A straightforward puzzle of average difficulty but with some interesting people hidden away. I knew Al Capone of course but the skateboarder Alan "Ollie" Gelfand was new to me as was that great world champion of porridge making John Boa, wizard of the spurtle.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | SWEEP-SAW - S(WEE-PS)AW; a bowsaw or turning saw; |
| 7 | CHUB - C(amorra)-HUB; |
| 10 | MINARET - M-IN-ARET; old word for award=ARET; |
| 12 | AGOGE - A(GO)GE; tempo in ancient Greece - also a Spartan training regime; |
| 13 | CLOWDER - C-LOWDER; clubs=C; sounds like "louder"; collective noun for feral cats; |
| 15 | ADHERE - AD-HERE; |
| 16 | TEREEN - T(E-R)REEN; eccentricity=E; runs=R; wooden=TREEN; |
| 17 | SLOAN - SLOAN(e Ranger); to snub in Sutherland; |
| 19 | LINEAGE - ("genealogies" minus "goes")*; |
| 20 | SPURTLE - (super)* surrounds LT reversed; Scots spoon used in the World Porridge Making Championships, current champion John Boa; |
| 23 | KLOOF - FO(O)LK reversed (from the east); a ravine; |
| 25 | AGISTER - (m)AGISTER; a Verderer of the New Forest; |
| 27 | BEEPER - BEE-PER; |
| 29 | DESPITE - scorn=despise then second "s" becomes "t" to give DESPITE; |
| 30 | OLLIE - (m)OLLIE; noon=M; mollie=a sailors jolly in an icebound ship; an OLLIE is a move on a skateboard devised by Alan "Ollie" Gelfand; |
| 31 | ARNAOUT - ARNA-OUT; water buffalo=ARNA; OUT=seawards; member of the Turkish Army; |
| 32 | WASE - WAS-E; noodle=head; a soft pad used to protect the top of the head as used, I think, by Billingsgate porters; |
| 33 | MAYOLOGY - MAY-O-LOGY; blossom=MAY; over=O; dull in Denver=LOGY; study of all things Mayan; |
| Down | |
| 1 | SMARTS - SM(ART)S; text messaging system=SMS; |
| 2 | ENOW - E-(WON reversed); ecstasy (drug)=E; a moment ago in Edinburgh; |
| 3 | EAGER - sounds like "eagre"; |
| 4 | PRESENTEEISM - PRESENT-(I seem)*; as demonstrated by over protective mother-in-law; |
| 5 | SECKEL - SEC-(LEK reversed); display ground=LEK; small, tasty, pear; |
| 6 | WOODEN,KIMONO - hard=WOODEN; outfit=KIMONO; US slang for a coffin; Al Capone 1899-1947 was put in a $2,000 bronze casket in Florida where he died. After lying in state he was driven to Chicago for burial in Mount Olivet; |
| 7 | COWHEEL - CO-WHEEL; ox foot stewed to make a jelly; |
| 8 | HEDERA - (ARE-D-EH all reversed); D=top of Dolomites; what!=EH!; Ivy; |
| 9 | BAREGE - BAR-EG-E; strip=BAR; English=E; silky cloth from Bareges in SW France; |
| 11 | HERE,GOES - HER(EG)OES; |
| 14 | HELPMEET - HE-(temple)*; |
| 18 | ARIPPLE - A(R-I)PPLE; R-I from R(ecycled) I(Pads); APPLE makes iPads; |
| 20 | SUBDEW - (WE'D-BUS all reversed); clear tables (in restaurant)=BUS; old word for subdue; |
| 21 | URESIS - URES-I-S; operations=URES; has='S; urine (wee); |
| 22 | EGGERY - (gree=all but green)* surrounds g=good then y=a variable (algebra); bananas=mad=anagram indicator; |
| 24 | FREETY - FRE(t)-(yet)*; superstitious in Stirling; |
| 26 | SALAL - hidden (ca)SA LA L(aca); a shrub; |
| 28 | ALOO - A-LOO; can=toilet=LOO; spud=potato=ALOO; |

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