Toughie No 3714 by Silvanus
Hints and Tips by crypticsue
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BD Rating – Toughie Difficulty **** – Enjoyment ***
I thought that Silvanus set us a proper Toughie, one where it was definitely necessary to keep the BRB by your side
Please leave a comment telling us what you thought
Across
1a Confuse cunning person, admitting that’s surprising for the most part (7)
FLUMMOX An informal name for anyone notorious for cunning ‘admitting’ most of an informal interjection of surprise
9a Musical some in France recalled being soporific (8)
SEDATIVE A reversal (recalled) of a musical and the French word for some
10a Homeless woman happy wearing black always (3,4)
BAG LADY A synonym for happy inserted into (wearing) the abbreviation for Black and a dialect or archaic word meaning always
11a Current extravagance missing for tea, maybe (8)
INFUSION The usual current or fashionable and extravagance without (missing) the preposition meaning for or in favour of
12a Cycling couple excited by introduction to Steve Cram (4,2)
SWOT UP The ‘introduction to Steve, a reversal (cycling) of a couple and in an excited state
13a Complete a game German also embraces (10)
UNABRIDGED The German word for and (also) ‘embraces’ A (from the clue) and a card game
15a Bishop went jogging in shorts (4)
BRAN The chess abbreviation for Bishop and a simple way of saying went jogging. Among other things, the BRB defines shorts as the coarse part of meal or grain
16a Traitors go to confront Balkan residents right away (9)
TURNCOATS A verb meaning to go ‘confronts’ or goes before some residents of a Balkan state without the abbreviation for Right
21a On the radio, vintage band (4)
CREW A homophone (on the radio) of a French word for a vintage
22a Sure introducing law for everybody is hard (10)
INFLEXIBLE Replace the synonym for everybody in sure or inevitable with a synonym for law
24a Flipping heroin Estonian acquires first (6)
SENIOR Hidden in reverse (flipping) in words two and three of the clue
25a One’s abandoned bar in sharp decline (8)
NOSEDIVE An anagram (abandoned) of ONES and a slang name for a bar
27a Sort of music-hall entertainment (7)
VARIETY A varied assortment or a type of music-hall entertainment
28a Old Harry’s believer somehow in stats article plugs (8)
SATANIST An anagram (somehow) of IN STATS ‘plugged’ by an indefinite article
29a Country with around half of adults gloomy, according to Spooner (7)
DENMARK According to Spooner the male half of adults would be gloomy
Down
2d Daughter runs personal online service provider over café perhaps (4,4)
LOAN WORD Abbreviations for Doctor and Runs (cricket), personal or belonging to oneself and an online service provider, all reversed (over)
3d Tight American cuts fortune for activist (8)
MILITANT Drunk (tight) and the abbreviation for American ‘cuts’ a vast sum of money (fortune)
4d Work by Sophocles I sexed up or ruined? (7,3)
OEDIPUS REX An anagram (ruined) of I SEXED UP OR
5d Disclose time spent in Spanish city (4)
LEON A phrase meaning to disclose without (spent) the abbreviation for Time
6d Dog usually is seen at intervals crossing our land (6)
SALUKI The even (at intervals) letters of uSuAlLy Is ‘crossing’ the abbreviation for our land (providing you aren’t one of our overseas correspondents!)
7d Equipment, extremely strong, provided to hold nothing up? (7)
FIXINGS The extreme letters of StronG, a conjunction meaning provided and a slang word meaning nothing, all reversed (up)
8d President understanding poor must be disheartened (7)
KENNEDY A chiefly Scottish word for understanding and a synonym for poor without its middle letter (must be disheartened)
11d Cantankerous character originally Liberia’s out to arrest (9)
IRASCIBLE An anagram (out) of LIBERIAS ‘arrests’ the original letter of Character
14d Property in Florida let briefly at Easter breaks (4,6)
REAL ESTATE Most of LEt (briefly) inserted into an anagram of AT EASTER
17d Metal is able to replace disc in another metal (8)
SCANDIUM Part of a verb meaning is able to replaces the disc-shaped letter in another metal
18d Journalist needing, essentially, cigarettes and beer (8)
REPORTER The ‘essential’ letters of cigaREttes and a type of beer
19d Captures in oils revolutionary inspiring hero-worship (7)
LIONISE Hidden in reverse (revolutionary) in capturES IN OILs
20d Makes up for rotten series of songs performed (7)
OFFSETS Rotten or bad and a series of songs performed by a singer or band at a concert
23d Finish selling, very little discounted (6)
ENDING Selling without the abbreviation (little) for Very
26d Examine small splits in garment (4)
VEST The abbreviation for Small ‘splits’ a verb meaning to examine thoroughly and critically
Not easy, but not overly difficult. My last in was 7d.
Many thanks to Silvanus for the enjoyable puzzle, and to CS for the review.
My top three were 10a, 16a, and 18d.
Once I got in to the swing of this, I noticed a fair number of clues needed part of the fodder to be extracted or replaced to get to the definition. I like the kind of lateral thinking required in those types.
The synonym for surprising in 1a was surprising, as was the term for shorts in 15a and I tried to make the nothing held up in 7d nil. It almost worked.
Ticks for the traitors in 16a, hard in 22a, 2d’s café perhaps and the President in 8d.
Quite a lot going on in that one, my thanks to Silvanus and CS.
Certainly more difficult than recent Wednesday Toughies. I managed about 80% unaided before resorting to the digital BRB for help with the last 6. 2d was LOI which whilst quite clearly clued I would never have got in a month of Sundays. 3d, 6d, 1a & 15a all needed the hints to understand the parsing. I couldn’t make sense of 7d having parsed ‘nothing’ as ‘nil’ so incorrect. 22a is my favourite.
Many thanks to Silvanus and CS
I found this very tough indeed particularly in the SW corner, and it took me several sittings to complete it. However, it was well worth the effort as PDM followed PDM all the way to the finishing line.
I also got a bit held up in the NW corner as both 2d & 10a were new to me, and I needed to refer to the BRB for the only answers to both that fitted with the wordplay and checkers.
1a is a splendid word which gets the nod as my favourite, and it is joined on my crowded podium by 16a, 4d & 18d.
Many thanks to Silvanus and to CS.
Silvanus is quite tricky today with some cracking clues – thanks to him and CS.
I didn’t know the 15a shorts (although the wordplay was very clear) and I spent time wondering how filings could mean tackle until the penny dropped.
I particularly liked 1a, 10a, 12a, 22a, 29a and 2d.