Toughie No 3463 by Kcit
Hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
Another enjoyable puzzle from Kcit. Thanks to him.
Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.
Across Clues
1a Biased Europeans catching bits of film in which star can still be seen? (7,7)
PARTIAL ECLIPSE: a synonym of biased followed by two abbreviations for European containing segments of film.
9a Stuff, often melted, covering one piece of bread and butter (7)
SOLDIER: an alloy which is melted to join things together contains the Roman one.
10a What one can do, unable to accommodate a second pan (7)
SKILLET: the range of one’s abilities (5,3) without the second abbreviation for second.
11a Fool held up everything? Not all of it (4)
DUPE: hidden.
12a Popular channel, pleasanter without one social media presence (10)
INFLUENCER: assemble an adjective meaning popular, a channel or duct for smoke maybe and a comparative meaning pleasanter without the Roman one.
14a Artist’s tool that’s not for capturing quantity of light (6)
CRAYON: a word meaning the opposite of ‘in favour of’ contains a stream of light.
15a Remote British islands linked to Pacific state? Ridiculous (8)
FARCICAL: string together an adjective meaning remote, the abbreviation for a group of British islands near to France and an abbreviation for a US state bordering the Pacific ocean.
17a Start of church service broadcast reflected standards (8)
CRITERIA: the first letter of church, a service or ceremony and the reversal of a verb to broadcast.
18a Coming adrift making pithy statements (6)
GNOMIC: an anagram (adrift) of COMING.
21a Finish wagging big tail, swallowing one canine treat (3,7)
DOG BISCUIT: a verb to finish (one’s homework, say), an anagram (wagging) of BIG and a rabbit’s tail containing the Roman one (its third usage).
22a Italian city is trapped in past … (4)
PISA: IS gets inserted into an abbreviation for past. The abbreviation for past is shown by the BRB (but not Collins) but I’m not aware of the context in which it’s used.
24a … but inspiring these buildings? Last one collapsed (4-3)
LEAN-TOS: an anagram (collapsed) of LAST ONE.
25a Dodgy scoundrel in glossy fabric returned (7)
ERRATIC: an informal word for a scoundrel or despicable person goes inside the reversal of a shiny fabric.
26a Talking at length? Finish interrupting doctor mostly and dry up (7,4,3)
BENDING ONE’S EAR: a synonym of finish (as a noun) is contained in an informal word for a medical doctor without its last letter. Finish with a verb to dry up.
Down Clues
1d Researcher‘s comment over curtailment of harbour (7)
POSTDOC: an online comment and a synonym of harbour without its last letter.
2d Sadly little power in allegory over animals hunted in online entertainment, say (4-7,4)
ROLE-PLAYING GAME: an anagram (sadly) of P[ower] IN ALLEGORY precedes a word for hunted wild animals.
3d One is pursuing black bird (4)
IBIS: the Roman one (again) and IS after the abbreviation for black.
4d Railway network has brought in variable source of announcements? (6)
LARYNX: the abbreviation for railway is contained in a local network. Append one of the algebraic variables.
5d Check out guy retaining zero work in court? (8)
CASELOAD: an informal verb to check or reconnoitre (usually with felonious intent) and a young guy containing the zero-resembling letter.
6d Glittering couple welcoming King and family (10)
IRIDESCENT: a Roman couple contain an abbreviation for king. Add a synonym of family or lineage.
7d Party including English Liberal pledge support for legislative process (6,9)
SELECT COMMITTEE: a party or faction contains abbreviations for English and Liberal. Append a verb to pledge or undertake and a golf support.
8d Pieces of broccoli, first swallowed, elevated body chemical (6)
STEROL: reverse the flowery bits of broccoli without their first letter.
13d Offering optimistic view to resident after rebuilding (4-6)
ROSE-TINTED: an anagram (after rebuilding) of TO RESIDENT.
16d Rubbish once said regarding bishop’s activities (8)
DIOCESAN: an anagram (rubbish) of ONCE SAID.
17d Hold top of canister with water after storm, say, gently wiped away (6)
CUDDLE: the first letter of canister and water that might be seen on the ground after a storm without the musical abbreviation for gently.
19d Poet, dodgy character, losing name around university (7)
CHAUCER: start with a dodgy character or rogue, lose the abbreviation for name and incorporate an abbreviation for university.
20d Roman orator: cold Roman fellow not seen without chilly attitude (6)
CICERO: the tap abbreviation for cold and RO[man] without the synonym for fellow bracket a word for chilly attitude or frostiness.
23d Genuine respite after shaking off Conservative (4)
TRUE: a respite from fighting without an abbreviation for Conservative.
The clues I liked best were 1a, 9a and 4d. Which one(s) rang your bell?
I found this much trickier than yesterday, with the bottom half completed before I tackled the top.
A few clues I needed to reverse engineer, namely 25a (the fabric was unknown to me), 19d and 20d.
All good stuff – in particular I liked the ‘source of announcements’ and the ‘couple welcoming king’.
Thanks to Kcit and to Gazza. 4* enjoyment for me.
I found this slightly trickier than yesterday. My particular favourite was 9a
Thanks to Kcit and Gazza
Slowly started this one from the SE and worked across finishing in NW with the degree of difficulty just about what I’d expect in a toughie.
Plenty of clever wordplay, with the fabric in 25a also a new one for me.
Great entertainment. Thanks to Kcit and Gazza.
Hadn’t occurred to me that 1d was written as one word and I needed to look-up the body chemical and check on the spelling of the glossy fabric so not a straightforward solve for me. Pick of the bunch here were 1a and the dodgy poet.
Thanks to Kcit and to Gazza for the review and cartoons – especially those at 24a & 7d.
A slow start and a slow finish for me, completed in two sessions. In review, I cannot see why my time was stretched, so I must not have been thinking along the right lines. The NW corner was the last to fall, and 19d was my favourite. A good sense of achievement once across the line.
I did it again. Should have thanked Kcit and Gazza. D’oh.
Kept me busy all day, but most enjoyable! Many thanks to the setter.
Yep – even tougher than yesterday’s – what will tomorrow bring?
After half an hour I had 3 of the little ones – that’s it. Then I think 10a yielded and I worked clockwise from the NE. I’ve said before that I like kcit for his sci/tech clues and 8d is a nice example of what he does that other setters don’t. 21a was a bit of a tour de force too. Not entirely sure about 24a.
Thanks to kcit and Gazza.
We also found this one quite challenging but enjoyable to work through. 9a was our favourite.
Thanks Kcit and Gazza.
A good challenge, but unlike others above, I found this a little more straightforward than yesterday’s Toughie. Three-quarters fell steadily but the NE took much longer. Great clues, smooth surfaces, a very satisfying solve.
Many thanks to Kcit and Gazza