DT 26684 (Hints) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 26684 (Hints)

by Big Dave  

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26684 (Hints)

Big Dave’s Saturday Crossword Club

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Many thanks to Phil McNeill for providing today’s puzzle, which can be downloaded from the previous post.

As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select an assortment of clues, including some of the more difficult ones, 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

3a           Bad-tempered taxi driver carrying Queen (6)
This word meaning bad-tempered is created by putting a taxi driver around the single letter abbreviation of the Latin for Queen

11a         Credit to English concealing strategic move in game (4-4-3)
Start with a slang word for credit and TO E(nglish) then insert a strategic move or change of policy to get the American version of noughts and crosses

22a         One often found in church, leader of Catholics, tackled sin vigorously (11)
Usually more than one of these can be found in a church – the initial letter (leader) of Catholics is followed by an anagram (vigorously) of TACKLED SIN

30a         Facts and figures about university show prestige (6)
Put facts and figures around U(niversity) to get a word meaning prestige or importance

Down

1d           Fight in yard (4)
A double definition – a fight or a yard or long beam on a mast

12d         Those wanting to save money caught fish put in piles (11)
To get these miserly people who want to save money start with C(aught) and then put a large marine fish of the ray family inside piles or mounds

18d         Carrier for young fish I catch (8)
This carrier for a young child is a charade of a sea fish of the sea perch family, I from the clue and a word meaning to catch or trap

26d         Settles French country (4)
A double definition – settles a bill or the French for country

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: {marly} + {Beaune} + {cricket} + {club} = {Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)}

76 comments on “DT 26684 (Hints)”

  1. Thought today’s was going to be tough but once started things fell nicely into place. Best clue for me def 27a, made me smile. Remember having to look after the schools during my daughters school hols, what a totally pointless pet, didn’t move for 3 weeks! Not sure I still fully understand 9a. Many thx to the setter for a good start to the weekend.

    2. 9a split the answer 2,3,6 and you have two foreign articles (French and German) and a word meaning wore down.

  2. Many thanks to our Mysteron for a gentle start to the weekend. This was one of those crosswords that proves that it does not have to be fiendish to be enjoyable.

  3. What a lovely crossword right on my wave length for a change, thank goodness, I did it whilst listening to the rugby, couldn’t bare to watch it and I’m not going to say a word about the ref either *******!
    Hopefully Liverpool will hammer Man U today, then I might feel a bit better!
    Back to the crossword, lots I liked today 9a, 11a, 27a, 28a, 6d and lots more, the only one I once again stupidly couldn’t see although I had the answer was 1d!!! so thanks for that Dave :-)
    Beautiful suuny day here today not a cloud in the sky

  5. Beautiful sunny day here too although setting off for our walk in the woods was delayed by having to find the scraper to remove the first frost of the year from the car windscreen.

    A very enjoyable Mysteron puzzle – no particular favourites – but thank you to him and BD too.

    Don’t let the fact that the NTSPP is an Alphabetical puzzle put you off. I hadn’t done many of them before this one and found it most user-friendly. I’ll comment on it more in the right place :)

  6. A pleasant start to the weekend. Thanks to the Mysteron & to BD for the clues which were not needed for a change.

    I’ve got the game downloaded to watch this afternoon. I don’t know the score but can guess from Mary’s comments combined with the local grocer’s plus my wife letting slip that a player, with a decidedly non French surname, had been sent off that I’m going to have a similar experience to last Saturday. We are totally 2d in this household apart from the French that is.

      2. Actually, Mary, Alain Rowland has an Irish father and a French mother and, although we don’t like it, I understand that, whilst it wasn’t a spear tackle, it was a dangerous tackle and the red card was correct – which just goes to prove that the three studio pundits all got it wrong… And I agree with your previous comments!

        1. I just think Cara, in the spirit of the game, the tackle wasn’t malicious and a yellow card would have been more appropriate

            1. Thank you for correcting me, Dave, and I also found that I’d spelled M. Rolland’s name incorrectly as well! I’m sure that a commentator, in the past, has got it the wrong way round too. They’re just kicking off at Anfield, Mary, and Rooney’s on the bench…

    2. Re 28 – take the last letter of “furniture” and then add a four letter word meaning thin, or skeletal, – definition is a kind of dark wood.

  9. I thought this was pretty straightforward – enjoyed doing it very much. Was then left with plenty of time to sort out our chaotic garage. :sad: Needed doing as first delivery of wood coming this afternoon and not enough room to store it.
    Lots of clues that I thought were really good – perhaps best of all, for me, was 17a. Also 3, 11 and 22a and 4 and 6d.
    With thanks to the setter and BD.
    Beautiful day here too although quite frosty this morning. Have a good weekend everyone.

      1. This site cheers me up, I take advantage of the hints most days. There are always one or two that beat me. Thanks for the welcome.

  11. Great to have the Puzzle site running smoothly again. Getting the crossword downloaded in an instant is almost as rewarding as completing it and this was a great wee Saturday morning treat. Glad I didn’t watch the rugby, it sounds too much of a strain.

