Confusions, of which there is no shame in having many, are sorted out on this thread.
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Confusions, of which there is no shame in having many, are sorted out on this thread.
Comment away.
DA Trippers 
Apparently 26A is not universally known, even amongst Australians, which makes me feel better for not knowing it. I didn’t know 19A, either.
I could have punched myself (or something else) for not getting 8D without RobT’s hints.
I was very happy to create 19A without knowing him from a bar of soap. Never ever heard of 26A…I guess I might have woken up and got it eventually but thankful for the help as I can now do some paid work.
I had to confirm the answers to 19A and 26A and the “largely offensive” part of 23A. I liked 10A.
@Peta: In my opinion, 23A bears only a tenuous relationhip with 9D, in more ways than one.
@RobT – I’m happy enough with the &lit for 23A. I just hadn’t heard the the colloquial term contributing to the first part of the answer.
Really! Colloquial but well-known, at least in Sydney, I would have thought.
Is 23A an &lit? I regard an &lit as a clue where the whole clue is both the definition and the wordplay. In 23A I see wordplay followed by a definition, so I wouldn’t class it as an &lit.
23a not an &lit.
Funny what’s familiar. I got 23 fairly quickly .. as RobT says it might be the Sydney scene. . both the def and the wordplay. I’ve been to 26A . And 19A was on the list at Uni. But didn’t remember the ‘fold’ synonym in 13A .. must have been asleep in my Old English class that day. Didn’t get 8D until I came on this site and went back to RobT’s hints. Great clue. Struggled with the wordplay in 12A .. tried for a while to justify ‘homerun’ (as we had Marge recently) until I had more letters and went for the other def possibility. And was also ‘got’ in 15 D trying to think of the name of a Captain of HMAS Melbourne which was commissioned in the 50’s.
Not happy with the ‘on’ in 2D. Liked 25A for the surface, simple but nice and 1A , likewise, and 22D, 16D
bout time you turned up.
Been at hydro and a picnic in the park. Might be ‘out of it’ soon though – surgery in 10days. But I’m counting on you bright sparks for some vicarious DAstraction.
Aaargh. Armless surgery let us hope not.
Well a personel best here , not quite poolroom territory , but DA put to bed before the train trip home, OK I’ll admit the interwibble was consulted a bit to help out – I’d also not heard of 26A , but was lucky in the cross letters I’d got the name right rirst time.
A couple eg 2D,10A need a bit more thinking about to understand the wordplay but overall I’m quite chuffed with myself today.
Top effort David H…
Yes, great work David H. It sounds like you have done a lot better than I did.
8D wordplay was rather confusing, but fun to unravel when you got there. Much thanks must surely go to the early morning repartee of RobT and Rupert, it has to be said. Is it a spoiler at this stage to add that worse was seen last year from Suarez?
I agree, Gayle, it is funny what you are familiar with and others aren’t – and vice versa! I’ve been to 26A – it is spectacular – and so knew it well. At a lot of the places around there the water is very cold. So cold in fact that we wore wet suits for the first time since leaving FNQ a few months earlier. It was a December too.
Loved 15D! Very naughty I thought – another winner from DA!
Robin, Suarez may not be a saint, but there is only one God!
Yeh, Robin, loved 15D too. Great clue. And it might be a little naughty to mention ‘cold’ and ‘water’ in connection with ‘desert wonder’. … unless you’ve been there. Lucky you had the wet suits. I was struck too by both the cold and the water in those places.
@RobT, very good!
@Gayle, well spotted!
first quick go through and only worked out one plus a maybe before coming on here. The one i got was 26a, which jumped straight out at me. Have been there a few times, so i guess that helped!
nn: black is white, day is night. 26A was the only one I couldn’t get.
such is life RobT! I have a couple more now, including 8D thanks to above hints, although I don’t get the wordplay for the second word in this one.
nn turn-out is a good DAism. With the right type of direction reversal hopefully it should become clear
clear as mud!
got 19A from wordplay and google. Never heard of him!
No idea on 23A despite above hints, maybe it is a Sydney thing?
Thought I had 18d early on, but now I have 21A the first word is wrong. Am I still looking for a type of bird?
don’t get the deletion in 16a, does “comply” somehow indicate this?
wikipedia and google appear to have 18D as (7) not (4,3)
nn I thought 16a was deleting the first letter from comply rather than taking one away from after start
@nn regarding 23A I don’t think this is a Sydney thing at all, or even Australian. It appears to have been made popular by a man of Welsh/Israeli background in the South of France!
