Times Cryptic Jumbo 1396 – What about Toto?

Author   penfold_61Posted on Categories Jumbo Cryptic
What a lovely puzzle this was with plenty in the way of cleverness, wit and neat definitions, the mark of a pucker Times crossword puzzle.  Thank you setter.

It took me about 50 minutes so the cleverness made it slightly harder than average, I’d say.  First in was EGAD, last was PESSIMIST.

Clues are in blue with the definition undelined.  Anagram indicators are in bold italics.

Notation:

DD: Double definition

CD: Cryptic definition

DDCDH: DD/CD hybrid where a straight definition is combined with a cryptic hint.

&Lit:  “all in one” where the entire clue is both definition and wordplay.

(fodder)* denotes an anagram of the letters in the brackets.

Rounded brackets are also used to add further clarity

Squiggly brackets {} indicate parts of a word not used

Deletions are struck out

Square brackets [] expand an abbreviation or shortening like N[orth]


Across

1
Asian deity placed river by a river in Asia (11)

BRAHMAPUTRA – BRAHMA, PUT, R[iver], A

7
Battle line’s cut in retreat (6)

FLIGHT – FIGHT cut by L[ine]

10
With Bill following, say “I’m shocked!” (4)

EGAD – AD[vertisement] following E.G.

14
Worry for each kind of wine knocked back (7)

PERTURB – PER then BRUT reversed

15
Set off, with a way to cross river (7)

AROUSED – A, R[oa]D around OUSE.  Take your pick from the one in Yorkshire or the one in Sussex.  Yeah, I chose Yorkshire too.

16
Steward to go off, returning on time for resolution (7)

JANITOR – ROT reversed after JAN 1 (“time for resolution”, ooh, that’s clever).  The setter probably thought he/she could fool us with a word that’s mostly used by Americans.  And he/she probably would have gotten away with it, if it hadn’t been for that pesky Scooby-Doo.  And Hong Kong Fuey.

17
Secretly touring some countries in wild fashion (13)

INCONTINENTLY – INLY (a new word on me) around CONTINENT

18
Service dispatched, carrying ace stuff (9)

SACRAMENT – SENT around A[ce] CRAM

19
House staff do twirls (5)

TUDOR – reversal of ROD, UT (the same note as DO but it isn’t also a deer so couldn’t go in the song).

21
In the main, it’s outstanding publicity with name on the right (10)

PROMONTORY – PROMO, N[ame], TORY, neat definition.

23
Jet circles area, quiet or loud? (6)

FLASHY – FLY around A[rea], SH

25
Without hesitation, making free drink (8)

LIBATION – LIBerATION

26
Power to hurt a biologist, not European chemist (14)

PHARMACOLOGIST – P[ower], HARM, A, eCOLOGIST

29
One’s very sharp at English exam, amazingly (7)

MEATAXE – (at E[nglish] exam)*

30
Hopeless sort of computer game is included in trial (9)

PESSIMIST – SIM IS in PEST.  I assume that “hopeless sort” is the def and “of” a slightly awkward link word, rather than pessimist just being indicated by “hopeless” with “sort of computer game” giving us SIM.

31
Possessing urge, laugh? This creature might (5)

HYENA – YEN in HA

32
Filling of jam, plenty or enough? (5)

AMPLE – hidden in jAM PLEnty

34
Like certain characters in drug affair (5,4)

UPPER CASE – UPPER, CASE

37
Recover or recovered like books? (7)

REBOUND – DDCDH

39
Caring too much to evict and reprove criminal (14)

OVERPROTECTIVE – (to evict reprove)*

41
Fashionably petite and fit one, that Parisian (8)

BOUTIQUE – BOUT, I, QUE

43
Feel anger for one half of match, we hear? (6)

BRIDLE – sounds like BRIDAL

44
Rock star isn’t in school (2,8)

ST TRINIANS – (star isn’t in)*

45
Follow is about right for this (5)

TRAIL – TAIL around R[ight].  &Lit I reckon.

