Thursday, 21 May 2026

No 14799, Thursday 21 May 2026, Gussalufz

Solution to 7D has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered by a non-regular/novice commenter, with proper annotation. Those who have answered earlier in the week, please give others a chance.

Open for anyone to answer, if not solved by 1 PM.

BY GEORGE!

ACROSS
1   European in hurry, cycling for show (5) USHER {E} in {(-r)USH(+r)R}
4   Supported revolutionary Polish pacifist, right? (5,4) TIDED OVER {EDIT<=}{DOVE}{R}
9   West Indian player's style: play flamboyantly well, chasing century (7) CALYPSO {PLAY*}{SO}<=>{C}
10 Chest scratched on both sides? Characteristic of fretfulness (7) COFFRET [T]
11 Man, perhaps I'm boring, overly fussy (6) ANIMAL {AN{IM}AL}
12 Stick slice of orange in breadpastry! (8) NAPOLEON {NA{POLE}{Or...e}N
14 Gluttons slurp revoltingly, guzzling gallons (4) PIGS {S{G}IP<=}
15 Worried if flu U-turn is something not likely to yield (10) UNFRUITFUL*
18 With constraints dropped, Agent-I lessened courteous behaviour (10) GENTILESSE [T] Not exactly constraints that are dropped?
19 Till supply ends / first of February (4) FARM {ARM}<=>{Fe...y}
22 Unethical lab won; safeguards partially retracted? Swell! (8) SNOWBALL [T<=]
24 Popcorn ABC? (6) CARBON {CORN+AB}*
26 Firm absurdly leaden, time to intervene (2,5) AL DENTE {LEADEN}* over {T}
27 Exciting undergarment and new shirt, after six (7) VIBRANT {BRA}{N}{T}<=>{VI}
28 Deodorise extravagantly around centre of navel, conceding, "I used too much" (9) OVERDOSED {DEODORiSE}* over {naVel}
29 Dog//fighter? (5) BOXER [DD]

DOWN
1   Release snake under bulk of relative (7) UNCLASP {ASP}<=>{UNCLe}
2   Continuing with unfinished holy dip? No, god no! (7,2) HOLDING ON {HOLy}{DIp}{No}{GOd}{No}
3   Withdraw and go authentic, says Rev. Spooner (6) REPEAL (~pee real to repeal)
4   Excessively large organ (4) TOOL {TOO}{L}
5   A tense detective from the south: "Lock this tyrant!" (10) DICTATRESS {A}{T}{CID}<={TRESS}
6   Flower's top decomposed one day after coming up (8) DAFFODIL {LID}{OFF}{A}{D}<=
7   Very complete bar, special spirit (5) V?R?E ()
8   It's about parts of kidneys, about part of eye (7) RETINAL {RE{IT<=}NAL}
13 Being not OK with newssullen, distressed (10) UNWELLNESS*
16 Female hit lovers with torches (9) FLAMBEAUX {F}{LAM}{BEAUX}
17 Stripped and dressed bird, including part of skeleton (8) RIBBONED {RIB{BONE}D*}
18 Bad cops with backing? Nothing touches, say! (7) GESTAPO {O}{PATS}{EG}<=
20 Brute force unleashed by Mrs., often randomly (7) MONSTER {MRS+OfTEN}*
21 Tree regularly seen by a tomb, maybe (6) BAOBAB {By+A+tOmB+mAyBe}
23 Love left to wither, that's nothing new (5) OLDIE {O}{L}{DIE}
25 A film that's intense (4) AVID {A}{VID}

Reference List
European = E, Right = R, Well = SO, Century = C, Gallons = G, Time = T, New = N, Shirt = T, Large = L, Tense = T, Lock = TRESS, Day = D, Female = F, Force = F, Left = L

16 comments:

  1. Why no mention of Gussalufz either in the header or in labels? Print edition mentions him.

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  2. Pop corn?! Double Ardenism while we are struggling to cope with single!!!
    Pop/ corn, AB/ C and C is the def. !!
    I was nowhere near.

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  3. How is Napoleon part of the theme?

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    Replies
    1. Napoleon is the primary antagonist and ruthless dictator in George Orwell’s classic 1945 novella, Animal Farm. A Berkshire boar, he represents Joseph Stalin

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    2. Thank you Prasad. There is much to learn.

      Delete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  5. In 4th row we get “ORWELL”.
    George Orwell is an English Novelist and essayist.
    Sathia

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. One of his novel is “Animal Farm” which appears as 11A and 19A solutions!
      Sathia

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    2. Aithor of Animal Farm- Theme

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  6. Thanks again (second day in a row, as I happened to turn in an extra crossword this month) for the blog, Col., and thank you to all solvers. Here are my notes for this crossword.

    Notes

    This crossword's theme is the novella Animal Farm, by George Orwell. The title is formed by 11a (ANIMAL) and 19a (FARM). ORWELL can be seen as a nina running across the middle row.

    The story revolves around PIGS (14a), with NAPOLEON (12a) and SNOWBALL (22a) being two central characters. BOXER (29a) the horse too is a key character.

    DICTATRESS (5d) and GESTAPO (18d) can be construed to be thematic, and at a stretch, so can be MONSTER (20d).

    Personal notes

    Finished setting this crossword substantially ahead of schedule, as I've been busy with some tedious stuff at work, which inevitably gets me taking lots of crossword breaks. I might set a second one this month.

    On April 18, enjoyed a fabulous Vishu meal at Copra in San Francisco. I've been doing this for the last couple of years and it's always superb, from Sambhar to Kootu to buttermilk to Pradhaman. I just need to remember to go even easier next year though—no need to finish the rice and no need to order a beverage: my belly was unbearably painfully distended for hours afterwards!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Tendency to finish the rice (avoiding waste though) makes a meal heavy. Glad you enjoyed a typical Vishu meal in U.S. There is a saying in Tamil- "More side dishes, the more one eats".
    Thank you for the Bonus CW this month!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. 7D:verve=spirit
    very(v) complete=serve, bar special(-s)
    {(v)(serve-s)}

    ReplyDelete

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