Sunday Toughie No 136 by proXimal
Review by Sloop John Bee
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This puzzle was published on the 1st of September 2024
Across
1a As per Spooner, secure magnificent property for the King (9)
GRACELAND: How you secure your boots perhaps LACE, and a synonym of magnificent GRAND, swap initial sounds for the property belonging to the King of Rock and Roll Elvis Presley
6a Attempt to grab soft tail of the kangaroo, say (5)
BIPED: An attempt to buy perhaps BID, grabs a musical soft P, and the tail letter of the E Kangaroo being a definition by example (say) of a BI(P E)D
9a Ridicule male with garden feature – first shed (7)
MOCKERY: Start with a garden feature ROCKERY, and shed the first letter, replace it with M for male for some ridicule
10a Son of Scottish ambassador possessing alien weapon (7)
MACHETE: A Scottish Gaelic prefix meaning son of MAC, and the abbreviated title of an ambassador HE, that contains our film alien ET Giving us a MAC H(ET)E
11a Name of girl vacuously ignoring training (5)
EMILY: Find a girl by ignoring Physical Training in a synonym of vacuously EM(PT)ILY
12a Met busy first-aiders having no R and R (9)
SATISFIED: An anagram (busy) of first-aiders without both R’s FIST-AIDES becomes SATISFIED or met the needs of
13a Wasn’t distressed? (4,4,4,2)
KEPT ONES HAIR ON: A fine &lit where I would have been well advised to check the tense before bunging in an initially wrong answer. Distressed being the removal of one’s tresses of hair
16a Pampering act with aromatic substance, ceremony scrubbing head (14)
FEATHERBEDDING: An act or deed FEAT, an aromatic culinary substance HERB, and a matrimonial ceremony (w)EDDING without its initial letter FEATHERBEDDING or pampering
20a Place that’s unpleasant in sultanate for farmer (9)
PLOUGHMAN: An abbreviation of place PL, and a sultanate OMAN, that contains an exclamation of unpleasantness UGH
22a Casting part in King Otto (5)
INGOT: That which results from casting, particularly precious metals, is lurking in the last two words
23a Runner heading to dispatch one target in alley (7)
SKITTLE: The runner used to slide across snow or water SKI, and a heading or T(i)TLE from which the letter that looks like one has been dispatched. SKITTLE the target in a Bowling Alley
24a Insect beginning to train showed the way and scuttled (7)
BEETLED: My eponymous insect BEE, the beginning to train T, and a synonym of showed the way LED (with short rapid steps) BEETLED
25a Containers of spades moved back in underground tunnel (5)
EWERS: A singular underground tunnel for the movement of waste SEWER, moves the abbreviation of spades from the front to the back to be plural water containers EWERS
26a Reportedly munch cabbage lacking colour (9)
GREYSCALE: Homophones (reportedly) of to munch or feed on pasture GRAZE, and a variety of cabbage KALE.
Down
1d Mike wearing waistcoat gets drink (6)
GIMLET: A quilted sleeveless jacket GILET, contains the radio code letter Mike suggests M – Gin and Lime juice according to my bartenders’ guide
2d Like kid in church to be given credit (7)
ASCRIBE: To kid or mock gently RIB, in an abbreviation of the Church of England C E, follows a synonym of like AS To ASCRIBE credit as I have done to Gazza for 7d
3d Shy teenage mate uncertain about tense war film (5,2,3,5)
ENEMY AT THE GATES: An anagram (uncertain) of SHY TEENAGE MALE, but you need an extra T for tense. This took longer than it should mainly because of my mis-tensed 13a
4d Clot collecting at the side of cavity (5)
ABYSS: An informal clot ASS, contains (collecting) a preposition for at the side of BY
5d Small vessel regularly set sail bearing south at sea to return (9)
DEMITASSE: An abbreviated sea MED, and alternate letters of set sail ESI, into which are inserted AT from the clue and S for south are all reversed (to return) for a small vessel for coffee (several of which were needed to parse this clue) MED becomes DEM ESI becomes ISE and insert TAS (being a reversal of S and AT)
6d Defenders with worries about club meddlers (8,7)
BACKSEAT DRIVERS: Worries or consumes EATS, about a golfers longest club DRIVER, follow defenders in various other ballgames BACKS
7d Where one might find bar to see comparatively wacky leader? (7)
PREMIER: A comparative of wacky can be found if bar replaces the first three letters of the person of chief rank or office Thanks a lot Gazza
8d Feeling anxious about opening of district festival location (8)
DREADING: The site of a recent pop festival (twinned with Leeds-Bramham Park) READING, follows the opening of district D
14d Greek character remains imprisoned in centre of Georgian city (9)
NUREMBERG: The remains of a fire EMBER, in the central letters of Georgian RG, follows the thirteenth character of the Greek alphabet NU(R(EMBER)G)
15d Reform of Post Office, ditching old computers initially, not on course (3-5)
OFF-PISTE: An anagram (reform of) PoST OFFIcE but ditch the initials of old and computers first – nice nod to the Post Office computer problems caused by the Horizon software
17d Period without working is struggle (7)
AGONISE: A geological time period AGE, around (without) a synonym of working ON, and IS from the clue
18d Not totally claiming to climb plant (7)
NIGELLA: Not quite all of a synonym of claiming ALLEGIN(G) is reversed (to climb in a down clue) The NIGELLA plant
19d Nuts doubled in such dense food and I might get indigestion (6)
STODGE: proXimal’s trademark compound anagram (nuts) you find the fodder for such dense food by removing IN (twice) and I from (IN)D(I)GEST(I)O(N) leaves DGESTO the fodder for STODGE
21d Half-heartedly swindle aristocrat (5)
NOBLE: A synonym of swindle NOBBLE, loses one of its central letters – either one it doesn’t matter as the NOBLE remains whichever B you remove
That’s all Folks…