Sunday Toughie 222 (Hints)

Sunday Toughie No 222

by Light

 

Hints and Tips by Sloop John Bee

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

A cracking puzzle from Light today. I wish I could have hinted more. The brilliant 1d gets the nod from a classy Spoonerism and 17a ran them close.

14a and 14d clues today, and I have hinted at half. I hope you find the checkers to finish, and as long as you remember your H. Rider Haggard novels and what Zanzibarians speak, you shouldn’t have too much trouble. I will try to give a nudge if asked.

Here we go, Folks…

As it is a Prize puzzle I can only hint at a few and hope that will give you the checkers and inspiration to go further. I’ll return with the full review blog just after the closing date. Don’t forget to follow BD’s instructions in RED at the bottom of the hints!

Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also” Where the hint describes a construct as “usual” this means that more help can be found in The Usual Suspects, which gives a number of the elements commonly used in the wordplay. Another useful page is Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, which features words with meanings that are not always immediately obvious. Don’t forget the Mine of Useful information that Big Dave and his son Richard so meticulously prepared for us.

A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions. Some hints follow: Remember the site rules and play nicely.   

Across

1a          Accepting knight was forthright about not much of value years ago (14)

The value of one 960th of a pound or originally a quarter of a penny. This much petrol today might get you from one side of the forecourt to the other

9a          They look very ordinary, of course, touring ancient city (7)

Abbreviations of very and ordinary, a synonym for of course, around crossworders’ favourite ancient city

14a        Jenny possibly visiting North American university city (6)

Jenny, as the female name of an equine animal, is inserted into (visiting) North American and University abbreviations

15a        I’m not surprised Motown singer’s cancelled (2,6)

Motown’s most celebrated singer-songwriter has cancelled his appearance, and I’m not surprised

17a        Transport given the green light in Brussels, perhaps part-submarine (8)

I am going to call this an all-in-one, as this means of transport from Brussels to St Pancras would start with a green signal and include a section under the English Channel. There is some wordplay though, if you accept green as a term for the currency used in Brussels and light as the heavenly source of light             

24a        Opening Bible book I see being read out in church (7)

An abbreviated book of the Bible and letters sounded out in I see go into an abbreviation for the Church of England

27a        Picking the best old volunteers, fast and smart to guard funds (6-8)

The former (old) abbreviation for the soldiers now known as the British Army Reserve, the fast undertaken before Easter, and to smart from a bee or wasp, which guards some funds

They performed this on a recent 27a show, I have used this version, so I don’t have to spoiler it

Down

1d          Former vice-president Gore, in support of prime minister, ultimately quits for a bit (4,5,5)

Beware the devious capitalisation of Gore – he isn’t the VP we seek. A former Vice President follows a prime number, then to gore or impale, from which the ultimate letter of minister has been removed. A bit is a small coin

3d          They time hotel covering bins for us (11)

H for hotel a possessive for us and more formally, the bins we use to improve our vision

6d          Round edges on aircraft-carrier’s propeller (3)

On my first look at this clue I took the edges of aircraft and was reminded of Samuel Johnson’s opinion of,  “A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people”
I missed the hyphen between aircraft-carrier, which gives us a different pair of edges and a means of propelling a rowing boat rather than a horse

8d          Child’s hero battling for Spooner’s journalism (7,7)

I remind you that with Spoonerisms, it is sounds not just letters that are transposed. The hero of Lee Child’s books and his belligerent nature swap sounds to give us a style of long-form journalism that goes beyond reporting raw facts to explore human-interest stories, trends, or profiles in-depth                    

16d       Mum home for a chat, maybe around one, fine and clear (8)

An informal mother, the home where a Chat or other avian species live, around the letter that looks like one and an abbreviation of fine

18d       Coastal region‘s flower swathing Italy area (7)

Crosswords generic “flow”er around the IVR code for Italy, followed by the abbreviation of area

21d       Have nothing to do with dad getting face lifted (4,2)

A slang term for the face is reversed (lifted in a down clue) it follows a term for your father

Compiler

Light

 

Could new readers please read the Welcome Post and the FAQ before posting comments or asking questions about the site.
As this is a Prize crossword, please don’t put any ANSWERS, whether WHOLE, PARTIAL or INCORRECT or any ALTERNATIVE CLUES in your comment.
Please read these instructions carefully – they are not subject to debate or discussion. Offending comments may be redacted or, in extreme cases, deleted. In all cases the administrator’s decision is final.
If you don’t understand, or don’t wish to comply with, the conventions for commenting on weekend prize puzzles then save yourself a lot of trouble and don’t leave a comment.

---