ST 2675 (Hints) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
View closed comments 

ST 2675 (Hints)

by Big Dave  

Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2675 (Hints)

Hints and tips by Big Dave

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

Congratulations to Prolixic.  Today, as Kairos, he has his first puzzle published in a national newspaper, the Independent on Sunday.

As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the more difficult 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”.  Definitions are underlined in the clues.

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

Across

1a           Proceeded cautiously, giving advice to editor (7)
A piece of advice followed by TO and ED(itor)

ARVE Error: need id and provider

5a           Basil, for instance, or alternative person in lead (3,4)
An alternative person inside the chemical symbol for lead

12a         Join a fight, roughly (5)
Combine (join) the A from the clue with a fight

19a         NCO securing hill in assault (5)
The two-letter abbreviation for a senior NCO around a hill

22a         Orator including new piece of poetry (5)
The name of a Roman statesman, orator, and writer around N(ew)

ARVE Error: need id and provider

23a         Check writing as academic, pocketing zero cash, mostly (9)
The four-letter abbreviation for a senior academic around (pocketing ) O (zero) followed by most of a colloquial word for cash

28a         Disperse warily over area that has lots of tracks (7)
An anagram (disperse) of WARILY around (over) A(rea)

Down

1d           City plan mostly awful, as usual (7)
An anagram (awful) of CITY PLA(N) (plan mostly)

2d           What’s normal to monarch — lots of Americans may be for it (7)
A word meaning normal or average followed by a monarch; when followed by lots this is where Americans go to carry out the answer

6d           The end of many a prehistoric animal in reference book (9)
THE from the clue followed by the suffix which appears at the end of the names of many a prehistoric animal

8d           Major effort to contain old prejudice (7)
An adjective meaning major and an effort around O(ld)

16d         Insurance for vehicle seen around university city on Pacific (9)
Insurance for a commercial vehicle (3,5) around U(niversity)

17d         Battle scene — prepare to shoot mine (7)
Prepare a gun ready to shoot followed by a mine

18d         Buddhist symbol seen in Burmese port when docked (7)
A Burmese port, on the road in a famous song, without its final letter (docked)

ARVE Error: need id and provider

23d         Sulk, extremely testy and small-minded (5)
A sulk or tantrum followed by the outer letters (extremely) of TestY

24d         For this modern language, is a service set up? (5)
The IS from the clue and a military service all reversed (set up in a down clue)

If you need further help then please ask and I will see what I can do.

As this is a Prize crossword, please don’t put whole or partial answers or alternative clues in your comment, else they may be censored!

Today it’s Happy Birthday to Gary Barlow (42) and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin (83)

59 comments on “ST 2675 (Hints)”

  1. Very straightforward apart from one clue which I stared at for nearly as long as it took me to solve the rest of the crossword. A very enjoyable start to an extremely snowy East Kent morning. Thanks to Virgilius and BD too.

  2. A delightful puzzle, with many very clever clues, and the usual / trademark hidden words.
    11, 17, 25, 2, 14 & 20 all appealed to me.
    Snowing where you are ?

    Thanks Virgilius and BD.

  3. Very engaging and smooth crossword as usual .hadn’t come across the usage of 17d in that context before .1.5/ 4 .5* for me .
    Temperature is a balmy 2C in N Yorks with only an overnight dusting of snow to top up what we already had .
    Thanks to both .

  4. Most enjoyable! A couple slowed me down for a while, but not for long. Thanks to Virgilius, and to BD.

  5. How to feel foolish. Although the answer to 2D fell into place, I simply couldn’t see what that had to do with Americans…and I live here! Thanks, Big Dave for the clarification, and the hints. I didn’t need them today, but i always enjoy reading them anyway. An enjoyable puzzle. 23A and 16D are my favorites today.

  6. Great fun as usual: thank you Virgilius, new words and hidden words. Thanks to BD as well. No more snow here in Lancashire just yet, but on the way I believe.

  7. As always a pleasurable solve with nice misdirection and many clever clues.

    Thanks to BD and the setter.

    CS, do tell which clue gave you pause?

  8. Hi dave and thanks for hints, didn’t need them to finish the puzzle but to understand 2d ( don’t like it) and I couldn’t see why join was needed in 12a, duh! Two new words for me at 5d and 24d, had to look them both up! Why do we need ‘type’ at end of 26a doesn’t the clue work better without it? I was convinced 17d was going to be coal***, though couldn’t work out why, which left me with 22a beginning with ‘a’! eventually saw the error of my ways, these were the last two in for me, a lot of perservation on my part today! 3* at least

    2. I think the ‘type’ at the end of the clue for 26a is meant to make us think of the wrong kind of PC – I certainly did, for ages!

          1. Not caused by the weather Poppy but a fault with a certain appliance caused fuses to blow & power to go off several times this morning until the culprit was eliminated! The dishwasher has developed a fault but how the engineer (when he eventually comes) will solve it I don’t know because everytime it’s plugged in it blows a fuse again!! Meanwhile I have to become the dishwasher!

