Toughie 3565

Toughie No 3565 by Donnybrook
Hints and tips by Whybird

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BD Rating – Difficulty *  – Enjoyment ***

Welcome to the Toughie week.  Autumn is well underway on the Wirral, and the redwings are pouring in (or over/through).

Donnybrook has given us a fairly gentle and enjoyable start to this week’s proceedings.  Despite my terror at seeing linked clues, these were on the mild side and provided a good way in, helped by twigging 1a straightaway. Spotting a couple of “high score” Scrabble letters had me wondering about pangrams, but I can’t see anything unusual on that front. 

6d is a clear winner for me today, although the answer to 2d is a top word!  Thanks to Donnybrook for easing us in nicely.

Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.

Across Clues

1 Old one introduced to lovely dancing woman 12 25 Across loves (5,3)

OLIVE OYL A cartoon inamorata is found by taking the letter indicating “old” followed by an anagram (dancing) of “lovely” surrounding the letter that looks like the number one. 

5 Setter, for example, setter going round bend (6)

DOGLEG The type of animal of which “setter” in an example, followed by an inversion (round round) of a substance which sets (think hair products).

9 Hard shell swiftly added to vehicle (8)

CARAPACE A three letter road vehicle followed by a synonym of “swiftly”

10 Thin plate thrown back for sensual man (6)

ANIMAL The name of a thin plate or sheet is reversed (thrown back) to give an alternative description for a “sensual man”, which could be used a description of someone who is a brute. The “sensual man” expression is in the BRB (thanks to Gazza for checking) so I’ve had to lower my initially-raised eyebrows on this clue.

12 and 25 Across Character, animated in Yalta, so mad with Oppenheimer (6,3,6,3)

POPEYE THE SAILOR MAN A nautical cartoon character is an anagram (mad) of “Yalta so” and “Oppenheimer”

13 Sound system new to Christmas-time show (5)

PANTO A “very British” type of entertainment for the Christmas and New Year period is a charade of a two-letter abbreviation for a sound system, the letter meaning “new” and “to” from the clue

14 Single malt distilled here, over bar (4)

OBAN Take the usual letter for “over” followed by s synonym of “bar” (or prohibit) to get a Scottish coastal town which produces single malt whisky, but which is also known, perhaps more widely, for other things

16 Saint Nick embodies a source of strength for 12 25 Across (7)

SPINACH The lesser-spotted single letter abbreviation for “saint” followed by a synonym of “nick” (ignore the capitalisation) into which is inserted (embodies) “a” from the clue

19 Market back near ordinary city (7)

SALERNO An Italian city is a charade of what to me seems like a loose synonym of “market” as a noun, the abbreviation for “near”, reversed (back) and the letter indicating “ordinary”. I’m not wildly happy with the precision of the “market” synonym: it doesn’t work as a verb, and is closer as a noun, but I wouldn’t think of them as interchangeable.  

21 Cook first one ousted (4)

CHEF Take a synonym of “first” (or principal) and remove the letter that resembles “one” (ousted)

24 Organ close to collapse in fast movement (5)

LUNGE A major respiratory organ is followed by the final letter (close to) of “collapse”

25 See 12 Across

27 See 28 Across

28 and 27 Across Money adroitly distributed around America? It’s a topic for debate (5,3,6)

EARLY DAY MOTION An anagram (distributed) of “Money adroitly” surrounding (around) the single-letter abbreviation for “America” gets the name for a Parliamentary device for proposing a subject for possible debate, although in reality without a real prospect of an actual debate. I’d never really understood the term before, so thanks to Donnybrook for making me check this in more detail.

29 Disregarding study, condemns snow leopards (6)

OUNCES Crosswordland’s favourite cats are formed by removing the three letter synonym for “study” as a room from a word meaning “condemns”

30 Daughter leaving waterside in distress so to speak (2,2,4)

AS IT WERE An anagram (in distress) of “waterside” from which the letter indicating “daughter” is removed (leaving)

Down Clues
1 Fill Médoc cup Yorick holds (6)

OCCUPY A synonym of “Fill” is lurking (holds) within “Medoc cup Yorick”

2 Break in transmission initially with India two runs ahead (6)

IRRUPT The first letter (initially) of “transmission” is preceded by the letter represented by “India”, two of the letters indicating “runs” and a term meaning “ahead”. The solution is used in the wildlife world to refer to the behaviour of species travelling in unusually large numbers to a new location, Waxwings in the UK being a prime example (the image below taken on my phone just down the road from my house the last time this happened). The “ahead” is doing a bit of double-duty here, as it helps with the order of the items.

3 Desmopathy periodically having no effect (5)

EMPTY A synonym of “having no effect” is found in alternating letters (periodically) of “Desmopathy”

4 State having Chinese ready to accommodate Burmese? (7)

YUCATAN A Mexican state (for a change) is formed by inserting the (domestic) animal of which Burmese is an example into the currency (ready) of China

6 One-nil reverse – hard supporter’s throttled Reds fan? (9)

OENOPHILE Take the letter resembling “nil” and “One” from the clue, and as the clue says, reverse those, then add a type of structural support (often driven into the ground) into which the letter indicating “hard” is inserted, all of which leads to the name of person who likes the type of beverage of which “Red” is a main type.  

7 Large abdomen troubled swimmer (5,3)

LEMON DAB A type of fish, by a less-common name, is found by taking the abbreviation for “Large” followed by an anagram (troubled) of “abdomen”

8 An account written up about old tribesperson’s burial ground (8)

GOLGOTHA A (1,3) synonym of “an account” (or record) is reversed (“written up” in a Down clue) and surrounds (about) an old Germanic tribe to get a burial ground having Biblical significance 

11 Great being where crisis was once mounting (4)

ZEUS The Greek King of the Gods is a reversal (mounting) of a location of an Anglo-French Israeli military action

15 Propeller porbeagle dismantled (9)

BARGEPOLE A device used to propel water craft manually is an anagram (dismantled) of “porbeagle”

17 Song starts in Oval Office, single note held (1,4,3)

O SOLE MIO A synonym of “single” (or a lone) and the third note in the tonic solfa are inserted (held) by the initial letters (starts) of “Oval” and “Office”. And it isn’t good for me to be thinking about ice-cream this early in the day…

18 Whale diet? Stupid sort put on weight (8)

PLANKTON A five-letter name for a stupid person (found eg on building sites) is followed by a large Imperial weight

20 English flower in Parliament going topless? (4)

OUSE Remove the first letter (going topless) from the name of either of two main constituents of the UK Parliament to get the name of one of two major English rivers, there being four in total

21 Something to protect Icarus, wayward son (7)

CUIRASS A type of body armour is an anagram (wayward) of “Icarus” followed by the letter indicating “son”.  I’ve just finished reading an account of the Battle of Waterloo, so this term was at the front of my memory 

22 Mark‘s daughter smirking European entertains (6)

SMUDGE Insert the usual “daughter” into what someone “smirking” may be said to be and the usual letter for “European”

23 Catalyst: Zulu invading enemy ground (6)

ENZYME A biochemical catalyst is formed by inserted the letter represented by “Zulu” into an anagram (ground) of “enemy”

26 Bird‘s duck far from dry crossing lake (5)

OWLET A (baby) bird is formed by the letter resembling “duck” as a cricket score, and the description of what you may be if you are “far from dry” into which is inserted the abbreviation for “lake”