Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 27072
Hints and tips by Gazza
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment **
Giovanni has given us a very gentle workout today, in fact I can’t remember an easier one from him. Let us know how you fared.
If you want to see an answer just highlight the gap between the curly brackets under the clue. For those using a newfangled smart device there are some tips on how to do this in the FAQ.
Across Clues
4a Statement about Bond’s boss’s bad behaviour (8)
{MISCHIEF} – split as (1,2,5) this could be a statement identifying James Bond’s boss.
8a Central heating allowed as protection for a house (6)
{CHALET} – the abbreviation for central heating and a synonym for allowed with A between them (as protection for).
9a A twitching disorder follows small drink — it’s striking (8)
{DRAMATIC} – A (from the clue) and a facial twitching disorder follow a small drink of whisky.
10a Being poor, obtained pence for pocketing (8)
{DEPRIVED} – a verb meaning obtained or extracted with the abbreviation for pence inserted (for pocketing).
11a Broadcast making one irritated (3,3)
{PUT OUT} – double definition.
12a Come together, finding a form of solace in church (8)
{COALESCE} – an anagram (a form) of SOLACE goes inside one of the usual abbreviations for church. After 4a and ‘solace’ here I looked for other 007 references, but in vain.
13a I see old boy, someone on the tennis court? (8)
{OBSERVER} – the abbreviation for an old boy is followed by someone starting a point on the tennis court.
16a Concern for a financial premium (8)
{INTEREST} – double definition.
19a Leaders of national party in cheerful female celebration (3,5)
{HEN PARTY} – the leading letters of N(ational) and P(arty) go inside a synonym of cheerful. It seems a bit sloppy to have one of the constituents of the answer in the wordplay.
21a Saint suffering setback, getting feeble inside, twitches (6)
{TWEAKS} – reverse (suffering setback) the two-letter abbreviation for saint and insert (getting … inside) an adjective meaning feeble.
23a Control report about good university (8)
{REGULATE} – a verb meaning to report or describe contains the abbreviations for G(ood) and U(niversity).
24a Something very small and new leading to change of routine (8)
{NEUTRINO} – this is a sub-atomic particle. N(ew) is followed by an anagram (change) of ROUTINE.
25a Fancy being overwhelmed by scorn at Eton! (6)
{ORNATE} – hidden word.
26a Decapitate dull principal! (8)
{DEADHEAD} – a verb meaning to decapitate (in the flower garden rather than on the scaffold) is a charade of an adjective meaning dull or lifeless and a principal or boss.
Down Clues
1d Carriage churning up one path (7)
{PHAETON} – an anagram (churning up) of ONE PATH produces an open four-wheeled carriage.
2d Make more than one rise up — all possibly (9)
{PLURALISE} – an anagram (possibly) of RISE UP ALL.
3d Last two of these vats will be set up in the bars (6)
{STAVES} – the last two letters of (the)SE are followed by VATS then it’s all reversed (will be set up, in a down clue).
4d Ordinary position for cat’s-eyes? (6-2-3-4)
{MIDDLE-OF-THE-ROAD} – double definition. Cat’s-eyes were invented by Percy Shaw in 1934 after (it’s claimed) his car headlights picked up a cat walking towards him. Had the cat been walking away he might have invented the pencil sharpener.
5d Most keen to have a right nuisance quiet at the outset (8)
{SHARPEST} – A (from the clue), R(ight) and a nuisance or irritant are all preceded by a request to keep quiet.
6d Centre of planet with hydrogen rising to the top (5)
{HEART} – start with the name of our planet and move the chemical symbol for hydrogen to the beginning (top, in a down clue).
7d Record one French priest as ‘lover of good wine‘? (7)
{EPICURE} – string together a) an old vinyl record format, b) I (one, in Roman numerals) and c) a French word for a parish priest (without the acute accent).
14d Once again putting an end to selling (9)
{RETAILING} – double definition, the first semi-cryptic.
