Sunday Toughie 121 (Review)

Sunday Toughie No 121 by proXimal

Review by Sloop John Bee

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This puzzle was published on the 19th of May 2024

 

Across

8a        Driving hazards inflamed Europeans according to Spooner (8)
POTHOLES: Trademark proXimal – straight in with a Spoonerism. Temperamental Eastern Europeans HOT POLES become the bane of motorists POTHOLES

9a        Head north taking over dog’s lead (6)
NOODLE: A breed of dog POODLE, swaps its leading letter P  to N for North

10a     Help measure across back (3)
AID: An abbreviated DIA(meter) across a circle is reversed (back)

11a      Acrobat rider with arm on a bike’s front reversing (8)
BALANCER: A from the clue and the front of bike are reversed AB becomes BA , followed by a rider carrying a medieval cavalry arm or weapon LANCER

 12a    Wood, say, the Spanish pilgrim turned around (6)
ELIJAH: The Spanish article and a reversal of a Muslim pilgrim who has been to Mecca fulfil the definition by example (say) of the actor Mr Wood

13a     Hybridised algae and broccoli, it’s connected to the study of bugs (15)
BACTERIOLOGICAL: An anagram (hybridised) of ALGAE, BROCCOLI and IT

15a     Secure stuff with company, following being robbed (7)
PADLOCK: It took me rather too long to parse the company part of this, company is the collective noun for a “group” of Widgeon, a more general term for such groups of birds is FLOCK, robbed of its following abbreviation F it becomes LOCK, and that follows the synonym of stuff PAD

18a     Views of snake cults needing no introduction (7)
ASPECTS: The general name of various types of snake ASP, and some fanatical cults (S)ECTS, without its introductory letter

21a     Stale pieces of bread in institution for vets (3,8,4)
OLD SOLDIERS HOME: A synonym of stale OLD, the pieces of bread you may dip in a soft boiled egg SOLDIERS, and a usual in HOME, an institution for retired veterans

24a     In conversation, nobleman is unproductive (6)
BARREN: A homophone (in conversation) of a nobleman is unproductive BARON becomes BARREN

25a     Refusal to enter car, this writer’s free will (8)
AUTONOMY: The shortened form of a formal term for a car AUTO, a refusal NO, and a possessive adjective of or belonging to this writer MY. free will or AUTONOMY

26a     Man in charge of party picked up drink (3)
KIR: A homophone (picked up) of the man in charge of the Labour Party KIER Starmer becomes KIR a blackcurrant liqueur or Crème de cassis

27a     Plan taking characters regularly in secret to cross border (6)
SCHEME: Alternate letters of secret SCE, go across a border or edge HEM to plan or SC(HEM)E

28a     Test, perhaps, involving sheep on counter for judge (8)
REVIEWER: Rather clever to put a palindromic sheep into a reversal. Start with a watercourse of which The Test is a Hampshire example RIVER, find a spot to insert the sheep R(EWE)IVER, and reverse the whole to find the judge or REVIEWER

 

Down

1d       Instrumental being very short of delivery (6)
SONATA: An instrumental composition, A synonym of “very” SO, and a shortened version of an adjective connected with birth or delivery NATA(L)
(Thanks to the resident midwife Mama Bee)

2d       Foil which holds with resistance in two places (6)
THWART: A synonym of which THAT, holds abbreviations of with W, and resistance R, to frustrate or foil a scheme

3d       Device keeping kippers warm (8,7)
ELECTRIC BLANKETS: A cryptic definition of a device to keep those who kip warm in their beds. I hope the warmer weather has persuaded you to forego this bedtime comfort – Mama Bee is welded to the use of hers 365 days a year, but at nearly 88 years of age she is entitled to be a bit nesh!

4d       Fame having succeeded to bring down despot’s realm (7)
TSARDOM: A synonym of fame STARDOM, brings a genealogical abbreviation S, down the order to become a former Russian despot’s realm TSARDOM

5d       Parisian article about monster clouds, very cool (15)
UNDEMONSTRATIVE: You have to pick the right Parisian article here UNE, it goes about a monster DEMON, the plural noun for extensive low cloud STRATI, and the abbreviation for very V. Cool or UN(DEMON)(STRATI)(V)E

6d       Killing rodents, gathering one died beneath house (8)
HOMICIDE: An abbreviated house HO, rodents or MICE, around the letter that looks like one I, and an abbreviation of died D. Killing or HO(MIC(I)(D)E)

7d       Nice bringing learner in for hour in game (8)
PLEASANT: A game bird swaps an abbreviation for hour for a learner

14d     Half-cut staff regurgitated food (3)
CUD: A large heavy staff is cut in half to be the regurgitated food of a ruminant

16d     Regeneration of this league club could be incalculable (8)
ALLIANCE: It took a while but eventually we have the proXimal extraction, Incalculable is an anagram (regeneration of) a league and club, therefore remove the club from incalculable and find the “league” in what remains INCAL(cul)A(b)LE leaves the fodder for a league or ALLIANCE

17d     The French traitor shortly pointing implement (5,3)
LASER PEN: One of the French the’s LA, and a shortened traitorous snake SERPEN(t)

19d     My rising vocal (3)
COO: A homophone (vocal) of a military uprising COUP becomes COO, an interjection like My Expressing surprise!

20d     Strange Med island bar I blunder around (7)
BIZARRE: A Mediterranean Island bar its initial I (I)BIZA, followed by a reversal (around) of a blunder  to ERR becomes RRE. Strange or BIZA RRE

22d     Gave speech and educated hosts (6)
HANDED: A lurker (hosts) hidden in speech and educated

23d     We’d have recalled hiding this limb in reed (6)
MEMBER: This limb when inserted in reed would be synonymous with We’d have recalled RE(MEMBER)ED

That’s all Folks…