Sorry this is a bit late, having real trouble with the internet today.
I’ve come rather unstuck today, with a few I can’t explain so any help would be nice, there appears to be a bit of a mini theme around bottoms, but no Nina that I can see.
Oh and happy birthday to Eimi.
[Thanks to Herb and UncleAda below]
| Across | ||
| 1 | AGOG | With excitement in abundance, for the most part (4) |
| A-GO-G(o) | ||
| 4 | PAPER ROUND | It’ll earn a little money to get drinks (5,5) |
| PAPER (notes, money, folding stuff, beer vouchers) & ROUND (of drinks) | ||
| 9 | SINGLET | Underwear that might make object out of butt? (7) |
| BUTT with a SINGLE T gives you BUT (to object) | ||
| 10 | JOCOSE | Merry horseman missing vital round at point-to-point? (6) |
| JOC(key) & O (round) & S E (2 points) | ||
| 11 | DRAWSTRING | Comes up against Hertfordshire non-league side, I gather (10) |
| DRAWS (comes up against as in a cup tie) & TRING a non league side | ||
| 12 | ILLS | Head off demands for money, they’re troublesome (4) |
| (b)ILLS | ||
| 13 | PUT OUT TO GRASS | Treated as past it, offer nark sexual favours (3,3,2,5) |
| PUT OUT TO (offer sexual favours) & GRASS(nark) | ||
| 16 | BUTTON YOUR LIP | Shut up – that’s what you get when you kiss ass! (6,4,3) |
| If you kiss ass you would have BUTT ON YOUR LIP | ||
| 18 | TREE | Journey endlessly east in plane, say? (4) |
| TRE(k) & E | ||
| 20 | UNATHLETIC | Not keen on training, I eat lunch in mess, taking time (10) |
| T(ime) in [I EAT LUNCH]* | ||
| 21 | SOVIET | Cold war rival’s provided what was missing in Nam? (6) |
| SO (provided) & VIET(nam) | ||
| 22 | DART OUT | Suddenly appear old-fashioned, reactionary and unfashionable (4,3) |
| TRAD old fashioned rev & OUT unfashionable | ||
| 23 | SANDCASTLE | Polish company backed extension to building, one that goes with the flow? (10) |
| Not sure here, SAND is POLISH and a sandcastle is a building that disappears with the tide/flow but I’m not seeing it all here. | ||
| 24 | NAYS | Votes against courses turning to the left initially? (4) |
| Not doing too well here, courses could be WAYS but again I’m bemused a tad. | ||
| Down | ||
| 2 | GASTROPUB | Revamped bar’s got up as this? (9) |
| [BARS GOT UP]* | ||
| 3 | GONE WITH THE WIND | Film broadcast when I wed tonight (4,4,3,4) |
| [WHEN I WED TONIGHT]* | ||
| 4 | POLITBURO | 21 structure poor, built shoddily (9) |
| [POOR BUILT]* 21 is SOVIET | ||
| 5 | PATRIOT | Lover of country dance style reeling at wild party… (7) |
| TAP dance rev & RIOT (party) | ||
| 6 | REJIG | … to have another dance, perhaps making new arrangement (5) |
| JIG again | ||
| 7 | ONCE IN A BLUE MOON | Under the influence of drugs, I take solvent, remove top and expose myself occasionally (4,2,1,4,4) |
| ON the drugs C coke and E ecstacy & I NAB (g)LUE & MOON (expose bottom) | ||
| 8 | NASAL | Beak’s not available – transaction’s unfinished (5) |
| NA not available & SAL(e) | ||
| 14 | GAUCHERIE | It’s a faux pas to say die, darling (9) |
| Sounds like GO (die) CHERIE (darling) | ||
| 15 | SOPHISTRY | Non-English Streep character’s attempt at tortured reasoning (9) |
| No E in SOPHI(e)’S (choice) & TRY | ||
| 17 | YEAR DOT | Indeed, right before origins of dawn of time? (4,3) |
| YEA (indeed) R(ight) D(awn) O(f) T(ime) | ||
| 19 | RIOJA | Cried off punch containing fruit juice and wine (5) |
| More ideas please OJ in RIA?? | ||
| 20 | ULTRA | Extreme left and right dominating parliament in the end in Ukraine (5) |
| L & R surrounding (parliamen)T in UA Ukraine | ||
19d RIOJA – I think OJ is orange juice. Flashling, thanks for the blog, and I too am unable to parse the others…
P.S I hope t’internet improves for you.
