Figure from times past eaten by winged beast (7)
HEXAGON: The letter that is used to represent times or multiplies X, and times past or AGO goes between the winged beast the HEN, Not the bees shown below but rather the shape they use for bee larvae or storing honey 

23d Variety of fruit trees stripped (5)
RANGE: Some plural citrus fruit trees ORANGES, are stripped of the outer letters leaving a variety or RANGE

25d Dog overturned avoiding hard run (4)
COOP: An informal dog loses a hard pencil POOCH – H and is overturned for the run that the Hens in 21d may have COOP