Independent Cryptic #1863

2025-11-09

Solve on Independent →

Across

1a

A few coins left for parking? Excellent (6)

Generating...

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

TIP (a few coins left, if you’re a rather miserly customer) + TO (for) + P

5a

Refugee camp's perseverance with area becoming tense (8)

Generating...

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

TEN [a] CITY (perseverance) with the A changed into a T (area becoming tense)

9a

Opponent of UK institution possibly giving nation its charm? (14)

flowerflowerflower
10a

Bondi Beach swimming costume that woman wears out to lunch (7)

flowerflowerflower
11a

Saintly Archbishop of Canterbury laments perverts avoiding time (6)

Generating...

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

Anagram (perverts) of LAMEN [t] S (avoiding time). St Anselm was archbishop from 1093-1109

12a

Betray clandestine group in report (4)

Generating...

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

Soundalike (in report) of ‘cell’ (clandestine group)

13a

Promise from Pitt say involving old military equipment (10)

Generating...

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

BRAD’S WORD (promise from Pitt, say) around O (involving old)

15a

Daughter holds last bit of toilet paper as the water runs (10)

Generating...

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

D (daughter) + OWNS (holds) + T (last bit of toileT) + REAM (paper)

19a

Unsatisfactory seats 16 back in the audience (4)

Generating...

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

Soundalike (in the audience) of ‘Row P’, which would be 16 seats back from the stage

21a

Favour endless semester for revising (6)

Generating...

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

Anagram (for revising) of [s] EMESTE [r] (endless semester)

23a

People soon bored by hospital (7)

Generating...

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

IN A BIT (soon) around (bored by) H , def is ‘people’ as a verb

24a

Body part wrongly put in a trunk lengthways (14)

Generating...

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

Insertion (put in) of ILL (wrongly) inside A CHEST (a trunk) + END-ON (lengthways)

25a

Ability to spy certainly limited by double-0 following Bond? (8)

flowerflowerflower
26a

Seed for tree that's dying back remains important (6)

Generating...

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

ASH (remains) + KEY (important)

Down

2d

Common large cracks worried Boeing (7)

Generating...

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

Insertion (cracks) of L inside anagram (worried) of BOEING . Ignoble/common in the sense of lower-class, not a member of the nobility

3d

Sound of 'Go' then lake with hat for cycling and running around it? (9)

Generating...

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

TRI (soundalike of ‘try’ or ‘Go’) + ATH (hat cycling) + ON (running) around L (lake), clue as extended definition

4d

Bishop alongside demonstrator moral in a line (7)

Generating...

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

PROVER (demonstrator) + B (bishop), the definition being a one-line moral sentiment

5d

Now we're making progress which means computers are increasingly popular (15)

Generating...

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

THAT IS (ie, which means) + MORE LIKE I.T. (computers are increasingly popular)

6d

Butcher can dine pleasantly ... (7)

flowerflowerflower
7d

Tweets showing no Republican means to gamble (5)

Generating...

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

CHI [r] PS (tweets) without the R (showing no Republican)

8d

Murphy coming round starts on the latest gossip (7)

flowerflowerflower
14d

New WC broken by husband making table (9)

Generating...

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

Anagram (new) of WC BROKEN + H , a workbench being a table for making things on, hence a ‘making table’

16d

Vault with bones broken in your ass (7)

flowerflowerflower
17d

Maybe hours of delay wind university up (7)

Generating...

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

Reversal (up, in a down clue) of GALE + MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

18d

Sage beanie say pocketed by lesbian parents? (7)

Generating...

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

HAT (beanie, say) inside (pocketed by) MA + MA (lesbian parents)

20d

Danger for cyclists even if coming through icy zone (7)

Generating...

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

Insertion (coming through) of THO (even if) in POLE (icy zone). I’m expecting grumbles about THO, but hey, IIC, with an apostrophe at the end: “US or poetic, same as though”

22d

Spirit's teeth 16D contains (5)

Generating...

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

Hidden by (contains) te ETH OS suary (solution to 16 down)