@Robin 23A I think you are correct about the definition part, but is the wordplay for Largely offensive a Sydney thing?
@ David H thanks, that makes a bit more sense!
Further hint: the Welsh/Israeli man in the South of France was pretending to be from Central Asia although he is actually English.
@Rupert, I have the answer, it was the wordplay that had me stumped. The Welsh Israeli pretended to be from one of the 8 (or 7!) countries from last week, perhaps this is where DA got the idea. Not sure if the answer is prevalent in Sydney, don’t think I’ve seen one in Melbourne (and hope I never do!)
23A: It may not be in common use in Melbourne, but I’ve certainly heard it used in England. It’s not one of the 15 or so words in the average kiwi vocabulary.
The above refers to the offensive word, not the offensive garment.
Hi Five, Robert!
@nn I see what you mean, I was on the wrong track. The first 4 letters of 23A are not known to my teenaged son at all. I knew the word from my school days in the UK though. Then it had a ‘Y’ on the end to make the adjective whereas the Urban Dictionary has just the 4 letters.
I’ve been in Sydney the last 30 years and don’t think I’ve heard it used at all!
@Robin, “offensive” is cluing the word with the ‘y’ on the end, “largely offensive” means everything but the ‘y’. I don’t think it’s intended that the four letters be a word, but if they are, it’s not one I’ve heard.
18D: it is a bird, but think Australian countryside rather than milk bottle tops (if you have the same wrong answer I did).
Also, breast is not cluing the last word, but the outer four letters.
@Rupert, thanks for that. The ‘largely’ idea makes sense.
The kids shorten everything these days of course and the Urban Dictionary has both versions. There I see that someone has suggested the 5 letter word is of Scottish origin.
@nn also, as to the bird it does seem to be one, seven letter word in most references.
Starting late as usual. Have maybe eight or nine. Liked 20D, have visited 26A so that was easy. Perplexed by 23A. Is there a refeence related to Sherman and Panzer here in first four? Is 13A an anagram? Not progressing well, atm.
I think my interpretation of the wordplay in 23ac may be different to others’ here. I have the word meaning offensive to be letters 2, 3, and 4 of the answer with the first letter of the word missing (indicated by largely). These letters are then contained in another type of garment for the 9dn, hence the &lit.
@Arthur
23A sherman and panzer will give you letters 2, 3 and 4, but the first letter is different.
Google Borat for a hint on this. It is a garment for swimming that just about covers 9D (in males)
13A isn’t an anagram, but 19A is (sort of) and so is 24 (although DA is being a bit clever with the indicator here).
8d refers to an (in)famous soccer player.
Hope that’s enough hints to give you a bit of a start, I had a lot of trouble getting going today too. 26a and 20d were the first two I got and then took me quite a while to get the others.
But on reflection, I think my interpretation is probably incorrect. I still think it’s an &lit though.
@I quite like your other interpretation RK. I wasn’t that thrilled with the one the others offered, mainly due to the largely offensive bit as I hadn’t heard of the term that was offered.
mind you I’d spent ages messing around with mega and 3 letter words for offensive before I got 23A (with help from above). I didn’t have 9D at that point, which made it harder.
Suddenly, things starting to come together. Got the Pole’s ready (do they still use that?), so have 1A, 11A (I think), and 13A. I was referring, obviously, to tanks in 23A. Found reference to a tankini, but you appear to be telling me that is wrong? Puzzled. I had 19A, I think, from a list of French novelists. 5D now looks OK. Proceding.
not tankini Arthur. starts with m instead, hence my initial incorrect thoughts that it was mega something. If you google Borat and mankini, you will see the (offensive?) garment.
Thank you, nn. That immediately gave me 23D, which was a puzzle before. So I have the righthand side complete, the LHS completely empty. But it can wait for tomorrow. Have to prepare evening meal soon. Thanks for hints, I’m too dumb to work some of them out.
funny that Arthur, I had the left bottom corner done before almost any of the right side.
If you don’t have 8d yet, google soccer and hand of god, world cup England V Argentina.
That should give you a pretty good start on the left side.
P.S how is the wife recovering?