    1. It is said Scrabo that it is only running smoothly because most of us now download our puzzle on this site and therefor the volume on ‘clued down’ is much less, which it appears to cope with!

      1. Well Mary I have had two trouble free days and am hoping that this is the trend. But we shall see. Still it makes for a nice start to the day when the technology works.

  12. Pleasant but not difficult puzzle.
    Faves : 11a, 17a, 25a, 5d. 7d, 13d & 18d.

    Now going out in the lovely sunshine.

  13. Sorry about the result Mary but with only 14 men it really was asking a bit too much of them. Didn’t see the game but it sounds as if you should have won if only ………………

    However, thanks for the hints BD and with them I’ve almost finished for the first time in months but I could do with help on 20a, not up on goblins and fairies, and /or 21d which has me totally stumped.

    2. 20a Goblin sets heart of fairies in bad feeling (6)
      You need to insert the middle letter (heart) of fairies into a word meaning ill-nature or malice.

    3. 21d Remove sleazy venue’s permit finally (6)
      The definition is remove. It’s a sleazy venue (a nightclub for example) + the ‘S and the last letter of permit.

      1. Thanks Gazza you’ve made my weekend, this is the first time I’ve finished one for many, many months !

        Hope yours is as good as mine will be now that’s off my mind !

  14. I’ve got one left and l cannot get it. 5d…..can someone help please and put me out of my misery

    1. 5d Top Gear to such as Father Ted, best art I broadcast (5)
      Think what church Father Ted belonged to and what their clergy wear on their heads. It’s an anagram.

      1. Thank you so much gazza, l thought it was an anagram but was thinking about two TV programmes, completely off course. Now l can enjoy the gorgeous sunshine carrie

  15. It’s good to be back and find accessible crosswords both on the blog and (miracle) Clued Up, though this morning, Dave had today’s puzzles, but Clued Up was still on yesterday. Still, it’s an improvement on the past three months. I got thoroughly stuck on 1d, as I wasn’t thinking nautically, but otherwise no particularly problematic clues. Favourites were 27a and 3d.

  16. I fully sympathise Mary, that man should never be allowed to ref another game ever again, disgraceful!

    1. My sympathies as well! Monsieur Rolland spoilt the whole game! If only those kicks had……..Oh! Well!

      Ps. Nice crossword today.

  17. I find that one measure of ease is when I enter the answers to anagrams without realising there’s an anagram in the clue. Or maybe that’s just familiarity.

    The Welsh losing makes a clean sweep of my incorrect predictions for the Northern hemisphere side … sorry to say.

  18. I’m due in the pub at 5 and still have 8a to go. Is it one of those musical terms that I always have to look up?

    1. Got it now: it’s amazing what happens once you read the clue…felling very silly now.
      Thanks to the setter and to BD for the hints.
      Cheers!

  19. nice crossword today, but I seem to be the only person to be having trouble with 6a. I have the first and third letters, i think, and the only answer i can put in is a lake in Italy.Help please !

  21. I managed to finish, but was anyone else surprised that the answer to 11a was 4-4-3? I’ve always known it by 3-3-3, which wouldn’t fit!

  23. Hello hello, is there anyone out there that has not yet drowned thier collective sorrows that can help me with 14d. This mornings events must have clouded my brain , as i don’t see a reference to anyone else having trouble with this one on the blog. Still be-reffed.

    1. 14d Call in the Spanish material that’s glossy (6)
      You want a hard glossy material. Insert a verb to call inside the Spanish for “the”.

  24. Good morning. Was not really up to responding yesterday after the Wales result – daylight robbery. I think France will be overwhelmed in the final whoever they play. Really disappointing. Oh! The crossword. I found it okay -there was nothing really that stood out in my book. I hope West Brom help to cheer me up today!

  25. If there’s anyone still out there can they please explain how 25a works. I can see the answer an old Greek Fable writer but what’s it got to do with “A recurring question”, I’ll just pause there to see if asking the question generates the answer………………………no, not working.

    1. 25a A recurring question for ancient storyteller (5)
      Start with the A from the clue and then reverse (recurring) a verb meaning to ask a question.

      Is recurring a fair reversal indicator? Chambers Crossword Dictionary lists recurrent, but I have my doubts.

      1. “recurring” – not fair – seems to indicate some sort of repetition.

        Maybe, Recurrent = running back in the opposite direction.

        However, Chambers has to recur : to revert (archaic)

        Wish I’d never bought the Big Red Book – Life was easier before.

    2. The more I look at this clue the less I like it. Question is a noun in the clue, but in this sense the word in the wordplay can only be a verb.

      1. Thanks Big Dave. I did think of that but dismissed it immediately on the grounds that recurring doesn’t mean reversed and pose doesn’t mean question.

    1. 15d Cancer perhaps — subject is about right (6)
      Here cancer is not a disease, but a line of latitude that marks the most northerly position at which the Sun may appear directly overhead at its zenith – to get there put a subject or theme around R(ight)

      19a Country ended test (8)
      An adjective meaning country, as in a country scene, is a charade of a word meaning ended and a verbal test

  28. Thanks Dave, Was going completely the wrong way with 15d. Looking for name of a country. Never heard of 19a but i do now.

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