This post discusses the answers to the last cryptic crossword I posted on this blog. This one also has a “ghost theme” relating to one of my favourite films – Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. There are quite a few things I wasn’t happy with in this effort, but I’ve noted these below.
Across:
9. AQUITAINE: QUIT = “leave” + A1 = “the best” replaces N = “end of excursion” in ANNE = “Princess”
10. RHONE: hidden answer
11. INSTEAD: (DANTE IS)*
12. FLOODED: LOO = “lavatory” in (D = “diamond” in FED = “FBI agent”
13. TWITS: T + WITS
14. ARCHETYPE: (CHEE[se] PARTY) *; the S and the E to drop are “starters of stilton and emmental”
16. OVERSPECIALIZES: OVER = “on” + (ELIZA’S SPICE)*
19. SORROWING: (RINGO’S)* around ROW = “disagreement”
21. HINDI: [s]HINDI[g]
22. PEOPLED: = (POPE LED)*
23. ETERNAL: LAN = “a network” + RETE reversed. I wasn’t terribly happy with this – RETE for network is a bit too Azed-ish for this kind of crossword
24. WEEPS: WEE = “small” + PS = “note at the end of letter”
25. ADDRESSEE: DRESS = “a frock” in A = “a” + DEE = “flower”
Down:
1. VARIATIONS: cryptic definition; probably much too easy – I find good cryptic definitions very hard to write.
2. SUNSHINE: = (HUSSEIN’S N)*
3. OTHERS: (M)OTHER’S; I probably should avoid M for Mark, since it’s as a currency abbreviation it’s a bit obscure now.
4. MIND: = initial letters of “move in new direction”; the charity is the Nation Association for Mental Health, known as Mind.
5. PERFECTING: PER = “for” + (DE)FECTING = “leaving for another country” without DE = “Germany”; Chambers supports the “for” sense of PER, but I’m a bit unhappy about using it, since I’m aiming for daily crossword difficulty.
6. ARBOREAL: LARA = “woman” reversed over BORE = “hole”
7. GONDRY = GON(E) DRY = “out of ideas” without the middle letter, referring to Michel Gondry, director of the wonderful film “23a 2d of the 17d 4d”. I’m not sure about “out of ideas”, but I was having trouble clueing this in a satisfactory way.
8. HEAD: double definition
14. AMERINDIAN: DI = “princess” in (MARIANNE)*
15. ENSHIELDED: E = “drug”+ LD = “lethal dose”, as in LD50 + ED = “journalist” all after SH = “silence” in [b]ENI[n]
17. SPOTLESS: (SOS SPELT)*
18. ZANINESS = IN AZ = “in map” reversed + NESS = “headland”
20. REOPEN: (ROPE)* + NE reversed; this clue got a commendation in Paul’s clue competition
21. HEEDED: HE + (CONC)EDED
22. PAWN: PA = “father” + initial letters of “would not”
23. EDDY: hidden answer