Crossword Genius

Note the fellow stripped for play (7)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

othello

'for play' is the definition.
(play by William Shakespeare)

'note the fellow stripped' is the wordplay.
'note' becomes 'oth' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
'stripped' means to look at the middle letters (outside letters removed).
The middle of 'fellow' is 'ello'.
'oth'+'ello'='OTHELLO'

(Other definitions for othello that I've seen before include "jealous husband" , "He opposed the Turkish" , "He killed his wife Desdemona" , "player from Stratford" , "Shakespeare's tragic Moor who killed his wife" .)

I've seen this clue in The Guardian.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app