Cassowary Crossing

For twenty years, give or take, I’ve been collecting exquisite clues – the best of British and US crosswords.

Unforgivably, I’d failed to note the source puzzle for half that time, meaning I carry a swag of cryptic gems extracted from a vacuum. Their owners, the papers: I don’t know. I feel a heel but the gems remain.

So with apologies to the progenitors, mainly the Times and Guardian setters, I have curated an A-to-Z gallery of 26 jewels form the year 2000, scheduled to run through the week.

As you’ll see, each answer begins with a different letter of the alphabet. See how many you can solve. But more importantly, treasure the anonymous treasure.

PREMIUM PICK OF 2000: A-M

[The letter preceding each clue is the answer’s initial.]

A) Tree and snake displacing Eden’s first pair (5) 

B) Stop at a humble home (8)

C) Sweater in pink emphasising the body (9) 

D) Bunch of keys found in trash (6)

E) Understanding middle of XXX (7)

F) Score ideal golf shot (5,4)

G) Gradually the upper classes change sides (6)

H) Cross part of lengthy bridge (6)

I) I eat after ten (6)

J) Practice answerable to ageism, sexism and nepotism! (4,3,3,4)

K) Magpie train to peck animal (12)

L) Rock and roll number absorbs me (9)

M) Farmer gets inside combine (5)

ANSWERS NEXT POST [N-Z]

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