Guardian Cryptic #28638

2021-12-27

Solve on Guardian →

Across

9a

Powder room makes sleepyhead somehow appear dishevelled (4,1,4)

flowerflowerflower
10a

Essential sign in heart oddly ignored (5)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

Even letters (‘oddly ignored’) of ‘s I g N i N h E a R t’.

11a

Pound discovered in a bath robe (5)

flowerflowerflower
12a

Helen and Ruth unclothed by champion of alternative medicine (9)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

A charade of ‘[H]ele[n]’ plus ‘[R]ut[h]’, both minus their outer letters (‘unclothed’) plus HERO (‘champion’), for a plant, Siberian ginseng, used as an ‘alternative medicine’.

13a

Turbulent river in Europe, as far as the Guardian is concerned (7)

flowerflowerflower
14a

Clothes on fire? (7)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

Punning definition.

17a

Live or die, that's come out nicely (5)

flowerflowerflower
19a

A city in Tanganyika, doesn't matter which (3)

flowerflowerflower
20a

Portsmouth & Co (5)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

The port of Rome;and the plural (‘& Co’) of OSTIUM a ‘mouth’. The S could be “is”.

21a

East German in mature comeback (7)

flowerflowerflower
22a

Terribly quaint and ultimately obsolete (7)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

An anagram (”terribly’) of ‘quaint’ plus E (‘ultimately obsolet E ‘), wuth an &lit definition.

24a
16d

Is it best to have laid out a stall that's disgusting? (4,5)

flowerflowerflower
26a

The hapless are to speak (5)

flowerflowerflower
28a

One's art without frames, extremely versatile and daring (5)

flowerflowerflower
29a

Writer's book contains clever mixed metaphors (3,6)

flowerflowerflower

Down

1d

Boodle's mark (4)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

A charade of ‘b’- plus LOT (-‘oodle’).

2d

Nice day, on reflection, for correspondent (6)

flowerflowerflower
3d

Brambles not right as an environment for raising wildlife and fools (10)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

An envelope (‘as an environment for’) of OOZ, a reversal (‘raising’ in a down light) of ZOO (‘wildlife’) in ‘b[r]ambles’ minus the R (‘not right’).

4d

Religious people gathering shells, essentially as ornaments (6)

flowerflowerflower
5d

Group competently curbs rising disorder (8)

flowerflowerflower
6d

Being old, will droop (4)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

An archaic form (‘being old’) of ‘will’, second person singular.

7d

Dine out on little money? That's vulgar (8)

flowerflowerflower
8d

Working majority of 13 across or 3 (4)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

An anagram (‘working’) of a ‘majority’ (just) of RIOT[ous] (’13 across’).

13d

Up or down detector (5)

Generating...

I haven't cracked this one yet — but Fifteensquared have:

A palindrome (‘up or down’).

15d

Perhaps too bad a mark (10)

flowerflowerflower
16d

See 24

18d

Showing Europe's upset about vote (8)

flowerflowerflower
19d

Enough said, every now and then, on match (8)

flowerflowerflower
22d

In the Mao revolution (2,4)

flowerflowerflower
23d

Source of stone that is sought by hunters (6)

flowerflowerflower
24d

No portrait of elaborate lap dances (9)

Generating...
25d

They say thin is right (4)

flowerflowerflower
27d

Brew beer, only half jug (4)

flowerflowerflower