Less a Jumbo this week than Who’s Who. Had I known that not only was MAHATMA GANDHI here but also HENRY THE EIGHTH, CARDINAL WOLSEY and ALFRED THE GREAT, not to mention Daniel DEFOE and Doris DAY, then I’d have brought my bleedin’ autograph book. And don’t think I didn’t spot ANNA KARENINA in there rubbing shoulders with HYACINTH Bucket out of Keeping Up Appearances and – best of all – one of the actual WHEELIEs from Chorlton and the Wheelies. Esteemed company indeed!
Now that the competition deadline has passed here is my completed grid along with explanations of my solutions where I have them. I hope you find them useful. If a recent Jumbo has given you a proper slapping then my Just For Fun page might help, where you’ll find links to solutions to hundreds of the things.
Thanks again for your comments and patience. Till next time, stay safe out there kids.
LP
Across clues
- Writer Jane – typical American – penning principally erotic fiction (5)
Answer: Daniel DEFOE (i.e. “writer”). Solution is DOE (i.e. “Jane – typical American”) wrapped around or “penning” E and F (i.e. “principally erotic fiction”, i.e. the first letters of “erotic” and “fiction”), like so: D(E-F)OE.
- Say 2000 guineas initially captured Alfa Romeo vintage model? (7,3)
Answer: CLASSIC CAR (i.e. “vintage model”). Solution is CLASSIC (i.e. “say 2000 guineas” – other horse races of the English Classics are available) followed by C, A and R (i.e. “initially captured Alfa Romeo”, i.e. the first letter of “captured”, “Alfa” and “Romeo”).
- Nearly new frame for Canaletto artwork (6)
Answer: FRESCO (i.e. “artwork”). Solution is FRESH (i.e. “new”) with its last letter removed (indicated by “nearly”) and the remainder followed by CO (i.e. “frame for Canaletto”, i.e. the first and last letters of “Canaletto”), like so: FRES-CO.
- Soldier in red gear going on manoeuvres (9)
Answer: GRENADIER (i.e. “soldier”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “going on manoeuvres”) of IN RED GEAR.
- Wow, Bernard Levin no longer popular? That’s surprisingly novel! (5,3,5)
Answer: BRAVE NEW WORLD (i.e. “novel” by Aldous Huxley). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “that’s surprising”) of WOW BERNARD LEVIN once the IN has been removed (indicated by “no longer popular”).
- Elite forces circling around send for The Blues (7)
Answer: SADNESS (i.e. “The Blues”). Solution is SAS (i.e. “elite forces”, the Special Air Service) wrapped around or “circling” SEND once it has been reversed (indicated by “around”), like so: SA(DNES)S.
- Hurricane winds becoming more earthy (9)
Answer: RAUNCHIER (i.e. “more earthy”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “winds”) of HURRICANE.
- Yellow Sea for French shellfish? (5)
Answer: ORMER (i.e. a “shellfish”). Solution is OR (i.e. “yellow” or gold in heraldry) followed by MER (i.e. “sea for French”, i.e. the French for “sea”). One nailed from the wordplay.
- Spooner lets me off when pinching the first bit of egg flip (4,4,6)
Answer: LOSE ONE’S TEMPER (i.e. “flip”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “off”) of SPOONER LETS ME wrapped around or “pinching” E (i.e. “the first bit of egg”, i.e. the first letter of “egg”), like so: LOS(E)ONESTEMPER.
- Launch parody (4-3)
Answer: TAKE-OFF. Solution satisfies “launch” and a “parody”.
- Cursed wicked spirit renounced religious belief when killing knight (10)
Answer: IMPRECATED (i.e. “cursed”). Solution is IMP (i.e. “wicked spirit”) followed by RECANTED (i.e. “renounced religious belief”) once the N has been removed (indicated by “when killing knight” – N being a recognised abbreviation of “knight” used in chess), like so: IMP-RECATED.
- Gasbag bishop shampoos little Christopher before the start of evensong (12)
Answer: BLATHERSKITE (i.e. “gasbag”). Solution is B (a recognised abbreviation of “bishop”, again used in chess) followed by LATHERS (i.e. “shampoos”), KIT (i.e. “little Christopher”, a shortened form of the name) and E (i.e. “start [letter] of evensong”). This has appeared in Jumbos a couple of times already, but it’s still a cool word.
- Familiar extremes of temperature during month (5)
Answer: MATEY (i.e. “familiar”). Solution is TE (i.e. “extremes of temperature”, i.e. the first and last letters of “temperature”) placed “during” MAY (i.e. “month”), like so: MA(TE)Y.
- Blag dealer of supply (8)
Answer: FREELOAD (i.e. “blag”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “supply”, as in being supple) of DEALER OF.
