No.93 December-January 2024

Across 1 See 14 Down 3 See 18 6 A limited opportunity to drop name of black spider (5) 10 See 25 Down 11 Apprehenders are wrens, OK? Not OK (7) 13 Bed with a large quantity of material (6) 15 Sailor is reverse of unwanted stowaway (3) 16 Garland certain to free time (7) 17 Knot a weapon? (3) 18/3 1 down containers may hold small storm locations? (3,4) 19 UK citizens I cast aside for head of uncouth savage (7) 21 Adios is near to English (3) 22/9 Old Etonian Orson Welles drops scones (not cold) on autopilot (6,6) 23 Soil and shredded cabbage? It could also be Murphy’s! (4,3) 26 Fundamental force of race meeting with colt running (15) 29 Affirmations of selenium replacing titanium in snowmen (5) 30 Drink to one of Hamlet’s options? (4) 31 Murphy, say, is kind of current (4)

Down 1 Note what’s beneath skates – the sea! (5) 2 Capture headland – that’s doing the right thing (15) 4 States there’s nothing odd during Tuesday (3) 5 Box may follow 18 (3) 6 We hold world with centre raised to deck (7) 7 Dance hall where Bob, late, dipped in mud – confused? (15) 8 1 down grouse picked up (4) 9 See 22 Across 12 Fit one half of gnomes’ abode into Bishop’s office (7) 13 Relations of endless triumph to give offence (7) 14/1A Small 1 down’s one with pot and strike (1,3,4) 15 Baby 1 downs? (4) 19 Graduate lines the Maori’s barium sulphate (7) 20 Concealing a beating (6) 24 Odd way to grasp origins of carnal knowledge (5) 25/10 Poverty traps miner? No problem for superstar (4,9,6) 27 Brother getting up for ball (3) 28 Two articles, one in French, for a 1 down (3)

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No 92 November 2023

Across 1 MacNee dropping current athletic female – is result “The Avenger” ? (7) 5 Raincoats returned to rook (4) 10 Evil bark, Les? Perhaps it was Sir Henry (11) 11 Legal profession block support for gymnasts’ heating element (3) 12 King poorly off? (4) 13 Hugo’s character is same, and Adler is different (9) 14 Almost s-swear about Irish entertainers (6) 15 Chase after brand-new Basil-weed or horse-thyme (3-4) 18 So, Earth’s moved into audio range? (7) 20 3’s companion enquiring which entertainments are currently showing (without Henry) (6) 21 Get a big wave from someone who talks at stultifying length about the Moon’s effect on the oceans (5,4) 23 Duck down enveloping 6 poet (4) 25 Morning, young woman! (3) 26 Choose grain and the Spanish fish, which is shocking (8,3) 27 Viewers are a quarter positive (4) 28 Sorrow concerning a fictional detective (7)

Down 1 Collars inapplicable to bishops (4) 2 Person who keeps me quiet when I replace large teaser (9) 3 Poison right for maiden? Digs up dirt about lynch mob leaders with son before consulting detective (8,6) 4 Thus old soldiers hold me inside workers’ councils (7) 6 Clique about to back testing place (5) 7 Follow-up to Memento’s high-flown 3’s 1 across? The reverse, as it turned out (8) 8 Crested fruit with journalist? (6) 9 Racial prejudice – Saint George’s? I’m undecided (14) 16 2 split by Sun close along the same line (9) 17 Inventor Paul with deal for Inspector known to consult 3 (8) 19 Hand tool back in Shuttleworth (6) 20 It stimulates the appetite for damper housing, Henry (7) 22 Year in allotment for 3’s creator (5) 24 Regular doses of culture often spotted by 3 (4)

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No.91 October ’23

Across 1 Relating to citizens 104 and 99 (5) 4 McCarthy or Stalin’s type of 6 down? (3) 6 Lick about 500 sheets of paper (5) 9 Finnish cocktail for a supporter of Stalin (7) 10 Replenishes umpire with troubles (7) 11 Solo sailor in oil-rich region (6) 12 Enthusiastically cool-headed leaders, weirdly (8) 13 Man addressed casually getting letter from abroad, attending to old type of 6 down (9) 15 Rowan’s character could be magic for Jack (4) 18 Part of sword blade to the left of insect (4) 20 Catching Englishmen left out at sea (9) 23 No polar region admits gas or drug (8) 24 Remainder in river, just like that! (6) 27 6 down maker found in boat Sir Abraham brought about (7) 28 Nice in south to wash subject (7) 29 Verbal injury prepares 6 down (5) 30 Reasonable about a tree (3) 31 Commander backing offensive musicians… (5)

