DT 28595 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 28595

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 28595

Hints and tips by Miffypops
Direct from the crime capital of South Warwickshire

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BD Rating – Difficulty * Enjoyment ***

MP is jubilant today after watching the England men’s and women’s teams win at Twickenham. The mighty Coventry RFUC made it twelve wins out of twelve in my absence.

Should you need help to solve or to understand the relationship between a clue and its solution the hints and tips below are there to help. I hope they do so. Definitions are underlined. Answers lie beneath the greyed out click here boxes.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

1a Weapon giving artist support (6)
RAPIER: Begin with Crosswordland’s regular abbreviation for an artist who is an elected member of The Royal Academy. Add a solid support designed to sustain vertical pressure

4a Scrutinise neckwear and underwear (8)
SCANTIES: Split 4,4 we can use a verb meaning to look at carefully followed by an item of knotted neckwear worn around a collar. Together they give a delightful word defined as the plural noun for women’s knickers or pants.

9a Reveal hesitation, spelling downfall? (6)
SHOWER: A four letter word meaning to reveal something is followed by an expression of hesitation (um or er) to make a word meaning a downfall, in this case mild precipitation

10a Tell-tale weapon (8)
CROSSBOW: The tale told is that of Swiss folk hero William Tell. This is his weapon of choice

12a Drugs involved in underworld operations (4)
DOPE: A well-hidden lurker indicated by the words involved in

13a Praise former tax being reduced by a pound (5)
EXTOL: Start with Crosswordland’s regular prefix meaning former and add an old tax payable to use a bridge or a road but minus its last letter (reduced by a pound) the L from Pounds Shillings and Pence. LSD. We have had a metric monetary system now for nearly fifty years

14a French cleric born in Lincoln (4)
ABBÉ: Not Lincoln the county but Lincoln the president. Place the abbreviation for the word born inside the shortened form of President Lincoln’s Christian name.

17a Rate increase (12)
ACCELERATION: An increase in the rate of speed. The pedal on the right mate. Try pressing it harder.

20a The spheres of the occult (7,5)
CRYSTAL BALLS: Solid globes of glass used by fortune-tellers and clairvoyants for talking b & b

23a Way out of perplexity (4)
EXIT: A lurker. Hiding away within the letters within the clue indicated by the word of

24a Axed that man, then married (5)
HEWED: Split 2,3 we need the pronoun for that man followed by a verb meaning got married

25a Prepare to put out in current on the ebb (4)
EDIT: A word reversal. (On the ebb) This time of the current that ebbs and flows.

28a Unfashionable sportswear is better (8)
OUTSTRIP: Split 3,4 we have a word meaning no longer fashionable followed by a word for the kit worn by a sportsman

29a Food that’s revolutionary planted by east Kent area (6)
CHEESE: The revolutionary here is Mr Guevara. Begin with his first name (not Ernesto) add the letter representing east and the two initials (from the compass) depicting where the county of Kent is located

30a Succeed in taking of leave (8)
FAREWELL: Split 4,4 we have a term meaning to succeed. Altogether we have a term meaning goodbye.

31a Meeting that raises the spirits (6)
SEANCE: A cryptic definition of a meeting where people try to speak with dead people.

That is the end of the hints and tips for the across clues. There were no anagrams to spoil the fun. Will this continue throughout the down clues. I sincerely hope so.

Down

1d Left-over rail used for modelling (8)
RESIDUAL: An unwelcome anagram (used for modelling) of RAIL USED. (Drat!Our setter just could not resist it could he)?

2d Seek something precious, making scene (8)
PROSPECT: To seek something precious as one might for gold perhaps or an extensive view of the landscape

3d Made to last (4)
EKED: To have made an amount or supply of something last longer by using or consuming it frugally. This week’s non-cryptic clue.

5d Second-hand markets operating close to Basra (3,4,5)
CAR BOOT SALES: Anagram (operating) of CLOSE TO BASRA

6d It detects by smell and is aware by sound (4)
NOSE: The organ we use to smell is a homophone of a word meaning is aware.

7d One doctor’s given one two notes to take in (6)
IMBIBE: Begin with the letter that looks like the number one. Add one of our two letter Latin abbreviation s for a Doctor. Add the letter that looks like the number one and finish off with two musical notes.

