DT 29002 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 29002

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 29002

Hints and tips by Mr K

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BD Rating  -  Difficulty ** Enjoyment **

 

Hello, everyone.  I can't think of much to say about today's puzzle.  So I'll get the boilerplate out of the way and move swiftly along to the hinty part of the blog.  In the hints below most indicators are italicized and definitions are underlined.  Clicking on the the answer would be here buttons will reveal the answers.  In some hints hyperlinks provide additional explanation or background.  Clicking on a picture will enlarge it or display a bonus illustration.  Please leave a comment telling us how you got on.

 

Across

1a    Son, unfriendly in front of editor, gets told off (7)
SCOLDED:  Put together the genealogical abbreviation for son, unfriendly or aloof, and the abbreviation for editor

5a    Credit cards snap around end (7)
PLASTIC:  A snap or photo is wrapped around a synonym of end

9a    Spoils game in seconds (5)
RUINS:  Join together a usual abbreviated game, IN from the clue, and the abbreviation for seconds

10a   Half interested, ready for Macron to explain (9)
INTERPRET:  Follow one half of INTERESTED by the French word (… for Macron) for ready (as in ready to wear )

11a   Wife exercises with hoop after the man's muttering (10)
WHISPERING:  Concatenate the genealogical abbreviation for wife, a pronoun for "the man's", the usual physical exercises, and a hoop or circle

12a   Person who's smashing  plate (4)
DISH:  A double definition.  The first an informal word for a good-looking person, the second a plate for food

14a   Engineer repairs tip -- no sweat (12)
PERSPIRATION:  An anagram (engineer … ) of REPAIRS TIP NO

18a   In spite of everything, neither vessel at sea ignores island (12)
NEVERTHELESS:  An anagram (at sea) of NEITHER VESSEL minus the single letter for island (ignores island)

21a   Pool game with international appearing for university (4)
LIDO:  In a board game the single-letter abbreviation for international is replacing (appearing for) the single-letter abbreviation for university

22a   Old politician in jail is gathering acceptable friends (10)
COMPANIONS:  This one is a bit convoluted.  Start by fusing together the abbreviation for old and a usual politician. Next, insert that lot in an informal word for jail.  Finish by appending the IS from the clue after its been wrapped around (gathering) an informal synonym of acceptable or feasible 

25a   Scandal in Eton as unruly head of science is imprisoned (9)
SENSATION:  An anagram (unruly) of IN ETON AS has the first letter of (head of) Science inserted (… is imprisoned)

26a   Almost keen to capture large bird (5)
EAGLE:  All but the last letter (almost) of a synonym of keen containing (to capture) the clothing abbreviation for large

27a   Looking for Neptune, we hear? (7)
SEEKING:  A homophone (… we hear) of a (3,4) phrase specifying what the god Neptune is an example of

28a   Presume American quietly gets ensnared by cult (7)
SUSPECT:  An abbreviation for American and the musical abbreviation for quietly inserted together in (ensnared by) a cult

 

Down

1d    Cons -- and those who guard them (6)
SCREWS:  A double definition, where the second one refers back to the start of the clue.  A verb for cons or swindles, and a slang word for the prison officers who guard the cons behind bars

2d    Nothing to cook in base (6)
ORIGIN:  A charade of the letter that looks like zero (nothing), a synonym of cook (as in cook the books), and IN from the clue

3d    Regularly find rising juice before fruit goes off (10)
DISAPPEARS:  Stick together the reversal (rising) of the even letters (regularly …) of FIND, the vital juice that circulates in plants, and some (plural) fruit

4d    More withered veterans initially dropped off by motorist (5)
DRIER:  The first letter (… initially) of Veterans is deleted from (dropped off by) a motorist

5d    Budding plant's container -- lean it precariously (9)
POTENTIAL:  A plant's container is followed by an anagram (precariously) of LEAN IT

6d    Powerless couples displaying affectation of superiority (4)
AIRS:  Some couples with the physics symbol for power deleted (power-less …)