Down 1 …and losing end (or most of it), (5) 2 Galvanic Ghanaian lake I see on the radio (7) 3 Roughly, drunk boxes female – handbags at dawn! (8) 4 Jack Gardner’s type of 6 down (4) 5 Small but important creature: “Attention! Worth rocking out to Motörhead!” (9) 6 Call to attract attention, very loud in place of heart: “Hot stuff!” (6) 7 Revolutionary B-Bruce Eisenhower is slippery and hard to catch (3-4) 8 Note animal enclosure is obscure (5) 13 Cup of glue overturned (3) 14 On camera, I played 6 down (9) 16 Persistently bother old horse (3) 17 Cockney chap’s crowd with nothing for a 6 down (8) 19 Lights gold organ with gold from the bottom (7) 21 The moment for a type of 6 down? (7) 22 Runs drying kilns; prepares, for example, 6 down 15s (6) 23 Nail old boy to Mogul (5) 25 Above the opening, that’s obvious (5) 26 Book report holding up fringe benefit (4)

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No.86 May 2023

Across 7 Eustace lopped off part of retreating mammal (7) 8 Banks of the Zambezi held back by dancer’s pole? That’s weird (7) 10 31 across’s trainer’s greeting to prosecutor (4) 11 What’s the difference between gamma and epsilon? (5) 12 Jerry Lee Lewis, for example, or one of his ‘Great Balls of Fire’ ? (4) 13 Actor Herbert accepting space station is supple (6) 15 Satisfy court, or falsify? (6) 17 Slippery customer appearing in Jerry Lee Lewis retrospective (3) 19 The globe used to rotate rapidly, they tell me (5) 20 Separator from someone beginning to walk (5) 22 Old priest is 8 (3) 25 12 28’s Pavel – revolutionary, initially very cool revolutionary (6) 27 Playground equipment observed in present tense first? (6) 28 12 seeks regular employment for long journey (4) 30 12 dropping article around midweek? Bull (5) 31 Saint is high above globetrotter in 12 5? (4) 32 The Cosmic Balance is on the lines of “A Quiet Place” (7) 33 Plant fibre holding constant to right a craft lost in 20 (number 2) (7)

Down 1 Mythical bird holds childish backside, say – like one of those lost in 20 (7) 2 12, say, in Virginia (4) 3 Force with sacred sound those fond of, for example, 12 28 (6) 4 12 28 Captain, initially, has 12 points, by the way (6) 5 Conflict as 12 28 drive son to usurp prince (4) 6 Betrayal destroyed Star One (7) 9 Double 50 in ice cream container (5) 14 12 28 second-in-command, initially, parking in buffet (5) 16 Agency clerk could provide a vehicle (5) 17 Japanese period during which poem was written up? (3) 18 Closed without 22 parts – could be mind-blowing (3) 21 Start giving woman’s family pickled cucumber (7) 23 Enemy of the 15 elevating boy with second part of 28 (5) 24 Hidden net where the dubious surf? (4,3) 26 Knights’ protection thing dropped by guests (6) 27 The brightest 12 of knight, myself, me and you (6) 29 Potassium to irritate 12 28 captain, initially (4) 31 12 5 princess brought up Spanish article written by AI (4)

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No.85 April 2023

Across 1 Staggering FBI agent grabs large criminal (14) 8 Soul of a nameless superhero (5) 9 Geniality’s good in French, bro (8) 11 Young fox catches what hold soldiers’ troubles in song (3-4) 12 Awake to hymn (without the ‘m’) and a Swedish city (7) 13 Ancient coil in the generator (9) 15 It would spin in either direction (5) 17 Woods line Golf Central (5) 19 Motor racing rebuke resists flame (9) 21 Only survivor of hunt for an albino who’s blubbered (7) 23 Self-described German duets discordantly by church (7) 24 Scintillating silver chair (8) 25 Jack’s back – about time to mount? (5) 26 German’s wide view of Wales caught nun off balance (14)

Down 1 Assembly worker reliant on lightning strike? (12) 2 He took first step of a foot regiment’s offensive (9) 3 Indian English found in Indonesian island (7) 4 Problem intrinsic to core business (5) 5 Anchor snow leopard in a national nature reserve, originally (9) 6 User of literary motifs about old soldier, possibly with a 25 (7) 7 Sodium gas held to be Nigerian monetary unit (5) 10 Musical relating to deity backed by The Cure? (4,2,3,3) 14 Grandiose way to talk of cattle rustlin’? (9) 16 Outfit with time for philosopher (9) 18 Pragmatic type is later pickled (7) 20 Eve leaving persuasive jockey for Old kingdom (7) 22 They regularly brought about urge for Danish contentment (5) 23 Physicist using electricity to imprison paramilitaries (5)

