DT 26552 (Hints) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 26552 (Hints)

by Big Dave  

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26552 (Hints)

Big Dave’s Saturday Crossword Club

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As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them.

Don’t forget that you can give your assessment of the puzzle. Five stars if you thought it was great, one if you hated it, four, three or two if it was somewhere in between.

Could new readers please read the Welcome post before asking questions about the site.

Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also”.

A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions.

Across

1a           One who’s given up religion, a humourless condition (8)
Someone  who has abandoned their religion is a charade of A, an adjective meaning  humourless (2), which is usually followed with –faced, and a condition or situation

9a           Instruction to turn over state compound possibly harmful (8)
A three-letter abbreviation of an instruction to turn over is followed by a state in New England to get  any of a group of compounds of unpleasant taste and odour formed in putrefying animal and vegetable matter

11a         Landworker’s allotment failure (12)
This North American tenant farmer who gives a part of his produce as rent is a charade of an allotment and a failure (usually in a phrase preceded by “come a”)

21a         Crowd see round end of bar in pub (8)
Start with a crowd or multitude and follow it with a three-letter see or diocese (well known in Crosswordland!) around R (end of baR) to get a pub or tavern

28a         Distinction shown by modern artist from ‘ere (8)
This word meaning distinction or fame is a charade of a modern artist (her with the unmade bed!) and an adverb meaning from here without the “h”

Down

2d           One has wide knowledge being amply hot quizzically (8)
Someone whose knowledge covers a wide variety of subjects (another name for a cruciverbalist?) is an anagram (quizzically) of AMPLY HOT

6d           A certain type restraining tense hanger-on (8)
Put a well-known non-proportional printer typeface around T(ense) to get a royal hanger-on

19d         Word puzzle like clues above mostly getting habitual response (8)
This word puzzle, in which the first (or last) letters of each line spell a word or sentence, is a charade of most of the word which describes the clues above (or more probably to the left!) of this one and an habitual response

25d         Can’t stand sticky heat (4)
An verb meaning can’t stand or dislike intensely is an anagram (sticky) of HEAT

The Crossword Club is now open. Feel free to leave comments.

Please don’t put whole or partial answers or alternative clues in your comment, else they may be censored!

The Quick crossword pun: {summer} + {salted} = {somersaulted}
I’m not sure if it was intentional, but the last two across clues give {pepper} + {Rooney} = {pepperoni}

53 comments on “DT 26552 (Hints)”

  1. Enjoyed this one. Liked 11a and 21a. 13a took me back to ‘Tales From Shakespeare’. 9a was totally new to me (though able to be worked out). Thanks to all involved today.

  2. A very enjoyable Saturday puzzle – I did have a bit of an ‘oh heck’ moment after the first read through but it soon all fell into place. Thanks to our Mystery Setter and to BD.

  3. Most enjoyaable, Alan Sherman sang about 9a in Hello Mudda hello Fadah…
    I went hiking with Joe Spivy
    He developed poison ivy
    You remember Leonard Skinner
    He got ………. poisoning last night after dinner.
    Thanks Mr Mysteron and BD

    2. Funnily enough, I had exactly the same thought. I remember asking my father what the word was – he spelled it out for me and I was then required to look at the definition in Chamber’s. Some fifty years later, that knowledge has been of use to me! This was a thoroughly enjoyable puzzle and almost worth five stars.

      1. Me too.

        My parents had the single, and I loved it when I was a kid. “I’ve been here one whole day” got me every time.

        1. Rats.
          Despite being in the Alan Sherman fan club, I have never heard of 9a.
          Even with the hint and all the letters in from the other clues it took me five minutes to solve it.

          I’m putting this down as a moral victory- I WOULD have solved it if Mystery Setter hadn’t used a hard word! Honest!

          …..wanders off, muttering………

  4. Manageable and enjoyable tho’ stuck on 9a for a while until I cottoned on to the 1st three letters.
    Thanx to Compiler and BD.

  5. I really enjoyed today’s puzzle favs 13a 23a and 27a, 3d 19d and 12d. amongst other clever clues. Thanks to setter and B.D. for the explanatory blog, needed help to solve 9a and 6d

  6. I highly recommend today’s NTSPP which has several laugh out loud moments and is well worth a go.

    1. Trying to get some spring cleaning done (but not doing too well at it I must say) so might give it a try later. Thanks for thisl.

