Toughie No 3637 by Chalicea
Hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty */** – Enjoyment ***
Whybird is away enjoying the delights of the subcontinent so I’m filling in for him today. Thanks to Chalicea for a pleasant puzzle though it’s more like a midweek back-pager than a Toughie.
Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.
Across Clues
1a Scale of a second century death (6)
ASCEND: A followed by abbreviations for second and century and a synonym of death.
5a Zaniest local pal with diversity from time to time (8)
WACKIEST: a dialect word for a pal in the Merseyside area and regular letters from ‘diversity’.
9a Keep closer fortified wine? Select one ultimately delicious (10)
PORTCULLIS: string together a fortified wine, a verb to select, the Roman one and the ultimate letter of delicious.
10a The Spanish article’s style (4)
ELAN: a Spanish definite article and one of our own indefinite ones.
11a Impress, say, someone drunk in this city? (8)
SHANGHAI: double definition, the first a verb to get someone drunk and trick them into serving aboard ship.
12a More appropriate clothier’s left out (6)
FITTER: remove ‘out’ from someone who sells clothes.
13a Dress some of India’s aristocracy (4)
SARI: hidden.
15a Dejection about western whiskey containing head of rotten beetle (4-4)
GLOW-WORM: a synonym of dejection contains the abbreviation for western, the letter that whiskey represents in the Nato Phonetic Alphabet and (separately) the first letter of rotten.
18a Readjusted Europe’s originally good self-critical conscience (8)
SUPEREGO: an anagram (readjusted) of EUROPE’S G[ood].
19a Urban area to west and north (4)
TOWN: TO and two abbreviations.
21a Mum lives flipping fast (6)
SILENT: reverse a verb meaning lives or exists and add a Christian period of fasting.
23a Embraces Spooner’s description of head lice? (4,4)
BEAR HUGS: Spooner might turn these tight embraces into what the nit nurse used to search out.
25a Insult hospital food (4)
DISH: an informal verb to insult and the map abbreviation for hospital.
26a I’ve to worry about academic enclave (5,5)
IVORY TOWER: an anagram (about) of I’VE TO WORRY.
27a English deserve occasionally fussy retiree (8)
EMERITUS: assemble an abbreviation for English, a verb to deserve and occasional letters from ‘fussy’.
28a Gently pushes exposed people to drink gallons (6)
NUDGES: fully exposed people contain the abbreviation for gallons.
Down Clues
2d Salmon now and then primarily soar high and splash around (5)
SLOSH: regular letters from ‘salmon’ and the primary letters of soar and high.
3d Faulty telex I sent, incomplete, capable of being lengthened (9)
EXTENSILE: an anagram (faulty) of TELEX I SEN[t].
4d Shower that hurts in heart of semidesert (6)
DOUCHE: an exclamation of pain goes between the central letters of semidesert.
5d Possibly no tots bellowing for waterproof footwear (10,5)
WELLINGTON BOOTS: a pretty obvious anagram (possibly) of NO TOTS BELLOWING.
6d About quiet force and base movement of money (4,4)
CASH FLOW: glue together an abbreviation meaning about or approximately, an instruction to be quiet, the physics abbreviation for force and an adjective meaning base or mean.
7d Sluggish section of container terminal (5)
INERT: hidden.
8d European Community squabble after sign of injury: a frightening thing (9)
SCARECROW: the abbreviation for European Community and a squabble or altercation follow a bodily sign of injury.
14d Silvery element, former students holding one with hesitation (9)
ALUMINIUM: a word for former students contains the Roman number one. Append an expression of hesitation.
16d Maxim‘s timepiece buzzed, we hear (9)
WATCHWORD: a personal timepiece and a homophone of a verb meaning ‘emitted a buzzing sound whilst spinning’.
17d Moderate or small bit of money gentleman raised over time (8)
CENTRIST: concatenate a small coin in many countries, the reversal of a gentleman and the abbreviation for time.
20d Forbid any tailored jacket (6)
BANYAN: a verb to forbid or veto followed by an anagram (tailored) of ANY. I thought that the answer was just a type of tree but it also means (thanks to the BRB) ‘a loose jacket, gown, or undergarment worn in India’.
22d Number of sheep with head lopped (5)
ETHER: lop off the top letter from a male sheep (which has had a couple of other bits lopped off!).
24d European nearly captures black bird (5)
GREBE: a southern European citizen without his last letter contains the pencil abbreviation for black.
I liked the ‘Keep closer’ definition (9a) and the Spoonerism (23a). Which clue(s) appealed to you?
