DT 28515 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
View closed comments 

DT 28515

 

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 28515

Hints and tips by Deep Threat

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

BD Rating – Difficulty ***Enjoyment ***

Good morning from South Staffs on a fine, sunny morning. My thanks to Senf for stepping in last week while I was otherwise engaged.

I was making rapid progress through today’s Giovanni until I hit a mental block at 10a, which became my last one in and accounts for the *** difficulty rating.

In the hints below, the definitions are underlined. The answers are hidden under the ANSWER buttons, so don’t click if you don’t want to see them.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought. 

Across

8a           It’s clear GP’s kit isn’t bad for providing first-aid item (8-7)
STICKING-PLASTER – Anagram (bad) of CLEAR GP’S KIT ISN’T.

Image result for sticking plaster

9a           Fish around for someone to deal with health problem? (3)
DOC – Reverse (around) a type of fish commonly found battered.

10a         ‘Globe-trotter’ in London, say? (7-4)
THEATRE-GOER – Start with what the Globe was in Shakespeare’s day and is again now. Then add a synonym for someone trotting along, and you get a phrase which may describe someone heading for the Globe to see a play. This clue doesn’t really work for me, but perhaps that’s because I couldn’t see it for ages, even with all the checking letters, and it was my last one in.

11a         Politician participating in ‘Strictly’ dances (5)
BALLS – Double definition: the name of the ex-MP who appeared on Strictly Come Dancing; or some formal occasions where dancing takes place.

ARVE Error: need id and provider

12a         Trendy translation making change to the usual order (9)
INVERSION – A two-letter word for ‘trendy’ followed by a literary translation, particularly of the Bible.

15a         Very rich and very drunk? (7)
ROLLING – Double definition – there’s not really anything to add.

17a         Tracks in zones of wood girl enters (7)
RIDINGS – A shortened form of a girl’s name inserted into the zones visible on the cut end of a tree trunk which enable you to ascertain the age of the tree.

19a         Pageboy possibly working this early? (9)
HAIRSTYLE – Anagram (working) of THIS EARLY.

Image result for pageboy hair

20a         Sea-girt location doesn’t have owner-occupier (5)
ISLET – Split this (2,3) and you get a phrase meaning ‘doesn’t have owner-occupier’.

21a         New cabinet door — it has information written on it (6,5)
NOTICE BOARD – Anagram (new) of CABINET DOOR.

24a         Hurt girl having little lamb without tail (3)
MAR – Remove the final letter from the name of the girl in the nursery rhyme who had a little lamb.

25a         Managers put in — tenderness would be unusual (15)
SUPERINTENDENTS – Anagram (would be unusual) of PUT IN TENDERNESS.

Down

1d           Choose a flower, as you might say — something for the dining table (10)
PICCALILLI – A homonym of a phrase (4,1,4) meaning ‘choose a particular type of flower’, giving us an accompaniment to cold meat or cheese.

Image result for piccalilli

2d           Fish glides along (6)
SKATES – Double definition, the first being a variety of flatfish.

Image result for skate fish

3d           As individuals, never interrupting in a contemptuous manner (10)
SNEERINGLY – Wrap ‘as individuals’ around a poetic contraction of ‘never’.

4d           See drunk keeping quiet (4)
SPOT – The musical symbol for quiet placed inside a habitual drunk.

5d           Hurried as journalist dedicated to his or her profession (8)
CAREERED – Someone dedicated to his or her profession may be called a —— (whatever the profession is). In the case of the usual crossword journalist this would make him or her a (6,2).

6d           German maybe in extreme circle (4)
OTTO – A three-letter acronym for something extreme or overdone, followed by a circle-shaped letter, producing a Germanic first name.

7d           Doctor has year with a French practice (3,3)
DRY RUN – Put together an abbreviation for doctor, a two-letter abbreviation for year, and the French for ‘a’.

8d           Short article in paper: ‘Team faces ban’ (7)
SIDEBAR – Split this (4,3) and you have a synonym for ‘team’ and a synonym for ‘ban’.

13d         Entrance gets changed on the outside, having different colours (10)
VARIEGATED – A type of entrance (into a field, for example), with a word for ‘changed’ wrapped around it.

