ACROSS
1 - The French region about which to make a choice (9) - SE{LE}CTION
6 - Finish with one’s tail in the air (3,2) - {END} {UP}
9 - A jain takes course in martial arts (5) - NI{N}JA* Ninja is not a martial art, but it is someone who pursues a martial art!!
10 - Graduates put in to transform old school (4,5) - AL{MA} {MA}TER
11 - One being impudent without being able to stop the flow of current (10) - INSUL{A}TING Don't know how A comes in
12 - Flood survivor apparently declined threat inspection (4) - {NO}AH Anno eludes me
14 - It drives one to drink when you are parched (7) - THIRSTY Anno pending
15 - Fit to be eaten for bees, so take lid off (7) - EDIBLES*
17 - Nora had to go to the river to find her (7) - {ELE}{ANOR*} ? Couldn't find any river named ELE
19 - Declares that it’s a lock-up (7) - A{SSERT<-}S Nice clue
20 - Vortex guy? (4) - EDDY [DD]
22 - Current way to produce greater efficiency (10) - {STREAM}{LINE}
25 - A great egg concoction to get together (9) - AGGREGATE*
26 - A few in the Tyneside area find this simple (5) - N{A}{IV}E NE from Tyneside being in the NE area of the UK and IV being a few!!
27 - Cancel because having entered before (5) - ER{AS}E
28 - Will change statement (9) - TESTAMENT* Nice clue
DOWN
1 - Moses received the 10 Commandments on its Mount (5) - SINAI [E]
2 - A natural slip of landladies lacking a bent for it (9) - LANDSLIDES(-a)*
3 - Early form of rock music (6,4) - CRADLE SONG [CD]
4 - Not suitably done to sleep in it (7) - {I{NAP}T}LY Don't ask me where LY came from
5 - Refusal by colliery to take on English candidate (7) - {NO}{MINE}{E}
6 - She has them shortened to a degree (4) - {(-th)EM}{MA}
7 - Time to do it in the same manner (5) - DI{T}TO*
8 - Secures leverage (9) - PURCHASES [DD]
13 - Declines nothing — kind of frenzy in compulsive drinking (10) - {DIPS}{O}{MANIA}
14 - The ones here confront ante-revolutionary legislature (3,6) - {THE SE}{NATE*}
16 - Idle vicar, running wild, will polish off the grub! (9) - LARVICIDE*
18 - Pull out car fallen by accident in crater (7) - RE{T}RACT T meaning Model 'T' of FORD?
19 - Set ways stuff for remaining young looking (7) - AGELESS [DD]
21 - Closely follow a well qualified person’s teaching (5) - {DOG}{MA}
23 - Difficult to let engineer be chosen for office (5) - EL{EC}T*
24 - In short we are what we used to be (4) - WE'RE Nice clue
GRID
Found it difficult to guess the 'THE' in THE SENATE, and also ELEANOR for the same reason of the name of the river. Got the rest of the solutions, with a few guesses based on crossings though. Some annos beat me too.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to the nice clues mentioned by the Col, I liked these as well.
3 down: good pun on 'rock'ing the cradle
13 down
16 down: good anagram besides the pun on 'grub'
Re 9 across: A jain takes course in martial arts (5) NINJA
Since it says 'takes', it could mean Ninja takes the course.
Col, the other day you had warned me of a possible 'hair-tearing' experience with this compiler around from today. But I staved off most part of the challenge at least for today. So far so good. My motto was 'Tension lena Manna hai !' (Pun intended.)
Richard
Hi Richard,
ReplyDeleteToday is just the first day, let's see what happens over the next six episodes of Manna.
You will need great will power if you want to stick to your motto.
Richard,
ReplyDeleteRe 9A, besides what I have mentioned in the main post, this clue has many more inconsistencies, for instance where is the Anagram indicator and so on
Yes, I had intended to mention the missing anagram indicator, but missed mentioning it.
ReplyDeleteThe motto worked today. Let's see tomorrow on.
Richard
I also can't figure out how the second 'N'comes in 9A
ReplyDeleteThe only way you can solve this CW is keeping in mind that it is Manna. Else some of the clues would be impossible
ReplyDeleteCol and Suresh
ReplyDeleteStill on 9 across: Give this a thought. Since the j-word is not capitalized, it could be a misprint. I have a feeling it was meant to be 'jinn' - an alternative spelling of 'genie' of the Aladin's lamp fame. If it was to be 'Jain' which is the name of a community or one of its members, it would have been capitalized. This is just a guess. Please let me have your views.
'A jinn somehow takes course in martial arts' would have been a perfect clue.
Richard
Richard,
ReplyDeleteSo it's the infamous printer's devil at the HINDU at work again.
Let's give Manna the benefit of doubt in this case, though he doesn't deserve it, as you will see over the next six days.