The Guardian Cryptic by Rufus #26425

1. This was a great puzzle from Rufus with some really fun clues. I loved 5D, 13D and 23D. I am getting better with cryptic definitions. I had to cheat for three of them and a few others were guesses I didn't understand because I could guess the definition - I think that's nearly half of how my puzzles are solved these days which is still an improvement over how I was back in May. Here's the pic:

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3. 1A -  Continued with the ironing? (7,2)
4. Cryptic definition: PRESSED ON. That was a good start.
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6. 6A -  He took the hat round for not much money (5)
7. "For not much money," is our definition and I think "He took" is saying use the word HE and then we want a "hat round" that word and "hat" = CAP to make C(HE)AP.
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9. 9A -  Near to the start of darkness (5)
10. "Darkness," is our definition and "near to" = NIGH and "The start" = T to make NIGHT.
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12. 10A -  May they keep aunties in change? (9)
13. I can see "aunties in change" is fodder and anagrind but the definition is more the whole clue, sort of? Answer is ANNUITIES. I suppose someone's giving Auntie regular payments? Perhaps it's her pension if she's an aged aunt.
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15. 11A -  Convincing vice-consul is difficult (10)
16. "Convincing," is our definition and "vice consul is difficult" is fodder and anagrind to make CONCLUSIVE.
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18. 12A -  Finish roadwork (4)
19. Double definition: STOP I was thinking when we "finish" something we stop doing it or a "roadwork" was a stop sign.  Fifteen Squared offers a different solution "A charade of ST (street, ‘road’) plus OP (‘work’)." but I don't know why OP = work. I'll have to dig up what OP stands for. I know the internet definition of "original poster" but that's it.
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21. 14A -  The craft of the cook? (7)
22. I had to cheat here and I couldn't figure out the parsing. Answer is STEAMER. Fifteen Squared only says this is a "Cryptic definition" but doesn't go into any detail on explaining this. 
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24. 15A -  Sweetheart lost by doctor and poet (7)
25. "Poet," is who we are looking for and "swEetheart" is a one word instruction to use the E at the "heart " of "sweet", and by use I mean remove it from a "doctor" ...and there I got lost. I couldn't find a type of doctor. Answer is HOUSMAN. Fifteen squared offers "HOUS[e]MAN (‘doctor’) without (‘lost’) the E (‘swEetheart’) – not Hugh Laurie, but a junior doctor in a hospital. The poet is A E Housman, best known for A Shropshire Lad. " At least I was on the right track.
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27. 17A -  Agrees when ordered to go aboard a ship (7)
28. "Agrees," is our definition and "ordered to go" = SENT and and that will go "aboard A ship" = A SS and "aboard" is a container signpost which tells us to put the SENT on the "ship" like this: AS(SENT)S.
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30. 19A -  Warped, like the criminal mind (7)
31. Double definition: CROOKED.
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33. 20A -  Settled one into residence (4)
34. "Settled," is our definition and "one" = I as it usually does and that will go "into" a three-letter word for "residence" = PAD to make PA(I)D as in settled a bill.
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36. 22A -  Reserve player (10)
37. Cryptic definition that cleverly looks sports related but is not, it's theatre "players" and the reserve is the UNDERSTUDY.
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39. 25A -  Switch positions round the oceans, when business is slack (3,6)
40. "When business is slack," is our definition and I got this from cross letters and definition. "Switch positions" if we think of light switches is OFF and ON and those will go "round the oceans" = SEAS to make OFF (SEAS)ON.
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42. 26A -  Consented to give up a vice (5)
43. "Vice," is our definition and this is a deletion clue. We want a word for "consented" that when the letter A is "given up" or removed will leave us with a "vice" = AGREED -A = GREED.
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45. 27A -  They go round on wheels (5)
46. Cryptic definition: TYRES. This took me longer than normal because when I hit the "check" button on the website my word TIRES lost a letter and it took me a while to remember Brits spell that with a Y. Thought I was losing my mind.
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48. 28A -  More than enough to fill up ten skips (9)
49. "More than enough," is our definition and "fill up ten skips" is fodder and anagrind to make PLENTIFUL. "Skips" as an anagrind was new. I first thought it was an odds/evens hint.
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51. 1D -  Policeman held up in a state of terror (5)
52. "State of terror," is our definition and "policeman" = PC, "held, up IN, A" where "held" is a container signpost, "up IN" = NI for a down clue enter in the grid from bottom to top then use the leftover A, that's "up" as well, in the clue to make P(A)(NI)C.
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54. 2D -  Propagates fresh greens — about to finish (9)
