Friday 13 January 2023

Weekend Quick Cryptic 68 - Solution

My fellow TimesforTheTimes contributors Phil Jordan, Sawbill and I are continuing to produce Quick Cryptic crosswords to fill the gap left by the Saturday Times not having one. The plan is for us to take turns, publishing one a fortnight, and this week it's my turn. 

You can find a link to the crossword here and the answers below. Feel free to leave any comments or questions here as you would do on TfTTYou can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here.

Before looking at the answers, if you would like some additional help, click the label below.

Hints...

Some hints and tips:
  • Some of the colours aren't to be found in a normal rainbow... unless you are colour blind
  • In 1A "about" is not an inclusion indicator
  • It helps to know your nursery rhymes for 23A
  • In 3D the pen is not one you write with.

And click on this label to get the solution.

Solution and explanation of the answers...




Definitions underlined in bold italics, (Abc)* indicating anagram of Abc,  {deletions} and [] other indicators.

Across
1 Roam about fringes of Oman desert (6)
MAROON – (roam)* [about] [fringes of] OmaN. The “about” potentially confuses as it could be an inclusion indicator rather than an anagram indicator as here.
5 Catch a coin that isn't worth much (6)
COPPERCOP (catch, as in “he was copped for speeding”), PER (a, as in “ 3 per day”/”3 a day”). Yes I know. “a” for “per” is a sneaky setter’s trick, but one worth remembering. I still miss it sometimes.
8 Brown designed inn on Cam (8)
CINNAMON – [designed] (inn on Cam)*.
9 Googled regularly for "type of fish for aquarium"? (4)
GOLDGoOgLeD [regularly] with the definition being mildly cryptic.
10 Somewhat indelicate source of exotic food (4)
DELI – Hidden in [somewhat] inDELIcate.
11 Students could become money-makers by going topless (8)
LEARNERS – Take the top off the answer and get EARNERS (money-makers).
13 Spicy root that grows primarily in centre of Nigeria (6)
GINGERG{rows} [primarily] IN [centre of] NiGERia
16 Colour of chopped livers (6)
SILVER – [Chopped] (livers)*.
18 Make a mess of southern dish (8)
SPLATTERS (southern) PLATTER (dish).
21 Lady Jane's horse? (4)
GREY – Double definition, the first referring to the Nine Days’ Queen.
23 Choice fruit retrieved in corner by good boy (or so he says) (4)
PLUM – Double definition, the second a cryptic hint based on the nursery rhyme Little Jack Horner.
24 Fuel that's cleaner, firm and pale in the middle (8)
CHARCOALCHAR (cleaner) CO (company; firm) pALe [in the middle].
25 Old variety of fruit (6)
ORANGEO (old) RANGE (variety, as in range of goods).
26 Like a coward, give loud shout of pain (6)
YELLOWYELL OW (give a loud shout of pain).
 
Down
2 Whisper strange ideas (5)
ASIDE – (ideas)* [strange]. A stage whisper.
3 Noises from pen when starting oblique writing (7)
OINKING – [Starting] O{blique}, INKING (writing in ink). The noises coming from a pig pen, of course.
4 Being more quick-thinking, run after doctor trapped in African river (7)
NIMBLERMB (doctor) [trapped in] NILE (African river), R (run).
5 Against song ending with a dance (5)
CONGACON (against) {son}G [ending] A.
6 Perhaps all great Asian nations started heathen? (5)
PAGAN – An acrostic - Perhaps All Great Asian Nations [started].
7 Blow up General Assembly (7)
ENLARGE – (general)* [assembly].
12 French king's interest (3)
ROI – Double definition, the second being the common abbreviation for Return On Investment (interest).
14 He might spike one politician's beer and run (7)
IMPALERI (one) MP ALE (politician’s beer) R (run).
15 Tuck into some meatballs (3)
EAT – Hidden in, [some] mEATballs.
16 Such bacon is variable in quality (7)
STREAKY – Double definition.
17 Natural logarithm I'll calculate truncating by two thirds (7)
LOGICALLOGarithm I’ll CALculate, with each word losing the last 2/3 of its letters [truncating by two thirds].
19 A head of department with little time for business management (5)
ADMINA [head of] D{epartment} MIN (little time).
20 Long time before getting facial hair (5)
TACHET (time) ACHE (long).
22 Time to muse (5)
ERATOERA (time) TO. One of the nine muses, Erato is the muse of lyric poetry. 

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