WEB Crossword No: 013 - 12 Jul 09

Here is WEB Crossword No: 13. Our own Tommy Moran has also just published his SunWeb8 crossword for our puzzling pleasure, so be sure to check it out.

As a reminder, the Sunday slot is open for anyone who wants to post his or her own, original crossword. Just contact me and I will help you with the mechanics of compiling and posting.

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Across
1 Take a no. 5 into town to hear something holy (6)
4 Start to change the law within the firm (8)
10 Well, you're not to get this moving pic with a sky (4,3)
11 Get hold of the cloth with an erratic pattern (5,2)
12 Like one fine day it's arid, but with a ford (4)
13 Hold what's left after the Pillar was blown up? (4,6)
15 It's not important to get the art back for around 1/6 (6)
16 Rams that woman in the Wild West (7)
18 Before you have a chaotic summer in France (3)
20 I'm upset by how pert you are, Bea (7)
21 All back around six, alas, in Spittle. (6)
24 The radio, I see, has more than one (10)
26 This wakes up to a quake in England (4)
28 Remember these back on the beat, Father (7)
29 The carnival is just a lark (7)
30 Listen to the generosity of the big spenders first (8)
31 The accent in the boat is very French (6)

Down
1 Prey to a cult, say (8)
2 Swindle Tim? He is in the vice squad! (9)
3 Sounds like my mistake was not being A nor B (4)
5 It's no loss (4-4)
6 Part of the word "top" goes to the top of the page (10)
7 With a musket, one has to move (5)
8 Back an intent to go before the farmer (6)
9 I hear you bribe the police to rule the organisation (5)
14 PS: 'E is back in sight (5,5)
16 It extends worldwide (3)
17 About to say it again, to say it again? (9)
18 Butt in and 31-across about Father (8)
19 The hunter cries as he beats it around Scarlett's place (8)
22 The sound of an alto with no key? (6)
23 Cozy and coy around both sexes (5)
25 Hear the flower moving? (5)
27 Just one, you dope! (4)

Here is each clue alongside its answer, with an explanation of the link between clue and answer. I hope it all makes sense! As always, I welcome feedback via comment and/or email. I’m particularly interested in hearing about clues that were too obvious or easy, and clues that were annoying or perhaps caused frustration. But, I’ll listen to all suggestions on how to make my puzzles more challenging and more fun!

I hope you noticed that there are a lot of answers this week associated with the Crosaire Crossword and the Crosaire Blog.

Across
1 Take a no. 5 into town to hear something holy (6)
C(AV)ITY
Into town (C-ITY) take a no. 5 (A V) = CAVITY: something holey (sounds like “holy”).
4 Start to change the law within the firm (8)
ST(ALW)ART
Start (ST-ART) to change the “law” within (ALW) = STALWART: the firm.
10 Well, you're not to get this moving pic with a sky (4,3)
SICK PAY
Moving, an anagram of, “pic” with “a sky” = SICK PAY: well you’re not, to get this.
11 Get hold of the cloth with an erratic pattern (5,2)
LATCH ON
The “cloth” with “an” in an anagram (“with an erratic pattern”) = LATCH ON: get hold of.
12 Like one fine day it's arid, but with a ford (4)
ARI-A
It’s ari-d, but with an “f” for “d” = ARIA: like One Fine Day from Puccini’s Madame Butterfly. And we get to hear a new Crosaire ARIA each day in the blog, and heard One Fine Day recently.
13 Hold what's left after the Pillar was blown up? (4,6)
HALF NELSON
What’s left after Nelson’s Pillar was blown up? = HALF NELSON perhaps, a wresting “hold”. And Nelson’s Pillar was a recent Lookup of the Day.
15 It's not important to get the art back for around 1/6 (6)
TR(IVI)A
To get the art back (TR-A) for around one and six (I-VI) = TRIVIA: it’s not important.
16 Rams that woman in the Wild West (7)
WET(HER)S
In the wild, an anagram of, “west” (WET-S) that woman (HER) = WETHERS: rams. And WETHERS is one of M. Crosaire’s favorite answers.
18 Before you have a chaotic summer in France (3)
TEE
Have a chaotic, an anagram of, summer in France (ÉTÉ) = TEE: the letter before U (“you”).
20 I'm upset by how pert you are, Bea (7)
PERT-U-R-B
By how pert (PERT) you are, Bea (U R B) = PERTURB: upset.
21 All back around six, alas, in Spittle. (6)
SAL(IV)A
Alas (A-LAS) around six (VI) = AVILAS, all back = SALIVA: spittle.
24 The radio, I see, has more than one (10)
TRANSISTOR
An IC (“I see”), an Integrated Circuit, has more than one TRANSISTOR: the radio.
26 This wakes up to a quake in England (4)
WEST
From Thomas Davis’s The West’s Awake:
“The West's awake! the West's awake!
Sing, Oh! Hurrah! let England quake”
28 Remember these back on the beat, Father (7)
NO-TAN-DA
Back on (NO) the beat (TAN) father (DA) = NOTANDA: remember these. And M. Crosaire beat us all with NOTANDA recently, following it up with NOTANDUM the next day.
29 The carnival is just a lark (7)
FUN-FAIR
A lark (FUN) just (FAIR) = FUNFAIR: the carnival.
30 Listen to the generosity of the big spenders first (8)
LARGESSE
The big (LARGE) s-pender's first (S) = LARGE S, when listened to sounds like LARGESSE: generosity.
31 The accent in the boat is very French (6)
S(TRES)S
In the boat (S-S) is “very” French (TRÉS) = STRESS: the accent.

