Times 28,019: Cricket and Football and Golf, Oh My!
You would have been forgiven for assuming that I would have had stern words to say about a crossword with so many sporting references, but given that one of them, 13d is my COD, with its brilliant IOCESE, it seems I have finally joined the dark side. There are other brilliant clues everywhere too, 14ac and 3dn deserving of special mention in my book. Masive kudos to the setter, I really enjoyed this one.
...and as a special "treat", you can see me solve this one in real time if you like. There's a stream of it at https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1073877354, start at about 9m30 if you don't want to have any truck with the Concise and QC beforehand. If you have any requests for what I should stream in future, sing out!
ACROSS
1 Discharge Roman who’s caught in flagrante? (6)
ACQUIT - QUI [Roman "who"] caught in (the) ACT
5 Hesitates to stop groom’s summary dismissal (4,4)
BUM'S RUSH - UMS [as in, ums and ahs] "stopping" BRUSH [groom]
9 Colouring that’s unknown, established for use in pudding (8)
DYESTUFF - Y EST., "used in" DUFF [pudding]
10 Splendid guess! (6)
DIVINE - double def
11 After loudly interrupting, are quiet again (6)
AFRESH - ARE SH!, "interrupted" by F [loudly]
12 Dance by degrees become sweet, intoxicating? (3,5)
RUM BABAS - RUMBA by B.A.S
14 The silent force of eg alt-rock? (8,4)
KEYSTONE COPS - "alt" is an example of a (computer keyboard) key, "rock" is stone; but them together and you find a city whose police "force" are the Keystone Cops, famously silent due to talkies having not been invented yet...
17 As insulated building, possibly of fantastic age, bulldozed (6-6)
DOUBLE-GLAZED - (AGE BULLDOZED*)
20 Light show failing to finish: private disappointment (8)
COMEDOWN - COMED{y} + OWN [private]. Is "My Own Private Idaho" a tautology?
22 Wine bottles a tiny bit short caused uproar (6)
RIOTED - RED [wine] "bottles" IOT{a}
23 Regulate fair verdict from ASA? (6)
ADJUST - the Advertising Standards Authority may pronounce an AD JUST
25 Ducks harbouring bug or parasite (6-2)
HANGER-ON - HON(ey) "harbouring" ANGER [bug]
26 Out to lunch, do prefer concession made on course (4,4)
FREE DROP - (DO PREFER*)
27 PM finishing bottom left the country (6)
SWEDEN - Sir Anthony Eden is my favourite PM - I have a picture of him in my study - and if he finishes (comes after) the bottom left, or southwestern, quadrant, we get: SW EDEN
DOWN
2 Dutch player leaving United, ringing round to cancel (3,3)
CRY OFF - CR{u}YFF "ringing" O
3 Those hunting for Oscar nab Paul, seek Dicky (11)
UNSPEAKABLE - (NAB PAUL SEEK*). Superb ref to Oscar Wilde's description of hunting as "the unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable".
4 Show skill as office worker, the sort to stay on the sideline? (5-4)
TOUCH-TYPE - TYPE [sort] staying on TOUCH [sideline, in soccer or rugby]
5 Support strike at Wapping and have consequences to face? (2,3,2)
BE FOR IT - BE FOR [support] + 'IT [strike, in Cockneyland]
6 Woman’s address you see unchanged after looking up (5)
MADAM - reads the same upwards as downwards
7 Gun used by governor in uprising (3)
REV - hidden reversed in {go}VER{nor}. As in "gun your engine"
8 Tanners plus shillings man changed (8)
SUNLAMPS - (PLUS S MAN*)
13 See reward ultimately in knowing the jargon of Olympic admin? (11)
ARCHDIOCESE - {rewar}D, in ARCH [knowing] + IOC-ESE, the language of the International Olympic Committee
15 Extreme letters introduced to cunningly ensnare early Christians (9)
NAZARENES - A+Z "introduced to" (ENSNARE*)
16 Party sentiment upset left wing social reformer? (2-6)
DO-GOODER - DO [party] + GOO [sentiment] + reversed RED [left-wing]
18 Crave ball: one easily dispatched? (4,3)
LONG HOP - LONG [crave] + HOP [ball]
19 Order to leave: do so imploringly (6)
BEGONE - BEGONE! is an imperious order to leave; or you could BEG ONE to, more plaintively
21 Queen weighed down by too much fur (5)
OTTER - E.R. beneath O.T.T.
