The Week

[ebeohp]

4d. Tricky issue surrounding the northern rooms.
I have suites but do not understand why anyone explain please?
Thank you in anticipation

[cashier]

Anag issue and T(he)

[aelmpvw]

is northern an indicator/synonym for first?

[cashier]

Yes it's a down clue so north is top, or first letter.

[jonrudge]

Cashier's hint towards a correct answer may need to be explained a little more clearly. "…the northern" often appears in cryptics, yielding the letter t from the fact that Northerners (in England) often use "t'" in place of "the". ("Tricky issue" obviously implies an anagram of "issue".)