Independent 8,860 by Morph

by

Morph appears - to start our week in the Indy

A bit of politics, a bit of sport, bit of this, that and the other. A couple of parsing niggles in my mind but a fun start to my week.

completed grid
Thanks Morph

Across

1 Having been elected, a Conservative has to make rude gesture very rarely (4,2,1,4,4)
ONCE IN A BLUE MOON

ONCE IN (having been elected) & A & BLUE (tory) & MOON (rude gesture).

9 Fans drink wine (7)
SUPPORT

SUP (drink) & PORT (wine) bit of an old chestnut this one. Nice throwback to the 80’s at Villa Park on Saturday. ðŸ™

10 Homeless veteran’s first to get an allowance (7)
VAGRANT

V(eteran)’s first & A & GRANT (allowance)

11 Flying ace and sexy female – you and me? (4,5)
EACH OTHER

ACE* flying & HOT (sexy) & HER (female)

12 Bolt-on unlimited texts half price (5)
EXTRA

(t)EXT(s) unlimitied & half of RA(te) – price

13 Influencing op-ed feature through which bias to left or right is controlled? (8,6)
STEERING COLUMN

Steering (influencing) & COLUMN (op-ed feature)

16 Slip during PE – danger in loose seat fixing (14)
GERRYMANDERING

ERR (slip up) in GYM (PE) & [DANGER IN]* loose

20 Old German fish (5)
ANGLE

Double def

22 English learner interrupting scripture put on curfew and sent down (9)
RELEGATED

E(nglish) L(earner) both in RE (scripture) & GATED (put on curfew)

24 Song about nasty man in nice place (7)
ARCADIA

CAD in ARIA

25 Consider it realistic to conceal state (7)
ERITREA

Hidden answer is concealed

26 Ancient listed hall has so crumbled (2,3,2,3,5)
AS OLD AS THE HILLS

[LISTED HALL HAS SO]* crumbled

Down

1 It rarely produces something of value in solver’s world, perhaps (6)
OYSTER

They only produce pearls now and again, and if they do then the world is your (the solver’s) OYSTER. Not the most obvious clue I’ve dealt with.

2 One conducting hostile takeover perhaps seizes account, one that’ll take charge? (9)
CAPACITOR

[AC(count) & 1] both in CAPTOR (one making hostile takeover)

3 Press office kicking off about useful stuff that’s dug up (4,3)
IRON ORE

IRON (press) & the start of O(ffice) kicking off & RE (about)

4 Australian’s desire to have letter dropped off in Wapping? (5)
AITCH

A(ustralian) & ITCH (desire)

5 Pound continually advanced, financed by borrowing (9)
LEVERAGED

L (pound) & EVER (continuously) & AGED (advanced)

6 Painter with broken leg to paint again after losing a little time (2,5)
EL GRECO

LEG* broken & RECO(at) – losing A & T(ime)

7 Visual form’s no go (2,3)
OP ART

Zero & PART (go)

8 Win-win outcome for those making money (3,4)
NET GAIN

Double def

14 Rain splashed on butts behind (2,7)
IN ARREARS

RAIN* splashed & BUTTS (rears)

15 Annual rut bucks staged (9)
UNNATURAL

[ANNUAL RUT]* bucks

16 Region of northwest Spanish city (7)
GRANADA

I think this is a double def, the ITV company in the NW of England is Granada

17 Gave up as flickering eyelid finally closed (7)
YIELDED

[EYELID & finally (close)D]* are flickering

18 Is rough crook like this? (7)
ROGUISH

[IS ROUGH]* crook

19 Fantastic ladies – they’re unreal! (6)
IDEALS

[LADIES]* fantastically

21 Able climber, say, mounting rugged rock right away (5)
GECKO

E.G. reversed mounting & (r)OCK* rugged

23 Drain central heating after fish turns up (5)
LEECH

EEL reversed & C.H.

*anagram

6 comments on “Independent 8,860 by Morph”

  1. Thanks S&B.

    It says ‘Bennet’ down the central column. Don’t suppose it is anything more than a coincidence, but maybe…

  2. Thanks, flashling.

    Always good to see Morph on a Monday, when he’s in his ‘easy’ mode. This fell out nicely and was a pleasure – thank you to the setter.

    Some clever anagrams, but like you, I was furrowing my brow about OYSTER.

    And I initially put LEACH for 23dn, but of course it doesn’t work. For ‘drain’ I’d always write LEACH; but a quick dictionary flirt suggests that LEECH can, more or less, mean the same thing.

    GORDON BENNET, Conrad, what are you going on about?

  4. A mostly gentle start to the week, though the NW corner was a little tricky, OYSTER was my LOI.

    Nice misdirection in 4dn; I was trying to think of a synonym for ‘desire’ which if one letter was removed and ‘A’ added at the front would give the name of something in Wapping. A facepalm moment when the penny dropped.

    Thanks, flashling and Morph.

  6. I concur with the general view. Oyster was a bit out of step with the rest, which came without too much effort from this solver.
    A lovely start to the week. Thanks to Morph and flashing.

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