Time: 16 minutes
Music: Bax, Tintagel, Boult/LPO
Another easy Monday, but I biffed so many I'm going to be spending a lot of time figuring out the cryptics as I write the blog. There are also a number of points I will have to research. So maybe this shouldn't have been so easy, or maybe we don't need the cryptics. Well, at least we have a crypt. There were not many actual chestnuts, although experienced solvers will know decaf/faced, the two sailors in Addis Ababa, the goat with no corn, and the upside-down help in India.
Since we had Bax last week, I pulled out the Lyrita LP of his tone poems. These are fine performances by Sir Adrian Boult, highly recommended if you like English-style classical music.
Across |
1 |
Very naughty boy outside a court, having arrived with large beast (8,5) |
|
BACTRIAN CAMEL - B(A CT)RIAN + CAME + L, referring to Monty Python's Life of Brian. |
8 |
Bird's nest is one being very high (4) |
|
SOUP - SO + UP. Fortunately, I didn't biff coop. |
9 |
Meat pie, served with coffee, sent back, looking anaemic (5-5) |
|
PASTY-FACED - PASTY + DECAF backwards. |
10 |
Start to accept fish in sea abroad seem diseased? (8) |
|
MALINGER - M(A[ccept] LING)ER. |
11 |
Fox should cover conflict once in progress (6) |
|
TOWARD - TO(WAR)D, where the "in progress" meaning of toward is obsolescent, although maybe not obsolete. |
13 |
Combine with two sailors in an investment producing capital (5,5) |
|
ADDIS ABABA - ADD IS(ABAB)A. An ISA is a UK investment; here in the US we have the IRA, but that acronym was already taken over there. |
16 |
Data coming back relating to an Ulster region (4) |
|
INFO - OF N.I. Northern Ireland is six out of the nine counties in Ulster, so it is properly called an Ulster region. |
17 |
Sudden blast son's taken in belly (4) |
|
GUST - GU(S)T. |
18 |
Trio snatching at Scots hooligan were menacing (10) |
|
THREATENED - THRE(AT)E + NED. |
20 |
Snooker break is met with difficulty in the end (6) |
|
STYMIE - Anagram of IS MET + [difficult]Y. |
22 |
Shoot the breeze with blonde in attempt to manipulate (8) |
|
GASLIGHT - GAS + LIGHT, as modern language comes to the Times. We'll be back to bishops and barristers shortly, however. |
24 |
He painted bishop with bad back gulping too much cold water (10) |
|
BOTTICELLI - B (OTT ICE) LLI, whichis ill backwards. |
26 |
Bottomless river associated with Parana's source (4) |
|
DEEP - DEE + P[arana] - fortunately, you don't need to know who or what Parana is. |
27 |
Direction Strehler originally provided in Aston theatre adaptation? (4-5-4) |
|
EAST-NORTH-EAST - Anagram of S[rehler] + ASTON THEATRE - you don't need to know who Strehler is, either! |
Down |
1 |
Shilling taken from chest with another in economic cycle (4,3,4) |
|
BOOM AND BUST - BO[s]OM AND BUST. Inflation and deflation, or something like that. |
2 |
Goat denied grain comes to island (5) |
|
CAPRI - CAPRI[corn]. |
3 |
Abhorrent ruling to imprison reversed before magistrates (9) |
|
REPUGNANT - RE(UP backwards)GNANT. |
4 |
Empire once so small and insubstantial to overturn (7) |
|
ASSYRIA - AS + S + AIRY upside-down. |
5 |
Weep over pint in church cellar (5) |
|
CRYPT - CRY + PT. |
6 |
Malicious trick takes in hospital for now (9) |
|
MEANWHILE - MEAN W(H)ILE. |
7 |
Some colliers are buried (3) |
|
LIE - Hidden in [col]LIE]rs. |
12 |
Royal seen among tree ferns ordered snack (11) |
|
REFRESHMENT - Anagram of TREE FERNS containing HM. |
14 |
Hints from close friends (9) |
|
INTIMATES - Double definition. |
15 |
Economist with German husband supporting second president (4,5) |
|
ADAM SMITH - ADAMS + MIT H. |
19 |
Artillery regiment with gun elevated in routine (7) |
|
REGULAR - RA + LUGER upside-down. |
21 |
One whose time is done in City, working with cross to bear (2-3) |
|
EX-CON - E(X)C + ON. |
23 |
Home help sent up country (5) |
|
INDIA - IN + AID upside-down. |
25 |
Mineral source almost disappeared from Pacific state (3) |
|
ORE - ORE[gon[e]], an obvious biff. |