Independent 8,894 / Phi
Phi’s latest offering awaited solvers this Friday morning, as one might have expected.
I thought that this was a medium difficulty Phi puzzle, far from a walk in the park but not too gruelling either. I worked my way steadily through the clues, eventually coming unstuck at 26, where I convinced myself that “atonic” had to be the answer, with “garbled” as a weak definition. I should have known better, since a search of Chambers using the letters already entered revealed that the only other possible entry was “ethnic”, which fitted the clue infinitely better.
I found myself wondering why there was a higher proportion of more obscure words in today’s grid – 2, 9, 11, 23, 24 – and then I realised that it looked as though the compiler had tried to accommodate as many instances of his initials – PH – in the grid as possible.
My favourite clues today were the cryptic definition at 20 and indeed 26, which I would have liked to have puzzled out for myself unaided.
*(…) indicates an anagram; definitions are italicised; // separates definitions in multiple-definition clues
| Across | ||
| 01 | CALIPH | Church inviting in Muslim leader with power – such as me?
[ALI (=Muslim leader, 4th Caliph of Rashidun Caliphate) + P (=power)] in CH (=church) |
| 04 | UPHOLD | Maintain university drinking-hole no longer
U (=university) + PH (=drinking-hole, i.e. Public House) + OLD (=no longer) |
| 09 | OENOPHIL | Drinker’s phone ruined, covered in grease
*(PHONE) in OIL (=grease); “ruined” is anagram indicator; an oenophile is a connoisseur of wine |
| 10 | ENGINE | No good investing in a German motor
NG (=no good) in EINE (=a German, i.e. the German word for a) |
| 12 | ASTROPHYSICISTS | Scientists’ traits linked with psychosis, possibly
*(TRAITS + PSYCHOSIS); “possibly” is anagram indicator |
| 13 | BACKDROP | What’s behind support given to delivery by air?
BACK (=support) + DROP (=delivery by air, i.e. airdrop) |
| 14 | ALPHA | First-rate headgear on Mont Blanc? Not entirely
ALP HA<t> (=headgear on Mont Blanc, cryptically); “not entirely” means last letter is dropped |
| 16 | JANUS | Judge accepted recollection of Apollo as a Roman god
J (=Judge) + A (=accepted) + NUS (SUN=Apollo; “recollected” indicates reversal) |
| 18 | O SOLE MIO | Travelling miles (three times round) for the Italian air
*(MILES + O O O); “three times round” means 3 x letter “o” (=round); “travelling” indicates anagram; O sole mio (“My Sunshine”) is a Neapolitan song written in 1898 – and used as the basis of the “Just One Cornetto” advert in UK! |
| 20 | COME RAIN OR SHINE | Undeterred by precipitate action
Cryptic definition, where “precipitate” (from “precipitation”) suggests rain |
| 23 | PHLOEM | Verse includes hard line identifying plant tissue
[H (=hard) + L (=line)] in POEM (=verse); phloem is a type of tissue in plants responsible for transporting metabolites, especially sugars |
| 24 | DIGLYPHS | Architectural grooves: appreciate edges of lofty hollows around front of portico
DIG (=appreciate) + {P<ortico> in [L<oft>Y H<ollow>S]}; “edges of” means first and last letters only; “front of” means first letter only |
| 25 | TROPHY | Cup’s too much for Pierre hardly emptied
TROP (=too much for Pierre, i.e. the French word for too much) + H<ardl>Y (“emptied” means all but first and last letters are dropped |
| 26 | ETHNIC | Garbled in the commentary initially covering race
*(IN THE) + C<ommentary>); “garbled” is anagram indicator; “initially” means first letter only |
| Down | ||
| 01 | CONSTRAIN | Opponents prepare force
CONS (=opponents) + TRAIN (=prepare, coach) |
| 02 | LIPHOOK | Brass hanger in Hampshire village
LIP (=brass, cheek) + HOOK (=hanger); the village of Liphook in Hampshire was a coaching stop in the 17th and 18th centuries and also a base for Canadian troops in the two World Wars |
| 03 | PHILHARMONIC | One line may have damage in describing sound of an orchestra?
[I (=one) + L (=line) + HARM (=damage)] in PHONIC (=describing sound) |
| 05 | PANACEA | Severely criticise expert article offering general solution
PAN (=severely criticise) + ACE (=expert) + A (=article, in grammar) |
| 06 | OMITS | Forgets attraction in Russian city closed early
IT (=attraction, sex appeal) in OMS<k> (=Russian city, in south-west Siberia; “closed early” means last letter dropped) |
| 07 | DEEP-SEA | Recordings in river area covered in water?
EPs (=recordings) in [DEE (=river) + A (=area)] |
| 08 | NOVA | New sources of life of interest to 12?
