Listener Crossword 4064: Solution Notes
Metrical Variations by Hedge-sparrow
Puzzle explanation
The theme was Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity. Extra letters in wordplay gave “time dilation” and “length contraction”, both effects predicted by the theory when travelling close to the speed of light. The two effects were represented in across entries by the doubling of “t” or the halving of “ll” in the clue answers. Only the speed of light (the unclued entry) is invariant to all observers in all reference frames — hence, this is entered without adaptation. A contracted form of the theme, “Special Relativity”, was to be highlighted in the finished grid: this took the form of a “c”, the mathematical symbol for the speed of light.
Clue explanations
Conventions: * = anagram, < = reversal
| No | Extra letter |
Answer | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Across | |||
| 4 | POTTAGE | PAGE about OTT | |
| 10 | T | TOO | Two definitions (TOOT) |
| 12 | I | AVERT | IT after AVER |
| 13 | M | ENTICE | MENT + ICE |
| 14 | MOOT | MOO + T | |
| 15 | E | TEA | TEE + A |
| 17 | BELLPUNCH | BEL + LUNCH about P | |
| 18 | HILLSIDE | H + ILL + SIDE | |
| 21 | D | UNROLL | DUN + ROLL |
| 22 | NELL | NELL(y); meaning of name | |
| 25 | I | DOLL | IDOL + L |
| 28 | ALL FOR | CALL FOR – C(ouncil) | |
| 30 | L | TAIPAN | TAIL + P + AN |
| 33 | EAT OUT | TEA (15ac) * [ie, “OUT” as anagram indicator] | |
| 35 | A | DOT | TOAD < |
| 36 | T | CHILLI | CHILL + IT |
| 37 | VILLIAGO | V + ILL + I + A + GO | |
| 39 | I | MOELLON | (OEL [LEO <] + LION) after M |
| 40 | O | ALLOW | A + LL + WOO < |
| 41 | N | EINSTEIN | TENNIS * about EIN |
| Down | |||
| 1 | L | STETS | ST + LETS |
| 2 | E | ITN | First letters, reversed |
| 3 | N | HOTEL | (NOT + E + L) after (Marc)H |
| 4 | G | POTATO | GOT AT in PO |
| 5 | T | TACE | Two definitions (TACET = is silent) |
| 6 | TEMPLE | PELMET * | |
| 7 | H | TROUSE | THROE about US (informal for “me”) |
| 8 | ATONING | (A + TING) about ON | |
| 9 | C | EATH | EATCH(e) |
| 11 | O | RIBALD | R + OI(ly) + BALD; we apologise for the wrongly spelt “unctuous” |
| 16 | TINPOT | OP < in TINT | |
| 18 | N | HAOMA | NOAH < + AM < |
| 19 | T | IN FUN | NIT < + FUN(d) |
| 20 | DEHORT | DE + SHORT – S(wagger) | |
| 23 | R | ELATION | Two definitions (RELATION) |
| 24 | A | LASTLY | LAY after LAST |
| 26 | C | TITLES | TIT + L + SEC < |
| 27 | SPOILT | PISTOL * | |
| 29 | T | LYDIAN | IDYL < + ANT |
| 31 | KOALA | KOLA about A | |
| 32 | I | STOWN | SIT ON about W(hisky) |
| 33 | O | ECHE | ECHOE(s) |
| 34 | TINE | Hidden | |
| 38 | N | GOA | Two definitions (GOAN) |