- Child catching Greek character who was an old monster (8)
Answer: MINOTAUR (i.e. “an old monster”). Solution is MINOR (i.e. “child”) wrapped around or “catching” TAU (i.e. “Greek character”, the nineteenth letter of the Greek alphabet), like so: MINO(TAU)R.
- Liberated grass-covered meadows (8)
Answer: RELEASED (i.e. “liberated”). Solution is REED (i.e. “grass”) wrapped around or “covering” LEAS (i.e. “meadows”), like so: RE(LEAS)ED.
- From superior keyboard instrument we hear something flowery (8)
Answer: HYACINTH (i.e. “something flowery”). Solution comprises homophones (indicated by “we hear”) of HIGHER (i.e. “superior”) and SYNTH (i.e. “keyboard instrument”, short for synthesiser).
- Riviera city accommodating eastern relative (5)
Answer: NIECE (i.e. “relative”). Solution is NICE (i.e. “Riviera city”) wrapped around or “accommodating” E (a recognised abbreviation of “eastern”), like so: NI(E)CE. Hello. Mystic Poll here. I’m reaching out deep into the spectral realm, calling out to the spirits, beseeching their wisdom and foresight. I think… yes! I think I can hear them! They are saying that we will see this solution again very soon, something about a “Jumbo 1659”. How mysterious. What’s that? No, your uncle Derek wasn’t there. That’ll be £20, please.
- Top brass in the army? (7,5)
Answer: TRUMPET MAJOR. Solution satisfies the clue as a whole, being “a head trumpeter in a regiment” (Chambers), while also playing on TRUMPETs being “brass” musical instruments.
- Down, lacking energy, daughter always makes time for the old man (7,3)
Answer: FATHER’S DAY (i.e. “time for the old man”). Solution is FEATHERS (i.e. “down”) with the first E removed (indicated by “lacking energy” – E being a recognised abbreviation of “energy”) and the remainder followed by D (a recognised abbreviation of “daughter”) and AY (i.e. yes or “always”), like so: FATHERS-D-AY.
- Cold, solitary, eating variable pie from Italy (7)
Answer: CALZONE (i.e. “pie from Italy”). Solution is C (a recognised abbreviation of “cold” used on water taps) and ALONE (i.e. “solitary”) once wrapped around or “eating” Z (i.e. “variable” – setters love referring to X, Y or Z in solutions as unknowns or variables), like so: C-AL(Z)ONE.
- Diocesan rally organised to defend women’s church leader (8,6)
Answer: CARDINAL WOLSEY (i.e. 16th Century “church leader”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “organised”) of DIOCESAN RALLY wrapped around or “defending” W (a recognised abbreviation of “women”), like so: CARDINAL(W)OLSEY.
- Talk about the introduction of regional map (5)
Answer: CHART (i.e. “map”). Solution is CHAT (i.e. “talk”) wrapped “about” R (i.e. “introduction of regional”, i.e. the first letter of “regional”), like so: CHA(R)T.
- Well-bred one from stable background? (9)
Answer: RACEHORSE. Another where the solution satisfies the clue as a whole, this time playing on horses, breeding, stables etc. You get the idea.
- Follow upper-class, Liberal, boring online partner? (7)
Answer: EMULATE (i.e. “follow”). Solution is U (a recognised abbreviation of the “upper-class”) and L (ditto “Liberal”) both placed in or “boring” E-MATE (i.e. “online partner”, playfully, as in how the prefix e- is stuck on words to make them online-related), like so: E-M(U-L)ATE.
- Panama hat, mag and his sandwiches… a peaceful chap (7,6)
Answer: MAHATMA GANDHI (i.e. “a peaceful chap”). “Sandwiches” indicates the solution has been hidden in the clue, like so: PANA(MA HAT MAG AND HI)S. You don’t often see hidden solutions as long as this. Impressive work!
- Foolish, sick arbitrator, ultimately good (3-6)
Answer: ILL-JUDGED (i.e. “foolish”). Solution is ILL (i.e. “sick”) followed by JUDGE (i.e. “arbitrator”) and D (i.e. “ultimately good”, i.e. the last letter of “good”).
- Register Nick held with both hands (6)
Answer: LEDGER (i.e. “register”). Solution is EDGE (i.e. to “nick” a ball in cricket) placed in or “held” by L and R (i.e. “both hands”, respectively recognised abbreviations of “left” and “right”), like so: L-(EDGE)-R.
- Chronic weak person eschewing R&B (10)
Answer: INVETERATE (i.e. “chronic”). Solution is INVERTEBRATE (i.e. “weak person”) with “R&B” removed or “eschewed”.
