DT 26720 (Hints) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 26720 (Hints)

by crypticsue  

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 26720 (Hints)

The Saturday Crossword Club

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Big Dave is having a well-earned day off from the blog – he has gone to the Sloggers & Betters Convention in Derby.  I do enjoy a nice S&B meeting but Derby is just too far away and so  I have risen to the challenge and, as is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, an assortment of clues have been selected and hints provided 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           Sent down in due course (5,4)
A double definition  – firstly an expression relating to the sentence a prisoner would receive if he was sent down, and secondly one meaning  that something would happen in due course or eventually.

11a         Get back about 100 publishers(6)
To get money back or obtain compensation – the usual crosswordland preposition meaning about, the Roman number for one hundred and the abbreviated name by which a  famous publishing company is known.

28a         Cape maybe concealing Oriental floral display (6)
The sort of floral display that appears on front doors over Christmas –  The Cape which is the most north-westerly point of the UK mainland with E (eastern or Oriental) inserted.

29a         Hired the red car out (10)
An anagram (out) to finish the acrosses – THE RED CAR rearranges to make another way of saying hired or leased.

Down

2d           Line on map is round and local(6)
A line on a weather map showing places of equal pressure is a charade of IS (from the clue) , the  letter of the alphabet which is completely round and another word for your local drinking establishment.

14d         Duck on paper cover(9)
A cosy bed cover –  the UK’s  heaviest duck  followed by an adjective meaning in writing or on record, in black and white.

15d         Removed case under dish in some shallow water (6, 3)
A stretch of water, presumably not as shallow as the deepest oceans, is a charade of an Indian dish (named after the dish in which it is cooked/served) followed by an anagram (removed) of CASE, all split 6,3 to get the solution.

24d         State’s wholly on edge after large number left (24)
A  adjective meaning wholly or everything followed by (on) EDGE after the large number (think Roman numerals!) has been removed.   The ‘s is meant to confuse, I think, it did me  and I bet it does lots of you!

The trouble with giving hints for this puzzle is that, as I said to Gnomey the other day, once you remember that Cephas likes a nice anagram, you shouldn’t have any problems at all – the anagram count  just squeaks into the Gazza ‘toe’ definition of acceptability!   However, if there are other clues for which you would like hints, please let me know and I will see what I can do.

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: {inn} + {dee}  + {Anne} + {OCEAN}= {Indian Ocean}

86 comments on “DT 26720 (Hints)”

  1. Welcome to the hotseat Sue.

    Sadly my last minute trip to Derby (purchased the bloody train tickets yesterday) has had to be cancelled as I am off to the holiday home at Calderdale/Hudderfield Hospital with a rotten kidney infection.

    Sadly haven’t been able to get into the website again. So not had the puzzle. Ho hum.

    1. Sorry to hear you are poorly again. I will see if I can get into the site and send you a pdf.

  2. Took me nearly three hours … Not to solve but to get on to the site to download.

    Hope that everyone has fun in Derby. Sorry that I cannot be there :(

    Excellent crossword today so thanks to the setter and to CS for the hints.

  3. I was a late riser today so got in OK at 9 O’Clock. Ditto the above, very enjoyable with a couple to get you thinking. Thanks to the setter and to CS for the H&T!

  4. Hello sue and well done, some really good hints there today, sitting on the fence with this one, did I like it? not sure a 3* for me but don’t really know why, some nice illustrations, I do admire you sitting in the hot seat :-)

    1. Morning Mary, I enjoyed this one as I felt it fitted the Saturday Prize Puzzle brief very well. With regard to illustrations, I have had one email complaint from a fellow blogger (and it wasn’t Gazza :) ) complaining that I hadn’t given an illustrated hint for 8d :D

  5. No real trouble until 24d. The ” ‘s ” did confuse and I’m pleased to have my (lightly entered) answer confirmed. Mind you, with the checking letters, there wasn’t a lot else that it could have been.

  6. Thank you for the hints today CT, did not need them but do like reading the reviews. Best clues for me were 15d,16d and 24d. Thanx to Compiler and again to CT.

  7. Took a long time looking for the meaning of ‘paper’ in 14d (thinking the first 5 letters were ‘on’ the last 4). Liked 10a, not overly convinced by 7d. Thanks to all involved today.

      1. I assumed that you had formerly been a member of a Society (or club) and now were taking action to become one again.

        But in return I have an answer for 9A that I cannot fathom at all!

        2. 9A “Address where one left ripening peaches” (6). The answer is a word meaning an address. Make an anagram (ripening?!) of peaches after removing the a (one left).