  7. I enjoyed that even though there were lots of 4 letter words. Gott stuck for a while on 3d as had the wrong first part of 13a for ages – once I figuered that out it made life a lot easier.

    Thanks for the hints BD and thanks for an excellent puzzle.

  8. I enjoyed this, and worked my way through it under the hairdryer with a bit of essential help from Chambers. I don’t really understand how 18a works, and due to the dullness of my brain 9a was last in. 20a also took me a long time, but my favourite clue was 3d. Thanks to the compiler and to BD as always. :-)

    1. 18a – double definition. For ‘turned to’ think ‘rotated’. (Took me a while too).

  9. I found this a walk in the park compared to last Saturday, but I enjoyed it. Despite the ecclesiastical old chestnut that stood out like a sore thumb, my favourite clue for the surface reading is 21a. 4d also made me smile.
    Thanks to setter, and to BD.

  10. Another one who thought ‘flipping heck’ on first run through but in the end everything turned out fine. Thanks to the setter and BD.

  11. Highly enjoyable and not too taxing! Just right for a Saturday lunchtime before the cup final.
    I liked 1a as for some reason it made me laugh.
    Thanks to the setter and BD.
    Off to watch the footy now – come on Potters!

  12. Good afternoon folks. Only managed to look at this after shifting a ton of stone chips – aching limbs but the garden looks great! Anyway, after cursing that the puzzle was again relegated from its proper place in the paper I enjoyed this. I particularly liked 13a and 3d.

    9a was a new word for me too.

    3 points for The Baggies, jobs done so a good day thus far.

  13. Oh well, 0-0 at half time is OK. I think City have had the better of it but I still live in hope for my adopted 2nd team.
    At least my first team got the required point today!

  14. A good, enjoyable one compared to last Sat (which is still lying unattempted).

    Thanks to setter & reviewer

  15. Don;t really agree with 18a. Surely the past tense of ‘Turned to’ is spelt with a ‘u’ rather than an ‘a’ ?

    1. Chambers gives the answer as an archaic alternative for the past tense, i.e. turned (the “to” goes with bridge).

  16. I found this to be a lot easier than last Saturday: only 9a made me wail and gnash my teeth, but the clue was more than fair, it was just a new word to me. 13a possibly my favourite. When I started off I wrote 2d in 1a and Mrs Tub kindly cut out bits of paper and stuck them in the boxes for me so I could carry on. You won’t find that under ‘love’ in the dictionary, but it should be there.

    1. Mr Tub – I think you should buy Mrs Tun a small gift as a thank you for her dedication. Above and beyond the call of duty, what?
      Might I suggest a small gif for yourself? Perhaps a new pencil might be in order! One with a nice little eraser at the end.
      LOL – Hope you’re all having a good weekend.

      1. Opps of course I meant Mrs Tub!
        It’s getting a bit dim on our naya and pommers is too mean to turn the light on so I can’t see my keyboard properly!

        1. I’ve taken your advice pommette and bought one of those pens with magic ink and a rubber on the end!

  17. At the risk of repeating comments from the rest of the world…. an enjoyable crossword of middling difficulty with 9a being a sticking point.

    Thank you to the Setter and to BD for the review. No real standout clues for me, but I think I liked 3d best because it’s such a nice word.

    N

  19. Enjoyable Saturday puzzle with some nice clues.
    Favourites were : 9a, 23a, 6d & 24d.

  20. Hi all,

    At first glance l thought this was okay but am a bit perlexed with some e.g. 3d which a lot of people have said they really enjoyed. I need to become more familiar with the pointers embedded in the clues. About 30% thru’ and aiming to beat my last week’s personal record.

    Didn’t help that l spent a lot of time faffing with my laptop thinking l’d done something to it earlier only to realise my network connect was playing up.

    I will get better. I will.

    carrie

    1. Hi Carrie – stick with this site and you will get better! And quickly too. Look at me – not long ago I didn’t always manage to complete a DT cryptic but now BD lets me blog the Wednesday puzzles! How good is that?

