As one would expect, Phi has provided this week’s Friday crossword.
For me, this was towards the easy end of Phi’s difficulty range, offering a fairly speedy and enjoyable solve. I found the NE quadrant trickiest of all, although my last-one-in was 26, where I found the answer but was not, indeed am still not, sure of the wordplay.
My favourites today were 9 for its overall construction and 14 for its smooth surface.
And I can’t sign off without saying that I have discovered neither hidden theme nor Nina in this one, despite the grid lending itself to such things. Am I missing something blindingly obvious yet again, I wonder?
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in double-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 07 | AXEL | What skater may do – cut line?
AXE (=cut) + L (=line) |
| 08 | HISTRIONIC | Theatrical fellow’s a lively guy, bringing in King and I
HIS (=fellow’s, i.e. belonging to him) + {[R (=king) + I] in TONIC (=lively guy)} |
| 10 | BANDITTI | Robbers in group returned it after seizing it
IT in [BAND (=group) + TI (IT; “returned” indicates reversal)] |
| 11 | DEPUTY | Subordinate tax absorbing English pence
[E (=English) + P (=pence)] in DUTY (=tax) |
| 12 | CHORUS | Group of voices? Hard work fails to complete our group
CHOR<e> (=hard work; “fails to complete” means last letter dropped) + US (=our group) |
| 13 | LITTORAL | Drunk and tense before examination in seaside locale
LIT (=drunk) + T (=tense, i.e. in grammar) + ORAL (=examination) |
| 15 | DENTAL HYGIENE | Neatly heeding decaying – addressing this?
*(NEATLY HEEDING); “decaying” is anagram indicator; & lit. |
| 18 | CATACOMB | Search keeping a cool guy back in series of tunnels
[A + TAC (CAT=cool guy; “back” indicates reversal)] in COMB (=search) |
| 20 | ARCADE | Lots of games are absorbing vulgar chap
CAD (=vulgar chap) in ARE |
| 22 | MARMOT | Rodent making cat and sheep turn tail
TOM (=cat) + RAM (=sheep); “turn tail” indicates (here full) reversal |
| 24 | AQUILINE | Flight specialist not right about question regarding eagle
QU (=question) in AI<r>LINE (=flight specialist; “not right (=R)” means letter “r” is dropped) |
| 25 | CRYSTAL SET | Radio report’s trashed lattes
CRY’S (=report’s) + *(LATTES); “trashed” is anagram indicator |
| 26 | MOAT | Floating vegetation circling round quantity of water
O (=round) in MAT (=floating vegetation, e.g. brushwood protecting a riverbank) |
| Down | ||
| 01 | EX CATHEDRA | Article in card misprinted in test: marks deducted officially
[THE (=article) in *(CARD)] in EXA<m> (=test; “marks (=M) deducted” means letter “m” dropped); “misprinted” is anagram indicator |
| 02 | GLIDER | German carrying cover for aircraft
LID (=cover) in GER (=German) |
| 03 | WHITE SEA | A quantity of salt water may be treated with ease
*(WITH EASE); “may be treated” is anagram indicator; the White Sea is a southern inlet of the Barents Sea |
| 04 | CREDIT | Trust edition will be included in review
ED (=edition) in CRIT (=review, i.e. critique) |
| 05 | LOOPHOLE | Toilet staff restricting hot water? There’s a way out
LOO (=toilet) + [H (=hot water, as on tap) in POLE (=staff, i.e. rod)] |
| 06 | GIST | Key point that’s the conclusion of many a scientific expert?
Many terms for scientific experts end in –gist, e.g. biologist, technologist, etc |
| 09 | SPILL THE BEANS | Explain how lighter citizens of ancient city will have to conserve energy
SPILL (=lighter, i.e. for starting a fire) + [E (=energy) in THEBANS (=citizens of ancient city)] |
| 14 | ABERDONIAN | Scottish resident’s done playing with a bairn
*(DONE + A BAIRN); “playing with” is anagram indicator |
| 16 | NEAR MISS | Tight-fisted girl’s not a success
NEAR (=tight-fisted) + MISS (=girl) |
| 17 | GRATUITY | Present Government touchy about university independence
G (=government) + [U (=university) + I (=independence) in RATTY(=touchy)] |
| 19 | OUTLAW | Ban Baron from contest over endless grassy area
<b>OUT (=contest; “Baron (=B) from” means letter “b” dropped) + LAW<n> (=grassy area; “endless” means last letter dropped) |
| 21 | COLUMN | Pillar’s a deception, concealing chimney
LUM (=chimney, i.e. in Scotland) in CON (=deception) |
| 23 | AIRY | I take in a yard open to the sky
[I + R (=take, from recipe in Latin)] in [A + Y (=yard)] |
Thanks, RR. Took a while to get going with this one, but once I’d got a foothold it came together nicely. Lots of well-constructed clues this morning, with no special favourite. I took MOAT the way you did.
Thanks to Phi and good weekend to all.
I agree with RR that this was relatively easy for a Phi, but it was still an enjoyable solve. The WHITE SEA/HISTRIONIC crossers were my last ones in, and you can count me as another who can’t see a theme or a nina, but with this being Phi it would be very surprising if there isn’t one.
Easy in the end but read through quite a few before i got going. Can’t see anything going on but then crosophile beat me on Wednesday.
Our last one in was also 26ac and we’re still not convinced about MAT being ‘floating’ vegetation. However, it’s Phi so we must be missing something.
Thank goodness it wasn’t too tricky- we need an early night!
Thanks Phi and RR.
Is a moat a quantity of water? Chambers doesn’t change what I always thought: it says that it’s a deep trench sometimes filled with water.
Isn’t curious how what you know (or what you think you know) affects how easy or hard a clue is. 26ac was one of my first in. It assembled itself in my head. As soon as I saw “floating vegetation”, I immediately thought “mat”, out an ‘o’ in it and got “moat” which I’d always think of as something containing water.