ACROSS
1 - Ice develops mysteriously on the old bicycles (11) - VELOCIPEDES*
9 - They're in conversation about a possessive adjective (5) - THEIR (~they're)
10 - Creative army engineer softly moves a step forward for the periodical (9) - NEWSPAPER {NEW}{S(+p)PA(-p)PER}
11 - Mall's hoopla zapped partially (5) - PLAZA [T]
12 - Strange grid in grill, something destined for Bombay High? (8,3) - DRILLING RIG*
13 - Revise what may keep a piece of software current (6) - UPDATE [DD]
14 - Pleased to have left the English out of the agreement (7) - COMPACT COMPlACenT
18 - Some newspaper staff get gold shillings after turning the trend around (7) - EDITORS {EDIT<-}{OR}{S}
20 - Reel on seeing Switzerland take over Padova's primary train (6) - SCHOOL {S(-p+ch}CHOOL}
24 - Famous East German and Pole found participating in a noisy mock serenade (4-7) - BEST-SELLING {B{EST}-{S}ELLING}
26 - Old city retreat sends back the gibbon to the country (5) - RURAL {RU<-}{RAL}
27 - Guard at the Tower of London, a non-vegetarian? (9) - BEEFEATER [DD]
29 - Realistic about where things in the air go due to gravity? (4-2-5) - DOWN-TO-EARTH [DD]
DOWN
1 - Metal found in dam Na'vi built to hide uranium (8) - VANADIUM {VANADI{U}M*}
2 - Base nature of the journalist following the poor idea (3-6) - LOW-MINDED {LOW}-{MIND}{ED}
3 - Company announcing infamous Judean governor as a flight crew member (7) - COPILOT {CO}{PILOT}(~pilate}
4 - Drop by with the student's missing ribbed cotton fabric (3,2) - POP IN {POPl IN}
5 - Negatives may be developed here (8) - DARKROOM [E]
6 - Discontinue rent for resort (7) - STOPGAP {STOP}{GAP}
7 - Secure the beer sent up for bottling in Belarus (5) - BELAY {B{ELA<-}Y}
8 - Daylight, clearly visible? (5) - BROAD [CD]
15 - Singer's awful rhetorics (9) - CHORISTER*
16 - Show off entertaining sailor's second-grade weapon (8) - CROSSBOW {CRO{SS}{B}{O}W} 'O' for ordinary grade?
19 - Rag, a bit old, is shredded (7) - TABLOID*
21 - Set lifted for packing by the old king in the seminary (7) - COLLEGE {COL{LEG<-}E}
22 - Impress Mark (5) - PRINT [DD]
23 - Mill in Switzerland embracing detailed plan (5) - CRUSH {C{RUSe}H}
25 - The Polish keep the Norse leader out for a short time in the film (5) - SHEET {SHEEn}{T}
16 - Show off entertaining sailor's second-grade weapon (8) - CROSSBOW {CRO{SS}{B}{O}W} 'O' for ordinary grade?
ReplyDelete{CR{OSS}{B}OW}
Sailor= Ordinary seaman=OS
I took 22d as BRAND 2
I took 22d as BRAND 2, but agree with PRINT. It also fits the Print media theme.
ReplyDelete8d and 25d together BROADSHEET is also one of the themed words.
ReplyDeleteThere are some interesting comments under yesterday's blog on MM's puzzle wrt UK references in crosswords in India.
ReplyDeletePlease do read them.
I had also put in 'brand' for 22d.Yes, I agree 'print' is more apt and in line with the theme.
ReplyDelete5D-
ReplyDeleteDark room has almost gone into the dark? Not many know about it in these days of digital photography. It was shocking to hear Kodak filing for bankruptcy !
I am reminded of RKN's novel 'The dark room'.
DeleteBTW, I remember coming across in old Tamil novels the term 'camera arai or ull' - a small, exclusive, generally ill-lit inner room in a palatial house.
Was it where some dark deed took place? Maybe a confinement after some months with a maruththavachchi dropping by?
From the Fifties to the Nineties I lived in a big independent house in Madras but it did not have this room (you can guess that I am clean!). Does it go back to still earlier decades and houses in villages and smaller cities rather than Madras? Can anyone recall?
CV: Your comments on Indian crosswords with rivers, counties and divisions of England are worthy of note. Those of us who are wont to such names take it in our stride but it certainly looks like some of the compilers are still not necessarily 'under the yoke'of the colony regime and find it easier to use them as copy cat devices to beguile the newbies in this brain game. One does go to refer to the books and get to know a bit more of geography, by re-searching (sic). This is how they would learn. But it is rather unpardonable to be so uncreative in compiling that a settter should pick out of his English crosswords and copy-paste. Otherwise, it is ok as we all have this experience of learning new words, expressions and idioms only by this permutation and combination that crossword clues permit. Without the likes of NJ and Manna, even you and I would have been one of those newbies to this art of deceit? Obscure words, names and expressions are always welcome.
ReplyDeleteLet us give the cryptic crosswords the democratic space that they deserve.
that's the only way one learns.
Lets live and let live!!
Raju
DeleteYou wrote: "The whole pile, I tell my dear soul-mate, will be good enough to prevent any firewood being wasted for my funeral."
What sardonic humour!
But exactly what I have been thinking of crossword book collection that I have vis-a-vis my rites. I haven't mentioned this to my would-be survivors!
But away from such dark thoughts -
I have hundreds of unsolved crosswords in the form of paper cuttings from IE and NIE (dutifully and patiently cut out every day from the papers and lovingly preserved). I am ready to donate these to you or anyone else interested.
I have scores of books - literature, short-stories, novels, non-fiction. If anyone is prepared to buy the whole lot for an agreed price, I am willing to part with them. No loose sales! Crossword books are not included in this jumble!
Are folks here the sort of people like the lady in the following -
ReplyDeletehttp://comicsidontunderstand.com/wordpress/2012/02/01/crossword/