Refrain by Dysart

Puzzle explanation

Extra letters from wordplay spelt “Drink and the devil had done for the rest — Treasure Island”. The words preceding these in the novel, “Fifteen men on the dead man’s chest, yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum”, were to be located in the final grid and indicated with a continuous line connecting the relevant cells as far as A; the last three words were represented cryptically as “left boot” (to be highlighted), an anagram of “bottle of”, “rum” serving as an anagram indicator. The character at 1dn was missing that leg. Clashes were to be resolved in favour of those letters that left real words in the grid (and in favour of G, not C, as the first letter of 7ac and 7dn since G would not produce a word in the next step). The discarded letters could be rearranged to form “Derelict”, the title of a poem written in 1891 by Young E. Allison, based on the fragment in the Stevenson novel. Unfortunately, this poem does not appear to be cited in any reasonably accessible reference book. Answers modified in the final grid were 21 ore 31 scent 33 toe 38 lith 5 drest, 7 C clef 35 chiel 41 deep.

Clue explanations

Conventions: * = anagram, < = reversal

No Extra
letter		 Answer Explanation
Across
1 D LIP-READING DRIP + LEADING, R and L swapped
7 R GHIS Hidden
10 I ON THE GO (Hoeing + TO(p)) *
12 N ASCENT Two definitions (NASCENT)
14 K DREARILY DRILY about REAK
15 A GERAH GEAR + A + H(orse)
17 N ETON WENT ON − W
18 D TACTION CAT < + (I DON’T) *
21 T ORE (valu)E after ORT
22 H UNSENT SUN * + HEN + T(weet); a cat is a jazz fan
25 E TROTH (HE + TORT) <
26 D ATONAL TOD in ANAL
27 E COHO ECHO about O(ily)
28 V NORM (NOV + M) about R
30 I ESTATE TATI in (E + SE)
31 L SCENT SILENT, I replaced by (classi)C
32 H LISTEN LIS(t) + THEN
33 A TOE AT ONCE − NC
36 D LYNCHED (D(odg)E + C(attleme)N + H(ate)D + L(awlessl)Y) *
38 D LITH DIT in (Fu)LH(am)
40 O ALOOF OAF about LOO
42 N FIGURE ON NO GUNFIRE *
43 E EILEEN ((c)L(a)I(m)E(d) E(x) N(e)E(d)E(d)) *
44 F FOREVER FOR + FEVER
45 O RAFF (FOR A F(ight)) *
46 R KNOTTY PINE (TINKER + PONY + T) *
Down
1   LONG JOHN SILVER Thematic
2 T IN GEAR TAR after INGE
3 H RHEA HE in (H(e)R(e) < + A)
4 E AGRA A + GREA(t)
5 R DREST DR + REST
6 E NARCOTIST NEAR + COTT about IS
7 S G CLEF Hidden
8 T INSOOTH INST + HOOT(-toot) *; see 20dn
9 T ST ANTHONY’S FIRE (TH(e) + FIRST + ONE + NASTY) *
11 R MATINEES MARTIN + SEE <
13 E CRAB TREE CAR * + BET + REE
16 A ENTÊTÉE TEEN * + ATE + E(nvy)
19 S ANNEALS ANN’S about SEAL
20 U HOOT-TOOT TOO HOT * + OUT
23 R SALLY LUNN (RALLY + L) in SUN + (saloo)N
24 E ELSINORE EEL + SIN + ÖRE
29 I OCTAVIA VIA [her implies Roman, ie, Latin] after ACTION * − N(ero)
34 S OROGEN (Eh)O + R + SO + GEN
35 L CHIEL C + I in HELL; Dysart is a town in Fife, Scotland
37 A CLEFT LEAF in CT
39 N BOOT BO(b) + NOT
41 D DEEP (P(arliament) + DEED) <
Back to 2010 menu