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No.84 March 2023

Across 1 Headphones hold answer: foot long cloaks (7) 5 Glycol? It isn’t contributing to disease (7) 9 Australian bird’s Western companion has Periodic Table of the Elements (9) 10 Light a cat? (5) 11 Man of letters with piebald companion (7,3) 12 The singular of 28? (4) 14 Derailed – derailed like the female, perhaps? (8) 16 “Was it a car or a cat I saw?” (6) 18 Note from retired brick-carrier (3) 20 Irish descendant of timepiece may be found after a time? (6) 21 Cold war conflict unknown to 26’s companion 6’s sobriquet (8) 24 G-go left occasionally (4) 26 Heartless chopper can charm old Penny and cat (3,7) 28 24 found in knot-maker’s cat (5) 29 Tiny fighter after dark on days not starting with ‘S’ (9) 30 The Manx oarsman who deliberately lost the contest (7) 31 Wrap’s duck-walk (7)

Down 1 Pop and Deco style for crustacean? (7) 2 Prevent everyone from coming after 12s (9) 3 Ringer of pioneering aviator holding limb, left (5,5) 4 Mollycoddled – that is cuddled without force (8) 5 Contemporary charger hidden in fossil fuel (6) 6 Held up by unoiled cat? (4) 7 No bite from same alphabet as 24? (5) 8 Slim S-Shylock, perhaps (7) 13 Samoan pair adapt to sleep disorder (10) 15 Big bird opening for Elton John? (3) 17 Sound agenda with mud wrestling (9) 19 Plants take all the mourning apparel (8) 20 Should not put tip-off money by explosives (7) 22 Transfer agent with last two letters to river (7) 23 One who sees 6 by vessel (6) 25 Cat is cross with 28 and 6 (5) 27 About to argue for bird scared by a companion of 26 (4)

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No.83 February 2023

Across 1 Sam tried to avoid these eco-friendly urges – and Hamlet hasn’t let on (5,4,3,3) 9 Charm discovered during the thirteenth rally (7) 10 Beast of burden active by man (he’s from an English city) (7) 11/12 Sally’s and my explanation for how the magician made Tom appear? (3,3,2,3,3) 14 Say what’s missing from 22 20’s B 24 Book (5) 16 Religious teachings steal heart of Mole’s friend, which is unusual (6) 19 Still hurts with head removed from joints (6) 20 F-files a legal action about writer and illustrator found after (the short form of) 22 (5) 23 5 of owl-cry uncommon, we hear, for plant organ (4,4) 24 Struggle of abstainer in the hay (6) 27 Cybernaut 10 going over one religion from the East (7) 28 Jog wrong deity from the East (7) 29 Perceptive hatcher’s 22 hero has torn a 22, perhaps! (6,5,1,3)

Down 1 Bird said to have uncertain twisting force (5,3) 2 Aren’t yet prepared to appeal (8) 3 Conquest is endless for her (5) 4 Stiffens when legs crossed (4) 5 Ladle Greek goddess made, initially from a 10’s transpositions (10) 6 Newbies see python uncoil (9) 7 Hot rowing crew, lack of which is irrelevant to personhood according to 29 (6) 8 A very small time? (6) 13 Birdsong on 10’s at an unspecified position, or a very small fraction (10) 15 If I harange husband over leak, that’ll give me a 22 20 work (3,3,3) 17 Having a greater pitch, exceed in confusing? (8) 18 Acquiesce to making use of a stetson (6,2) 21 Creature with a heart two sizes too small to smile at church (6) 22 Court entrance clasping fudge (6) 25 Acting, for example, is a form of protection (5) 26 Thought perfect after docking (4)

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No.82 December 2022-January 2023

A PERIMETRIC PUZZLE! The letters around the edge, starting at top left and going clockwise, form the answer to: “Irishman is sad, a bit sentimental, angrily opposed to separating church and state (28)” Other answers should be fitted in wherever they will go.

