Bryan Ferry makes his second unexpected appearance in as many weeks in our pick of the best of the broadsheets’ cryptic clues
In the sample clues below, the links take you to explainers from our beginners’ series. The setter’s name often links to an interview with him or her, in case you feel like getting to know these people better.
14acTrump’s around providing a little bit of ‘culture’? I kepttrying to calm down (7)
[ wordplay: synonym for ‘trump’, reversed (‘around’) + synonym for ‘providing’ + first letter of (‘a little bit of’) CULTURE, all containing I (‘I kept’) ]
[ CAP reversed + IF + C, all containing I ]
[ definition: trying to calm down ]
5d Johnson’s self-assessment: he’s glad to work with 14 (1,8,6)
[ wordplay: HESGLAD anagrammed along with EARDRUMS (‘to work with 14’) ]
[ definition: Johnson’s self-assessment ]
Lexicógrapher. n.s. [λεξικὸν and γράφω; lexicographe, French.] A writer of dictionaries; a harmless drudge, that busies himself in tracing the original, and detailing the signification of words
17acWander around with mum before bookslaunch (8)
[ wordplay: synonym for ‘wander around’ + word indicating silence (‘mum’) + abbrev. for part of the Bible (‘books’) ]
[ MOON + SH + OT ]
[ definition: launch ]
9ac Goodbye saidto old rogue on Tube returning (6-3)
[ wordplay: anagram of (‘rogue’) TOOLD, next to (‘on’) synonym for ‘tube’, reversed (‘returning’) ]
[ TOODL + PIPE, reversed ]
[ definition: way of saying goodbye ]
1d/23d/24ac/1ac Given suggestion to do manual work, I collapse or die, first to suffer really terrible death — fracas on a foreign street (2,3,4,5,4,3,12)
[ wordplay: synonyms for ‘I collapse’, ‘or’ & ‘die’ + initial letters of (‘first to’) SUFFER REALLY + anagram of (‘terrible’) DEATH, then synonym for ‘fracas’, after (‘on’) German for one (‘a foreign’) + abbrev. for ‘street’ ]
[ I FALL + ELSE + FAIL + SR + EADTH + EIN + ST + RUCTIONS ]
[ definition: it’s a suggestion to refer to a manual ]