Toughie No 3303 by Kcit
Hints and tips by Gazza
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment **
Kcit’s turn has come round again – thanks to him. I didn’t find a lot of sparkle here and the large number of ‘delete last letter’ constructs does make blogging a bit wearisome.
There is a bit of a theme here identified in 26a though I’m pretty sure I’ve not found all the elements.
Please leave a comment telling us how you fared and what you liked about the puzzle.
Across Clues
1a Independent couple welcoming volume made up by a couple about a single person (15)
INDIVIDUALISTIC: assemble an abbreviation for independent, a couple in Roman numerals containing the abbreviation for volume and an adjective meaning ‘related to a couple’. I’ve no idea what the surface here means.
9a One disliked live singer forgetting intro to Road Rage (4,5)
BÊTE NOIRE: string together a verb to live or exist, a male singer without the first letter of road and a synonym of rage.
10a Right to get stuck into some whisky, maybe neat (5)
SHORT: insert the abbreviation of right into a serving of a spirit such as whisky.
11a Perfect support for politician, repositioning a Liberal (5)
IDEAL: an assistant to a politician with the A repositioned to the end and the abbreviation for Liberal.
12a Struggling for particulars after lorry goes missing? It’s found in Derbyshire caves (9)
FLUORSPAR: an anagram (struggling) of FOR P[artic]ULARS after the lorry has been removed. Not a word I knew so I needed all the checkers – the mineral is probably better known as Blue John.
13a Pamphlet covering soft food as method of insect control (8)
FLYPAPER: an advertising pamphlet contains soft food.
14a Bet losing power leads to regret? Not so (6)
UNTRUE: an informal word for a bet without the physics abbreviation for power is followed by a verb to regret.
16a Loses cool photos one’s captured (6)
PANICS: an informal word for photos with a synonym of one inserted.
18a Essential for stand-up to frame a joke of great quality (8)
MAJESTIC: sometime that’s essential for a stand-up comic if he/she is performing in a large auditorium contains A and a type of joke.
22a Charge in – and charge out ultimately, as when bounced (9)
GATECRASH: an anagram (when bounced) of CHARGE, the ultimate letter of [ou]T and AS.
23a Some monsters turn back, others tail off (5)
OGRES: reverse a turn (in a boardgame, say) and add a synonym of others without its tail letter.
24a Unhappy over copyright for musical work (5)
SCORE: an adjective meaning unhappy or peeved contains the abbreviation for copyright.
25a Basalt mixed with ice water (6,3)
BALTIC SEA: an anagram (mixed) of BASALT ICE.
26a I’m into music appreciated from the armchair? There’s a lot of it deposited around (11,4)
SEDIMENTARY ROCK: insert I’M into an adjective meaning in a seated position and a type of music. I think that the definition here is telling us that there are examples of the answer to be found in the clues and the grid (12a, 21d, basalt and (Blue) John and probably some more that I’ve missed).
Down Clues
1d Concerned with cheese France will produce shortly (2,5)
IN BRIEF: glue together a preposition meaning ‘concerned with’, a type of soft cheese and the IVR code for France.
2d Uncertain home repairs around that place, mostly (7)
DITHERY: an abbreviation for home repairs containing an adverb meaning ‘that place’ without its last letter.
3d Defeat after football team’s brought in a new reserve? Chilling stuff (7,3,5)
VANILLA ICE CREAM: an informal verb to defeat follows the short name of a Midlands football team containing A and N(ew) and a synonym of reserve or frigidity.
4d Slowly deliver grave comment following blocking action (4-4)
DRIP FEED: an abbreviation found on a gravestone and the textual abbreviation for ‘following’ go inside a synonym of action.
5d A source of income not about to show way (6)
AVENUE: A and a source of income without the prefix meaning ‘about’.
6d Wind only ruins icecap, offering post-catastrophe protection (9,6)
INSURANCE POLICY: an anagram (wind) of ONLY RUINS ICECAP.
7d Article about University’s promoted loyal employee? (7)
TROUPER: reverse an article or account containing an abbreviation for university.
