DT 27175

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 27175

A full review by crypticsue

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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***

A fairly typical offering from the Saturday Mysteron, well I thought so anyway.

 

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Across

1a           Meal — father tucks into what’s left (6)
REPAST  –   Insert PA (father) into REST (what’s left).

4a           One who achieves goal installing central heating that’s very hot (8)
SCORCHER –   Insert CH (Central Heating) into a SCORER (one who achieves goal).

9a           In favour of dull style (6)
FORMAT –   FOR (in favour of) plus MAT (dull).

10a         Department for the Business Secretary? (8)
PROVINCE –   PRO (for) VINCE (Cable).   Anyone else fed up with seeing Mr Cable in clues?   If someone returned to this crossword in a few years time, would Vince be remembered, as, if not, the clue would be impossible to solve. As two of our ‘overseas correspondents’  pointed out, it is also unfair on those solvers living in the ‘Provinces’ as they  shouldn’t really be expected to know the Christian names of  British politicians.

11a         Jazz fan plays around taking Ecstasy producing trance-like state (9)
CATALEPSY –  CAT (a slang term for a jazz fan) followed by an anagram (around) of PLAYS into which has been inserted (taking) E (Ecstasy).

13a         River and lake bird (5)
OUSEL –   Follow the River OUSE with the abbreviation for Lake.

14a         Incite Mahatma to riot — he’s calculating type (13)
MATHEMATICIAN –   An anagram (to riot) of INCITE MAHATMA.

17a         Expert investigating our helicopter crashing (7,6)
HERCULE POIROT –   An anagram (crashing) of OUR HELICOPTER.

21a         Sat on back of pinto for cowboy display (5)
RODEO –   Sat on the back of a horse such as a pinto – RODE – followed by the back or final letter of said pinto.

23a         Anger director going into superfluous detail in safety exercise (4,5)
FIRE DRILL –   Insert  IRE (anger) and D (director) into FILL (superfluous detail).

24a         Villain has border home occupying West Coast state (8)
CRIMINAL –   Insert RIM (border) and IN (home) into CAL, the abbreviation for the American West Coast state of California.

25a         Married adventurous girl, showing ill will (6)
MALICE –  M (married) plus ALICE (the fictional girl who had Adventures in Wonderland).

26a         Story book series editor put together with skill (8)
TALENTED –   Put together is a nice indicator for a charade clue –   TALE (story) NT (the Book of the New Testament) and ED (editor).

27a         Mean ‘like a bee’ (6)
STINGY –    Mean, or tight, STINGY, could, if  pronounced differently,  be an informal adjective relating to an unpleasant trait of a bee.

Down

1d           Whistler expert to restore front (6)
REFACE –   REF (a ‘whistler’) plus ACE (expert).

2d           Some send backing for employee not fully occupied (4-5)
PART-TIMER –  PART (some) plus a reversal (backing) of REMIT (send).

3d           Small trace of injury apparently bright red (7)
SCARLET –   Split 4, 3, this bright red colour might sound like a small scar – a SCAR   LET –  let being used to form diminutives as in leaflet and streamlet.

5d           Seek to ingratiate, getting left out of the Taste of India (5,6)
CURRY FAVOUR –   Remove the L from CURRY F[l]AVOUR  (the taste of  India!).

6d           Run a bottomless fiddle in foreign food (7)
RAVIOLI –   R (run in cricket score) and VIOLI [n] (a ‘bottomless’ violin, fiddle).

7d           Actor missing start of tribute (5)
HANKS –   Remove (missing start) the T from [t]HANKS.

8d           Wine that is put in right cocktail (8)
RIESLING –   Insert IE (that is, id est) between R (right) and SLING (an originally American drink of spirits and water, sweetened and flavoured).

12d         A breeze in part of Genoa perhaps (5,2,4)
PIECE OF CAKE –  Nice surface reading with hints at a breeze in a type of sail.   However, this clue requires you to know the alternative meaning of GENOA, part of which would be a PIECE OF CAKE.

15d         Instinctive knowledge being taught (9)
INTUITION –   Split 2, 4, this instinctive knowledge would mean that you were IN TUITION or being taught.

16d         Easier way to produce crop (5,3)
SHORT CUT –  A shorter route or a style of short hair (crop).

18d         Ideal selection of Rameau to pianist (7)
UTOPIAN –  Hidden in a selection of RameaU TO PIANist.

19d         New version left simple vessel (7)
REDRAFT –    RED (left politically) plus RAFT (simple vessel)

20d         Doc’s chum   with nothing much happening (6)
SLEEPY –   Sleepy being both one of the Seven Dwarfs and an adjective meaning characterized by lack of activity.

22d         Exercise   baboon (5)
DRILL – A double definition – to exercise by repeated practice; a West African baboon smaller than the mandrill.  Much discussion ensued on Saturday regarding whether the two apes  were the same creature and also the fact that DRILL had already appeared in the puzzle, in 23a.

I get a week off from blogging duty next week, which is quite handy as I shall be attending the Wapping S&B on Thursday and have Friday off to recover    –  the Gnome has two puzzles to blog – watch this space!!