Crossword Help Forum
Forum Rules

Will not be around later, so again thanks Jolan. Challenging and a delight as always.
AB

Hi! Just home. All went very well.

Thank you P@, GK, Andyc and ab.

As usual, Tony's "efforts" are spot-on. I'll include my workings, just for completion (though Tony's leave nowt to add.

Just to say the "in gossip" was necessary as a 'homophone' incicator (as Tony has included.

And, SIDE = .....; a pretentious are; ARROGANCE (inf), in Chambers Dict. Chambers Thes has arrogance = side (slang).

1. (cryptic) MUSICAL CHAIRS
2. anag (may result in) TWELVE PLUS ONE
3. bloomer = gaffe; bloomer cut = GAFF = one’s private accommodation (Chambers)
4. (homophone = gossip) Arrogance = SIDE, sounds like; sighed = whispered
5. worker = hand; drink = ale; worker consumes drink = h(ale)and; (to) get = hear; extremely tipsy = ty; get extremely tipsy = hear + ty. HALE AND HEARTY = sound (= fit)

Thank you for the very kind comments. Hope to see you next week. Helen fully recovered now and able to 'give me a hard time' again. LOL

Bless

John

... a pretentious ACT; Arrogance. hic!

Thanks Jolan, great clues, glad to hear everything is getting back to normal.

Andy

Hello, Jolan! I took a peek at this earlier but had to run. I got 2 right off, and thought that 1 might somehow be PLAYING 'POSSUM, using zero-sum/opossum, but then figured it wasn't. :) I cheated just now. Great clues as always.

Hi Ari
Nice to see you've not been 'playing possum'. I thought you might have been up in them thar hills.
Just taking a last peek in. Good night now. J

Only got 1 and 2, thought musical chairs a great clue once I got it.
Learned two new words, gaff and gaffe.
Was looking for a flower, naturally! Pansy minus y - pans, unfortunately not many people live in them

Never mind, Rosalind: I had thought of B-ROOM (though the broom plant only HAS a flower rather than being one I suppose). I also had the game SEVENTY-SEVEN (found on Google) with EVEN at the beginning (well, nearly) and end, not realising when two competitors are even it's not really a result (a draw). The pun on score was far superior, needless to say!

Thank you GK, feel better now and BROOM was a good idea- A Room of One's Own