24 Music maker, oddly overlooked, but keen (3)
UKE - {b}U{t} K{e}E{n}
...and as a special "treat", you can see me solve this one in real time if you like. There's a stream of it at https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1073877354, start at about 9m30 if you don't want to have any truck with the Concise and QC beforehand. If you have any requests for what I should stream in future, sing out!
ACROSS
1 Discharge Roman who’s caught in flagrante? (6)
ACQUIT - QUI [Roman "who"] caught in (the) ACT
5 Hesitates to stop groom’s summary dismissal (4,4)
BUM'S RUSH - UMS [as in, ums and ahs] "stopping" BRUSH [groom]
9 Colouring that’s unknown, established for use in pudding (8)
DYESTUFF - Y EST., "used in" DUFF [pudding]
10 Splendid guess! (6)
DIVINE - double def
11 After loudly interrupting, are quiet again (6)
AFRESH - ARE SH!, "interrupted" by F [loudly]
12 Dance by degrees become sweet, intoxicating? (3,5)
RUM BABAS - RUMBA by B.A.S
14 The silent force of eg alt-rock? (8,4)
KEYSTONE COPS - "alt" is an example of a (computer keyboard) key, "rock" is stone; but them together and you find a city whose police "force" are the Keystone Cops, famously silent due to talkies having not been invented yet...
17 As insulated building, possibly of fantastic age, bulldozed (6-6)
DOUBLE-GLAZED - (AGE BULLDOZED*)
20 Light show failing to finish: private disappointment (8)
COMEDOWN - COMED{y} + OWN [private]. Is "My Own Private Idaho" a tautology?
22 Wine bottles a tiny bit short caused uproar (6)
RIOTED - RED [wine] "bottles" IOT{a}
23 Regulate fair verdict from ASA? (6)
ADJUST - the Advertising Standards Authority may pronounce an AD JUST
25 Ducks harbouring bug or parasite (6-2)
HANGER-ON - HON(ey) "harbouring" ANGER [bug]
26 Out to lunch, do prefer concession made on course (4,4)
FREE DROP - (DO PREFER*)
27 PM finishing bottom left the country (6)
SWEDEN - Sir Anthony Eden is my favourite PM - I have a picture of him in my study - and if he finishes (comes after) the bottom left, or southwestern, quadrant, we get: SW EDEN
DOWN
2 Dutch player leaving United, ringing round to cancel (3,3)
CRY OFF - CR{u}YFF "ringing" O
3 Those hunting for Oscar nab Paul, seek Dicky (11)
UNSPEAKABLE - (NAB PAUL SEEK*). Superb ref to Oscar Wilde's description of hunting as "the unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable".
4 Show skill as office worker, the sort to stay on the sideline? (5-4)
TOUCH-TYPE - TYPE [sort] staying on TOUCH [sideline, in soccer or rugby]
5 Support strike at Wapping and have consequences to face? (2,3,2)
BE FOR IT - BE FOR [support] + 'IT [strike, in Cockneyland]
6 Woman’s address you see unchanged after looking up (5)
MADAM - reads the same upwards as downwards
7 Gun used by governor in uprising (3)
REV - hidden reversed in {go}VER{nor}. As in "gun your engine"
8 Tanners plus shillings man changed (8)
SUNLAMPS - (PLUS S MAN*)
13 See reward ultimately in knowing the jargon of Olympic admin? (11)
ARCHDIOCESE - {rewar}D, in ARCH [knowing] + IOC-ESE, the language of the International Olympic Committee
15 Extreme letters introduced to cunningly ensnare early Christians (9)
NAZARENES - A+Z "introduced to" (ENSNARE*)
16 Party sentiment upset left wing social reformer? (2-6)
DO-GOODER - DO [party] + GOO [sentiment] + reversed RED [left-wing]
18 Crave ball: one easily dispatched? (4,3)
LONG HOP - LONG [crave] + HOP [ball]
19 Order to leave: do so imploringly (6)
BEGONE - BEGONE! is an imperious order to leave; or you could BEG ONE to, more plaintively
21 Queen weighed down by too much fur (5)
OTTER - E.R. beneath O.T.T.
24 Music maker, oddly overlooked, but keen (3)
UKE - {b}U{t} K{e}E{n}