Toughie No 3398 by Prime
Hints and Tips by crypticsue
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This Christmas Day Toughie is only available online
BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
A Toughie for Christmas Day which could have appeared on any other Wednesday of the year as there were no references to the Christmas season at all! I have added an image of 16d at Christmas, just to add a bit of festivity!
Thank you to Prime for the crossword and to Chris Lancaster for his assistance to the four mid-week bloggers so that we can enjoy Christmas Day and Boxing Day without our relatives going ‘surely you don’t have to provide a blog today?!’
Please let us know what you thought
Across
1a Think about bitterness recalled in court (10)
DELIBERATE Bitterness or ill-temper reversed (recalled) in a verb meaning to court or go out with a romantic partner
6a Old city originally didn’t use language (4)
URDU A city in Ancient Mesopotamia and the original letters of Didn’t and Use
9a Get to hold a fairly soft bathroom cleaner (7)
SHAMPOO An exclamation used to drive someone or something away (get) holds A (from the clue) and a two-letter musical abbreviation meaning moderately soft
10a Natural fluctuation of pound stopped by sale – insiders missed out (7)
UNPOSED An anagram (fluctuation) of POUND ‘stopped’ by the outside (insiders missed out) of SalE
12a Relaxing with part of book that’s scary (5-8)
SPINE-CHILLING An informal way of saying relaxing goes after part of a book
14a Pictures of submariner clipped and framed by US agency (6)
CINEMA Jules Verne’s submariner without the final letter (clipped) framed by, or inserted into, the American intelligence agency
15a Save pop singer’s look (8)
BUTCHERS Cockney Rhyming Slang for a look – Other than (save) and an American pop singer often found in crosswords. Don’t forget to add the S (singer’s)
17a Component of camera infallibly drops (8)
RAINFALL Hidden in (a component of) cameRA INFALLibly
19a Old King claiming winning item (6)
COUPLE The old nursery rhyme king who was a merry old soul ‘claiming’ a synonym for winning
22a Sweet option in bagel, cooking with gas (7,6)
BELGIAN WAFFLE An anagram (cooking) of BAGEL with an informal word meaning to talk on and on (gas)
24a Plain Jane who wrote abridged study of scripture (7)
AUSTERE Abridge or remove the last letter from the surname of one of our best-known authors called Jane and replace it with the abbreviation for scripture studies
25a African party that is not emptying early (7)
ANCIENT An African political party, the abbreviation meaning that is and the outside (emptying) letters of NoT
26a Imitate party animal once (4)
DODO A verb meaning to mimic or impersonate and a party
27a Two people needing time after one is hurt (10)
IMPAIRMENT Two of something and some people followed by the abbreviation for Time go after an informal way someone might say one is (going to, for example)
Down
1d Ruin career (4)
DASH A word which can mean to ruin or rush fast (career)
2d Meeting area is claimed by Pride participant (7)
LIAISON The abbreviation for Area and IS (from the clue) ‘claimed’ by a member of a pride
3d Tough start for temp if bias gets involved (7,2,4)
BAPTISM OF FIRE An anagram (gets involved) of FORE TEMP IF BIAS
4d Crowds promoting River Island (6)
RHODES Promote the abbreviation for River in a multitude of people (crowds)
5d Straight talker upset himself until going to extremes (8)
TRUTHFUL The ‘extreme’ letters of TalkeR UpseT HimselF UntiL
7d Pause Sixth Sense, breaking tradition (7)
RESPITE Extrasensory Perception (Sixth Sense) ‘breaking’ a tradition or ceremonial form of observance
8d Briefs about German delinquent not taken in (10)
UNDIGESTED Some informal underwear (briefs) goes about the abbreviation for German, the result followed by an unruly 1950s adolescent. If Big Dave were still with us, he’d be expressing his usual (strong) thoughts on the fact that this teenager wasn’t necessarily a delinquent!
11d Copper rod to extend, twice taking in charge (6,7)
POLICE OFFICER A type of rod and a verb meaning to extend for acceptance or rejection, each of which (twice) taking in the abbreviation for In Charge
13d Feature of ground coffee primarily served in raw meals (10)
SCOREBOARD The primary letter of Coffee inserted into (served in) raw in the sense of painful or tender, followed by the provision of meals
16d Sad to lose third card game around ambassador’s palace (8)
BLENHEIM Depressed or sad without its third letter and an old card game going round the abbreviation or His Excellency the Ambassador
18d Badly sullied? (3-4)
ILL-USED An anagram (badly) of SULLIED
20d Forego publicity that comes with European grant (7)
PRECEDE Some abbreviated publicity, the abbreviation for European and a synonym for grant or yield
21d Country clubs with an unfulfilled gardener (6)
CANADA The abbreviation for the card suit of Clubs, AN (from the clue) and almost all of the forename of the first gardener on earth
23d Immediately cut short, say (4)
STAT This Latin abbreviation meaning immediately is a synonym for say without its finale letter (cut short)
Just another Wednesday Toughie, with no festive feel, unlike today’s Cryptic. However, that didn’t stop it being an enjoyable solve.
Lots of ticks but picking out 1,19,25A and 11D.
Podium goes to 8D.
Many thanks CS for taking time out of your Christmas Day to do your excellent blog. It’s much appreciated. Thanks also to Prime for the enjoyment.
Happy Christmas to all who enjoy the brilliant Big Dave Blog.
Merry Christmas. Enjoyable solve.
Good post lunch fare that was spot on in terms of difficulty. Most enjoyable, with 12a my favourite.
Thanks to Prime for the fun and to Sue for her continued hard work on the site.
Great fun! I didn’t get far last night, but this morning it was all a little clearer, and I got there in the end.
Thank you to CrypticSue for explaining 9a, which was actually the first answer I filled in (based on “a fairly soft” and the definition, but I was missing that meaning of “get”).
Where does the ‘er’ come from in 1a? I’ve got ‘bile’ backwards as the bitterness recalled and ‘date’ for the courting, but those 2 letters unaccounted for.
Thank you Prime for a wonderful crossword, with so many highlights, including saving the pop singer in 15a, the brilliant lurker and definition in 17a (I spent so long trying to think of various parts of cameras!), the Old King in 19a, the Pride participant in 3d, the extreme wordplay in 5d, the cleverness of “twice taking charge” in 11d, and the “feature of ground [coffee]” in 13d. I don’t mind crosswords being this hard when they have so much entertainment.
The only downside of leaving this crossword open overnight on my computer is that the Telegraph Puzzles site now still thinks it’s yesterday, meaning the most recent of each type of puzzle it will show me is for the 25th. It usually sorts itself out within the hour — but one week I’m going to accidentally do that on a Sunday and then not be able to see Monday’s backpager at the time I’m supposed to be blogging it!
In 1a ‘about bitterness’ (2,4) is reversed.
Thanks, Gazza! I had the definition as ‘think about’, which apparently I failed to think about sufficiently to see where I’d gone wrong.
Fortunately I see the underlining in the hint also indicated that. I was going to suggest fixing that … but then I realized it would make my comment look foolish, since a glance at the hint would’ve shown the issue!
An enjoyable puzzle – thanks to Prime and CS and season’s greetings to both.
For my podium I’ve selected 12a, 8d and 13d.
Just caught up on this one. Very enjoyable.
Thanks to Prime & particularly to Sue for providing hints on the day