7d    Time to misbehave with current female? One Conservative's wicked (8)
TERRIFIC:  Cement together the physics symbol for time, a verb meaning to misbehave or make a mistake, the physics symbol for electric current, the abbreviation for female, the Roman numeral for one, and the single-letter abbreviation for Conservative

8d    Seizing animal by lower jaw and tail in building (8)
CATCHING:  The best animal is followed by the end of your lower jaw and the last letter of (tail in) buildinG

13d   People on buses perhaps see prangs developing and start to shout (10)
PASSENGERS:  An anagram (developing) of SEE PRANGS and the first letter of (start to) Shout.  The perhaps is indicating that "people on buses" is a definition by example of the answer

15d   Training fish to follow reduced group of whales (9)
SCHOOLING:  A long-bodied marine fish follows all but the last letter (reduced) of the noun for a group of whales

16d   Broken nails, say, producing criticism (8)
ANALYSIS:  An anagram (broken) of NAILS SAY

17d   I have sent over study by the Church for authentication (8)
EVIDENCE:  Chain together the reversal (sent over) of the contracted form of "I have", a study or studio, and the abbreviation for the Church of England

19d   Voice quality encapsulates good, upper-class dialect (6)
TONGUE:  A voice quality or a characteristic of a sound contains (encapsulates) joined abbreviations for good and for upper-class

20d   Snake European caught with tense appearance (6)
ASPECT:  Assemble a (3) snake, the single letter for European, the cricket abbreviation for caught, and the abbreviation for tense

23d   Rubbish  boxers? (5)
PANTS:  A double definition.  The first is British slang for rubbish or nonsense, the second is what boxers are an example of (indicated by the ?)

24d   Artist somewhat weird? A little (4)
DALI:  The ocelot-owning artist is hidden as part of (somewhat …) the remainder of the clue.  Remember that you can frequently ignore punctuation in clues

 

Thanks to today’s setter.  I couldn't identify a favourite.  Could you?

 


The Quick Crossword pun:  CHA + TAR + PLAIN = CHARTER PLANE


46 comments on “DT 29002

  1. I agree with our blogger that this was straightforward and workmanlike without any of the usual sparkle we tend to associate with a Tuesday. No particular favourite that I could highlight.

    Thanks to our setter and Mr K.

  2. A gentle puzzle with no real stumbling blocks, which was mildly amusing. Thanks to Mr K, I enjoyed the animal pictures and videos and thanks to the setter. Favourite clues 1d and 22a.

  3. Very mild, OK clues, quite enjoyable. I’ve ticked a few but will pick 22a as a favourite, though a rather reluctant one. 1.5* / 2.5*

  4. Completed without any hints or electronic help so it must have been on the (very) gentle side.
    Having a French partner always helps with the Macron type clues (though I knew it anyway) and I liked 7 and 23d if only for their contemporary usage of the words. 1.5/2.5*

    Many thanks to setter and to Mr K for his usual well illustrated review
    Ps I see we have an canine “imposter” for 1a!

    1. Have you clicked on that canine imposter? When I did, for some reason it remined me of the quote: “Censure acquits the raven, but pursues the dove”.

    2. Tap or click on the image Stephen. Tuesday is not only pet shop day it is WordPress wizardry day too.

        1. It does say in the intro that clicking on a Tuesday picture might do something :)

          Some time ago I added code to my blog pages to make pictures double in size upon a click so that text in cartoons and the like would become legible. Then I extended it to allow a click to reveal a bonus pic that was too good to leave out or that perhaps shouldn’t be in plain sight.

    3. I accept that our language has to develop but don’t concur with your liking for contemporary usage of “wicked” for something good or great.

  5. Yes, quite a ‘bland’ Tuesday offering completed at a fast gallop – **/**.

    Favourite – 11a.

    Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

    The anonymous, at the time I solved it, Toughie was much more enjoyable.

  6. Enjoyable puzzle today although for some reason 2d and 19d caused me pause. The rest went in nicely. Thanks to Mr K for hints.