23A: I like @RK’s interpretation, too, in which case it is an &lit. I would end an &lit with ?!, rather than just !, but DA is a law unto himself. The other interpretation has the drawbacks of (a) the offensive word not being current in Melbourne, and (b) the word “such” is spurious.
@arthur 24A changed is the anagram indicator, vitamins is the def, although it isn’t a great def.
3 to go.
1a will not break for me. I have a possibility but it blows out my 5d and 6d.
I have the answer for 10a but don’t understand the wordplay.
sg, for the second word, think of words meaning very odd or strange.
1A: Double homophone, the answer is a New York fashion magazine founded (so wiki tells me) in 1867.
10A: It’s an &lit; so the whole clue is both the wordplay and the definition. “Writers” is the ends of pens, “first to last” means move the first letter to the end, “Ultimate” means take the last letter of the following word. The whole is a famous Norwegian playwright.
@Rupert Re 1A ,why would it be a double homophone? Is the first word not just a synonym? I’m lost. I thought 10A was very well done though, a great clue.
I’d like someone to help me with the wordplay for 3D. Most will get the letters 1,3,5,7,9 and you can guess the answer from those, but what is the wordplay here?
Yes, I’d couldn’t get the wordplay for 3D either. Also 5D and 16D elude me. Any help?
1a – of course!! (kick, kick, kick)
I was close but…
10a – had the answer, thanks for the explanation, Rupert. I can see the pens (now), not sure about the “ultimate” as he doesn’t start with “e”. A misdirection perhaps? I know 2b is a pencil…
@drums 5D has the last word in the clue as the definition, which I think you’ll have. The ‘smell’ is body odour, which the clue says is reduced. The answer has this as a complete loss. The resort club or ‘Club’ is the famous one, so much loved in every regard by Byron Shire Council. Any good?
Robin and drums; hope its not to early to give non-cryptic explanations but
3d was IN bottled in Pot and Gratis minus at
@David H not too early at all. Brilliant, thanks!
Thanks Robin – the light’s now on re 5D. Thanks David H for the light re 3D. Now for 16D?
16D anyone??
@Robin and Drums: 3d=definition, ‘in’ bottled by type of glass (5), synonym for ‘free’ minus ‘at’ (4). 5d=type of smell contains synonym for ‘reduction’, followed by abbreviation for ‘resort club’, followed by definition. Thanks to everyone’s efforts, I have only 16d to go. I cannot work out the wordplay. I have a synonym for ‘juvenile’ (5) to start, but… and @Gayle said it was nice and simple : (
Oh and @sg, ‘e’ is the ultimate letter of Norse.
1A: I was wrong about the double homophone. Sorry for the confusion. @Robin is right.
10A: “Ultimate Norse” is the last letter of Norse (E), and “among” indicates it’s contained in the other letters.
3D: Glass is POT, which is a bit of a reach. “In glass bottled” means “in” is contained in glass, giving the first word. Free at send-off means remove the letters AT from a word meaning free.
16D: Juvenile as in inexperienced. Bear scrutiny: this synonym is almost only used in the negative, as in “that excuse won’t ____”
I see my typing is too slow, and that the explanations have already been given. Still, there’s 16d.
Is this a record? Three contributions at 8:40pm? !
Thanks Rupert – got your explanation just after I googled a hunch and discovered the answer – it is a new word invented to describe what oil and mining company PR depts have been doing for years.
Thanks for the reminder, Robin. I should go to bed – I’m picking my wife up from the airport at an unseemly hour tomorrow morning.
@Rupert, why is ‘pot’ a bit of a reach? Am I showing my age?
Aah, penny just dropped. Thanks : D
Penny dropped on 16d, not on why ‘pot’ does not readily mean ‘glass’.
@Rupert, of course, you’re Sydney + 2 hours aren’t you?
@Monica I agree (agree as in 16A, lol) with you on 3D. Why is ‘wine in glass bottled’ so easily explained by saying glass is ‘pot’? In my day pot was a sort of ‘grass’ not ‘glass’ …
You know how beer glasses have different names in each state? One of the states ( can’t remember which) has a beer glass called a Pot.
DOH!
@drums so you are saying that the answer in NSW would be MINIDDY GRIS?
Am I a pissmiddy?
@RobT quite possibly. Have there been any witnesses?
pot in Melb. about time we got a go,DA been a bit too Sydneycentric lately.