Quiet cove from Ireland with farm tool (6) Tough and fit battle best (8) Hush about bed time is for Mendelssohn’s symphony No. 3 (8) Duck keeping carryover dry (8) Desserts left on f-floating platform (3,5) Relative to the French books… (4) Runs around vessel holding drink (6) I? I love to eat (6) Peeks from alley with almost best camouflage (8) Ron and friend shell out for a mysterious word from the Principia Discordia (5) On reflection, bicycle lamp coverings could be commoner (4) More work? I hear you beat back sloth (6) Test a widow by morning (4) I fall behind artists, contrary to the wild sheep of central Asia (6) Heads off the Sun’s accustomed entrance, which is over here? (4) Might sir reconsider a Conservative ideology? (8) Personal assistant bent over backwards for Murdoch (4) Echo sounder reason artist holds (5) Have a hesitation with modern Ireland (4) Fast with paid work after end of Easter (5) Illuminatus! author and friend opening a bundle (5) Love can be expensive (4) Flying freight from Barnet, according to Cockney; vehicle to depart (3,5) Unable to get out, lacking an important key (2,6) Thanks team to move aircraft (4) They get out of bed for structural members (6) Without pitch, faces up to over being of little interest (3,4,3,2,3) Now is not the hour, say leaders, for short measures (6) Imprisoned, coming from a sentence at the last possible moment (2,3,4,2,4) Low points of small dam (6)

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PS My apologies for not having updated this blog for a while.

No.59 August 2020

Across 1 High-flying philanthropist… (6,9) 9 …that is holding Agronomy Centre and Russian leader’s magnetite, for example (4,3) 10 It’s broken if you speak its name (7) 11 Low Colonel’s second-rate floppy (5) 12 Dream about Portishead after a foot creates poisonous gases (9) 13 Wrinkle pole, say, then hide gold spinner (who wishes to remain anonymous) (15) 16 Re art movement, I cite my journalistic credentials: “First back, first one caught” (15) 19 From airman to a flying lover? (9) 22 Over half of 19 flows into artery (5) 23 Reveals gamble to fish (7) 24 Maya building opening to expose pupil (7) 25 Principles of rooming houses where coach takes over from the Middle East (3,12)

Down 1 Force supporter of equal rights to send thing back to the gallows? Foolish woman (15) 2 Th’ trio hum inharmoniously (7) 3 Fiendishly expose her to the outermost atmospheric layer! (9) 4 About idiots following priest holes… (9) 5 About to compile a crossword clue for “fresh start” (5) 6 Two consecutive notes sound, relating to our system (5) 7 Card placed beneath island by individual (3,4) 8 Are they made by a new broom? (8,7) 14 Lotion is a cure for being alone (9) 15 Island’s in trim, with loyalty to social group (9) 17 Tourer of Philippines raising lack of refreshment (7) 18 Temperature or small charge produces a twisting force (7) 20 Chase between one love and another down south (5) 21 When American Uncle had tea? (5)

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Note – like a lot of things, Channel hasn’t been produced during lockdown, so some months are missing!

 

No.58 May 2020

Across 1 Hairs and feathers at level 4? (8) 5 Spoke of right vaccine for Covid-19… (6) 10 …say, right 4 us, perhaps (5) 11 What did Apple do in 2010? I ignored the platform (6,3) 12 Dude with crest entering when burial chambers (9) 13 Attractive direction for axes (4) 16 Implements may be special in films (7) 18 Noble ruler without a malicious spirit (7) 19 Organise Scottish island – content to leave George (7) 21 Cold diarist stuffs up? (7) 22 Horizontal threads beheaded newts (4) 23 So the judge hits pay dirt (9) 27 See 26 Down 28 Banish widow to island lacking society (5) 29/15 Doctor is healed, fly racing to consume Orlando (6,10) 30 Fields of produce slip away (5,3)

Down 1 Relish reversed during revolution (4) 2 About Curie getting tail of 6 (5) 3 Dancing? It’s dancing (social or physical?) (10) 4 Hits the beers? (7) 6 Creature of gold and 2 (4) 7 PPE wearing, extracting a sample – that’s police work (9) 8 Edward’s regularly ignored, Edwyn’s uglier, old even – she’s one parent’s favourite (6,4) 9 Show enthusiasm for a type of gum (6) 14 Angers friend, rising after relations. Time? Second Sunday before Lent (10) 15 See 29 Across 17 Warning call to hot 9: “Chopper at the front!” (9) 20 Principle around gas is cultural (6) 21 Soap network brought up in relation to 5 (7) 24 Animal with one horn, perhaps? (5) 25 Notes show where you can’t go during level 4 (4) 26/27 Fellation is so arousing in your 9! (4,9)

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