Sunday Toughie 228 (Review)

Sunday Toughie No 228 by Light

Review by Sloop John Bee

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This puzzle was published on 7th June 2026

Across 

1a Pep at fault and opposite number brilliant, drop off sharply (2,3,4,1,5) 

GO OUT LIKE A LIGHT: A synonym of pep GO, the condition of a lamp when at fault OUT, an adjective for things shared with an opposite number LIKE, and finally a brilliant source of illumination A LIGHT, come together to be the ability to drop off to sleep promptly 

9a When ground patty oddly spiced, having indigestion (9) 

DYSPEPTIC: Grind up the odd letters of patty PTY and SPICED  

10a Reversing any minute now for person in Muscat? (5) 

OMANI: An informal (2,1,2) phrase for any minute now IN A MO, is reversed 

11a One of 50 fooled when overthrown ball goes past infielder’s head (5) 

IDAHO: The ball-shaped letter O. A synonym of fooled HAD, and the head letter of the infielder I are reversed (when overthrown) O HAD I becomes IDAHO one of 50 States in the USA 

12a Where VIP may be seen looking embarrassed with wig (3,6) 

RED CARPET: The colour of ones face RED, when seen with a dodgy wig synonym CARPET 

13a Drinks slings, bored by goof (8) 

SHERRIES: To sling at a coconut in a fair SHIES, contains (bored by) a goof or mistake ERR. SH(ERR)IES  

14a Perhaps once leaving mass, angry over losing face with bishop (6) 

ADVERB: A definition by example (perhaps) A synonym of angry MAD loses the mass abbreviation (m)AD, over from the clue loses its face letter (o)VER, and goes along with the chess notation for a bishop B. Once is an ADVERB 

16a Shrink from Lima – he is led by old Adler’s teachings first and foremost (6) 

LOATHE: Start with the letter that Lima suggests L, and finish with HE from the clue. He is led by the first and foremost letters of old Adler’s teachings O A T. To shrink from or L-OAT-HE 

18a Fuss following prison tweets? (8) 

BIRDSONG: A bit of fuss or SONG and dance, follows an informal term for time served in prison BIRD 

22a Mark’s hair recedes at the front (9) 

BACKSLASH: A small hair around the eye LASH,has a synonym of recedes BACKS, at the front for a punctuation mark BACKSLASH 

23a Gesture, very pronounced kind of wave (1-4) 

V-SIGN: An abbreviation of very V, and a homophone (pronounced) of one of the trigonometric waves SINE becomes SIGN 

24a On reflection, whATS ARguably repressing religious type (5) 

RASTA: A lurker (repressing) that is reversed (on reflection) between the (indicators) 

25a Stock cut back, say, at noon (9) 

PARENTAGE: A synonym of cut PARE, followed by an abbreviated synonym of say EG, AT from the clue and a noon abbreviation N, that are all reversed (back) PARE + EG AT N reversed = PARE-NTAGE 

26a Wade’s initial shot popular with grand attendants of Queen’s (6-2-7)

LADIES IN WAITING: An anagram (shot) of WADE’S INITIAL with the addition of our usual popular preposition IN and a grand abbreviation G 

Down 

1d Despicable people bounding round delta with waders (7) 

GODWITS: One for the birdwatchers, the round letter O, the letter that delta is to Greeks D, and a with abbreviation W, are bound by some despicable people GITS. G-ODW-ITS are a species of wading birds 

2d Playing between flat and house? (2,5) 

ON STAGE: 2d is a cryptic definition describing where the actors perform i.e. between a vertical piece of scenery at the rear of the stage (flat) and the audience (house). Thanks Gazza

3d Cardinal nailed by two articles, say journalists (3,6,6) 

THE FOURTH ESTATE: A cardinal number FOUR, goes between two definite articles THE-THE and a synonym of say STATE 

4d One put inside abbey opening late, extremely effusive (8) 

INTERNEE: An abbey on the Welsh borders TINTERN Abbey, without its opening letter INTERN, followed by the extreme letters of effusive E-E 

5d What’s chewed by cattle in Spain, note – and old rhino in Portugal! (6) 

ESCUDO: The IVR code for Spanish cars E, and one of the notes of the tonic scale SO far la ti do, that contains what cattle chew CUD. Old Rhino being an informal term for the money used in Portugal before the Euro 

6d Artistic type designed a Nordic divan for stars to sit on (8,2,5) 

LEONARDO DA VINCI: Sitting on one of the constellations LEO, is an anagram (designed) of A NORDIC DIVAN 

7d Seize grain and fruit (7) 

GRAPPLE: An abbreviation of grain GR, and some fruit APPLE 

8d I want to put aside a defective, still spinning washing machine … (4-3) 

TWIN-TUB: An anagram (defective) of I W(a)NT, but put aside the A, and an objection that you may use for still BUT, that has been reversed (spinning) TUB. IWNT BUT becomes TWIN-TUB 

15d … and trace repair (8) 

WITHDRAW: Ignore the elision…  a synonym of and WITH, and to trace with a pencil perhaps DRAW before you repair or WITHDRAW to another place 

16d Academician probing malign Canadian politician, maybe (7) 

LIBERAL: A member of the Royal Academy RA, probes to malign by written accusation LIBEL. LIBE-RA-L the ruling party in Canada 

17d Defendant half-heartedly swore after account (7) 

ACCUSED: An abbreviated account AC, and to have sworn CUS(s)ED, but without one of the letters at its heart 

19d Folding paper inside of comic, drinking port (7) 

ORIGAMI: The inside letters of comic OMI, contain (drinking) a Baltic port RIGA. O-RIGA-MI 

20d Restorative plant partly regressing GascoiIGNE’S NIGgle (7) 

GINSENG: A reverse lurker (partly regressing) in the rest of the clue 

21d Time perfect exercises before international in Far East capital (6) 

TAIPEI: T for time, an alphanumeric perfect A1, some training exercises PE, and an international abbreviation I. TAIPEI being the capital city of TAIWAN 

Compiler 

Light

 

 

That’s all Folks…