- Healthy appetite by the end of day (5)
Answer: LUSTY (i.e. “healthy”). Solution is LUST (i.e. “appetite”) followed by Y (i.e. “the end [letter] of the day”).
Down clues
- Be really into established summary publication (6)
Answer: DIGEST (i.e. “summary publication”). Solution is DIG (i.e. “be really into”) followed by EST (short for “established”).
- Centre of military operations in theatre of war? (5,8)
Answer: FIELD HOSPITAL. Solution satisfies the clue as a whole, playing on surgical “operations” rather than military ones.
- Delete answer posed in Gaelic language (5)
Answer: ERASE (i.e. “delete”). Solution is A (a recognised abbreviation of “answer”, as in Q&A) placed “in” ERSE (i.e. “Gaelic language”), like so: ER(A)SE.
- Tory crossing boundaries becomes a Red (7)
Answer: CRIMSON (i.e. “red”, ignoring the misleading capitalisation). Solution is CON (i.e. “Tory”, in this case a short form of “Conservative”) wrapped around or “crossing” RIMS (i.e. “boundaries”), like so: C(RIMS)ON.
- It helps to improve the atmosphere after one’s kicked up a stink (3,9)
Answer: AIR FRESHENER. Solution satisfies the clue as a whole. Quite a straightforward one.
- Took over undersea vessel, American, coming up on the sea (8)
Answer: SUBSUMED (i.e. “took over”). Solution is SUB (i.e. “undersea vessel”, short for submarine) followed by US (i.e. “American”) reversed (indicated by “coming up” – this being a down clue) and MED (i.e. “sea”, short for Mediterranean), like so: SUB-SU-MED.
- Runs first-class cricket club at the borders for fun in Ireland (5)
Answer: CRAIC (i.e. “fun in Ireland”). Solution is R (a recognised abbreviation of “runs” used in a number of ball games) and AI (i.e. “first class”, i.e. A1 with the 1 replaced by its Roman numeral equivalent) both placed in or having “at the borders” CC (a recognised abbreviation of “cricket club”), like so: C(R-AI)C.
- Improve a real-time broadcast receiving Oscar (10)
Answer: AMELIORATE (i.e. “improve”). Solution is A followed by an anagram (indicated by “broadcast”) of REAL-TIME once wrapped around or “receiving” O (“Oscar” in the phonetic alphabet), like so: A-MELI(O)RATE.
- Argument with rugby forward where he sticks his oar in? (7)
Answer: ROWLOCK (i.e. “where he sticks his oar in”). Solution is ROW (i.e. “argument”) followed by LOCK (i.e. “rugby forward”).
- I chuck bombs skyward, just missing a Republican hothead in Italy (9)
Answer: Mount STROMBOLI (i.e. a volcano or “hothead in Italy”). Solution is I LOB MORTARS (i.e. “I chuck bombs”) reversed (indicated by “skyward” – this being a down clue) once the A and R (a recognised abbreviation of “Republican”) have first been removed, like so: STROM-BOL-I.
- Earlier file force deleted (5)
Answer: OLDER (i.e. “earlier”). Solution is FOLDER (i.e. “file”) with the F removed (indicated by “force deleted” – F being a recognised abbreviation of “force”).
- Twice-divorced royal female going on-line, getting a date? (5,3,6)
Answer: HENRY THE EIGHTH (i.e. “twice-divorced royal”. It’s one way to describe him, I suppose). Solution is HEN (i.e. “female” bird) followed by or “going on” RY (i.e. “line”, specifically a recognised abbreviation of “railway”) and THE EIGHTH (i.e. “a date”).
- Time metaphorically affected the Opposition (5,4)
Answer: ENEMY CAMP (i.e. “the Opposition”). Solution is ENEMY (i.e. “time metaphorically”, after the phrase “time is the enemy”) followed by CAMP (i.e. an “affected” manner).
- Large hollowed out yucca in colonnade having multiple fibrous stems (8)
Answer: POLYARCH (i.e. “having multiple fibrous stems” botanically). Solution is L (a recognised abbreviation of “large”) and YA (i.e. “hollowed out yucca”, i.e. the word “yucca” with all its middle letters removed) both placed “in” PORCH (i.e. “colonnade”), like so: PO(L-YA)RCH.
- Iris surely fled in a tizzy (5-2-3)
Answer: FLEUR-DE-LYS (i.e. “iris”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “in a tizzy”) of SURELY FLED.
- One reporting on those who make scenes? (4,6)
Answer: FILM CRITIC. Solution satisfies the clue as a whole, playing on movie “scenes” rather than melodramatic ones.
