Garry Gillard > crosswords > solutions > 27183
ACROSS
1 Singer not allowed to be heard in transmission of sorts (8) BASEBAND - homophone for 'bass' 'banned' - the definition refers to the frequency range of a transmission
5 Mate excitedly clutches extremely useful trinket (6) AMULET - U(sefu)L inside (mate)*
10 Question master in quiz broadcast between Greek and Italian men (5,10) GRAND INQUISITOR - QUIS is a homophone for 'quiz' inside GR(eek) + AND + I(talian) + IN + I(talian) + OR (other ranks = men who are not officers)
11 Model Charley and Pat constructed (10) ARCHETYPE- (charley pat)*
13 Function of heads of state in Near East (4) SINE - first letters of last four words - function in trigonometry
15 Front torn off, making alterations to decorative fabric (7) (c)HANGING
17 Like colour of North African city, grey? Not right (7) ORANGEY - Oran is a city in northern Algeria, where Albert Camus was born + (gey)* - which is 'grey' without the R(ight)
18 Wife wants absolute guarantee (7) W,ARRANT - where ARRANT can be used as an equivalent for 'complete' - tho its etymology has nothing to do with that
19 Escorted solicitor round old fair (4,3) TOOK OUT - O + OK inside TOUT - a solicitor - someone selling something dicey - like sex
21 Detective frequently spotted in school canteen? (4) DICK - the second reference is to 'spotted dick' - a pudding with dried fruit in it, whence the 'spots'
22 Entreat her, nastily intimidating one (10) THREATENER - (entreat her)*
25 Perky neighbour in a street in south coast town (6,2,1,6) BRIGHT AS A BUTTON - ABUT inside A ST(reet) inside BRIGHTON - double enclosure/envelope
27 Yikes! No turning back for statesman (6) YANKEE - EEK NAY all rev. - a Yankee (American) being someone from 'the States' and so a 'statesman' - sometimes used to clue someone from a specific state: OHIOAN is one I saw recently, for example
28 Close friend frequently mislaying ring before journey (5,3) ALTER EGO - Latin for 'other self' - A L(o)T ( = 'frequently' minus the O) + ERE (before) + GO (journey) - tricky clue, LOI, by far
DOWN
1 Husband noticed gossip standing up in laundry (7) BAGWASH - H SAW GAB all rev. - a bagwash or wet wash was 'a laundry that washes clothes without drying or pressing them' - I guess you handed them in a bag, and got them back in the same bag, clean, but not dry
2 Country with no popular resort (3) SPA(in)
3 Maybe one moving round capital city gets the bird (10) BUDGERIGAR - RIGA (capital of Latvia) inside BUDGER (one moving, maybe)
4 Fool suggesting somewhere to eat in Times Square? (5) NINNY - INN inside NY and therefore in New York City, as is Times Square (hence the question mark)
6 Somewhere to eat in Times Square (4) MESS - incl.
7 Drop in property rental is disappointing (7,4) LETTING DOWN - dd
8 Dry, short reference penned by politician (7) TORREFY - easy wordplay - REF inside TORY - for an obscure word (meaning to 'dry')
9 Publish a book in anger (3,5) PUT ABOUT - A B(ook) inside PUT OUT (anger)
12 Notice of delivery agreement: I prematurely terminated one (11) CONTRACTION - as in childbirth - CONTRACT + I + ON(e)
14 Kid coming in to consider employment as story-teller (10) RACONTEUSE - CON (kid) inside RATE (consider) + USE - a female story-teller
16 What new school must first do to make progress (3,5) GET A,HEAD
18 Geezer extremely wary about fish smell (4,3) WIDE BOY - IDE (fish) + BO (body odour) inside W(ar)Y
20 Storm cone atop completely borderless city (7) TORONTO - the middle letters of the first three words - (s)TOR(m) (c)ON(e) (a)TO(p)
23 One way to dispose of European dog (1-4) E-TAIL - retail online (neologism) - E(uropean) + TAIL = dog, as in follow
24 Here we go - breathing with difficulty, lacking energy (4) WHEE(zing) 'Whee'! as what someone shout on taking off on something speedy
26 Article you once left incomplete (3) THE(e)
KEY
to abbreviations/terms/symbols which may have been used
(raga man)* = anagram of 'anagram'
cd = cryptic definition
dd = double definition
incl. = inclusive (hidden word)
def. = definition (synonym, literal)
rev. = reversed
anagind = anagram indicator
homophind = homophone indicator
surface - the apparent meaning of the clue, disguising what's really going on
&lit. - a clue in which the whole clue is the 'definition'
COD = clue of the day (imo); FOI, LOI, first/last one written in
Garry Gillard | New: 31 October, 2018 | Now: 31 October, 2018