      2. I too looked hard at my answer, after re-reading the clue, and thought the same as both of you. I hate to disagree with Proxilic but I wouldn’t have used the word ‘excellent’ about this puzzle; I thought it was average.

            1. Sorry, Caravaggio – I should have noticed the avatar.
              (But I do agree with alanjon’s assessment)

      4. It’s a double definition if you split it 2-7 it means, as njm says renewing a lapsed subscription to a club. As a 9 letter word it means retorting or replying, so getting back.

          1. I have made a very nice cherry cake so I don’t mind :) In my defence, I did start very early this morning while everyone else was havnig a lie in.

              1. early drive to newsagents, crossword, hints and tips up, three loads washing, housework, cherry cake, macaroni cheese for lunch, large beef casserole in oven, answering requests for help so that I can go in the naughty corner and eat cake… just got the ironing and the Times, Guardian, FT and Indy crosswords to get sorted before Strictly.

                  1. We’ve gone off lemon cake – I had a sudden yearn for a nice old fashioned fruity cake with cherries in it. I think the rest of you have done quite a lot of work too but it’s nice to see that the usual anarchy that breaks out when BD leaves Hanley Swan has been missing this week.

                    1. And you couldn’t wait a month. I ‘fed’ both cakes this morning … about 1/2 a bottle of brandy will be gone into them by mid-December. [Where’s the ‘drunk’ smiley when you need it?]

  8. It would seem that my alter ego has posted that comment and I don’t know how it has happened…

    1. Sorry! I’d better explain what has prompted that comment. On my screen, for whatever reason, it showed that I had posted a comment, under a different name, and that comment was awaiting moderation but it has not appeared.

  9. Not too hard today. Smiled at 10a, not convinced by 22d. Liked the grid, since solving the central 3×3 helped get into all parts. I agree that the number of anagrams just barely scrapes into the reasonable, but it does reduce the difficulty. Thanks to compiler and to Big Dave (who helped me with a mental block over 24d).

  10. Harumphed of Henfield !! Not only is today’s crossword relegated from the back page, but it has been replaced by a questionable pose of a chap in a tea plantation! Once located and solved, the puzzle was fairly typical Saturday fodder – no complaints, but no stand-out moments. Incidentally, CS, I think that the first 4 clues in the Quickie are linked.

        2. Even these were frowned upon by the Victorians – far too suggestive!
          Although when I saw the comment via email I thought that there might be a collection of Skateboard ‘fails’ posted!

  11. Another super cryptic polished off before the teapot went cold. Also unconvinced by 22d.

    I wish the Telegraph would name the setter in the digital edition so that due thanks can be made.

    1. The setters for the back page puzzles are never named. We know from comments that Cephas (Peter Chamberlain) has made that he and another setter alternate most Saturdays. By rights today’s should have been one of Cephas’s crosswords.

      2. I decided it was a Cephas (a) because it should be him and (b) because of the abundant anagrams and his usual clever indicators thereof.

  12. Enjoyed today’s once I managed to get it! A good few smiles along the way. Cannot fathom my answer for 22d apart from the end of snow & reference to three months. Anyone help?

        1. Look at the Captain’s hint below this. The first letter is the end of snow and the remaining 5 mean cover

  13. I am really enjoying the puzzle today. I wonder why the Saturday crossword always seems to be set by Mysteron because I tend to find that they are the best of the week. If it the same person each week he should name himself

    1. It is usually Cerphas one week and then the Saturday Mysteron the next week and so on. The last few weeks were slightly different because of it being the 25th Anniversary of Cephas’ first DT puzzle.

  14. Took 3 sessions to complete but a very enjoyable offering with 1a going in last. Even with Sues excellent clue I couldn’t see it until it finally bit me in the rear. Most enjoyable clue for me was 16d, simple in construction but with a nice misdirection. Thx to all concerned. See you all in a couple of weeks as we are off the Koh Samui today for our 30th wedding anniversary.

    1. Happy anniversary – I must tell Mr CS about your anniversary celebration destination so he can start saving up. :)

    2. How lovely – never been there but daughters have and we’ve seen their photos – SO envious – have a wonderful time … :smile:

  15. Got interrupted by visitors halfway through and lost thread, but picked up easily. It was quite enjoyable and well done CS.

  16. Thanks for the hints CS – I needed 28a which had totally foxed me! Otherwise thoroughly enjoyed this one. Agree with you about the ” ‘s” in 24d – very confusing and quite unnecessary, IMO! Threw things initially by putting “eve” in 17a but eventually sorted that. Also puzzled for ages over the last 4 letters of 14d (even though I’d put them in!) so thank you for explaining that – feel that is a tad beyond cryptic, but what the …., eh? Overall very enjoyable. Thanks to setter.