- Old King Aethelred laboured with graft (6,3,5)
Answer: ALFRED THE GREAT (i.e. “old king”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “laboured”) of AETHELRED and GRAFT. Nicely worked.
- Rascal (and German!) coming in to make a half century (9)
Answer: SCOUNDREL (i.e. “rascal”). Solution is UND (i.e. “and German”, i.e. the German for “and”) placed or “coming in” SCORE L (i.e. “make a half century”, using the Roman numeral for 50), like so: SCO(UND)RE-L.
- Actor entertaining game fan of drama (8)
Answer: PLAYGOER (i.e. “fan of drama”). Solution is PLAYER (i.e. “actor”) wrapped around or “entertaining” GO (an ancient board “game”), like so: PLAY(GO)ER.
- EU’s ban angered ground beef producer (8,5)
Answer: ABERDEEN ANGUS (i.e. “beef producer”). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “ground”) of EU’S BAN ANGERED.
- Book – aka Inner Circles – and article not available earlier (4,8)
Answer: ANNA KARENINA (i.e. “book” by Leo Tolstoy). Solution is an anagram (indicated by “circles”) of AKA INNER placed after or having “earlier” AN (i.e. “article”, being a word like a, an or the) and N/A (short for “not available”), like so: AN-N/A-KARENINA.
- Observe answer in projecting feature’s links leading to Hunter? (5,5)
Answer: WATCH CHAIN (i.e. “links leading to hunter” – a hunter being “a watch whose face is protected with a metal case” (Chambers)). Solution is WATCH (i.e. “observe”) followed by A (a recognised abbreviation of “answer”, already covered) once placed “in” CHIN (i.e. “projecting [facial] feature”), like so: WATCH-CH(A)IN.
- Freed, if not let outside hospital (9)
Answer: UNLEASHED (i.e. “freed”). Solution is UNLEASED (i.e. “not let”) wrapped around or placed “outside” of H (a recognised abbreviation of “hospital”), like so: UNLEAS(H)ED.
- Russian fighter nearly fell from sky? What a pain! (8)
Answer: MIGRAINE (i.e. “pain”). Solution is MIG (i.e. “Russian fighter” jet) followed by RAINED (i.e. “feel from sky”) once its last letter has been removed (indicated by “nearly”), like so: MIG-RAINE.
- Month compiler uncovered a group of eight musicians (7)
Answer: OCTETTE (i.e. “group of eight musicians”). Solution is OCT (i.e. “month”, short for October) followed by SETTER (i.e. crossword “compiler”) once the first and last letters have been removed (indicated by “uncovered”), like so: OCT-ETTE.
- Trick husband, taken in by little fib (7)
Answer: WHEELIE (i.e. “trick” on a bicycle. Trickier on a unicycle). Solution is H (a recognised abbreviation of “husband”) placed “in” WEE (i.e. “little”) and LIE (i.e. “fib”), like so: W(H)EE-LIE.
- Boom that was said to attract Doris’s attention? (6)
Answer: HEYDEY (i.e. “boom” or good times). When written as HEY DAY the solution playfully satisfies “that was said to attract Doris’s attention”, referring to actress Doris Day.
- Pack animal arrived, then left (5)
Answer: CAMEL (i.e. “pack animal”). Solution is CAME (i.e. “arrived”) followed by L (a recognised abbreviation of “left”). Simple, but nicely done.
- Strategy to reduce risk beginning to hurt margin (5)
Answer: HEDGE (i.e. “strategy to reduce risk”). Solution is H (i.e. “beginning [letter] to hunt”) followed by EDGE (i.e. “margin”).
- General regularly puts out ally (5)
Answer: USUAL (i.e. “general”). “Regularly” indicates the solution is derived from every other letter of PUTS OUT ALLY.
Lucian Poll's Web Ramblings 
A nice straightforward puzzle if, indeed, a little nominatively dominated.
Utterly ashamed that I failed to parse FREELOADER having missed the anagram completely.Duh!
keep up the good work
Agreed, a largely straightforward puzzle, with some enjoyable clues. My shame this week was not spotting the metaphor Time is the Enemy.
I thought that the setter was very brave risking an encounter with the novichok boys, envisaging Russian fighters dropping to earth (42d MIGraine).
Thx Lucian
GRAHAM
Agreed Lucian! Quite a few Who’s Who? answers in this one, but I quite enjoyed that.
The cluing was pretty fair, with a good mix of easy, hard and clever.
I was relived that “Spooner” in 19a was nothing to do with Spoonerisms, which are often the clues I most struggle with.
Thanks, Lucian, for your comments on the Jumbo, as always. I think you could add Thomas Hardy’s Trumpet Major to the literary references. I do enjoy these themed ones, as in the days of Cinephile.