8d Exclusive group observing switch in lake bed? (7)
COTERIE: one of the Great Lakes and a child’s bed with their order switched.
15d John upset group of students over a form of afterlife (8)
VALHALLA: reverse an informal word for what Americans call a john and add a place where university students may live and A.
16d Take sustenance, eating herb when mounting horse … that’s unusual (7)
PEGASUS: a verb to eat contains a culinary herb. Reverse the lot.
17d Clear short trousers that could cause a few murmurs at court (3,4)
NET CORD: join together a verb to clear (take home after deductions) and a type of trousers without its last letter. I remember when one of the large number of officials needed to adjudicate a tennis match used to sit with his/her hand resting on the divider in order to feel when such an event happened. I presume that technology has overtaken the need for this.
19d Consults performer on way over (5,2)
TURNS TO: concatenate a theatrical performer and abbreviations for street and over.
20d Historic Russian farm animal swallowed up by another (7)
COSSACK: a farm animal is reversed inside a loud farm bird.
21d Number 2 curtly rejected, number 6 on the table (6)
CARBON: bring together an abbreviation for number and a word meaning two or a couple without its last letter and reverse it all. The table is a periodic one originally invented by Mendeleev. Not so long ago Zandio told us that it was a Telegraph rule that any number in the range 1-32 must refer to a clue in the puzzle but that rule seems to be widely ignored.
I didn’t have a favourite clue today. Which one(s) appealed to you?
I thought this was alright for a Kcit Toughie. The clue that made me smile was the horse … that’s unusual in 16d.
I didn’t spot a theme and am a bit confused about Gazza’s reference to the non-existent 30a
Thanks to Kcit and Gazza
Thanks for that. 30a has now magically changed to 26a.
I’m really warming to Kcit. He seems to be putting quite a lot of sic/tech into his puzzles, which makes a nice change. I found the lower half of this one much more of a challenge than the top, but overall about right for a Thursday. I liked the lorry going missing in 12a, laughed out loud at 26a and thought the grave comment at 4d was clever – but my top prize goes to 21d.
Thanks to Kcit and Gazza.
Took me quite a while to get the correct ending for 1a and I found 18a something of a beast to unravel but managed to cross the line with a couple of nudges from our blogger. 26a raised the biggest smile and I also ticked the uncertain home repair man and the useful pamphlet.
Thanks to Kcit and to Gazza, really enjoyed the affordable insurance and the ringer in the horse race!
A dnf unaided in the NE due to having got the wrong ending to 1a making 7d and 8d impossible and my failure to spot the ‘lorry’ in 12a. I did like 26a it took some sorting out mind you. Thanks to Kcit and Gazza for sorting me out in the NE.
Quite tricky but almost got there in the end. Needed help with12a and 7d. Spent too long looking for a cryptic meaning for the Derbyshire caves and couldn’t crack loyal employee as I was fixated on the wrong spelling with a double O. Thanks to Google I now know that either spelling of the synonym works for the definition here, although they have different derivations.
Thanks to KCIT for the workout and to Gazza for getting me over the line and help in parsing 21d
I don’t think one of the spellings would work here, Jeemz, you’re forgetting about the university.
Apologies Jane. That’s what I was trying to say. C!early rather ineptly! I’d not known that the word could be spelt with ou as well oo. I do now! Apparently both spellings are acceptable for the meaning needed by the clue although of course they have different alternative meanings
Found it a bit of a slog to get everything sorted. Like others have reported, 12a was new for us.
Thanks Kcit and Gazza.
Must say I found this one a bit of a slog & not a barrowload of laughs. Got there in the end with the help of 1 letter reveal but it was like wading through treacle with 8 to go. No real fav for me either just a quiet sense of satisfaction for battling through.
Thanks to kcit (sorry not to be more enthusiastic) & to Gazza.
I’ve warmed to this, despite an initial dread looking at the number of wordy clues. 26a is excellent, and there’s lots of good stuff here. And I agree about the joy of increased science-based clues. Only let down is the cumbersome 1a. Thanks to Kcit & Gazza.