55. "Propagates," is our definition and "fresh greens" is anagrind and partial fodder that will go "about" or around a word meaning "to finish" = END to make ENG(END)ERS.
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57. 3D -  Community payment (10)
58. Double definition and I'd been looking for a synonym of council tax but that would've been a straight clue, not cryptic. What we want is a SETTLEMENT.
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60. 4D -  It's no way to address a lady! (4,3)
61. Cryptic definition: DEAR SIR. It's very straightforward, I love it.
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63. 5D -  9 to 5, he goes round the old city (7)
64. This clue was like tripping up the stairs repeatedly. I knew we needed an "old city" but I needed most of the cross letters to see how the clue was being parsed, then had to google to see where it was. Clue is "9" = NINE, "5" = V as the Roman numeral and "he goes round" here means to reverse HE to EH as opposed to splitting it around the other letters, which was what I'd been trying to find a way to make work. Gives us: NINE(V)EH.
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66. 6D -  Not a fair copy (4)
67. I needed cross letters and then tried CRIB on a whim thinking about cheating on a test with crib notes up the sleeve which is an unfair way to pass a test. This was after trying to find words for mimic, echo, acts and getting nowhere.
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69. 7D -  Priest and Old Testament poet (5)
70. "Poet," is who we are looking for again and I remembered from earlier puzzles "priest" = ELI and "old testament" = OT to make ELIOT.
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72. 8D -  Put off, but not deterred (9)
73. "Put off," is our definition and I'm not sure about how this is solved. The answer is POSTPONED which was a simple enough synonym but what "but not deterred," means I cannot tell. I looked up antonyms of "deterred" and didn't see anything that that would work.
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75. 13D -  Proverbially, it leads to madness! (3,2,5)
76. I had all of the cross letters before being able to see this. Answer is "OUT OF SIGHT" and the other part is "Out of mind." which isn't the real definition of that saying but being out of one's mind is "madness."
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78. 14D -  Puts an end to current measures in beer (6,3)
79. "Puts an end to," is our definition and I had to cheat on this because I kept trying to come up with words for Imperial measures. Not going to work as we want electrical "current measures" = AMPS being placed "in beer" = STOUT like this: ST(AMPS)OUT.
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81. 16D -  Employ recruit (4,3,2)
82. This is a loose double definition to get MAKE USE OF. I had most cross letters in place to see this. I think "recruit" is a weaker definition.
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84. 18D -  Takes Mickey to prison? (5,2)
85. "To prison," is the definition and I could not figure out the "takes Mickey" bit but I could eventually see the answer was SENDS UP like "send up the river," in old gangster speak. Fifteen Squared people mention "takes Mickey" means to pick on someone or play them for the fool, (could also be to drink something spiked with drugs as in a Micky Finn) I'm told  to "take the Mickey" is a synonym phrase of "sends up."
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87. 19D -  Is inclined to enter the church, subject to purification (7)
88. "Subject to purification," is our definition and "is inclined" = LEANS and this "enters the church" = CE (church of England) to make: C(LEANS)E.
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90. 21D -  Deduce there's no getting away from Hades (5)
91. "Deduce," is our definition and "Hades" = INFERNO with "NO getting away" = -NO leaving INFER.
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93. 23D -  An off-peak call? (5)
94. Cryptic definition: YODEL. 
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96. 24D -  Operators of locks and harbours, say (4)
97. This is a homophone clue so we need words for "operators of locks" and "harbours" that are homophones: KEYS/ QUAYS and we use the four letter word KEYS as our answer.

And that was it. Not too harsh. I did work through half of The Age's RM puzzle but ran out of steam. What was very interesting is while I was flipping between the puzzles I  noticed both of them had a nearly identical clue. Rufus's 21D and RM's 23D read like this:

Rufus: Deduce there's no getting away from Hades (5)

RM: Deduce that hell has lost no supporters (5)

Is that a coincidence for both to have such similar clues leading to the same answer or are these two friends or something? Are they the same guy? I can't figure out the point of "supporters" in RM's clue, I will admit.

I have a busy day of cooking ahead of me getting ready Girl Guides tonight. We are having Thanksgiving dinner tonight (officially it's Thursday) and there will be roast chicken (can't afford a turkey and who has that much time?) with cranberry and orange stuffing, salad and I've made mini pumpkin pies for everyone to make faces at, grudgingly try and then fall in love with forever. A round table talk about what thankfulness is about, the power of gratitude and doing for others. Then I hope they'll wash all the dishes.

Hope you all have a lovely day.

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