Image result for variegated holly

14d         Men failing to work out who wrote spy stories (3,7)
IAN FLEMING – Anagram (to work out) of MEN FAILING.

Image result for ian fleming

16d         At home, understand about dog being unsettled (8)
INSECURE – Put together ‘at home, and a word for understand wrapped around a disapproving term for a dog.

18d         Volunteers turning up, fathers going round — they may raise a laugh (7)
SATIRES – The usual (former) military volunteers are reversed (turning up) and have a word for fathers (most commonly used these days in relation to racehorses) wrapped around them.

19d         Fair enough, one states, not revealing everything (6)
HONEST – Hidden in the clue.

20d         Chemical I love sufficed, needing energy (6)
IODIDE – Put together I (from the clue), the letter that looks like a love score at tennis, a word for ‘sufficed’, and an abbreviation for Energy.

22d         Plumbing fixtures ejected liquid the wrong way (4)
TAPS – Reverse (the wrong way) a word for ‘ejected liquid’ (from the mouth).

23d         Deposit that is seen by river (4)
BANK – ‘Deposit’ here is a verb meaning to put into a place of safety. The answer is also something found either side of a river.


The Quick Crossword pun MAIDENS + PEACH = MAIDEN SPEECH

39 comments on “DT 28515

  1. A very enjoyable puzzle from Giovanni, completed at a slightly fatigued canter (after 14 hours of travelling) with some electronic assistance – 2.5*/3.5*. I did think that some overseas solvers might have difficulty with 11a (for its parochiality).

    Standout favourite – 1d!

    Thanks to Mr Manley and DT.

    1. I read the DT online every day, I thought what an unfortunate name for the poor gent. I think he did quite well in Strictly, didn’t he?

  2. This took some sorting out but got there in the end, stand outs are 1D, with 20A . Thanks to the setter & DT for the review.

  3. 2*/2*. Nothing much to say about this except that I agree with DT about 10a.

    Thanks to setter and reviewer.

  4. Confirmation perhaps that I need my first pair of glasses as I asked myself ‘what the hell is a sea-girl?’ Never mind. Anyway, liked 1d and 5d, not so sure about 17a. Thanks to all involved today.

  5. First thought on completion was that it was a tricky solve throughout with some top notch cluing and so a ***/**** for me .
    Favourite was 19a which led me up the garden path quite nicely and 1d brought a smirk-love it with cold roast beef !
    Like DT, 12a, or at least the second part ,did not work for me either.
    Ready for the holiday weekend, beer and curry tonight.
    Thanks to setter and DT.

  6. I noted with a sense of relief that we are back to the ‘new’ Giovanni today – no obscurities or complex religious references.
    Don’t think I actually knew the name for the ‘short article’ in 8d but it was easily assembled from the wordplay and I hesitated slightly over 17a being rather more familiar with the shortened term for the tracks.

    Like others, I was a little slow to get 10a but rather liked it when I got there.
    7d also rather appealed and my top spot went to 2d – such a perfect description of the way that fish moves.

    Thanks to DG and also to DT – nice to see you back in the chair.

    PS Say what you like about Ed – you have to admire his ***** for giving it a go!

  7. No significant hold ups this morning although not exactly plain sailing, as I didn’t particularly like 17a and 10a was a bit contrived. Unusually for a Giovanni this was 2.5*/2.5* overall.

    Thanks to The Don and DT.

  8. Even knowing that my brother and sister-in-law are at the Globe this weekend didn’t help me realise what 10a was on about for quite a while.

    Thanks to Giovanni and DT

    PS: fans of our Sunday setter may wish to note that he is in today’s Graun.

    1. Great recommendation CS.

      The duplicate triple word clues are a work of true genius!

  9. I thoroughly enjoyed this exercise (just nicely testing) and, in line with others above, 1d was my stand-out Fav. 8d now added to my vocabulary and likewise 20d. Thank you Giovanni and DT.

  10. Thanks to The Don and DT. 19a was my last penny to drop.
    For hard-copy solvers, 7d in the Quickie should read “University in the USA”. Aniversity looks like a good word waiting for a definition.

