Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2486 – Hints
Selected hints by Big Dave
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BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
A sunny puzzle for a sunny Sunday!
For the weekend prize crosswords I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them. A full analysis of this puzzle will be available at 12.00 next Friday, 5th June.
Some hints to get you started:
Across
1a Get away from exam, being first to finish? (8)
A charade of a word meaning to run away from and another meaning an exam give a word meaning fastest (first to finish)
11a Ideas, nevertheless, had by Eliot, initially (8)
These ideas come from combining a word meaning nevertheless and the first two initials of Thomas Stearns Eliot
12a American type, a chap disturbed by European (6)
This one was yesterday’s 1 across!
14a Skill shown by Ted Heath, say, with boats (10)
This skill, which could have been shown by Ted Heath or any other Prime Minister come to that, is actually a simple charade of synonyms of to say and boats
22a Angela Merkel, for example, listening to works of Schubert (6)
Here Angela Merkel is an example of a word that sounds like (listening to) Lieder (works of Schubert)
23a It’s an old craft, making glass (8)
This double definition looks harder than it is
24a English composer of high stature lives here (6)
A charade of high stature and lives gives this English composer
27a Churchman having tea without milk or sugar (8)
A nice charade of a colloquial word for tea followed by a word meaning without embellishment gives this churchman
Down
1d Information about stimulating stuff surfaces (6)
Just put a type of information around the stimulating drug called E(cstasy) and you get a word meaning surfaces
2d Station American in English college (6)
This London station comes from putting US (American) inside that English college that keeps cropping up in crosswords
7d Expert helping one see a topic in a different way (8)
This expert in helping you to see better is an anagram of A TOPIC IN
13d Person preparing actors for classic Western (10)
A nice cryptic definition which leads to the classic Western film starring John Wayne
16d People in Middle East upending king into river (8)
These people from the Middle East are derived from reversing (upending) Shakespeare’s most famous king inside the stretch of the River Thames that passes through Oxford
19d ‘Love in the fifties’ – work that’s inelegantly bound (6)
Put O (love) inside a few Ls (fifty in Roman numerals), add an abbreviation for work and you have a word one meaning of which is to bound about in an unco-ordinated, puppy-like manner
21d Frenchman in Resistance getting back outside (6)
This Frenchman is found by what you do when you want to back a horse around R(esistance)
it must be the heat as this is my feeblest attempt for weeks at any crossword. Despite the three star rating, my initial run through yielded only 10a & 17d ,and I got no further with my second or third. Turning to the hints, I was embarrassed not to have got 12a despite getting it yesterday but still can’t see 11a,14a (which I thought must end in ships but can’t because of 7d) or 27a . And I’d never heard of 24a. Oh dear.
Greenhorn, I don’t know if this is worth 4 stars for difficulty, but it is certainly a bit tricky…
Re. 11a. the answer starts with T and ends with S from TS Eliot, Now think of a synonym for ideas or things that you think.
Re. 14a Heath was a Politictian and a Prime Minister, what kind of craft (other than boats) would he be experienced in?
14a -so obvious, now. Still can’t get 14a and I forgot to say I couldn’t get 23a despite the hint. Peter Biddlecombe gave up on toughie 155 and I’m giving up on this one. I’ll look forward to the full analysis on Friday
OK – lets be more obvious…
11ahttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/ought
23a Think of a type of sherry glass
11a – Nevertheless = THOUGH !
The brain is addled so that the ekys don’t respond correctly. I meant to say that 11a across was now obvious but I can’t get 14a . I have figured out that it ends in craft but I can’t get the first bit.
Have thought of master, cabinet , leader, prime, first, sailing, even witch! Hopefully tomorrows will be easier
Hmm how many times must I state the obvious
And to think that I’d just got it -of course I thought to myself handicraft -now that’s a skill. Today I’ve been Man u against Barca – I’d throw my head in my arms but I’d probably miss.
11a Thoughtso!
Dave, what about some down hints, as this crossword is getting me a little bit down as well.15d especially
Kram
15d is what a procrastinator might say (3 words) and is also the name of someone who worships idols.