  17. Enjoyed this one – faves : 10a, 19a, 27a, 2d, 5d & 15d.

    Another reasonable day but cloudy with a strong west wind. Gets pitch black here at 17.00hrs (5PM).

  18. Thanks to the setter & to Crypticsue for the hints, which for once I didn’t need. I quite enjoyed this, favourite was 21a. Unfortunately I couldn’t get to Derby today, due to a surfeit of ale before & after, but not during, Newbury races :-)

  19. Hi folks. Got into this late as watching my son play rugby followed by chores, followed by calls from work then time to listen to the football commentary. This was a typical Saturday challenge my favourite being 10a although it is a tad weak. I am not too keen on grids with a centre collection of 3 letter answers! Oh, and I like the crossword on the back page! Moan over. Time for a nice glass of burgundy.

    1. I too prefer the crossword on the back page but didn’t grump too much this morning as I did like the picture in the advertisement! :D

  20. Finished, apart from 1a, despite CS’s hint. Can anybody help (if there is still anybody there). I thought that it was a first class crossword and I thoroughly enjoyed it – 10a was very clever as were a number of other clues

    1. Think of ‘sent down’ as meaning having been allocated a period in jail by a judge. The second word is one of the many slang terms for a period of imprisonment.

        1. Agree – Gazza can always be relied upon to pick up and help the late stragglers. Not very happy about 1a – husband and I both spent ages on it – decided that it had to be what it was but STILL not terribly happy … ! Is it me or is it a bit of a weedy clue? Anyway, thanks Gazza. :smile:

  21. Solved today’s without need for a dictionary..which suggests that this was a bit easier than normal. 8d was my favourite but a few were a bit basic.Suppose we needed an easy one after a few harder ones of late.

  22. VERY late here today – spent most of day in garden and a while sorting out my ancient Mum who is a bit of a problem again. Didn’t look at crossword until after dark – most of it went in quite quickly – the last two took a while and a bit of help from husband (a non-cryptic solver and already cooking our supper) – 1a and 7d. Didn’t have trouble with 24d. Unlike an earlier commenter I DO like the funny little three letter intersecting clues in the middle. I DON’T like the answers that have **** like the third word of 5d when a more common and better known expression would be “your”. Favourites today – 10, 17 and 19a and 23d. With thanks to the setter, to CS for the hints and to Gazza for picking up the stragglers again!

    Do hope that everyone in Derby has had as good a day as I had at Liverpool Street a few weeks ago. :smile:

    1. Hi Kath, I think you’ll find that “ones” is always used in Cryptics with this type of clue, I think it’s convention. I’ve never seen “your” used.

      2. I think Heno would be fine about 95% of the time but there is no law against ‘your’. I seem to recall a dsicussion somewhere and one of the setters chipped in that they would certainly use ‘your’ if the checking letters fitted.

  23. Thanks for the hints. Managed all except 7 down – got it now thank you. Enjoyed this one. Getting a little faster now.

  25. Many thanks Sue…on both counts! Cruisenuts….what’s the abbreviation for air-conditioning?

    I have a few ‘clues’

    Telegraph online crosswords (3,3,3,7)

    Telegraph crossword IT support (7)

    Telegraph customer communication (3-8)

    he said grumpily.

  26. Thanks Roger with 16D, last one 23D. I can’t make sense of clue if I have 25, 27 and 29 accross right. Thanks

    1. 23d Most of garment used to deaden sound (6)
      Start with a sort of scarf and remove the last letter to leave a verb meaning to deaden sound.

  27. Over generous rating by Dave of Saturday’s xword and not helped by shortage of across hints and imporoper definiition of 19a ‘certainly’ – especially confusing the cryptic element of the clue ! Still can’t fathom out 13a ? Away for the weekend so late catching up on Sunday evening.

    Terence Harvey

    1. Firstly, Dave neither gave a rating nor provided the hints for this puzzle.

      19a -the definition ‘certainly’ is the first definition of this expression given in Chambers.

      13a is a hidden word – a musical adjective meaning not referred to any scale or tone, ie without a key, is hidden in co at on a l ine.

  28. Finished at last. Only started this afternoon due to attendance at Derby yesterday and difficulty accessing web.Thank you CS for sterling work in BD’s absence. Favourite clues 1 and 10a

    Moderate enjoyment of crossword, thank you setter

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