8d Mark Twain’s creation involved war? Yes (6)
SAWYER: The surname of a boy written about by Mark Twain is an anagram (involved) of WAR YES

11d Two late editions — must be very exciting! (5-7)
EXTRA SPECIAL: The names of two late editions of a newspaper are joined to mean very exciting

15d Look awfully large (5)
GLARE: Anagram (awfully) of LARGE

16d One is not convinced to give its benefit (5)
DOUBT: This noun meaning a feeling of uncertainty. To give the benefit of it is a concession that a person or fact must be regarded as correct or justified, if the contrary has not been proven.

18d Club doctor bound leg (8)
BLUDGEON: Anagram (doctor) of BOUND LEG

19d We are its cast, so to speak (2,2,4)
AS IT WERE: Anagram (cast) of WE ARE ITS

21d Start out and trip (3,3)
SET OFF: A double definition. The second being to trip a switch perhaps

22d Cutting tail off wading bird (6)
BITTER: This shorter necked member of the Heron family is without its last letter (has its tail removed)

26d Soaks up food (4)
STEW: A reversal. A word meaning soaks when reversed makes a fine hearty meal

27d Female carrying oxygen pump, say (4)
SHOE: The female pronoun has the symbol denoting the element Oxygen inserted somewhere to make an article of clothing of which a pump is an example

Hints and tips written to the wonderful sound of Bob Dylan singing from the latest Bootleg Series offering.

Quickie Pun. TRUSS+TEASE=TRUSTEES


 

61 comments on “DT 28595

  1. 3* / 4*. This was very enjoyable with lots of Rufus’ inventiveness on show here. I found some of these clues very easy and a few quite tough with the whole thing stretching to my 3* time. In particular it took ages for the penny to drop for 3d, which was my last one in.

    The brief but brilliant 10a was my favourite.

    Many thanks to Rufus and to MP.

    1. For a seasoned crossword solver is it obvious from the clue that the answer to 26d is STEW and not WETS, or are both completely possible and we need the answers to either 28a or 30a to confirm. I used WETS as the answer which made solving 28a and 30b across very difficult! I am late with this comment as I live in Hong Kong and this Crossword appeared in the HK Standard newspaper on Thursday December 14

      1. Hi Doug. I always get a notification whenever somebody comments however late that might be. I too found reversal clues problematic. Often I would bung an answer in and cause myself problems later. You will not be alone in the Wets Corner.
        With these clues it is necessary to differentiate between definition and wordplay. Here the wordplay is Soaks up and the definition is food. Soaks = Wets. Up is a reversal indicator. The word food defines the answer Stew.

        Soaks up is a term in common use.

        For the answer to be Wets. We would need to use the word Soaks as the definition. No problem there. The wordplay then becomes up food. That is not a,phrase we would ever use. I hope that helps.

  2. Thanks for help with 3d. Embarrassed to have needed to sneak a look. Respect to fellow Cov and Warks crossword devotee.

  3. Good morning from a damp and dreary North West. Enjoyable start to the week, a steady solve which made me smile in a few places. Particularly liked 5d in and amongst the proliferation of anagrams in the down clues .
    10a was my favourite and it took a while for the penny to drop for 3d which was my last one in.
    Thanks to the setter and MP.

  4. Nice mixture of teasing and taxing. Encouraged when 1a went in at once but then rest of NW corner held out until last. Missed the 12a lurker and, like RD, 3d took a while to dawn on me. Lots of good clues but no standout Fav today. Thank you Rufus and MP.

  5. Loads of anagrams, right up my street. Nice and easy finished well before lights out last night.

    3d was my last one in too!

  6. Another good start to the work week from Rufus, unusually some head scratching required (20a and 3d) but still very enjoyable and completed at a gallop – **/***.

    Stand-out favourite – 6d.

    I am sure there will be a comment or two about the double use of weapon.

    Thanks to Rufus and MP.

    1. Good evening, Senfingtons.

      More often than not you finish at a canter or a gallop.

      Do you do the crossword on horseback?

        1. Like it.

          Forgive me, as I’m sure you’ve heard this one a zillion times but, just in case…

          What did the Spanish firefighter call their twin boys?

          Hose A (Jose) and Hose B.

