ACROSS
1 - Blockheaded — like a court jester? (7) - FOOLISH [CD]
5 - By George! Trail for Hansel and Gretel! (6) - CRUMBS [DD]
9 - Switching ends, speak for classical sister (5) - ERATO (-o+e)ERAT(-e+o)O
10 - “Yes” in two foreign languages etched in wood in US state (9) - LOUISIANA L{OUI}{SI}ANA Anno pending (Addendum - {L{OUI}{SI}ANA} - See comments)
11 - I said: “Strike”. Something batted (7) - EYELASH (~i){EYE}{LASH}
12 - Little grabbers move right back for royals (7) - PRINCES P(+r)RINCE(-r)S
13 - Bit of discrimination? (5) - TASTE [CD]
14 - Where you keep what you don't want to keep (6,3) - REFUSE BIN [E]
16 - One who has to settle when the taxman cometh (9) - RATEPAYER [CD]
19 - Prevent a seasoned one getting restricted (5) - AVERT {A}VERT Anno pending (Addendum - {A{VE{R}T} - See comments)
21 - Shrill firm (American) on Rex (Australian) (7) - RAUCOUS {R}{AU}{CO}{US}
23 - French island follows diplomacy. Touching! (7) - TACTILE {TACT}{ILE}
24 - Somehow adopt self to tone down (4,5) - SOFT PEDAL*
25 - Lost daughter in a foreign country (5) - PERDU {PER{D}U}
26 - The measure of education? (6) - DEGREE [DD]
27 - Inspirational words kept pal going (3,4) - PEP TALK*
DOWN
1 - Economic activity in which peer interferes crudely (4,10) - FREE ENTERPRISE*
2 - Nil ranges set apart for asses (7) - ONAGERS {O}{RANGES*}
4 - Indu or rate, not indurate (4-5) - HALF-HARDY [CD]
5 - One hundred swell in group (5) - CLUMP {C}{LUMP}
6 - Takes off the steamer (7) - UNSHIPS [E]
7 - Carry novice newshawk to grizzly baby (4,3) - BEAR CUB {BEAR} {CUB}
8 - Skirting responsibility for handing the cash (7,3,4) - PASSING THE BUCK [DD]
17 - With team leader, collar the chocolate treat (7) - TRUFFLE {T}{RUFFLE}
19 - Boy has company for soda and portmanteau drink (7) - ALCOPOP {AL}{CO}{POP}
20 - Tearier about a Red Sea land (7) - ERITREA*
10 - “Yes” in two foreign languages etched in wood in US state (9) - LOUISIANA L{OUI}{SI}ANA Anno pending
ReplyDeleteLana Wood ? False decapita(lisa)tion?
Apropos yesterday’s
ReplyDelete5 - Treat with two big cups — rather worn out (6) - EFFETE {E}{F}{FETE}
28 - A couple of kings involved in redrawn lesson on breathing equipments (8) - SNORKELS {SNO{R}{K}ELS*}
Liked the similar way of cluing in two different letters E and F with cups in 5, and R and K with kings in 28.
Thank you, Kishore.
ReplyDeleteRe 19a. My heart skipped a beat whether a mistake had been made as the Col, veteran solver of THC, states: "Anno pending". To be frank, sometimes setters themselves forget the wordplay, though they may have taken the utmost pains to ensure accuracy at the time of clueing.
I had forgotten the wordplay but after a few tense moments of thinking I have teased out what my line of thinking was.
I shall wait till later, for some reader might come up with the anno. (While rereading the comment before posting, I realise that I have unintentionally given a hint in the lines above.)
Deepak: Re your guess on 'cupid's bow', I didn't know that you were a lip reader!
Of course, setters could note down the anno for each clue so that they don't grope later.
ReplyDeleteBut as I set puzzles on my PC, I don't like to type more than what is really necessary, so I don't note the annos.
Six or seven months later, while checking the puz on the previous day, the anno for a clue may elude me and if I never recall it I rewrite the clue so I won't be cornered.
In this case I puzzled momentarily but didn't have time yesterday to recall the anno or rewrite the clue.
Luckily I managed to figure out the nno this morning after I started thinking following the Col's query.
*** I am now reading the biography of veena S Balachander. Kishore: have you seen Vikram Sampath's earlier book on the Wodeyar dynasty?
Writing this book on Balachander might not have been too difficult as the maestro had volumes of diaries/photo albums with cryptic captions/scrapbooks/letters.
Readable, though I do notice many slips on the part of the editors.
Nope, CV, I have not read it. Talking of slips, there was a beaut headline in ET a few days back re the situation in our neighbouring countries "Slip between the coup and the lip".
ReplyDeleteNoting, of course, that slips are nothing but cheek aboard.
ReplyDeleteMsg from Ajeesh regarding 19A
ReplyDelete{A}{VE{R}T}
VET veteran = Seasoned one :)
But 'R' for restricted?
Kishore @ 7:11 PM
ReplyDeleteTo think of Lana Wood as 'wood in US' is a bit far fetched, moreover I don't think anyone would guess it unless they had checked it with Google. Lana Lang, Superman's GF would have been more gettable.
Agreed. That way post facto justification ;-)
DeleteDeepak
ReplyDeleteFor lana = wood, please see Chambers.
Ajeesh is right about the anno for AVERT. As for R for 'restricted', it is entered in 'Chambers XWD: A dictionary of Crossword Abbreviations', though I am unable to give here and now a context in which this abbr. is used.
Thanks CV,
DeleteFor info of others,
Chambers says "lana n the wood of the genipap tree. [SAmerican word]"
R is a movie rating in USA and stands for Restricted, meaning under 17s cannot enter without parents
ReplyDeleteSuresh
ReplyDeleteThanks for the clarification.