Toughie No 3427 by Silvanus
Hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Silvanus appears once more in what has become a double act with Ray T (whose turn it is to be on the back page today). Thanks to him for a very enjoyable puzzle.
Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.
Across Clues
8a Offer finally to travel with Katie, i.e. abroad (4,2,2,5,2)
TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT: an anagram (abroad) of TO TRAVEL KATIE IE.
9a Pass handgun over, without its case (3)
COL: reverse the name of an Austrian-made handgun and remove its outer letters.
10a Show half of viewers abandoned has a copper meeting God! (11)
SPECTACULAR: the first half only of viewing aids followed by A, the chemical symbol for copper and a Roman god of the household.
11a One left to pursue interest in spring time (5)
APRIL: the Roman one and the abbreviation for left follow the abbreviation which tells you how much the interest on a loan will cost you.
12a Quite far behind immediately (5,4)
RIGHT AWAY: a synonym of quite or fully with a phrase meaning far (1,3) following it.
15a Artist blowing top about Universal in dispute (2,5)
AT ISSUE: the surname of a French painter without his first letter contains the abbreviation for universal.
17a American music adult learns occasionally to embrace (7)
ALASKAN: a style of music which originated in Jamaica is embraced by A(dult) and occasional letters from ‘learns’.
19a Managed certain Swedes in a group making comeback (9)
ORGANISED: hidden in reverse.
20a Possibly content of great broadcast in sporting series (5)
ASHES: what you might find in a homophone of great after the fire’s gone out.
21a Successful manoeuvring on Gulf encapsulates former PM (11)
FLOURISHING: an anagram (manoeuvring) of ON GULF contains the forename of our most recent former PM.
24a Low emotional state for the most part (3)
MOO: an emotional state of mind without its final letter.
25a Who could introduce these provisions in a will? (8,7)
RELATIVE CLAUSES: the answer is a grammatical term for additional information about a noun, e.g. “That chap who lives next door is a vicar”. Cryptically these could detail bequests to family members.
Down Clues
1d Frolicking, perhaps Rupert Murdoch once receives fright when naked (10)
SKYLARKING: Rupert Murdoch could at one time have been called the head honcho of a broadcaster (3,4). Insert the inner letters of a synonym of fright.
2d Train maybe loses power before opening of Elizabeth Line (6)
DIESEL: a verb meaning loses power or conks out, the opening letter of Elizabeth and the abbreviation of line
3d Spies succeeded holding two groups of soldiers roughly (4,2,4)
MORE OR LESS: a word for embedded spies and the genealogical abbreviation for succeeded contain two abbreviations for soldiers, the first a specific army corps and the second more generic.
4d Excess muscle athlete ultimately shed (4)
GLUT: the informal name for a specific muscle without the ultimate letter of athlete.
5d Cured meat, roast that regularly after time in Rome? (8)
PANCETTA: start with a verb to roast or criticise and add regular letters of ‘that’ following the abbreviation for the time zone in Rome.
6d Avoiding extremes, lives healthily (4)
WELL: a verb meaning lives or resides without its outer letters.
7d Level with Spain in thriller, perhaps (6)
STOREY: the IVR code for Spain goes inside what could be a thriller.
8d Claiming two hundred exactly initially attended musical work (7)
TOCCATA: the Roman numeral for two hundred is ‘claimed’ by a phrase (2,1,1) meaning exactly and the initial letter of attended.
13d Family member imposing on European in foreign resort (5-5)
GRAND-NIECE: an adjective meaning imposing or magnificent followed by an abbreviation for European inside a French resort.
14d Winchester chap Keith was my undoing (10)
WYKEHAMIST: an anagram (undoing) of KEITH WAS MY gives an alumnus (an example being the chap found in 21a).
16d Miss one’s train, endlessly put out (8)
SEÑORITA: an anagram (put out) of ONE’S TRAI[n].
18d Method to stop small child upsetting those failing to appear (2-5)
NO-SHOWS: an adverb relating to a method is contained in the reversal of the abbreviation for small and a male child.
19d City of London tower female enters, overlooking road (6)
OXFORD: the name of a tower on London’s south bank contains the abbreviation for female. Finish with the abbreviation for road.
20d Two successive characters wearing a cool shawl (6)
AFGHAN: two successive characters from the alphabet are contained in A and a verb to cool.
22d Daughter scrubbed lacy mat covered with grease (4)
OILY: a lacy mat (placed under fancy cakes, for example) without the genealogical abbreviation for daughter.
23d Bail out bar (4)
SAVE: double definition, the second a preposition meaning bar or ‘except for’.
For my podium I’ve selected 20a, 25a and 1d. Which clue(s) tickled your fancy?
An excellent puzzle that I found fairly tricky in some places. The three that caused the most head-scratching were the content of great broadcast, the fright when naked, and the London tower.