48
Government supporter in charge, in fact (9)

STATISTIC – STATIST, I[n], C[harge]

49
Stepping on court game’s dividing lines (6,7)

DOUBLE SPACING – DOUBLES, PACING

51
Bow’s straight with recording for a dance (3-4)

ONE-STEP – Honest if you’re a cockernee (‘ONEST), E.P.

52
Youngster redeveloping the London borough (7)

LAMBETH – LAMB, (the)*

53
Desire this person has to be caustic (7)

EROSIVE – EROS, I’VE

54
It’s formed by a group of signatories? (4)

NATO – hidden in sigNATOries.  Clever.

55
Caught fabric in drawer (6)

CRAYON – C[aught], RAYON.  Ah, that sort of drawer!

56
Person seeking return in cattle pen (11)

STOCKHOLDER – DDCDH

Down

1
Maybe John‘s fitting in again, given time (7)

BAPTIST – APT in BIS + T[ime]

2
Enchanting remark from a villain wearing a pair of undergarments (11)

ABRACADABRA – CAD in A BRA x2

3
Think of the late or early period in speech (5)

MOURN – Sounds like MORN

4
Clip up court robes if high official there (6,10)

PUBLIC PROSECUTOR – (clip up court robes)*

5
Landed up penning composer’s moving account? (8)

TRAVELOG – GOT reveresd around RAVEL

6
Addresses a set of lines in mail briefly (11)

APOSTROPHES – A then STROPHE in POS{t}.  Not the most common meaning of apostrophe.  A strophe is summat to do with Greek poetry and that.

7
Suspect roughly apprehended in case of felony (5)

FISHY – ISH in F{elon}Y

8
Below River Test, one last character with lots of works? (14)

INDUSTRIALIZED – INDUS, TRIAL, I, ZED

9
“Hello, sailor” is appropriate (6)

HIJACK – HI JACK.  Love it

11
Nearly go out and attack poor child (11)

GUTTERSNIPE – GUTTER (as in candle), SNIPE

12
Mimic US writer, an unknown Kansan (7)

DOROTHY -DO, ROTH, Y.  Who else’s immediate thought was “help, I don’t know any Kansans!”?

13
Fashionable label brought back maybe crude design (8)

INTAGLIO – IN, TAG, reversal of OIL

20
Artist to draw depressing image of existence (3,4)

RAT RACE – R[oyal] A[cademician], TRACE

22
I’m grateful to get recurrent pain in bones (5)

TARSI – TA, R[epetitive] S[train], I[njury].  I hope we’ve all learned by now that the singular of Tarsi, Tarsus, is already a plural itself.

24
Hospital worker puts up with wood that’s cut (11,5)

PORTERHOUSE STEAK – PORTER, HOUSES, TEAK

25
Smoker to get over source of discomfort (7)

LUMBAGO – LUM, BAG, O[ver].  If ye didnae ken, a lum is a Scots word for a chimbley.

27
Time to move inelegantly in pants (7)

TWADDLE – T[ime], WADDLE.  Pants as in rubbish.

28
I collect PayPal transfers in fury (14)

APOPLECTICALLY – (I collect paypal)*.  I love the way the anagrind is seamlessly woven into the surface reading.

31
Home cover’s included fairly (7)

HABITAT – HAT around A BIT

33
The last word in divine pickle (11)

PREDICAMENT – AMEN in PREDICT.  I admire clues where the part of speech of a word differs between the surafce reading and wordplay element or def (DIVINE IN THIS INSTANCE)

35
Judge turned up on pitch (5)

RATER -reversal of RE TAR

36
Leader of air force about to release bold lady (11)

ADVENTURESS – A{ir}, DURESS around VENT

38
Quail if nude modelling without right attributes (11)

UNQUALIFIED – (quail if nude)*

40
Moderate starter of pâté the only thing I consumed (8)

PALLIATE – P{até}, ALL I ATE.  Another of those smart “different parts of speech” clues.

42
Blasted husband loves making a fuss (8)

BALLYHOO – BALLY, H[usband], O, O

43
One’s blown bonus eating goose (7)

BASSOON – BOON around ASS

46
Clothing on show (7)

LEGWEAR – LEG (on side in cricket), WEAR

47
Proust novel‘s dull quality (6)

STUPOR – (proust)*

49
Legendary friend, one who wanders up (5)

DAMON – NOMAD reversed. Damon and Pythias is a legend illustrating the Pythagorean ideal of friendship.  I didn’t know that.  You probably did.

