Guardian Cryptic #29222

2023-11-08

Solve on Guardian →

Across

9a

Cancelled change, it stops things working (3,6)

flowerflowerflower
10a

Gas from lightweight individual (5)

Generating...

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

A charade of OZ (ounce, ‘lightweight’) plus ONE (‘individual’).

11a

Outstanding restaurant's curt rejection of booking enquiry (7)

Generating...

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

NO TABLE (‘restaurant’s curt rejection of booking enquiry’)

12a

Team removing wobbly set for pop duo (4,3)

Generating...

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

A clue which works in the opposite way to what you probably thought first: if you remove EST (‘wobbly set’) from the answer, you get WHAM (‘pop duo’).

13a

Firm's paid regularly to supply fighters (4)

Generating...

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

Alternate letters (‘regularly’) of ‘f I r M s P a I d’, for a group of Zulu (or other Bantu) ‘warriors’.

14a

Secure management group that shows results (10)

Generating...

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

A charade of SCORE (‘secure’, verb, to be successful in getting) plus BOARD (‘management group’).

15a

Old coach reportedly cut away joint (7)

Generating...

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

A charade of HACK (‘cur away’) plus NEY, sounding like (‘reportedly’) KNEE (‘joint’).

17a

Government official is bang on shifting river to the west (7)

Generating...

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

PERFECT (‘bang on’) with the R moved one place to the right (‘shifting river to the west’).

19a

Geographic features linked with antihero (10)

Generating...

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

A charade: HEATH and CLIFF are both ‘geographical features’, and he is the ‘antihero’ of Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë.

22a

Half of gold bike, it's covered in sand (4)

Generating...

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

‘Half of GO ld BI ke’, for the Desert.

23a

Arrange and keep protection for one praying? (7)

flowerflowerflower
24a

Rest needed by stand-up? Just the opposite (3,4)

Generating...

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

‘Just the opposite’ of LIE (‘stand’) plus DOWN (‘up’). SIT DOWN would fit the clue as well, but not the crossers.

26a

It's dismal in poetry putting attention on darker edges (5)

Generating...

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

A charade of DR (‘ D arke R edges’) plus EAR (‘attention’).

27a

Awfully late run chasing gold with little preparation (2,7)

Generating...

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

A charade of AU (chemical symbol, ‘gold’) plus NATUREL, an anagram (‘awfully’) of ‘late run’.

Down

1d

Connected with youths, but complaining about them? (4,4,3,4)

Generating...

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

Double definition, more or less.

2d

Heading for photograph not giving the right message (3-5)

Generating...

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

OFF TO PIC (‘heading for photograph’).

3d

Surgeon wipes around bowel openings to take a sample (4)

Generating...

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

First letters (‘openings’) of ‘ S urgeon W ipes A round B owel’, with an extended example rather than definition.

4d

Time to be served unknown but flexible (8)

flowerflowerflower
5d

Cut sailor receives in major international conflict (3,3)

flowerflowerflower
6d

Information qualified lawyer supplied to gang? It could happen (8)

Generating...

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

An envelope (‘supplied to’) of I (‘information’) plus BL (Bachelor of Law, ‘qualified lawyer’) in POSSE (‘gang’).

7d

Banter over posh amateur producing book (6)

Generating...

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

A charade of JOSH (‘banter’) plus (‘over’ in a down light) U (‘posh’) plus A (‘amateur’), for the book of the Bible.

8d

Builder rang team deployed in dangerous location (7,8)

flowerflowerflower
16d

Spooner wanders around hospital identifying those likely to fail (2-6)

Generating...

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

No, not a spoonerism. An envelope (‘around’) of H (‘hospital’) in NOOPERS, an anagram (‘wanders’) of ‘Spooner’.

17d

Having constant F pitch is not that important (8)

Generating...

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

A charade of PI (mathematical ‘constant’) plus ‘F” plus FLING (‘pitch’).

18d

French city supports English company, they attract green travellers (3-5)

Generating...

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

A charade of E (‘English’) plus CO (‘company’) plus TOURS (‘French city’).

20d

Distant relatives having last word about exercising (3-3)

Generating...

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

An envelope (‘about’) of PE (‘exercising’) in AMEN (‘last word’).

21d

Partially unclad, Maggie might be seen in one? (3,3)

flowerflowerflower
25d

Worries when early rounds have not begun (4)

Generating...

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

A subtraction: [h]EATS (‘early rounds’) minus the first letter (‘have not begun’). The plural ‘have’ does not sit well with the cryptic reading (and it could have been omitted).