Thursday 24 December 2020

No 13127, Thursday 24 Dec 2020, Arden

Solution to 23A has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered only by a non-regular / novice commenter, with proper annotation. Those who have answered earlier in the week, please give others a chance.

ACROSS
1   Passing comments — final notice before a direct broadcast (6,5) OBITER DICTA {OBIT}{A+DIRECT}*
7   Starts counting only dead fish (3) COD Acrostic
9   Quiet listener, is trim (5) SHEAR {SH}{EAR}
10 Love and leave, perhaps new money is invested (9) VALENTINE {VALE{N}{TIN}E*}
11 Dropped down a cliff — having committed a crime, hide inside (9) RAPPELLED {RAP{PELL}ED}
12 Muck around in Emils place (5) SLIME<=
13 Regularly seen before defeat, last one on the way (2,5) EN ROUTE {sEeN}{ROUT}{onE}
15 The Spanish chic rejects flower (4) NILE {EL}{IN}<=
18 Two dimensions a metre apart meet, reportedly (4) LAMB {L}{A}{M}{B} Definition not understood (Addendum - (~ meat = lamb) - See comments)
20 To be cut with any switch blade (7) BAYONET {TO+BE+ANY}*
23 Pound — to book takes some time (5) T?R?B (Addendum - THROB {TO}{HR}{B} - See comments)
24 Exciting business, with our full assembly (9) COLOURFUL {CO}{OUR+FULL}*
26 View over Vatican is right for the tourist (9) SIGHTSEER {SIGHT}{SEE}{R}
27 Something to eat and drink (5) TOAST [DD]
28 Very much dead under the earth (3) SOD {SO}{D}
29 Ultra fashionable in espousing extreme left-wing views (7,4) RADICAL CHIC {RADICAL}{CHIC} [C&DD]

DOWN
1   He watches over the newspaper (8) OBSERVER [DD]
2   Amateurish, inactive, retains 50% hope (8) INEXPERT (Addendum - {IN{EXPect}ERT} - See comments)
3   Notes anger welling up inside — it’s strange (5) EERIE {E}{IRE<-}{E}
4   Grant’s first lady briefly liked to travel north (7) DEVOLVE {EVe}{LOVED}<=
5   Boy stopped — once made fine pottery (7) CELADON {CE{LAD}ON*}
6   Children’s play with relative’s friend (4,5) AUNT SALLY {AUNTS}{ALLY}
7   Weeps having lost energy — is the situation so serious? (6) CRISIS {CRIeS}{IS}
8   Flower holder for mushroom? (6) DEEPEN {DEE}{PEN}
14 Capital on a brutal reformation (9) ULANBATOR* Enu Should be (4,5)
16 Relay final, remains to be seen immediately (2,1,5) IN A FLASH {FINAL}*{ASH}
17 What one needs to be lithe and act fit (8) ATHLETIC {LITHE+ACT}* &lit
19 Crook nabs Bill King, becomes stern (4,3) BACK END {B{AC}{K}END}
20 Bob Aldrich had worn a belt of sorts (7) BALDRIC [T]
21 Assist flow when blood flow is restricted (6) STASIS*
22 Force hard when cold (6) FRIGID {F}{RIGID}
25 Pending fund, still at the centre (5) UNTIL {fUNd+sTILl}

Reference List
Quiet = SH, New = N, Money = TIN, The in Spansh = EL, Dimension L & B, Metre = M, Book = B, Some time = Hour = HR,Vatican = SEE, Right = R, Dead = D, Note = E, Energy = E, Bill AC, King = K, Force = F


21 comments:

  1. 18 A lamb meat sounds like meet

    ReplyDelete
  2. 23 A Throb To b takes hr (hour - time)

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  3. 23A THROB = pound (HR, time in TO, Book)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Arden occasionally gives a homophone for the def reqd.
    Fine by me.
    Not sure if I have seen it in UK cwds.
    Maybe an Arden individuality.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I do remember coming across such clues CV. I agree that they're very rarely used since the word in question should have an equivalent homophone that would fit into the clue smoothly. Will revert if I do across them in future.

      Delete
    2. Wouldn’t that make it two wordplays and no definition ? Just wondering

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    3. You have a point. There are no two wordplays as such. Just an indication that the solution is a homophone of the word as indicated

      Delete
    4. Srini
      The def is there. It is not direct as is usual, it's a homophone of the given word 'meet'. I see no problem. I don't see two wordplaus. A wordplay with an unusual def.

      Delete
  5. TH print edition has a note saying 2 clues were omitted yesterday. There is a printer's devil in that- 'in' is missing! (it says 'omitted the print edition')
    TH can NEVER get anything right.God save the paper and our CW.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had written to TH regarding the missing clues. Today the print edition carries a message saying "the clues for5 23A and 25A in The Hindu crossword 13126 were omitted the print edition".
      In today's puzzle the enumeration for 14D clearly shows (5,4) in my submission copy but shown as 9 in the print edition.

      Delete
  6. A nice but easy puzzle from Arden. Some of the clues are very interesting. 15ac took a minute to switch to river for flower, 26ac to bring to mind Holy See for Vatican, 14d to switch over to the alternative spelling for Ulsan Bataar, it was a nice exercise.
    I solved 2d as follows:
    Inactive: INERT
    Hope: EXPECT, half being EXP
    IN(EXP)ERT

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  7. Amateurish, inactive, retains 50% hope (8) INEXPERT {IN}{EX{hoPE}RT

    What is EX-RT? Didn't understand the annotation. Could someone please help?

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  8. Sujatha, see my annotation above at 9:18. Do you think it is okay?

    ReplyDelete
  9. I particularly liked obiter dicta, bayonet, toast and sightseer.

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  10. Lovely grid. And great pictures in the solutions published above...very nice

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