Financial Times 14,903 – Falcon

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An enjoyable exercise by Falcon, mostly rather easy although the SE needed some extra thinking. Falcon’s crosswords nearly always contain one or two cultural references (esp. novels and films), today he went for music.

Definitions are underlined wherever possible and/or appropriate.

Across
1 SUNBATHE
Fresh buns – adjust heat to brown? (8)

(BUNS)* + (HEAT)**    [* = fresh]  [** = adjust]
5 UPROAR
Commotion at university followed by loud outburst of laughter (6)

UP (at university) + ROAR (loud outburst of laughter)
10 CHATEAU
Check water round at mansion (7)

{CH (check) + EAU (water)} around AT
11 RAILING
Fence item of jewellery, bringing trouble on board (7)

RING (item of jewellery) around AIL (trouble)
12 RABBI
Teacher’s pet wasting time? (5)

RABBIT (pet) minus T (time)
13 EYE-OPENER
Watch bat in wonder? (3-6)

EYE (watch) + OPENER (bat)
14 AARON COPLAND
Composer, from a nation taking in desperately poor, can (5,7)

{A + LAND (nation)} around (POOR CAN)*    [* = desperately]

This composer: Aaron Copland (1900-1990).
18 FAST AND LOOSE
As of late, Don’s batting in a reckless manner (4,3,5)

(AS OF LATE DON’S)*    [* = batting]

 
21 SALAD DAYS
Speaks about a son and daughter in musical (5,4)

SAYS (speaks) around {A + LAD (son) + D (daughter)}

This musical: Salad Days.
23 ENSUE
Follow unseen, mostly in disguise (5)

(UNSEE[n])*    [* = in disguise]
24 ASTRIDE
A big step up? (7)

A + STRIDE (big step)

‘Up’ as in ‘on horseback’.
25 ORCHARD
In which one may pick fruit or veg (7)

OR + CHARD (veg)
26 ENDING
What Rag and Tag do, but not Bobtail, for a finale (6)

Rag and Tag both END IN G but Bobtail doesn’t

Nice clue.
27 ZEPPELIN
Sounds like lead balloon? (8)

An allusion to LED ZEPPELIN, with LED a homophone of (‘sounds like’) LEAD. As a ‘lead balloon’ is also something (‘a failure, a flop’), this clue comes quite close to a Cryptic definition.

Whether you liked them or not, Led Zeppelin wasn’t really a flop (with Robert Plant still going strong) - however, unfortunately, the famous  Hindenburg was. A black and white picture of the burning Hindenburg was featured on the front cover of Zep’s debut LP, released in early 1969. Apparently the idea for the group’s name came from Keith Moon, erstwhile drummer of The Who, who joked that ‘it probably would go over like a lead balloon‘ after others discussed starting a new band.
Down
1 SECURE
Notice about vicious dog in stable (6)

SEE (notice) around CUR (vicious dog)
2 NEARBY
Tight times in the neighbourhood (6)

NEAR (tight) + BY (times, as in multiplying)
3 AMERICANA
Things associated with the US spymaster, girl put in an article (9)

{M (spymaster, from James Bond) + ERICA (girl)} inside AN + A (article)
4 HOUSEHOLD NAMES
Domestic calls celebrities (9,5)

HOUSEHOLD (domestic) + NAMES (calls)
6 PRIMP
Groom, stiffly formal before start of proceedings (5)

PRIM (stiffly formal) + P[roceedings]
7 ORIENTAL
Poor relation from east Asia (8)

(RELATION)*    [* = poor]
8 RAG TRADE
Bolt knocked over in anger in clothing business (3,5)

TRAD (reversal (‘knocked over’) of DART (bolt)) inside RAGE (anger)
9 GREEN CROSS CODE
Set of safety rules, new, annoyed convention (5,5,4)

GREEN (new) + CROSS (annoyed) + CODE (convention)

Road safety rules for children issued way back in 1971.
15 POSSET CUP
Cops excited about outfit winning bowl (6,3)

{(COPS)* around SET (outfit)} + UP (winning)    [* = excited]
16 OFF-STAGE
Disc, very loud, put on behind the scenes (3-5)

O (disc, the shape of) + FF (very loud) + STAGE (put on)
17 ISOLATED
Vague details about oxygen cut off (8)

(DETAILS)* around O (oxygen)    [* = vague]
19 ASSAIL
Attack a lass I fancy (6)

(A LASS I)*    [* = fancy]
20 TENDON
Fibrous tissue beginning to decay in joint (6)

D[ecay] inside TENON (joint)
22 DEIGN
Condescend to draw missing son (5)

DESIGN (to draw) minus S (son)
*anagram

2 comments on “Financial Times 14,903 – Falcon”

  1. Thanks Falcon and Sil

    Think that I did this in two short sessions – one on the train into work and finished off quickly over lunch.

    Last in was POSSET CUP which I didn’t previously know.

    Liked both ASTRIDE and ENDING.

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