50
A couple of leaves, or as many as you want (1,4)

A GOGO – A, GO, GO

11 comments on “Times Cryptic Jumbo 1396 – What about Toto?”

  1. This was a good’un all right; and a tough’un. LOI 49ac, POI 53ac. DNK SIM in this sense, but I figured it had to exist (I parsed like Penfold, as I’m sure he’ll be all kinds of relieved to hear). Candidates for COD abounding: 16ac, 26ac 49ac, 33d, 46d.
  2. 62:27. A very similar experience to our blogger and commenter. Tricky in parts and lots of fun. I parsed 30A the other way, as I’m sure you’ll both be amused to hear. Any more votes out there? I loved JANITOR, ABRACADABRA, DOUBLE SPACING, LEGWEAR and ST. TRINIANS – it makes a change from Eton! BTW, I also parsed another clue differently… and patently wrongly now I think of it. 50A – ONE (Bow as in rowing) ST (straight) EP (recording). But of course you have number 8 in the bow and stroke (no 1) is in the stern. Wrong logic but right answer! Ha ha. Thanks Penfold and setter.
    1. In my experience, the cox would ask if we were all set by “numbering off from bow”
      The furthest rower would call “Bow” when ready, then the next would call “two”, then “three”, and so on, until the stroke called “eight” and the cox would know she (in this case) could ask us to push off and start rowing

      So “bow” *is* “one” and your alternative parsing works (even if a stretch)

      1. There’s a very similar clue in today’s daily cryptic:
        Just taking off hot record for dance (3-4) which today’s blogger has parsed thus:
        ONE-STEP – HONEST (just) has the H (hot) removed, then EP = record.

        So the wordplay is the same other than the indication to remove the H.

        I see a couple of problems with John’s version:
        1. Bow is often used in the Times as a “cockney indicator” but I’ve never seen it used to denote the numerical position of an oarsman. In any event I don’t think it’s reasonable for a crossword setter to expect his audience to have specialist knowledge of rowing terminology.
        2. His parsing would require ST to equate to STRAIGHT and there’s no support for that as far as I can tell (either in dictionaries or as a Times convention).

        So even at a stretch I think John has it wrong.

        Thanks for your contribution though!

        Edited at 2020-05-13 05:18 pm (UTC)

        1. I did say it was a stretch; and, of course, I originally parsed it your way too – but could see some merit in John’s alternative
          Let’s not encourage the setters to use esoteric terminology from any other sports (cricket and golf is already two more than adequate)

          Enjoyable crossword, with just a mer at the Z in 8D (yes, I know it’s a British English alternative too, but it still looks wrong)

          – thanks for amending “your” to “his” in your second point above (we crossed over!)
          – haven’t seen today’s yet, so I’ll ignore the spoiler (though I think I would have noticed anyway)

          Edited at 2020-05-13 05:29 pm (UTC)

  3. Definitely tougher than average, and certainly than the most recent three, but I still squeezed in under the hour. No super-long entries this time, but full-size 11 (eight of them!) 14 and 15 letter words were admirable to see and a credit to the setter.
  4. I found this very tough and took 1:45 to complete, but now find I have two wrong. I had ADORNED for set off and FANCY for suspect at 15a and 7d. Oh well. Thanks setter and Penfold.
  5. 41:46. I’m behind on jumbos, and have only just done this one. It was tricky and very good (I nearly wrote ‘but’ there).
    I had MONITOR at 16ac and it took me an embarrassingly long time to see the mistake. Eventually I reconsidered and asked myself if it was Sarge, or Rosemary the telephone operator, or Henry, the mild-mannered…
    DK: APOSTROPHES, DAMON.

    Edited at 2019-08-31 02:46 pm (UTC)

  6. Latest in what seems to be a run of very good jumbos.. keep it up guys!
    Thanks for the blog too P, (I expect you meant pukka, in your preamble?)

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