15d What could be wrongly represented as seediest UK region? (8)
{TEESSIDE} – Giovanni avoids howls of protest from the Middlesbrough area by inserting ‘wrongly’ in the clue. An anagram (wrongly re-presented) of the answer gives us SEEDIEST.
17d Out of the running these days, the woman with minimal energy (7)
{NOWHERE} – bring together a) an adverb meaning these days or at the present time, b) a feminine pronoun (the woman) and c) the smallest bit (minimal) of E(nergy).
18d Country embracing trade union law (7)
{STATUTE} – a country of nation containing (embracing) the abbreviation for trade union.
20d Useless revolutionary academic full of sentimentality (2,4)
{NO GOOD} – reverse (revolutionary) Giovanni’s usual academic and insert (full of) an informal word meaning excessive sentimentality or mawkishness.
22d Outside court a journalist functioned (5)
{ACTED} – A (from the clue) and the abbreviation for a senior journalist go around (outside) the abbreviation for court.
My favourite clue today was 4a. What did you like?
Today’s Quickie Pun: {LASSIE} + {CHEWED} = {LASSITUDE}
Definitely one of the more easier Friday puzzles, but quite enjoyable.
Thanks to Giovanni, and to Gazza.
The toughie put up more of a fight!
Had to look up 1d….I hovered around ‘pantheon’ for ages before realising it didn’t really make sense!
I remembered this word from sitting in a Dutton kit car once. Strange how you remember these things.
This was definitely one of the easier Friday puzzles but I would have nudged it towards ** for difficulty. I struggled for a ridiculous amount of time with 19 a because I was sure the answer could not be Party because the word was in the clue. Surely the ‘P’ abbreviation could have been found from a different word. Is it just me? Regds to all.
Another fun, though not too taxing, offering from the Don. 2D held me up for a while until the penny dropped that it was an anagram (guess the coffee hasn’t kicked in yet).
DT is back to putting adverts on the back page again – does anyone ever look at them? I register that there’s an advert there and promptly fold the page – seems like a waste of time to me, if they were inside the back page, I would see them as I turned over. Hum Ho.
As an I pad convert it is now easy to avoid the adverts altogether – But I agree the advertisers must know that a small ad next to the crossword gets far more notice from the puzzle solvers. Why not keep the crossword on the back page and devote the rest of the page to the advert – win win surely?
I agree that this is the probably the most straightforward Friday puzzle I’ve ever done. I think I’d give it another couple of stars for enjoyment – just occasionally whizzing through a crossword is good for the morale.
The only one that held me up briefly was 19a as I didn’t think we would have a word from the clue in the answer so, although I couldn’t explain it, I put night for the second word – wondered if high could be the cheerful bit but it just didn’t work.
I liked 4 and 26a and 6, 15 and 20d. I also liked gazza’s comment in the hint for 4d!
With thanks to Giovanni and gazza.
The ease of this one should give you plenty of time to have a go at the Toughie. I reckon that it’s ‘midweek’ rather than ‘Friday’ standard but it is very entertaining.
Thanks – I’ll have a go later – don’t think that I’ve ever tried an Elkamere.
maybe 19a was just an attempt at misdirection?
It certainly misdirected me for a while!!
Good morning gazza, thanks for the hints, I only needed them today to make sense of 4a, I just couldn’t see where the i came from, that clue and 6d my favourites today, a word I didn’t know at 24a. I never ever thought when I started doing these a few years ago that I would look forward to a Giovanni, either they have got slightly easier or I have actually got better! I used to find them the toughest of the week, however I now reserve that for RayT, Rufus still remains my firm favourite, although I do feel some of his puzzles have been more difficult of late, a two to three star for me, not a lot of perservation required today
PS Does anyone know how CS is getting on? I do hope she’s OK – it must be SO boring being tied by the leg and unable to do anything.
who’s got her tied by the leg!!! seriously all good wishes to sue x
Well, Giovanni in very benign mood! Still a bit of fun though so thanks to him and to Gazza for the review.
hello pommers good to have you back again, hope you feel ok now you are home
Right hand side went in as a read and write, left hand took a bit longer , but all done without hints or leccy aids, so it must have easier than usual.