  7. I thoroughly enjoyed this terrific mix of clue types and the varying difficulty. 3d was what it had to be, but couldn’t see why until well after I had finshed. So too with the excellent 10a, which having seen the light rose straight to the top of my podium. Overall 3* /4* with thanks to Rufus and the crime-ridden MP.

    The illustration for 29a looks like Shropshire Blue.

      1. You’ve changed your alias!

        Chambers doesn’t help a lot with this one, but the definition in the Oxford Dictionary of English (ODE) is clearer:
        Eke:
        to make an amount or supply of something last longer by using or consuming it frugally: the remains of yesterday’s stew could be eked out to make another meal.

  8. An excellent offering from Rufus to which I would have given rather more than the blog’s 1* difficulty rating.
    Like others, 3d was my last one in and I admit to having to check on the French cleric.

    10a was my clue of the day by a long way.

    Thanks to Rufus and to MP.

    PS May I recommend today’s Rookie puzzle from Italicus – another great setter in the making.

  9. Needed far too many hints for this one…followed by lots of ‘doh’ s and head slapping.

    Many thanks to the setter and to Miffy.

  10. Agree with MP’s */***, last in 3d which seems to be the case for other bloggers.
    Spritely start for the week as usual and agree with Jane on the best clue being 10a, remembered 14a-Abbe Farea? from the Count of Monte Cristo’s ‘helper’ in his escape- Alan Bardell was the count-I digress.
    Thanks to MP- used to drive a Sunbeam Rapier!

  11. Very enjoyable Monday puzzle. A couple of clever double definitions in 31a and 16d – both very characteristic of the Rufus style! I also liked 1 and 4a, for pure ingenuity. I wonder how many of us put ‘shoe’ in at 3d?: something of a misdirection there (plus I actually failed to get the right answer in the end). Favourite: 4a, raised a smile on a dismal and wet morning. Rating? – about **.

    1. I put shoe in too until I got the answer to 27d, then thought of boot but would not have been right to have two ‘correct’ answers which fitted. Left it till last and got it going through the alphabet. On face of it not cryptic but I do see it as a double definition. Only other sticking points were 22d and 28a. Was fixated on dipper for the former but obviously could not parse and the third letter of the latter had to be T. Suddenly got the right bird and finished.

    1. Maybe they’re a last resort for compilers?

      ‘Twelve plus one rearranged gets the same result!’ (8)

  12. Nods in agreement with pretty much everyone else so far. An excellent puzzle and an excellent cheese too. Am cross with myself for needing a hint for 3 down. I was looking for something more cryptic than I really needed. Otherwise a very nice start to the week from Rufus. Thanks to MP for the hints. Now for the GK puzzle.

  13. I think 3d has a cryptic element to it; a neat double meaning. My Art Deco three piece suite, given to my parents when they got married in 1931, and still going strong, was certainly made to last, i.e.made in such a way that it would have a long life. Quite a different meaning from the one indicated here. No scrimping or economising involved.

  14. I’ll nominate 31a as this week’s non-cryptic clue. My immediate thought for 3d was ‘cobbled’ but that doesn’t fit. Then I thought ‘shoe’, so was pleased to find it was something else. Fairly benign overall I thought. 10a Top clue.

    Thanks to Rufus and to the jubilant one for giving me a great idea for dinner tonight, including the cheese to follow – perfect with a Cotes Du Rhone methinks.

  15. I found this a bit tricky to get going but then it seemed to roll. Loved 3a!
    For me **/***
    Thx to all

  16. am i the only person to have put ‘shoe’ for 3d?? only when i found it elsewhere that i realised it must be wrong….

    1. If you’d read the comments before you asked your question, you’d have an idea of how many people put shoe. I wasn’t one of them!

    2. I had already solved 27d, but I must admit the ‘last’ in 3d had me thinking footwear which was difficult to shake off.

    3. Yes, I too bunged in SHOE immediately. Though, with hindsight, the clue would need to be “Made at last” for that to work.

  17. 5d was the first in. I needed an anagram to put me in the right frame of mind. I put ‘deed’ into 3D which caused me problems in the NW corner for a while. The casserole in 26d looks delicious. 10a was my favourite clue. Many thanks Rufus and Miffypops.

  18. A very nice Monday puzzle. I, too, badly wanted ‘shoe’ for 3d for a while. Ashamed to say, I needed the hint in the end for the correct answer. Apart from that one 1.5*/****.

    I had a 1a, but it was the later, fast-back model.