@nn. Trust me, you can have him …
Down to last six! 8D seems the key, as I’m missing 10, 12 & 17A (also 3 & 4D). If I was an Eminem fan, would it help with 4D?
@Arthur C.
4d: No need to know Eminem, just his music genre, and that the first part of clue is his name.
17a: Think of a synonym for ‘investigations’. Remove letter representing ‘quietly’.
8d: Reading previous posts should help.
@nn so ‘pot’ reveals my location, not my age ; )
Monica, sorry for the misreading of 16D being ‘simple’. That comment actually referred to what I thought of as simple but nice cluing of 25A and 1A. I try not to comment on whether a solution is easy, as I’m often been stumped by what others find easy, and then I get thrown even more off course! The second part of 16 D, ‘bear scrutiny’, as explained by Rupert as ususally occurring in the negative, didn’t come to me until after I got the def.
With you on the ‘pot’ .. maybe both location and gender? Only got that from the def too. Is the position of the ‘bottled’ indicator fair? Several deceptions in that clue, but really good, once I got it!
All’s well, Gayle. The clue for 16d was straightforward, but the usage is, as Rupert points out, limited, so it took time for the solution to jell.
As far as ‘bottled’ position goes, would it seem fairer if it were ‘Wine in glass bottles…’? This would not sit well with the rest of the wording, or maybe it would.
Down to final three. 4D, 8d , 12A. Is 8D a person’s name, maybe from film or TV? (I never watch films, TV rarely). The clue given above for 4D didn’t help. I have R-P– which sugests rapid? That would then suggest a ted ending for 12A. So near, and yet so far.
Have settled on ‘rapid’ for 4D, as rap is what eminem does, I believe, and the name is his id? But no nearer the other two.
Arthur you are correct with 4d
8D is a famous soccer Argentinian soccer player, google “hand of god” world cup England v Argentina.
You are correct in that 12A ends in TED, this is the TV father (father Ted). Bragged is the definition.
As I said, I find much of TV/Film utterly distateful, hasd never heard of father Ted. I was perfectly familiar with our Argentinian cheat, too stupid to connect shooter with soccer. Thank you nn.
the worst part about 8d is that he 12A afterwards!
Yes nn, and it gets replayed over, and over, and over.
The best thing about DG (apart from the “real” goal he scored in the same match) is that his name gives so many great wordplay possibilities….I keep seeing “self-harm concerns” in EGO/MAR/ADO for example…
Can someone help explain the 8D wordplay? I can accept ‘turn out’ takes the ‘U’ out of around, but where does the MAA come from?
BRD – I think ‘attack’ is MARAUD, which loses the U.
I thought it was ‘maraud’ (attack), minus ‘u’, plus ‘on’ and ‘a’.
BRD take the U out of Maraud (Attack) add the ON and A and there is your footballer
ps on a sporting theme I see we’ve just won the Netball – my sister ( in Wellington) is less than impressed; hope Rupert is still on speaking terms (-:
Too slow again : )
Monica I’m amazed that nothing happens for a while then we all decide to post exactly the same thing at exactly the same time.
Snap.
ditto
Help with wordplay in 22D. Is everyone happy with the wordplay in 13A as I interpret sty = fold?
Bernie:
22d: ONION=Tearjerker (def) – sees gutless president=(NIXON-X)=NION, pursue love (follow O).
13a: No problem with clue once solved : )
Thanks Monica.
Monday pm. I’ve just been checking answers in today’s paper. I mostly did OK on this one, and did not ‘cheat’ by looking on here! Only problems were, I’ve never heard of the French man, even though I had all the letters. And someone PLEASE explain mankini ( I know about Borat, but don’t get this clue at all)
Hi Jill,
23a:
Largely offensive=MANKY-Y – This part of the clue could describe the term ‘manky’, which means ‘offensive’, but is also in itself a term offensive to Mancunians. It could also describe the solution, which is eye-wateringly offensive. This is then followed by IN+I. The whole equals a garment for the ‘nether regions’.
‘Manky’ seemed to be derived from manque.
Now I see that it comes to English via Polari, which is bona.
I prefer ‘offensive’ = RANK, lose the R, giving ANK, and put it ‘in one such garment for the 9D’ being a MINI.
That works, too. I’d forgotten.
Thanks, Monica and GB for the complicated explanations! Don’t feel bad for not being able to work THAT one out!