By the time you read this, if you can be bothered, I hope to be restored to binocular vision - of a quality I haven't 'seen' for sixty years - and the 'where's yer parrot' jokes will presumably stop. Even with one eye this was pretty straightforward for a Wednesday, I thought, but none the less enjoyable while it lasted; a sub 20 minute time, which is fast for me if not for our top charioteers.
Although of a scientific bent from an early age, I loved Latin at school, in spite of, or because of, our master Mr Percy Cushion, (it's true!) of course pronounded cue-shun, and he was also short and roly poly.
Anyway, I digress nimis.
Although of a scientific bent from an early age, I loved Latin at school, in spite of, or because of, our master Mr Percy Cushion, (it's true!) of course pronounded cue-shun, and he was also short and roly poly.
Anyway, I digress nimis.
| Across | |
| 1 | Marries and goes off embracing husband after speculation (8) |
| BETROTHS - BET = speculation, then insert H into ROTS = goes off. I learnt something today; I'd have spelt it BETHROTHES in a spelling quiz, and lost. | |
| 5 | Confused chatter about river fish (6) |
| BARBEL - Crossworders know their fish. Insert R into BABEL. | |
| 9 | Uniform material was adopted by soldiers and sailor (5,4) |
| OLIVE DRAB - LIVED (was) inside OR (soldiers) then AB. | |
| 11 | Moved to take-off after disembarking one becoming stressed (5) |
| TAXED - TAXIED disembarks its I. | |
| 12 | Legend of river and lake that is put back beside other legends (7) |
| LORELEI - Reverse I.E. and L behind LORE. I once cruised past this legendary rock on the Rhine while in Cologne at an advertising jolly (sorry, 'conference') but was tottyoccupied at the time and didn't take much notice. | |
| 13 | Ravel's one enthralled by flute playingof melodious quality (7) |
| TUNEFUL - No pavannes or Maurices required; Ravel's one is UN and it goes inside (FLUTE)*. | |
| 14 | One lacking complaint nevertheless inclined to be patient (13) |
| HYPOCHONDRIAC - Cryptic definition, ha ha. Why is it one's friends are all hypochondriacs yet I'm the one who has real complaints and they're indifferent? | |
| 16 | Game UCD alumna put out degree citation (5,3,5) |
| MAGNA CUM LAUDE - (GAME UCD ALUMNA)*. not a term used at UCD in Ireland, I think, more in USA. | |
| 20 | Finished a couple of lengths in total (7) |
| OVERALL - OVER = finished, A, L, L. | |
| 21 | Cautious about soldier perhaps in US city (5,2) |
| SANTA FE - SAFE = cautious, around ANT for soldier. | |
| 23 | I'd recalled way of working one part of speech (5) |
| IDIOM - I'D followed my MO, I reversed. | |
| 24 | Leading attraction? The Queen, among the aristocracy (3-6) |
| TOP-DRAWER - I suppose this is a double definition, a TOP DRAWER would be a main attraction, and top-drawer meaning aristocratic, posh. Collins has it with and without hyphen. | |
| 25 | Fall back, displacing new line in reciprocal arrangement (6) |
| MUTUAL - AUTUMN = fall, reverse and remove N -> MUTUA, add L. | |
| 26 | Results after cooking will include ultimate in apple crumble (8) |
| STREUSEL - (RESULTS E)*, the E from end of APPLE. | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Protection from weather? British happy to forgo headpiece (6) |
| BROLLY - BR(ITISH), (J)OLLY). Is brolly only an English thing or is it Transatlantic too? | |
| 2 | Row about component of education for painstaking student? (5) |
| TRIER - TIER = row, around R one of the three R's. | |
| 3 | Some deliveries friend picked up showing a degree of duplication (7) |
| OVERLAP - OVER = some deliveries as in cricket, LAP = PAL reversed. | |
| 4 | Pair of lines showing Batman and Robin possibly appearing on time (6,7) |
| HEROIC COUPLET - Well, Batman and Robin could be a heroic couple, add T for time. My ignorance of poetry terms didn't stop me once the checkers were in. | |
| 6 | Harmonised a duet not disregarding old fashions (7) |
| ATTUNED - (A DUET NT)*, NOT loses it O for the anagrist. | |
| 7 | Area for sales and storage beside the rink? (3,6) |
| BOX OFFICE - A box off ice could be a storage area next to the rink, ha ha. | |
| 8 | Boy with disgusted comment about large fortune (4,4) |
| LADY LUCK - LAD = boy, YUCK = disgusted comment, insert L. | |
| 10 | Preserves narrow strip of land containing core of some abundant resource (10,3) |
| BOTTOMLESS PIT - BOTTLES = preserves, SPIT = narrow strip of land, insert OM being the 'core' of SOME. I was thinking some kind of jam at first. | |
| 14 | Cleanliness expert— sadly in pig-sty he has no power (9) |
| HYGIENIST - (IN IG STY HE)*, the P being dropped out. | |
| 15 | Big store I line up with little hesitation, raking millions in (8) |
| EMPORIUM - Reverse I, ROPE (I line up), insert M, add UM for little hesitation. | |
| 17 | Condition I intend escalating among reforming drinkers (7) |
| ANAEMIA - Insert I MEAN reversed into A A Alcoholics Anonymous. | |
| 18 | Old soldier cut down after rifleman missed first alarm (7) |
| UNNERVE - GUNNER loses its G, VET loses its T. | |
| 19 | Favourite part in brief? It's refined stuff (6) |
| PETROL - PET = favourite, ROL(E) = part in brief. | |
| 22 | Whiskey consumed by a military group in former days (2,3) |
| AS WAS - A, SAS, insert W for whiskey phonetic alphabet. | |