  7. Over too quickly but with a few smiles the biggest being 27A so my COTD.

    Thanks to the Setter and to Mr K for the pics .

  8. Rather too mild and over too quickly. 1d and 23d made me smile. Let’s see how I get on with the Toughie – hopefully on the mild side since it’s Tuesday.

  9. Apart from my usual blind spot over the method of cooking in 2d, everything slotted together quite readily.

    Favourite was 27a for the smile factor with a star prize going to Mr K’s double illustration of 1a – how very true!

    Thanks to today’s setter and to Mr K for another enjoyable blog.

  10. A gentle stroll through crossword land, nothing much striking but enjoyable.
    Strangely on furst pass got 23d wrong but soon sorted.
    Thanks to Mr K and setter.

  11. Humph. This relative newcomer was so pleased with herself for completing today’s puzzle without electronic help, only to discover that everyone else found it easy too. Self-congratulation over. Thank you to Mr K for helping me parse 8d by helping me remember what the end of my lower jaw is called!
    I do think that it’s about time that the answer to 12a, and similar expressions, should be consigned to the archives, to bring Crosswordland up to date with the real world. Not all solvers can remember the 1960s.

    1. Noooo, Debbie, do not withdraw your self-congratulations. The early commenters are naturally mostly those who were able to solve the puzzle quickly. This puzzle was less challenging than the average Tuesday, but I wouldn’t label it “easy”. And several clues required thought to untangle and parse (a six ingredient charade for an 8-letter answer must be a record).

      I agree with your last paragraph, although we do know that most solvers here lived through the 1960s.

  12. Pleasant enough but not memorable. South beat North to it. Used wrong muttering synonym for 11a which in turn hampered solution of 3d. Liked 10a but possibly not to everyone’s liking. Thank you Messrs. Ron and K.

      1. Despite watching Crufts last week … I know very little about dogs.

        Is he a setter?

        1. :) I’m not sure. The Telegraph is even less help than Crufts when it comes to identifying setters.

          1. :good: I think the puppy in the pic is probably a Beagle and was hoping against hope that I could come up with a crossword setter who uses that as a pseudonym – failed miserably.

  13. I agree with all the above. Favourite was 23d just because it made me laugh. Thanks to the setter and Mr. K.

  14. Agree with the majority **/** 😃Favourites 27a & 23d 😬 Thanks to Mr K and to the Setter

  15. Out of the dunce’s cap today, but it was rather on the mild side for a Tuesday. Fun all the same. I think that 8d was my favourite, just because I knew Mr Kitty would find an appropriate picture, and I got quite excited with anticipation. I’m afraid the quickie pun didn’t do it for me today though. Many thanks setter and Mr Kitty.

  16. No great problems apart from 10a which held me up for a bit as my french is tres pauvre. Not too comfortable with 16d, analysis for criticism, critique perhaps but criticism – not sure! The BRB doesn’t help either.
    But whatever thanks to all.
    **/***

  17. Glad of a gentle solve today as got a late start. We are having an English summer’s day here, dark and rainy, so was late arising!
    I never did get 23d; when will I ever learn, we’ve had it a few times.
    I liked 10a with 1a as runner up, ‘cos of the pic, natch.
    Thanks to our Tuesday setter and to Mr. K for the hints and pics, particularly the pics.

      1. Nothing quite so glam – I worked in ops and then reservations, but still a fun job.

    1. Welcome back. I’m sorry for the dreadful upheavals you’ve had in your so peaceful country. The only consolation is that it wasn’t a New Zealander who committed such atrocities.

  18. 1.5*/2*. I’ve had a topsy-turvy day today and have only just found time to look at this puzzle. Like Mr K, I can’t think of much to say about it.

    27a was my favourite. Thanks to the setter and to Mr K.

  19. Yes I guess it was a pleasant solve; it didn’t take long and there were no holdups and 1d was my top clue and that was that.
    Thanks to the setter, and to Mr K for the pics and review.

  20. 3*/4*…..
    joint COD’s : 27A (looking for Neptune, we hear?) & 23D ( rubbish boxers?).

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