Well exactly 50 years after I exitted the womb I have a little tussle with Morph to deal with. Hopefully a little easier than struggling into this world!
A trio of new words for me – 9dn, 21dn and 26ac, but otherwise a relatively straight forward Saturday puzzle. A couple of homonyms added a little spice to the parsing, but plenty of anagram fodder to make quite rapid inroads.
1ac was probably my favourite clue, though 21dn made me laugh when I realised its details.
A very agreeable crossword Morph – many thanks.
Key * (anagram); DD Double definition; Underline definition
ACROSS
1 A measure of speed – Greek character digs such things? (12)
A + mph (measure of speed) + eta (Greek character) + mines (digs) = AMPHETAMINES
9 Husband inappropriately eyeing cleaner’s end? (7)
H (husband) + (eyeing)* = HYGIENE
10 Refined upper-class girl taking in troubled teen (7)
Gel (upper class girl) around (teen)* = GENTEEL
11 Steals type of Jaguar, breaking in, and puts in gear (5)
Robs (steals) around E (type of Jaguar (car)) = ROBES
12 One with special powers cured our herpes (9)
(our herpes)* = SUPERHERO
13 Get down (on it)
DD DUCK
14 Fool holding business meeting is not ultimately practical type (10)
Prat (fool) around AGM (business meeting) + is + t (not finally) = PRAGMATIST
18 In the end, you practised clowning with this? (7, 3)
(u + practised)*= CUSTARD PIE
19 Man one’s bamboozled with no limits (4)
Misled (bamboozled) – limits = ISLE
20 Best not to get on so well (9)
DD MATCHLESS
23 Sign to take a breather, lying back in hammock (5)
Rev. hidden hAMMOCk = COMMA
24 Aloe’s principal cosmetic variety – product made from it mostly ordinary (7)
A (Aloe’s principal) + Vera gel – l = AVERAGE
25 Reforming lunatic right-winger out to restrain power of unions (7)
(lunatic – c(right-winger))* around p (power) = NUPTIAL
26 Terrible government report of military supplies sexed up? (12)
Homonym of [Khaki stock] (military supplies) + racy = KAKISTOCRACY
DOWN
2 Large sum one nugget raised – cheers! (9)
Rev (a gem) + bucks (cheers!) = MEGABUCKS
3 When car won’t start one may have to kick these! (5)
Wheels (car) – w = HEELS
4 ‘Dear’ tory leader heartlessly told to calm down? (9)
T (tory leader) + reassured (calm down) – s(heartlessly) = TREASURED
5 Study what stick might point to?
Rev. Gum(stick) = MUG UP
6 Openers for England bowled and ran out Indian side (3,5)
(e+b + and ran)* = NAN BREAD
7 German victory over English in e.g. Leningrad? (5)
Sieg (german word for victory) + e (English) = SIEGE
8 Obscene wealth and endless folly covertly filmed ? (3-2-3-4)
(wealth + n + folly)* = FLY ON THE WALL
9 Unfit animal daughter found in curry one time (4,2,6)
Horse (animal) around d (daughter) + comb (curry) + a(one) + t (time) = HORS DE COMBAT
15 Slid on a G string initiating desired effect? (9)
(slid on a g + s)* = GLISSANDO
16 International conman is busted – he’ll have trouble getting off (9)
(I + conman + is)* = INSOMNIAC
17 Account HSBC bank regularly manipulated for financial incentive (8)
(Ac + hsbc + ak)* = CASHBACK
21 Where seven dwarfs went off, reportedly to rock bottom? (5)
Homonym (to work) = TWERK (dance)
22 Cardinal putting down saint quits (5)
Seven (Cardinal) moving s(saint) = EVENS
23 Frisk suspect recaptured half-cut (5)
(recaptured – tured)* = CAPER
Most amusing, also particularly liked AMPHETAMINES and TWERK.
2D I think bucks means cheers (as in cheering/bucking up somebody) rather than “cheers!” as in a toast.
8D is I think (wealth {a}n{d} folly)*, with the endless referring to “and” (lacking both ends).
Thanks to Morph and twencelas.
Forgive my ignorance, but who is this “Cardinal Stevens” to whom you refer? I parsed 22dn as SEVEN (cardinal) with the S (for saint) moved to end (“putting down”).
Great puzzle – loved TWERK.
Many thanks to Morph and twenceslas.
….and I parsed 8dn as gwep@1 and also had BUCKS (up) as synonymous with CHEERS (up) in 2dn which might be as blogger intended?…..
@2William F P, yes of course, me too, sped through the blog at the end and didn’t notice 22D. I’ll have to google Cardinal Stevens.
Happy birthday twencelas. I parsed EVENS the same way as William@2, and out of interest I googled Cardinal Stevens and couldn’t find one, although I admit it was just a cursory look.
I really enjoyed this puzzle. Although I saw AMPHETAMINES straight away it was still an excellent clue, and I thought TWERK was a gem, both for the homophonic element of the wordplay and the devious definition. KAKISTOCRACY was my LOI, and I remembered I had come across it in a puzzle once before. According to my Chambers it rhymes with “cack” at the start which I think is quite appropriate, although that does mean that the homophone doesn’t quite work for the clue.
Really enjoyed this. Some great clues – especially liked 1a, 9a, 18a, 23a, 4d,15d, 21d.
Think 22d is ‘seven’with ‘s’ (saint) at the end.
Thanks to Morph and twencelas.
Sorry – 22d already explained. Should have read back more carefully.
I think my recollection of a cardinal Stevens is a little lacking in any evidence to back me up. Apologies I’ve corrected the parsing and also of 8dn.
Thanks Morph and Happy Birthday twencelas.
I enjoyed this, particularly AMPHETAMINES, PRAGMATIST and TWERK!
Still stuck on 22d, cannot see how S can be an abbreviation for saint, and as for Cardinal Stevens…
Cookie S is an abbreviation for saint as confirmed by Chambers.
Chambers confirms everything, I take no notice of it.
OK, the Concise Oxford English Dictionary gives S abbr. (also S.) 1 Saint. Don’t think I have ever seen it used.
How remiss of me. I meant to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY good king twencelas! (and here’s to another 50, young’un!)
Is it just me, or is there a Miley Cyrus theme in there somewhere? FLY ON THE WALL is one her tunes I believe, and I’m pretty sure TWERK only seeped into current consciousness after a live ‘performance’ of hers at some awards ceremony or other. Maybe just coincidence as I can’t detect many others…
@8twencelas see @4 it’s (wealth + {a}n{d} folly)*.
Congrats twencelas – poor you having twerk on your birthday.
Just the slightest of misprints in the blog:
The clue for 19 should be:
Man’s one bamboozled with no limits (4) (not “Man one’s”)
then the def becomes “Man’s one” (DBE), and ISLE is “bamboozled with no limits”.
Happy birthday to twenceslas and thanks to morph.
TWERK extremely funny but CASHBACK simply brilliant. Many thanks