A Puzzle by Radler
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The puzzle is available by clicking on the above grid
As Radler's crosswords go, I found this at the easier end of his spectrum - by which I mean I only had to have one go at it and took what I'd consider to be a 5* Toughie time. He really doesn’t do "easy", does he??
Across
7a Regarding backing, you lot call right away (5)
EYING: A reversal (backing) of an archaic word meaning you lot and a verb meaning to call on the telephone without (away) the abbreviation for Right
9a Address next door to Bill making love (9)
ADORATION: An address or speech goes after (next door to) an abbreviated advertisement (bill)
11a American source of lust - American's skirts clothing American prostitute (7)
IDAHOAN: In psychoanalytic theory, one of three parts of the personality relating to basic desires including sex (source of lust), and the outside letters (skirts) of AmericaN going round (clothing) A (from the clue) and an American word for a prostitute
12a To get into bedroom drug women with bait? (3,4)
DEW WORM: An abbreviated bedroom into which is inserted the abbreviation for Ecstasy (drug) and two lots of the abbreviation for Woman (women)
13a Best get away (3,3)
SEE OFF: Get or understand and a synonym for away
14a Fish essentially basted with egg continuously (8)
STURGEON: The essential letters of baSTed with a phrase meaning egg continuously
16a Scent historical shifts among primaries perhaps (15)
INTERSCHOLASTIC: An anagram (shifts) of SCENT HISTORICAL
18a Thought son sat up before that (8)
SUPPOSED: The abbreviation for Son and UP (from the clue) going before sat (for an artist perhaps)
20a & 23a. Players 1, 2, 3 & 4? (6)
STRING QUARTET: A set of four numbers
22a Ingredients for baking in broadcast (7)
CURRANT: A homophone (broadcast) of in in the sense of fashionable
24a Obscure categories without suggestion of generality? (9)
ESOTERICA: An anagram (obscure) of CATEgORIES without the first letter (suggestion) of Generality
25a They're exhausted claiming man's articles here (5)
THESE: The outside (exhausted) letters of TheyrE ‘claiming’ that man is
Down
1d Drama set in isle or mideast occasionally (6)
SERIES: The ‘occasional’ letters of iSlE oR mIdEaSt
2d Dressing walls prepared for joiner (8)
LIGAMENT: A dressing for wounds ‘walls’ or goes round an informal term meaning prepared or willing to act
3d Long intrinsically pointless fabrication (4)
YARN: A synonym for long or wish for without the second letter (intrinsically [compass] pointless
4d Inmate I'd upset barging into nick (9)
CONDITION: Nick being an informal word relating to good health and or the solution. A prisoner (inmate) a reversal (upset) of ID and an anagram (barging) of INTO
5d Type of aerial mast holds up investigator (6)
DIPOLE: A type of mast ‘holds up’ (in a Down solution) an abbreviated detective (investigator)
6d Help to recall crew disheartened over lost income (8)
MNEMONIC: A crew without the middle letter (disheartened) goes over an anagram (lost) of INCOME
8d Encouraging sentimentality, suffering from ordeal (4,3,6)
GOOD FOR MORALE: A slang term for sentimentality and an anagram (suffering) of FROM ORDEAL
10d Some stings stings finally piercing a creature that's furry and snug (2,4,2,5)
AS WARM AS TOAST: A group of stinging insects and the final letter of stingS ‘piercing’ or inserted into a furry creature
15d Redesigned entire three of clubs card (9)
ECCENTRIC: An anagram (redesigned) of ENTIRE and CCC (three abbreviations for the suit of Clubs
16d Maybe fly around on and off the record (2,6)
IN SECRET: The creature of which a fly is an example goes around the usual on the subject of
17d Either way symbolically it's prime time neither broadcast (8)
THIRTEEN: An anagram (broadcast) of T (time) NEITHER
19d A second turn of number one (6)
PERSON: For each (A), the abbreviation for Second and a reversal (turn) of an abbreviated number
21d Crowd demonstrating at hermits' houses (6)
GATHER: Housed by demonstratinG AT HERmit
23d Landing place in Cornwall not recently developed (4)
QUAY: A Cornish place without the ‘recently made’ at the front of the name
Please note that for the clue to 1d to work, the fifth word has to be OR not OF
When I saw Radler’s name I thought/hoped that he might have mellowed slightly. I was soon disabused of that idea but I do enjoy struggling (at a pedestrian pace) through his puzzles and marvelling at his skill in constructing his clues. Thanks to him for the puzzle.
One of my queries has already been answered by CS above but there seem to be typos in 14a and 10d.
I thought that the second definition in 14a should be ‘send away’ rather than ‘get away’ although I may be missing something. I also thought that ‘ingredients’ in 22a should be singular.
I particularly liked 18a, 2d, 16d and 17d.
I surrender! If Gazza struggled it was definitely too good for me and I don’t feel too bad at throwing in the towel. After pondering for a good while, I have seven clues completed in the south with the north a complete desert. I look forward to the review. Thanks to Radler.
I gave up on donating brain cells to Radler a long time ago!
moi aussi
That was a real nostalgia trip for us. It was so reminiscent of solving the monthly prize puzzles on this site in the good old days. Really intricate and challenging but oh soo rewarding when the answers slowly revealed themselves.
Thanks Radler.
Off now for our somewhat delayed Sunday morning walk.
Thank you to crypticsue for blogging the puzzle and for rating it as slightly less difficult.
It wasn’t mentioned, but 1, 2, 3 & 4 down are examples of “string”, hence the String Quartet.
I’m sorry for the typos. After compiling the puzzle, I retype the clues into a very slow old Windows PC (takes about 20 minutes to start up, and it often misses keystrokes.)
Does anyone know whether there is a version of Crossword Compiler that will run under Linux?
As far as I know there is no native version of CC for Linux. You could try installing Windows as a virtual machine on the Linux system using Parallels (I do this on the Mac and it works well) or use a system like Wine or Crossover that (with varying results) allow Windows programs to run without a full Windows installation.