Down
1 Prey to a cult, say (8)
CASUALTY: prey, and an anagram of “a cult, say”.
2 Swindle Tim? He is in the vice squad! (9)
VIC(TIM-IS)E
In the vice squad (VIC-E) Tim, he is (TIM IS) = VICTIMISE: swindle.
3 Sounds like my mistake was not being A nor B (4)
TYPO
Not being (blood type) A nor B, I am ‘type O’, which sounds like TYPO: my mistake. And a TYPO is something we encounter every day in the interactive crossword!
5 It's no loss (4-4)
TOLL-FREE
To take a loss, is to take a TOLL, so “no loss” is TOLL-FREE
6 Part of the word "top" goes to the top of the page (10)
LETTER-HEAD
Part of the word (LETTER) top (HEAD) = LETTERHEAD: goes to the top of the page.
7 With a musket, one has to move (5)
ATHOS
“Has to” move, an anagram = ATHOS: one with a musket, one of The Three Musketeers. And ATHOS is also our own crossword compiler, Mr. Tommy Moran.
8 Back an intent to go before the farmer (6)
In-tent (TE-NT) back an (NA) = TENANT: a word to go before the farmer, as in TENANT farmer.
9 I hear you bribe the police to rule the organisation (5)
BYLAW
Bribe the police, ‘buy law’, I hear as BYLAW: a rule for an organization.
14 PS: 'E is back in sight (5,5)
SIXTH SENSE
PS: ‘E is back (ESP) = SIXTH SENSE: in-sight.
16 It extends worldwide (3)
WEB
The WorldWideWEB (www) extends worldwide. And WEB is the moniker used for the blog’s Sunday crosswords.
17 About to say it again, to say it again? (9)
RE-ITERATE
About (RE) to say it again (ITERATE) = REITERATE: to say it again! A strange word, don’t you think??!!
18 Butt in and 31-across about Father (8)
TRES(PA)SS
STRESS about (TRES-SS) father (PA) = TRESPASS: butt in.
19 The hunter cries as he beats it around Scarlett's place (8)
TAN(TARA)S
He beats it (TAN-S) around Scarlett’s place (TARA) = TANTARAS: hunter cries. Scarlett O’Hara lived at TARA in Gone with the Wind. And TANTARA is the cry of success in the Crosaire blog, from a favorite answer in a Crosaire puzzle some time back.
22 The sound of an alto with no key? (6)
ATONAL
An anagram of “an alto” = ATONAL: the sound with no key.
23 Cozy and coy around both sexes (5)
CO(M-F)Y
Coy around (CO-Y) both sexes (M-F) = COMFY: cozy.
25 Hear the flower moving? (5)
ASTER
Moving (ASTIR), I hear as ASTER: the flower.
27 Just one, you dope! (4)
U-NIT
You (U) dope (NIT) = UNIT: just one.