Colgan's Cryptic Crossword
Across
1. Strip brings blushes (7)
5. Youngster carries cold relative to central point (5)
8. Fools with precarious act maybe rue falls (7,6)
9. Showers for bursary students (13)
10. Arrange insurmountable boundaries for Mission (6)
11. Red-brown rich heart of the country (6)
15. Become more familiar, having realised that girl is wearing strides (5,3,5)
17. Moral decline levels out, takes on better development (5,8)
18. Holding the head of Timotheus, blessed with fervour (5)
19. Fit for discharge (7)
Down
1. Many advances of funds (7)
2. One in school coat (7-6)
3. Wretched, but has one old figurine (7)
4. Mark seen in pool is about right. It created spray (6)
5. Give up, in place of effort (5)
6. Upholders of the law distribute merits to outstanding police (5-8)
7. Soldiers on weights to keep loafers in shape? (5)
12. Just one of the goal posts (7)
13. Quiet couple holed up in island without money (4-3)
14. Electrical problems for those accompanying the main attraction (6)
15. Stagger into a real predicament (5)
16. Curious opposing (contradictory) opinions (5)
Wine to win
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Solution
Explanations (C = cryptic part of clue + S = straight part of clue;
or S + S = clue holding answer twice with two different straight meanings;
or POW = play on words.)
Note that joining words may or may not be an integral part of the clue.
Punctuation and capital letters are irrelevant.
The art of the setter is to make it non-obvious how and where to split the clue,
and to mislead the solver along an irrelevant path.
Across
1. S: strip = colours (in soccer, football, etc)
S: blushes = colours
5. C: youngster (foal) carries cold (contains “c”)
S: relative to central point = focal
8 C: precarious act (feat) maybe rue (herb) falls (rains)
S: fools = feather brains
9. C: show-ers (exhibitioners)
S: bursary students = exhibitioners)
10. C: arrange (sort) insurmountable boundaries (i e)
S: mission = sortie
11. C: red-brown (rust) rich heart (ic)
S: of the country = rustic
15. C: realized (earnt) that girl (her) is wearing strides (covered by “lopes”)
S: become more familiar = learn the ropes
17. C: levels out (rakes) better development (progress)
S: moral decline = rake’s progress
18. C: holding the head of Timotheus (containing “t”) blessed (holy)
S: with fervour = hotly
19. S: fit = satisfy
S: discharge = satisfy
Down
1. C: many (C =100) advances (offers)
S: funds = coffers
2. S: one in school (leather-jacket, a fish)
S: coat = leather jacket
3. C: wretched but has (anagram of “but has”) one (I)
S: old figurine = ushabti
4. C: Mark seen in pool (Spitz) about right (around “r”)
S: spray = spritz
5. C: in place of (for) effort (go)
S: give up = forgo
6. C: distribute merits (anagram of “merits”) outstanding police (coppers,
outside)
S: upholders of the law = crime-stoppers
7. S: soldiers on = lasts
S: weights to keep loafers in shape = lasts
12. S: just = upright
S: one of the goal posts = upright
13. C: quiet couple (sh, sh) holed up in island (inside “cay”)
S: without money = cash-shy
14. S: electrical problems = shorts
S: those accompanying the main attraction = shorts
15. S: stagger = lurch
S: real predicament = lurch
16. C: opposing contradictory opinions (no, facing ‘yes’ reversed)
S: curious = nosey