Thanks to the 2Gs for the entertainment.
I found it a definite puzzle of four corners today Colmce
Delightful puzzle and managed to solve it fairly swiftly without any aids which added to the sense of achievement. Agree with comments re 19. I had Thatch for 8 across which misled me for a while. Lovely clues. Favourites 4 24 2 14.
Re:15d Having once lived in Middlesbro’ back in the seventies I can vouchsafe that the answer was most relevant at that time. I do not know if the area still exists but there was a phrase we used – “He’s gone over the border” – which translates as a no go area unless you were tooled up or, as in the case of the police, went in mob handed.
A sunday stroll of a crossword, not very taxing-indeed not like the old friday ‘corker’. howeaver quite amusing and i think a */***, not really a lot to say.
Winner of the “Gift of the year” Birmingham International Gift Fair 2007 -cat butt pencil sharpener .Worrying isn’t it .
Agree with the ratings Thanks once again
Lovely crossword, thought enjoyable especially after some of the brain squeezers we have had this week. Lots of great clues such as 24a, 19a and 4a.
Many thanks sir. And thx to Gazza for the hints which today were not needed.
Not up to the usual high standard for Giovanni puzzles but quite enjoyable, my thanks to the two Gs.
After the tough ones this week, was a pleasure to actually finish one on my own!
I thought 19A was a bit weak. 2 for difficulty and 4 for enjoyment.
Not the doddle, for me, that everyone else seems to have found today — maybe because I was constantly interrupted and didn’t get to the last clues until after lunch. Liked 19A, didn’t even notice repetition of “party”! and 6D. Thanks to G and G for an entertaining morning/afternoon
Very pleasant start to the day. Enjoyed 4a, 2d, and 5d for their surface reading.
Thanks to G and G
Thank you Giovanni for an enjoyable puzzle and Gazza for your review. Like others did wonder about party and party in 19a but concluded that it could not be anything else.
Certainly on the easier side compared with recent Friday puzzles !
Rather a quiet night out for the girls in the illustration for 19a? Perhaps after RayT yesterday, Gazza decided to raise the bar a little. Thanks to G&G for the gentle but entertaining workout today.
I had less time than usual to search for illustrations this morning due to having to take my car in for its MOT. I hope that normal service will be restored next week.
Piece of cake, tho was also confused by 19a. I had never heard of 24a but as had all the letters and it was an anagram, I made a word and googled it. I loved the ease today, it quite restored my confidence.
Thank you Gazza for some illuminating hints, and to the Setter for gentler fare. I might even have a go at Sat’s prize crossword in due course after a bit of a discouraging week…
Thanks to the two G’s. I didn’t read Gazza’s introduction prior to attempting today’s puzzle. I suspected it was gentle as I completed NE, SE,SW &NW in order without being held up. Agree with Gazza about19a. Favourites were 10a & 8d. Was 1*/3* for me. Weather quite good in Central London, had a nice run earlier. Off to try the Toughie later.
Thank heavens, a crossword I could do, after yesterday.What a great feeling to be actually able to do it ! Thanks to Giovanni,wish they were all like this.Thanks to Gazza.
An entertaining diversion but a tad easy for a Friday. I may have to spend more time with the toughies.
Pardon me for being difficult, and it shows my lack of understanding, but did I spot a reverse letter run in 3d which seems to have evaded the pundits. Or am I being daft? Thanks.
Yes you did, but that was not how the clue was worded. Gazza’s explanation is correct. It doesn’t quite work as a hidden word as there are no letters after VATS.
Agree that it did not put up much of a fight. A nice warm up for the Toughie that did. Liked your comment on 4d Gazza.
Thanks Giovanni and Gazza.
PS. KiwiColin will be away in the South Island for a week so there probably won”t be any kiwi calls here for that time. Could well be some lurking though, so any misbehaviour will still be noted. Cheers.
A gentle stroll but fun nevertheless.