  11. For DT’s benefit – that 19a pic is really a bob. Pageboy is longer and the ends curve under – in fact, very medieval looking https://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.glasshouseshop.co.uk%2Fimages%2Fuploads%2Fjournal%2Fjulia_hobbs_pageboy_3.png&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.glasshousejournal.co.uk%2Fpost%2Fhair-trend-the-pageboy&docid=io4Uqcuw-Y-tGM&tbnid=_zP6PC-Nl_68fM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiR_arztfLVAhVjI8AKHSX4AIYQMwi4AShEMEQ..i&w=640&h=661&bih=649&biw=1024&q=pageboy%20hair&ved=0ahUKEwiR_arztfLVAhVjI8AKHSX4AIYQMwi4AShEMEQ&iact=mrc&uact=8

    Google images are often wrong in my experience……….😦

    1. The accompanying material from TheHairStyler.com describes the picture I posted as a pageboy bob.

  12. I enjoyed this on the whole -when I got stuck I boxed and coxed with the Guardian’s, which was a lot of fun today.
    Not mad on 5d and didn’t know the 20a term, although you didn’t need that to get the answer. Ditto with 23d, didn’t know the term. Maybe I’ll remember, maybe not.

    Thanks to DG and DT.

  13. I agree with Deep Threat’s star rating on this one – I usually find the Friday crossword slow going. Perhaps 11a is just about a ‘G.K’ clue? – anyway, I thought it very amusing (hereby designated as today’s hot favourite with respect to yours truly). The only new word on this one was 8d. I don’t have a problem with ‘unknowns’ – always something new to learn (quite apart from being the perfect antidote to the too-many-chestnuts syndrome!).

  14. Typical Giovanni, elegant clues and very enjoyable. For me ***/****
    Just a little uneasy with translation for version in 12a, can sort of see it but doesn’t seem quite right.
    20a was interesting, sea-girt is logical but an odd term. My fav was 19a, an old chestnut I know but made me smile.
    Thx to all.
    PS the less said about yesterday’s effort the better.

  15. Very good, lots to like. Top clues 7d, 3d & 6d in no particular order – not too enamoured with 15a or 12a, though (one star penalty!).
    Many thanks to Giovanni and to DT for the review. ***/***

  16. Easy solve until I got stuck at the second part of 10a for a bit. I don’t usually do the Quickie but having been informed that it is almost always a panagram on Friday I am going to see if it is.

  17. Giovanni back in his new “obscurity-lite” mode, I really enjoyed this one too.

    My two ticks today went to 11a (unusual to see such a contemporary reference in a Friday puzzle!) and 7d.

    Thanks to Mr Manley and to DT, and a good final weekend of the meteorological summer to all.

  18. Thanks to Giovanni and to Deep Threat for the review and hints. Yes I’m glad it was the “new” Giovanni today. I enjoyed the puzzle, but found it very difficult. I wasn’t helped by my own idiocy, ending 1d with a y. Once I had changed that I was able to solve 19a. Needed the hints for 10,12,17a and 5&18d. Favourite was 1d. Was 4*/3* for me.

  19. I enjoyed this, a bit tricky in parts. Strangely enough, 10a and 19a that gave so many trouble, were my first ones in. Last in, which took much brain twisting, was 17a. Different strokes …, etc.
    Fave was 1d, love the sound of it, the taste is okay.
    Thanks to Giovanni and to Deep Threat for his review.

  20. A good way too wrap up the week! Nice puzzle and tricky in places. 10a was my favourite. 3/3* overall.
    Thanks to Giovanni and to DT for his review.

  21. Thought I was going to have problems but nice cup of tea and a buttered crumpet came to my rescue. Thanks to Giovanni and DT for a great end to the week, roll on Saturday.

    1. Oooh, crumpets! My mouth waters. What they sell as English crumpets here has the texture of cake. How I miss them.

  22. I thought this was quite tricky, finished well into **** time. At the close I spent a great deal of time unpicking 3d and 10ac, and it was only after much wailing and gnashing of teeth that they both fell.

  23. Found this tricky, but more of a ** than a ***, but I appreciated hints from Deep Threat which helped me finish. No real favourite today, perhaps 8a for its nostalgic quality, living as we do in the land of the “bandaid”. If I asked for 8a I would definitely get a blank stare.

  24. Tricky stuff today. Fortunately my eldest daughter was around and in the mood for a joint solve and we got there. Some lovely wordplay to admire. ****/*** from us today.

Comments are closed.