Very approachable and enjoyable. I even got the sheep in 22d once I twigged the appropriate number reference. The spoonerism was a lol moment and makes my podium along with 28a and 9a. Thanks to Chalicea and Gazza.
Never heard of that sheep😁 but lovely puzzle. Thanks all.
Always a joy solving Chalicea’s puzzles and this was no exception. Light and Floughie it may be, an enjoyable romp nonetheless. Like our blogger, 9a was my favourite this afternoon.
Many thanks to herself and Gazza.
Not quite a Floughie but as enjoyable as ever – 1.5*/4*
Candidates for favourite – 1a, 9a, 27a, 16d, and 22d – and the winner is the emasculated sheep in 22d!
Thanks to Gazza and Chalicea.
This was good fun and not very demanding. And, possibly easier than the back pager! 1a and 28a are my top picks. Many thanks to the setter for the entertainment and the hinter for the hints.
This was light and good fun. I didn’t need to refer to my BRB very often – only to check the “local pal” in 5a and the “jacket” in 20d.
9a gets my nomination for favourite thanks to its very clever definition.
Many thanks to Chalicea. Thanks too to Gazza; great cartoon selections!
Great fun. Had to check the jacket, local pal and of course the sheep – sorry about mentioning that on the other blog.
9a, 23a and 28s favourites today.
Thanks to Chalicea and Gazza.
Splendid crossword with a couple to make me think and keep me on my toes. I had to check 3d was actually a word but it couldn’t be anything else. Several contenders for favourite but I’ll go with 9a. Thanks to Chalicea and Gazza.
I solved this more quickly than today’s back-pager – by a whole second!
I, too, didn’t know the Scouse pal and the Indian jacket.
My favourite was 9a. Many thanks to Chalicea and Gazza.
Not sure which was the speedier solve, this or the back page, but they were both a short sprint and over the line in a near photo-finish. Did not (need to) know the “local pal” to get that answer, while the tailored jacket was unknown but quite clear from the explicit instructions. COTD 9a.
Chalicea’s wonderful puzzles deserve the wider audience of the early-week back page, rather than scaring people off through being misleadingly titled as “Toughies”.
Many thanks to Chalicea and to Gazza.#
PS – I see I could simply have typed “What Deansleigh said.”
Many thanks Gazza and all. Yes Mustafa G, I used to be on Saturday’s back page and enjoyed setting them but they were handed over to someone else. I’d love to be early week back pagers again but we setters don’t choose. 9a would be my own favourite clue too and I did like Gazza’s cartoons.
Hi Chalicea
Thank you for the excellent puzzle.
I love your picture of the robin.
I have always had an affinity with robins.
When I lived in Surbiton in Surrey, they would always come and sit on my hand and take small pieces of cheddar cheese from me.
Since moving to Valencia in Spain, they (petirrojos) still come and sit next to me.
A bit less floughie than usual and most enjoyable. 9A takes the prize for the best disguised definition so far this year. 21a was pretty neat too.
Thanks to Chalicea and Gazza [ah Wacky Races – those were the days].
We had our BRB to hand so were able to confirm a few words (in 5a for instance) and enjoyed the solve.
Like others, 9a was our favourite.
Thanks Chalicea and Gazza.
Having put the wrong answer in for 1a I struggled with the northwest , otherwise apart from 20d the rest was straightforward.Podium 9 ,15 and 27 . Thanks to all.
Can’t really add anything to what has been said. A gentle Floughie/Backpage combo today. Needed to confirm I was right about the jacket. My favourite was Spooner’s embrace at 23a.
My thanks to Chalicea and Gazza .
Just like baby bears porridge, but a few bits to stretch the grey matter. I had to check the Scouse pal and I was going Yan, Tan, Tether, Mether, Pip counting sheep until I remembered the one without his plums and leading letter.
Thanks to Chalicea and Gazza whose hints and ‘toons I’ll now read.
Dont usually venture this way but a satisfying solve nevertheless. Although in my book it was a touch harder than the back page.
Had to check a couple post completion but all in order. The tailored jacket was not ‘quite clear’ as two definitions of forbidden could be slotted in.
Thanks to Chalicea/Gazza.
Couple of days late to this but a lovely pre lights out (in a slightly alcohol induced fug) solve. As ever a delightful puzzle.
Thanks to Chalicea & to Gazza
1*/4* …
liked 23A “Embraces Spooner’s description of head lice? (4,4)”
Can’t resist seeing what I’ve missed! A lovely puzzle, and very pleased to see my region’s pal turn up in 5a. Thanks Chalicea and Gazza