4082 Pangrams by Sabre

This week Sabre gave us an enjoyable and challenging puzzle in which Across and Down answers had to be encoded using different substitutions, each based on a set of words forming a twenty-six letter pangram. This meant that quite a lot of cold-solving was needed to get underway, but (as usual with Sabre) we were rewarded with a delightful set of clues.

The extra words in Across clues, which were definitions for the words making up the Down pangram, were: DRUSE, GERMAN, VALLEY, OUNCE, STAB, CHARACTER and BUREAU. Gregson’s approach was to look for likely candidate words, and with CWM, FRITZ  and then DESK looking promising, these were used to give a lead-in to attacking the remaining Down and Across words. The Down pangram turned out to be (in A to Z order of the answer letters) LYNX (ounce) JAB (stab) VUG (druse) DESK (bureau) CWM (valley) FRITZ (German) and QOPH (character), which made the Across pangram JYNX VELDT GOWF ZIMB QURSH PACK, and these provided the encoding for the grid entries.

Extra words, and grid entries, are indicated with [].

Across
1 Islanders mark one Christmas end of late November (7)
MANXMEN [FJZAFVZ] M (Mark) + AN (one) + XM (Christmas) + E (last letter of LATE) + N (November)
6 Central American leader of revolution, one in taxi (5)
CARIB [NJQTY] R (irst letter of REVOLUTION) + I (one) inside CAB (taxi)
10 [Druse] spy invents krypton shield (4)
SKRY [UOQC] Hidden in inventS KRYpton
12 From one in case, hint of fib (4, two words)
AS OF [JUIE] A one) + SO (in case) + F (first letter of FIB)
13 Governor backing international litigation (4)
WALI [PJWT] I (international) + LAW(litigation), all reversed
14 Busty girl holding cup (3)
TYG [RCL] Hidden in BusTY Girl
15 Beast seen in French committee getting kiss (9, three words)
VU QUANG OX [HSBSJZLIA] VU (French word for “seen”) + QUANGO (committee) + X (kiss)
16 Kitty pulled up statistics with no content (4)
PUSS [MSUU] PU (pulled up) + SS (first and last letters of STATISTICS)
17 Without energy, drop a sandal (4)
GETA [LVRJ] E (energy) inside GT (drop) + A
18 Dear oranges, primarily in July (3)
JOY [GIC] O (first letter of ORANGES) inside JY (July)
19 Market traders who throw around lot of gossip (11)
STALLINGERS [URJWWTZLVQU] SLINGERS (who throw) containing TALK (gossip) less last letter
21 A dwarf [German] breed contains male pygmy (5)
ATOMY [JRIFC] A + TOY (dwarf breed) containing M (male)
23 Chaotic bazaar, [valley] meeting place (6)
BARAZA [YJQJKJ] Anagram of BAZAAR
25 Future time of common welfare's ending (6, two words)
TO COME [RINIFV] T (time) + O’ (of) + COM (common) + E (last letter of WELFARE)
28 Bit of tarnish on my one [ounce] gold coin (5)
TOMAN [RIFJZ] T (first letter of TARNISH) + O’ (on) + M’ (my) + AN (on)
31 Con trick perhaps after Edmund's bamboozled (11)
DEFRAUDMENT [XVEQJSXFVZRC] Anagram of AFTER EDMUND
33 Headless terrapin causes expressions of surprise (3)
MYS [FCU] EMYS (terrapin), less first letter
34 Cheers tenor taking [stab] at acting (4)
TA-TA [RJRJ] T (tenor) + AT + A (acting)
36 A Greek [character] initially at the risk of conflict (4)
AGON [JLIZ] A + G (first letter of GREEK) + ON (at the risk of)
37 Doctor is gloomy about Rupert's back (9)
MYOLOGIST [FCIWILTUR] Anagram of IS GLOOMY + T (last letter of RUPERT)
38 Government [bureau] behind South Africa's direction change (3)
ZAG [KJL] G (Government) after ZA (South Africa)
39 Old Australian fish (4)
AGED [JLVX] A(Australian) + GED (fish)
40 John's finished a bit of soul-searching (4)
ARCH [JQND] Hidden in soul-seARCHing)
“John” being John Bunyan
41 Beheading bin Laden gets you distinguished title (4)
SAMA [UJFJ] OSAMA (bin Laden), less first letter
42 Choral piece may start to thrill (5)
MOTET [FIRVR] MOTE (may) + T (first letter of THRILL)
43 Group of six formal frames put back (7)
 SESTETT [UVURVRR] SET (formal) containing STET (put back)

Down
1 Hazards for the old queen amongst mounts (7)
RISQUES [FURMSJR] QU (queen) inside RISES (mounts)
2 Six jacketless women modelled sleeveless number (6)
EXOMIS [JOCSUR] Anagram of SIX + OME (middle letters of WOMEN)
3 Floozy, I hear, is periodically more dim (6)
FOZIER [ACHUJF] Hidden alternately in FlOoZy I hEaR
4 Survey again has mutton held in high praise (5)
REMAP [FJSLW] EM (mutton) inside RAP (high praise)
5 Difficult turn left card of maximum value (4)
HIGH [VUBV] Three meanings
6 Steep slopes, one goes to shelter in caves (7)
CLEEVES [NEJJZJR] LEE (shelter) for A (one) in CAVES
7 We haven't ultimately one idea for stewing cock (11, two words)
WEATHER VANE [QJLIVJFZLKJV] WE + anagram of HAVEN’T + E A R (last letters of ONE IDEA FOR)
8 Residential area as far as Washington's outskirts (6)
UPTOWN [TWICQK] UP TO (as far as) + WN (first and last letters of WASHINGTON)
9 Eg, Ping, Pang, Pong shine at end of Puccini (5)
BUFFI [YTAAU] BUFF (shine) + I (last letter of PUCCINI)
Ping, Pang and Pong coming from the opera Turandot
11 Protection for sailors overturned in Scottish law (11)
WAISTCLOTHS [QLURINECIVR] Anagram of SCOTTISH LAW
18 Lecture judge about term in law (3)
JAW [GLQ] J (judge) + A (about) + W (last letter of LAW)
20 Tuba's second beat? Disgusting sound! (3)
PAH [WLV] Second half of OOMPAH (sound of a tuba)
22 Ros tees off, subject of drama (7)
ORESTES [CFJRIJR] Anagram of ROS TEES
23 Rotten poet's ignoring rule (3)
BAD [YLX] BARD (poet)less R (rule)
24 Engaging amateur develops Latin-less tropes (7)
EVOVAES [JZCZLJR] A (amateur) inside EVOLVES (develops) less L (Latin)
26 Narrow passage that leads to room on inside (6)
THROAT [IVFCLI] THAT containing RO (first two letters of ROOM)
27 Ghanaian export - wicker boxes (3)
TWI [IQU] Hidden in exporT WIcker)
29 My little sister's downbeat (6)
THESIS [IVJRUR] THE (my) + SIS (short form of SISTER)
30 Chemical compounds strip head off sixpences (6)
ESTERS [JRIJFR] TESTERS (sixpences), less first letter
31 He challenges doctor about turning around answer (5)
DARER [XLFJF] DR (doctor) + RE (about) reversed, containing A (answer)
32 Tips for Rolfing instructor include supplement for massage (5)
REIKI [FJUDU] R I (first letters of Rolfing Instructor) containing EIK (supplement)
35 What an awkward person - look out! (4)
SUCH [RTNV] SLOUCH (an awkward person) less LO (look)