      Re 3d. Its a slightly complicated wordplay. You need a ‘bold swordsman’ of the Errol Flynn type. Take W(on) and insert into a band (which you may wear), follow with a type of fastening (of a sandal perhaps) and follow that with a usual abbreviation for King. The words follow the order of the clue but the pointers for the trcky bits are IN (for win IN band) and ON telling you the King bit comes at the end of the fastening.
      Hope that makes sense, I’m glad I didn’t have to blog it!

      1. Thank you for your help on that Pommers.

        Got there in the end and finished before midnight so very happy. Really enjoying the challenge of the DT on Saturday.

        Question…when you say you blog the Wednesday puzzle can you explain what you mean?

        carrie

        1. Well done – not the easiest Saturday puzzle IMO so a good solve by you!

          As for the ‘Blog’ – it means I write the “Hints and Tips” review for the Wednesday puzzle (apart from one week in four when it’s done by a guy called Falcon). On a weekday, as it’s not a prize puzzle, you get a hint for every clue and also the answer if you’re really stuck and choose to reveal it. Many people have said it’s great for learning so why not try it?

    2. I can’t believe how much I have improved since I found this website . I actually finished it today (first time ever!) Liked the long clues . Was it very easy? Good luck Carrie.

      1. Well done Jane. No, it wasn’t the easiest Saturday puzzle but I have known harder ones from time to time.

        1. *hi-fives Jane*

          I think crypticsue is right. This was by no means the easiest of Saturday puzzles, so well done. If you finished this one, you’re capable of finishing the majority of DT back pagers. Practice is everything.

      2. Well done Jane – this was certainly not ‘very easy’! OK, as CS says, not the hardest but if you completed this one you are a ‘Solver’!!!! Keep at it – the Toughies await your attention!

  22. As Kath said yesterday – where is the ‘After Eight’ Club’?
    Have they all drowned in a sea of melting chocolate mints after a record warm April?

  23. Enjoyed today – and I even got to solve quite a bit of it without any help from the pommers. So thanky mystery setter.
    Thanks also to BD for the hints – well blogged 6d, really “neat”, you’ll have to give me some hints and tips on formatting the blog. I’m still learning as you well know.

  24. I know it’s late in the day (almost tomorrow in fact for you folks in blighty) but I’ve been reading a few old blogs – looking for something I mentioned a while back. Can’t find it – hey ho.
    But I did find a comment by Franny that said “I’m beating on the CC door to be let back in!”
    How apt for me too. Since I completet a couple of Rufuses (or is it Rufi ?) several months back I have not done it again. Often only 1 defeats me – but defeat me they do. And when it come to Jay, RayT and Giovanni I’m still waiting to complete one on my own.
    So – what I’m trying say I WANT TO FORM A NEW CLUB where I have some friends!
    How about NQCC (Not Quite Clueless Club) or CCG (Clueless Club Graduates).

    I’ll post this again on Monday too when hopefully more will be around but do I have any takers?

    1. Yes – I’m in!! Better late than never! :grin: If I’m too late to be “heard” today I’ll reply again tomorrow.

  25. Anyway, apart from the Alan Sherman fiasco, I enjoyed this.
    1A was a real joy- great use of a 2 letter word.

  26. Having got the Sunday puzzle done, went back to the largely blank LH side of this one while I vegged in front of a Morse and finally got there. Last one in was 17d and no idea of the construct involved.

    Thanks to setter and BD, needed several of the hints for this one too.

    1. The first two words of the clue relate to the majority of your answer and this, of course, is followed by the L for litre.

  27. Have been away for weekend in Cardiff – sister-in law’s birthday – so have only just looked at this. Thought that it was quite difficult but have finally finished it. Simply have to comment on 9a and will probably have to add this little bit to Sundays comments – how stupid, or ignorant, can one be – I always thought that Leonard Skinner got “tummy poisoning last night after dinner” and assumed that it was some strange “Americanism” for “gut rot”! :oops:

  28. Visitor this weekend so started late. Finished except for 26a, looks like ‘opposite view’.

    1. 26a A voice regularly expressed in ballot-box (4)
      To get this singing voice you need to take regular letters from ballot-box.

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