    I liked 4a, 28d, 2d, 3d (in the end) and 6d but, agreeing with many of you, 10a was the clear and clever winner. I couple too many anagrams for my taste.

  19. Some of my answers were purely guessed and the words fitted the grid perfectly.
    Except 3d which I didn’t understand.
    Thanks to Rufus and to MP for the review.

  20. 3d was my sticking point too. I had SHOE with SOLE & HEEL in the wings. I too will admit I needed the hints for the real answer.

    10a was my COTD.

    Many thanks to Rufus and Miffypops.

  21. Clues of varying degrees of difficulty and on the whole a nice puzzle to start the week. I will join everyone else in applauding the setter for the very clever 10a.

  22. Good afternoon everybody.

    Mostly straightforward today with just a few stragglers briefly delaying things. Took a while to see 18d was an anagram while 16a and 30a nearly eluded me.

    **/***

  23. Another great puzzle from the Monday maestro.

    My three vying for top spot on today’s podium were, in solving order, 18d, 21d and 10a.

    Many thanks to Rufus and the jubilant one.

    P.S. I heartily support Jane’s comment about today’s Rookie puzzle, it is superbly crafted and very enjoyable. In addition, Eccles (aka Snape) makes another appearance in today’s Indy, his puzzles are always great fun and are thoroughly recommended.

  24. Well, I remembered 5d, so maybe I’ve still got some marbles left. Thoroughly enjoyed this one, wotta treat.
    Running with the crowd here, 3d was my last in but I did get it right after first thinking “sole”.
    My absolute fave was 10a, I thought 13a was pretty clever too.
    Thanks to Rufus and to M’pops for the review. Nice gravatar!

  25. A pleasant doddle: */****. I liked 4a and 22d. Thanks to Rufus and MP. I am similarly jubilant (for Rugby reasons, if not cricket), my jubilation having been completed by Exeter Chiefs winning away to Saracens.

  26. Started off well and slowly ground to a halt before finishing like most of the other bloggers with 3d last in. Yes I also put shoe in brieflly. We use the term ‘eke out’ usually meaning to make it last when its nearly run out.

    Along with 10a I also liked 5a so they are the star clues today.

    Rating ** / ***

    Thanks to MP and Rufus.

  27. Well I found today’s crossword a real mixture of tricky and easy. Like everybody else it seems, 3d was the final clue to fall. 10a was good I know, but because it fooled me for so long I’m going with 15d as favourite,
    .2/4* overall.
    Thanks to Rufus, and the joyous one for the review.

  28. Completely thrown by two of the long clues.
    Occult spheres should be Spirit Worlds, and
    Basra should be The Gaza Strip.
    No wonder nothing else fitted around it!!
    Tom the Barber

  29. Nice straightforward start on a cold Monday😨 */*** with some clever clueing 😊 Favourites were 22d (of course), 28a and 11d. Thanks to Rufus and to the Jubilant one

  30. An enjoyable start to the crossword week . A little over a one star difficulty.
    22d is my favourite .
    Thanks to Miffypops and Rufus.

  31. As with many others I too filled 3d in last and was thinking shoe for some time. When 9a came to me I toyed with heel and ever for a while until the penny dropped and the all answers correct window appeared. Thanks to Rufus and MP for a pleasant start to the crossword week.
    20a fave clue, NW trickiest sector for me.

  32. Thanks to Rufus for a great puzzle, and to Miffypops for the hints, particularly 25a, 28a and 22d when my general knowledge sadly let me down, No other help needed today, so very enjoyable.

  33. A gentle walk in the park from Rufus this week. Last in was 3d, where I was looking for many things, in particular a double definition, but not what we got. :-)

  34. Just needed a hint for 3d. Poor clue IMHO. Two E’s as checking letters were a great help.
    The rest of the crossword was testing, much harder than usual from Rufus. That’s the hardest * I can remember.
    Thanks MP and Rufus.

  35. Thanks to Rufus and to Miffypops for the review and hints. A very enjoyable start to the week. I must disagree with Miffypops’ difficulty rating. I managed the right hand side very easily, but ground to a halt in NW & SW corners. I also had wets for 26d, which made 28&30a impossible. Needed the hints for 1a&1,2,3d. Was 4 ✳ / 3 ✳ for me. Favourite was 17a.

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