Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2966
A full review by crypticsue
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This puzzle was published on 26th August 2018
BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***
It took me a while to get going on this Sunday puzzle, indeed it was almost a ‘start with the Downs’. My favourite was 16d
Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.
Across
1a Lack of confidence as result of scrutiny, i.e. being mistreated (10)
INSECURITY – An anagram (being mistreated) of SCRUTINY IE
6a What I’m referring to that is heartless? (4)
THIS – Remove the ‘heart’ from THat IS
9a Nuisance for driver revealed at top speed (4,3)
FLAT OUT – FLAT [tyre] (nuisance for driver) OUT (revealed)
10a Spy many years in captivity (7)
BONDAGE – BOND (spy) AGE (many years)
12a Lacking sense of direction as a setter, I did no wrong? (13)
DISORIENTATED – An anagram (wrong) of AS A SETTER I DID NO
14a Puzzles site clue: Fire about ten main people finally, in addition (6) Newspaper clue: Frank as diarist about what’s at heart of Brexit extension (6) ANNEXE – AXE (fire) about the final letters of teN MaiN people; or ANNE (Frank, the famous diarist) about the letters at the heart of BrEXit
15a Motorist accommodating old reveller (8)
CAROUSER – CAR USER (motorist) ‘accommodating’ O (old)
17a I had reversed pieces of proof, creating problems (8)
DILEMMAS – A reversal of ID (I had) followed by LEMMAS (mathematical pieces of proof)
19a Part of Balkans, a Slavic state (6)
KANSAS – A state far away from the Balkans can be found lurking in part of BalKANS A Slavic
22a Fiend runs into position for protest (13)
DEMONSTRATION – DEMON (fiend) and R (runs) inserted into STATION (position)
24a Experienced kind of doctor managed without drug (7)
VETERAN – VET (kind of doctor) RAN (managed) ‘without’ E (Ecstasy, drug)
25a Person with complaint that’s slow to complain (7)
PATIENT – a nice double definition
26a Decorate anew using colour circle (4)
REDO – RED (colour) O (letter that is shaped like a circle)
27a Cost raised after Charlie’s replaced, banished from company (10)
OSTRACISED – Join together COST and RAISED and then move the C (Charlie in the NATO Phonetic Alphabet) further down the word
Down
1d Uncertain short time after leader is removed (4)
IFFY – Remove the first letter (leader) from JIFFY (short time)
2d Opposition elected replacement (5-2)
STAND-IN – STAND (opposition) IN (elected)
3d Lawyer with questions involving sex crime and arson (5-8)
CROSS-EXAMINER – An anagram involving SEX CRIME ARSON
4d Snappy answer is concerning, and wrong (6)
RETORT – RE (concerning) TORT (wrong)
5d Protection for furniture cut from suitable material (5,3)
TABLE MAT – Lurking in (cut from) suiTABLE MATerial
7d Husband wearing suit in warm indoor locations (7)
HEARTHS – H (husband) ‘wearing’ or going inside HEARTS (suit of playing cards)
8d Reduce or lessen dire changes (10)
SLENDERISE – An anagram (changes) of LESSEN DIRE
11d Supporting one’s people, revise an initial cost (13)
NATIONALISTIC – An anagram (revise) of AN INITIAL COST
13d North of port, two letters he has delivered (6,4)
HANDED OVER – H AND E (the two letters making up the word he) go ‘north’ or on top of in a Down clue, the port of DOVER
16d Rushing south where invader was engaged in battle (8)
HASTINGS – HASTING (rushing) S (South) which is indeed what King Harold did in order to fight the invading Norman army)
18d Small child in cap subject to restriction (7)
LIMITED – MITE (small child) in LID (cap)
20d First in school, except when not bright, naturally (7)
SUNLESS – S (the first letter of school) UNLESS (except when)
21d Head who might be caught unawares? (6)
NAPPER – An informal term for the head or someone who might be unprepared or off their guard
23d Work in college, mainly, or kind of farm (4)
STUD – Most (mainly) of STUDy (work in college)
2*/3*
Thought 13D was clever (H&E) and liked 16D (the answer being my home town).