Many thanks to Silvanus and to Gazza.
Lovely stuff. I did enjoy 19a’s nicely misdirecting surface but 20a and 1d were the stand-outs for me. City (of London tower…) was smart too. Many thanks to Silvanus and Gazza.
An impeccable Toughie! It was challenging but not impenetrable (although I did spend too long trying to parse the incorrect “give or take” for 3d). It was all great fun with 19a, 20a, 25a & 1d my top picks, despite the nauseating picture that the last of these conjures up.
Many thanks to Silvanus and to Gazza.
I wish to associate myself with the comments above of my learned friend RD.
Great fun with a fair bit of head scratching required. No wonder my once flowing locks are now noticeable by their absence.
20a was my last to parse. Clever stuff.
Thank you Silvanus and Gazza. Great cartoons as ever.
It took me a while to get going and then the last few in the W, including Mr Murdoch, proved troublesome. 2.5*/4*
After the PDM on the city tower I did e-check to see if it is still there and I enjoyed reading its history. The company wanted the name in illuminated signs on the four faces of the tower but this was not allowed so they came up with the idea of four sets of windows which are presumably backlit from within the tower.
Candidates for favourite – 10a, 8d, 19d, and 23d – and the winner is 19d.
Thanks to Silvanus and Gazza especially for the cartoons!
I emerge from the 20a bruised and battered but ultimately triumphant! Such a clever compilation from Mr Smooth that demanded my full attention but was most definitely worth the effort. I almost reached the ‘guess from the enumeration and checkers’ stage once or twice but I couldn’t live with myself if I felt that I’d cheated on one of the Dream Team combo’s puzzles.
Podium places here going to 11a plus 1&19d.
Many thanks to Silvanus for the challenge and to Gazza for the review and cartoons – the bride on the doorstep gets my award today!
Had to leave this for a couple of hours, as we went out to lunch. The remaining half dozen just rattled in, with 1d last to fall . The 21a PM was a 14d of course!
Thanks all
As Gazza pointed out above, sorry!
As soon as I saw today was a challenge from Silvanus, it brought a smile because I knew there would be so much to like…and there was. In fact every clue pleased once solved.
We’ve been spoilt today and I think it would be unfair of me to pick a favourite.
Thank you Gazza for the blog and cracking cartoons ( loved the ashes) and to Silvanus for making our day.
Terrific puzzle as ever which I found a good bit harder than the difficulty rating. Struggled with a fair bit of the parsing but got there (excepting 25a – grammar not my forte) in the end & only needed Mr G for the Roman god. Can’t disagree with the picks thus far – 20a plus 1,3&19d particular likes but as usual there’s not a weak clue in there.
Thanks to Silvanus & to Gazza – great cartoons.
The usual smooth constructions and surfaces from Silvanus. 5d had to be what it was but I failed to see the time in Rome, otherwise straightforward. Top picks = 20a [is this a reverse homophone?] the cute little 24a and the Miss at 16d.
Thanks to Silvanus and Gazza.
Tremendous puzzle. At first I thought this was going to be a right stinker, seeing no immediate answers in the top, so I focused my attention lower and started in the S – from where progress was steady and then accelerated as I moved N, finishing with 1d. On balance for me I’d add a star to Gazza’s difficulty rating.
Didn’t know who the setter was before coming in here for the back page blog, but the great surfaces were a give-away; a lovely variety of clues, everything scrupulously fair. Nice to see late father-in-law’s alma mater at 14d, with 25a very apposite as he was a solicitor! Podium places for me to 1d, 3d and 20d – particularly liked the latter with its three successive characters in the answer though only two were demanded. Coming hot on the heels of yesterday’s Times puzzle with “Dropping off three characters in succession in channel (9)” I found the coincidence most useful!
Many thanks to Silvanus and Gazza – loved the 20a cartoon!
Thoroughly enjoyable puzzle once again from this setter. Luckily we had heard of the London tower so not flummoxed by that one.
Thanks Silvanus and Gazza.
Many thanks as ever to Gazza, great cartoons yet again, and to everyone solving and commenting.
See you all again soon.
A cracking Thursday Toughie. Started late afternoon and completed after dinner at a damn fine hotel in Ely.
A generous pouring of Torres 10 lubricated the little grey cells to assist completion.
Held up by the parsing of 20a and 1d, but loved the reverse lurker in 19a.
With thanks to Silvanus and Gazza.
Been too busy to get to this till now. Having decided not to bother with the Saturday prize puzzles any more this was well worth saving up. Lots to like from our master setter with the trademark cleverly clued reversals and deletions. My podium places go to 10 and 20a and in top spot 19d
Sorry forgot to thank Silvanus for the enjoyment and Gazza for the needed help to parse the Roman God and time zone. Now ready to tackle your NTSPP sir!