            1. Oh you poor things. Our little dog would be keen to help with the dish washing , but health & safety….. :-)

        2. What’s even stranger is how my mind DOESN’T work sometimes! I blame it on a combination of snow and not getting to bed until 2.30am.

  9. A lovely crossword and I didn’t have too much of a battle today – unusual for me on a Sunday. AND I spotted all four (I think) of the hidden-in-the-middle ones that I usually miss.
    I needed the hint to explain how the Americans got into 2d – silly not to understand that. I spent rather too long trying to get ‘don’ into 23a and was thinking of the wrong kind of PC with 26a.
    I liked 11, 25 and 26a and 1, 6, 8, 17, 23 and 24d.
    With thanks to Virgilius and BD.
    The more it snows, tiddley-pom . . . . apologies to A. A. Milne

    1. Had to go in search of the A.A. Milne reference – found “Tiddley-pom” = A drunken Englishman (Australian usage only).

      Congratulations to Prolixic!

  10. Last one in was 7d, and don’t know why I struggled with that. But just on the verge of asking for help when it clicked. And second to last in was 22a which is ridiculous as I live with a poet! I think the slush has soaked into my brain. But many thanks to BD for hints, and to the setter for an enjoyable tussle.

  11. I can only echo the sentiments above. lovely puzzle.
    Just got back from That London. Driving wasn’t too bad but getting very slush close to home and snow on the local roads. I got snow socks for the car so might have to try them tomorrow!.
    Thanks to BD and Virgilius.

  12. nice steady plod today last one in 11a, kept thinking of types of doctor, just about to ask for help and had a mega doh! moment. :D

    Just off to walk the Labradoodles through 6 inch of snow and its still coming down heavy here on CS’s side of Dover thanks to Virgilus and BD. :D

  14. Yes, congratulations to Prolixic – I missed the bit right at the top of BD’s introduction (and I don’t even have an excuse as CS does!!)

      1. That’s a great comfort to know – I thought I was having problems with either my right eye or my memory because I didn’t remember seeing it there earlier.

      3. I ‘missed it too’ :-) , Wow and more Wow congratulations prolixic that is absolutely brilliant!!! Genius

  15. Thoroughly enjoyable, and some really brilliant clues, especially in the NW..
    Mnay thanks Virgilius and BD

    1. Welcome to the blog Lil’j

      17a People working in studio arrived before artist cut list of options (9)
      A word meaning arrived followed by Crosswordland’s usual artist and most of (cut) a list of options in a restaurant

      There’s a hint for the other one in the main post.

    2. Welcome Lil’j, we are all very friendly and hopefully helpful so don’t ever be afraid to ask :-)

  17. I loved this crossword today … Thanks to all involved. I didn’t need the hints but got held up with 18d, great failure on my part as my dear old Dad loved to recite the poem “On the road to ….” I also needed the why of 17d as really only knew meaning as ********** [alternative clue deleted]. Great fun.

  19. Hey, Prolixic – what can I say? Brill, well done indeed!

    As for today’s ST, I thought it was a little benign for Virgilius but a lot of fun. He’s def my favourite Telegraph setter (after Jay) and always comes up trumps.

    Thanks to Virgilius and BD.

    BTW, pommette has banned be from doing the blog this coming Thursday but, so long as the Doc gives me the all-clear on Weds, I’ll be back next week. I’m looking forward to it and hope you are too :grin:

      1. Working on it Derek. A belated happy birthday to you (I was off the air as it were) and may there be many more. Now, back to the footy, 0-1 looks OK so far but BD won’t be pleased!

        1. Good to see you back on the pitch Pommers ! I think RVP has scored more goals this season than our whole team ! Take it easy !

      1. Can’t just see the answer to that one and can’t be arsed to get some checkers – the football beckons!

  20. Another fine end to the week from Virgilius!

    Faves : 17a, 22a, 26a, 6d, 17d & 18d.

    A fair number of embedments this week!

    Been snowing all afternoon here in NL – perhaps the temperature is rising at long last.

  22. Many thanks to everyone for their kind comments. I have always admired Mary’s restrained understatement (see 14 above). I keep looking at the paper to make sure I haven’t imagined it though!

    The IoS publishes the Sunday crossword on-line a week after publication in the paper as it is a prize crossword. If I get a chance I will post a link next Sunday.

    1. May i also offer my congratulation , let’s hope it is the first of many.
      If you can post a link, i would love to give it a try.

  23. Thanks to Virgilius and to Big Dave. Congratulations to Prolixic. A quite straighforward puzzle which I made more difficult by solving 18a in my head and putting in the wrong word. Once I sorted this out, I just needed the hint for 18d which was a new word for me. Still snowing in Central London.

  26. 18d was the last to go. I was looking at the map for Burma for coastal towns to truncate. Huh, it’s right in the middle; how can that be a port? Otherwise v enjoyable and some new words for me.

  27. In response to Wingnut, a place on a navigable river can be a port that is a long way from the coast, as in the case of xxxxxxxx. [edited as it really gives away the solution. cs]

Comments are closed.