Thanks, flashling.
I enjoyed this [favourite 2dn] but came here for answers to my parsing queries – which are exactly the same as yours! Sorry I can’t help but I’m sure someone will.
…and the punch is Sangria (remove “sang”, i.e. cried) so 19d is OJ in (Sang)ria.
for 24a I thought at the time turning right turned W(est) into N(orth), but I now notice this seems to be the wrong way round.
Oops – I meant turning right DOES turn W into N, but it’s left in the clue! That was the problem.
19d – Sang = cried = off sang(ria) which is a punch.
PS. 23a – Sand + cast (company of actors)… but is EL “extension”? …Yes! Chambers says yes, it’s the wing of a building.
I thought this was chewier than the usual Monday puzzle. My last ones in were the SANDCASTLE/RIOJA crossers which I entered from the definitions because I was unable to parse them. I also entered NAYS from the definition alone, and I think the West to North idea that Herb came up with is probably what Morph intended even though it doesn’t quite seem to work.
Some hilarious clues, 16A funniest in recent memory, have just emailed it to some amateur solver friends.
Big thanks to Morph also thanks to flashling whom I cannot assist with NAYS.
I am having a real dire day at work and it is only this lovely Morph puzzle that has saved me from total despair. Lots and lots of dots by clues I liked so a big thank you to Morph for both the crossword and the resulting good mood.
As for NAYS – how about, on a compass West is to the left of North. Nope? well I tried?
Thanks to Flashling for the blog.
I think you may be right crypticsue. It’s certainly better than my thought, ‘it fits, so in it goes’.
Also stuck on sandcastle, not helped by entering YEAR ONE for some reason. Good crossword I thought, with 16A my personal favourite.
Thanks to setter and blogger.
Ooh, you’ve got me all confused now. It’s what Crypticsue said, that works doesn’t it? Apologies for any inappropriate misdirection though.
Fine puzzle for a grey Monday morning, with plenty of giggles and smiles (the best of which was undoubtedly BUTTON YOUR LIP). I solved it without too many problems, but couldn’t see the parsing of the same ones that others struggled with, so thanks to those who helped out. I thought SOPHISTRY was cleverly constructed.
Thanks to S&B.
I can’t help with 24 acc either. Made a mistake on 13 across for a bit and thought it was “put one to sleep” thought it was something to do with narkalepsy to start with! Oops!
Very nice puzzle made harder for me because for no good reason I entered BUTTON ONES LIP at 16ac. But 24ac still defeats me, as it seems to have defeated everyone including Morph: if the w of ways becomes n it hasn’t moved to the left — on a compass west is as far left as it can be, so can’t move any further to the left. So what is it all about?
Seems to say that the ‘initial’ (the W) should turn to the left to make an N, but I can’t get the right letter-shape from that. Upside-down it could be an M! Couldn’t it?
It’s a good technique though, all that, ‘extra stroke to head’ on an I to make a T, or Ns falling over to make Zs. And vice versa. And stuff.
Paul b I went through a lot of that. Thinking of W without the first stroke looks like an N. Still a bad day for me and thanks to those who helped. And morph.
24ac In nautical speak, one lays a course?
Well…. like Eileen we came here for help having left a few clues unsolved last night. We needed some electronic assistance on this one too – 14d. We guessed quite a few as well. We eventually sorted them all out apart the ones that everyone was asking about yesterday! It was obviously one of those days when our late night solving regime was useful as we now have all the answers …….. well almost as we’re still not happy with 24ac!
Thanks flashling for the blog and Morph for the puzzle. Despite our concerns with 24ac there was much to enjoy here!
Nope, nothing as clever as that. I took the principle of misdirection too far, and misdirected myself. Sorry.
If you are still reading this Morph – we forgive you!
Cheers Bertandjoyce!