Calling this crossword a write-in may sound patronising towards some solvers but I am afraid I found this - for 95% - a very easy puzzle.
Well clued throughout - absolutely no complaints about that – but at times the same setter’s recent Everyman puzzles gave me more food for thought than this one.
Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.
| Across | ||
| 1 | PORT SAID |
Assistance needed after drinks in Egyptian city (4,4)
AID (assistance) coming after PORTS (drinks) |
| 5 | SWITCH |
Swap made by singular magician (6)
S (singular) + WITCH (magician) |
| 10 | TEPEE |
Tribe’s leader appearing with sword in tent (5)
T[ribe] + EPEE (sword) |
| 11 | OPERATION |
Undertaking business (9)
Double definition |
| 12 | HIGHCHAIR |
I may raise an issue over breakfast (9)
Cryptic definition Recently we had a similar clue in the Observer’s Everyman (blogged by Flashling on March, 15). No coincidence as both setters are one and the same. He obviously liked the idea of this clue and I must say I do too. |
| 13 | HYDRA |
Monster in filmography – Dracula (5)
Hidden solution (‘in’): [filmogrp]HY DRA[cula] |
| 14 | RATTLE |
Talk in a childish way after dropping soft toy (6)
PRATTLE (talk in a childish way) minus P (soft) |
| 15 | MR RIGHT |
Bishop in power, her ideal man? (2,5)
RR (bishop, Right Reverend) inside MIGHT (power) |
| 18 | ART DECO |
Traced unusual old design style (3,4)
(TRACED)* + O (old) [* = unusual] |
| 20 | BLOTTO |
Wasted opening in board game (6)
B[oard] + LOTTO (game) |
| 22 | KARMA |
Buddhist concept that could make you more relaxed, reportedly (5)
Homophone (‘reportedly’) of: CALMER (more relaxed) |
| 24 | DESERT RAT |
Soldier or sailor returning on leave (6,3)
DESERT (leave) + RAT (reversal (‘returning’) of TAR (sailor)) |
| 25 | OBSTINATE |
Stubborn stain to be specially treated (9)
(STAIN TO BE)* [* = specially treated] |
| 26 | IN USE |
Engaged by popular demand (2,3)
IN (popular) + USE (demand) |
| 27 | NINETY |
Joe, perhaps, quite an age? (6)
Double definition This was my LOI in. Despite the fact that I am from the generation that should be familiar with this, I’d never heard of a TV programme called Joe 90. Being from Holland is no excuse as we had everything there on the box too. See: Joe 90 . |
| 28 | FLAGSHIP |
Chief one in group indicates joint (8)
FLAGS (indicates) + HIP (joint) |
| Down | ||
| 1 | PATCHY |
Erratic progress, initially, by yacht at sea (6)
P[rogress] + (YACHT)* [* = at sea] |
| 2 | REPUGNANT |
Disgusting coming from foul pen, a grunt (9)
(PEN A GRUNT)* [* = foul] |
| 3 | SPEECH THERAPIST |
Better talk from me condemned these cheap trips? (6,9)
(THESE CHEAP TRIPS)* [* =condemned] I am someone who can actually really enjoy a nice, original anagram. I thought this was one. |
| 4 | ISOLATE |
One so overdue must get cut off (7)
I (one) + SO + LATE (overdue) |
| 6 | WEATHERBOARDING |
This’ll help protect a house with rot mounting around her (15)
W (with) + {(EAT (rot) + BOARDING (mounting)) around HER} After finding the answer, I had to think of ‘waterboarding’ which is, by the way, something that doesn’t help to protect anything. Some politicians may disagree. |
| 7 | TRIAD |
Group of three in unfinished court case beginning to disagree (5)
TRIA[l] (court case, unfinished) + D[isagree] |
| 8 | HEN PARTY |
Girls’ night out in Perth – any drunk? (3,5)
(PERTH ANY)* [* = drunk] |
| 9 | RED RUM |
After mounting, take out famous horse (3,3)
Reversal (‘after mounting’) of: MURDER (take out) |
| 16 | GO THROUGH |
Examine face (2,7)
Double definition |
| 17 | BACK DOWN |
Abandon one’s position in rear, having crashed (4,4)
BACK (rear) + DOWN (crashed, as in ‘the system’s crashed’) |
| 19 | OLD-HAT |
Stale pork pie, perhaps, past it’s sell-by date? (3-3)
OLD (stale) + HAT (pork pie, perhaps) |
| 20 | BOSWELL |
Old boy turned up with wonderful biographer (7)
BO (reversal (‘turned up’) of OB (old boy)) + SWELL (wonderful) James Boswell (1740-1795), biographer of Samuel Johnson. |
| 21 | STREEP |
Actress in Street with noble upbringing (6)
ST (street) + REEP (reversal (‘upbringing’) of PEER (noble)) |
| 23 | RISEN |
Moved up once reins loosened (5)
(REINS)* [* = loosened] |
I was a tad gob smacked when I saw the high chair clue, can you plagiarise yourself?
Thanks Falcon and Sil
My experience shadows yours down to your last clue in! Wondered why I shouldn’t be It in 12a, but at least the way it was made me think for longer on that clue.
Felt like I’d seen many of these clues or close variants of them before.