N (=new) + OVA (=sources of life, eggs); astrophysicists (=entry at 12) would be interested in a nova |
| 11 | PSEPHOLOGIST | Election analyst: “Oppose slight changes”
*(OPPOSE SLIGHT); “changes” is anagram indicator |
| 15 | PHILIPPIC | Prince photo gets heavy criticism
PHILIP (=Prince, i.e. Duke of Edinburgh) + PIC (=photo); a philippic is a discourse full of invective |
| 16 | JACKPOT | Support for car pool getting successful outcome
JACK (=support for car) + POT (=pool, fund) |
| 17 | SCREECH | Shifting rocks hitting children – horrified cry?
SCREE (=shifting rocks) + CH (=children) |
| 19 | EPSILON | Greek character picked up speech impediment in time
PSIL (LISP=speech impediment; “picked up” indicates vertical reversal) in EON (=time, age) |
| 21 | MALMO | Formal monument in Swedish city? On the contrary
Hidden (“in”) in “forMAL MOnument” |
| 22 | EAST | French is used around afternoon heading for Indo-China
A<fternoon> “heading” indicates first letter only) in EST (=French is, i.e. the French word for is) |
Something odd must have happened to the universe because this turned out to be the fastest Phi I’d ever completed. None the worse for that, it was all good stuff. I especially appreciated the “astrophysicists” because I was one once, in a former life.
I was confused by “oenophil”, never having encountered it without the terminal “e”. The OED lists it as an alternative form, but a google ngram search turns up no instances. A web google search tells me it is a valid word in Scrabble, though, so we’ll have to let it through.
I, too, was confused by “ethnic”, but did get there after scrabbling around for neologisms.
Thanks, everyone!
Thanks both.
I wonder if Phi was thinking of Rajesh Koothrappali from “Big Bang Theory” for 12a – an astrophysicist with problems, but probably neuroses rather psychoses!
Well spotted R…u (I’m not even going to try to reproduce the monicker from memory) – this was built around PHs. I’d hoped to have no PHIs but there just aren’t the words. I think the idea must have come from having PHILANDER in a grid a week or so ago, though it’s a bit of an odd chain of thought, I guess.
Emrys is, of course, not the only former astrophysicist in these parts.
@Phi- thanks for popping in. I am growing to like your Phiday puzzles- I like the way obscure words are immaculately clued. Thank you sir!
I found this trickier than many of Phi’s puzzles but I enjoyed the challenge. Like RR I was toying with “atonic” for 26ac before the penny dropped and ETHNIC was my LOI. Fool that I am I didn’t notice the unusual number of PHs in the answers. If I had come across PSEPHOLOGIST before I’d forgotten it and I was pleased there wasn’t another feasible arrangement of the anagram fodder. I’m also glad the wordplay was so helpful for OENOPHIL (my Chambers reckons “oenophile” is a more recent spelling), DIGLYPHS and PHLOEM. I worked in Hook for a few years so that helped me get LIPHOOK.
Thanks, RR.
I never time myself, but I’d say this went in quicker than many a Phi once I’d remembered how many Ls and how many Ps there were in PHILIPPIC. Some delightful clueing, especially for COME RAIN OR SHINE and ASTROPHYSICISTS.
I was going to respond to your comment at 1, Emrys, but Phi has beaten me to it. Since you’re a comparatively new commenter, you might not have picked up on the fact that the setter does indeed have a background (and indeed a degree, I think) in astronomy, which is why the subject crops up often in his crosswords. And he’s a son of the north-east, so all in all a top bloke as well as a top setter. Thanks to him for today’s puzzle (and no, of course I didn’t spot the theme …)
Nice to be back again (after a month in Australia where the Sydney Morning Herald provided excellent puzzles). I managed mist of the puzzle and really enjoyed the slyer (?slier) aspects of the clues.
Ah, astrophysics; I’d say, “I remember it well,” except I don’t. It was a long time ago! My astrophysics is currently as rusty as my knowledge of Spanish geography (see yesterday’s blog) but, fortunately, I can still remember how to spell it.
Thanks Phi and RR, a phenomenal puzzle.
New words DIGLYPHS and PSEPHOLOGIST. LIPHOOK came to mind since my sons went to school there.
ALPHa caused a groan as did JACKPOT, great fun.
9a, Drinker’s phone ruined (not phoned)
For the record, I suppose I was an astrophysicist once. My degree was in physics and Leeds university you had the option of either low temperature physics or astrophysics, and I took the latter. And, for that matter, although I was born in London, I grew up in the north-east (Co. Durham).
On the whole, no problems with this, apart from 24ac, which needed aids.
I cannot claim any PH connections but I certainly enjoyed the puzzle, as well as getting the nina for once.
10A is a wonderful clue, had me laughing out loud (I drive a 15 year old Audi).
Many thanks Phi and RatkojaRiku, now back to the cricket.
[paul8hours, I laughed too, the gears of our VW Golf have just given out, first problem in 20 years.]
And of course I should have appreciated this puzzle even more, since my initials are PH …
Good test match; pity about the result.
Thanks Phi and RR.
We completed the puzzle in two stages, the first part late last night and then early this morning. Bert noticed the number of Ps last night but didn’t remember that fact this morning until we came here. We knew there must be something going on with the number of unusual words.