DT 29156 (Hints) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 29156 (Hints)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 29156 (Hints)

The Saturday Crossword Club

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As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, an assortment of clues, including some of the more difficult ones, have been selected and hints provided for them.

Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also”. Where the hint describes a construct as “usual” this means that more help can be found in The Usual Suspects, which gives a number of the elements commonly used in the wordplay. Another useful page is Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, which features words with meanings that are not always immediately obvious.

A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions.

Some hints follow.

Across

7a    Bars impressionist following personal problem (7)
The surname of an Impressionist painter follows the two-letter abbreviation for a “personal problem”

8a    Shakespearean prince, I save swimmer (7)
The three-letter Shakespearean nickname for the future Henry V followed by the I from the clue and a word meaning save or except

10a    Fling one off bedside table (10)
Drop (off) the ONE from a fling

12a    Rebel having certain amount of power overturned bank (3,5)
The name of this 14th century rebel is derived from a unit (certain amount) of power followed by the reversal of a verb meaning to bank or depend

15a    Minion touring Northern Ireland showing stress (11)
A nine-letter minion goes around the abbreviation for Northern Ireland – stress here means emphasis

20a    Engineers safe capturing advanced weapon (8)
The Royal Engineers are followed by a colloquial word for a safe around A(dvanced)

23a    Characteristics of what banks in Munich used to do? (10)
Split as (5,5) this could be what banks in Munich used to do before the introduction of the euro (which our German friend pronounces as oy-row)

26a    Fate of French mistress’s last minute (7)
The French for “of” followed by the final letter (last) [mistres]S and an adjective meaning minute

Down

1d    Leave one in storage compartment a year (7)
Put I (one) inside a storage compartment, typically found on a ship or aircraft, and add the A from the clue and Y(ear)

4d    Official person showin’ courage (8)
A person followed by a word meaning showing courage without (as in the clue) its final G

6d    Property set fire to in harbour (7)
This property is a characteristic not a building – put a three-letter verb meaning set fire to inside a harbour

9d    Music-maker such as ear drum put first (6,5)
The ear is one of these parts of the body – but a drum or cask first

16d    What Americans did to get Reagan in charge (8)
Split as (5,3) this could be What Americans did to get Reagan as president

17d    Saving company invested in money supply (7)
Put CO(mpany) inside an anagram (supply) of MONEY – for the anagram indicator to work it needs to be an adverb meaning flexibly rather than a noun

18d    Knocking down patio feature? (7)
Two definitions – the second will never be a feature of our patio, particularly when painted blue!

24d    Car valuation regularly disregarded (4)
Drop (disregarded) the odd letters (regularly) from a word in the clue

The Crossword Club is now open.


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The Quick Crossword pun: grazer+gnat+tummy=Gray’s Anatomy


61 comments on “DT 29156 (Hints)

  1. After a slow start, answers fell into place fairly swiftly, so ** for difficulty. This puzzle was very enjoyable (****) and had some really clever clues. My favourite, once the penny dropped, was 10a, which I had bunged in. Thanks to BD for the hint for that and 16d, which was quite sneaky. Thanks to the setter.

  2. Normally, Saturday’s are trickier than weekdays’
    I found this one not to be the case.
    Finished in ** for difficulty time.
    Satisfying and enjoyable, though.
    Thanks to the setter and to BD.

  3. Fantastic , so many good clues with 10A and 16D leading the way .
    A delight from start to finish with last in 22A .
    Congratulations to the Setter and , as usual , many thanks for the hints.

  4. This made me laugh more than any other puzzle recently, so certainly gets my vote. Have a good weekend all.

  5. Three quarters of this was a steady solve for me until I reached the SW corner, which took me the same amount of time again to crack. I think I’ve come across the amusing 16d before but was slow to recall and this was the key to completion. Enjoyable stuff I thought.

    Thanks to BD and setter 3*/4*

  6. Wonderful puzzle with 7A & 25A my personal favourites. Many thanks to the setter and now I can concentrate on the test match and the St Leger!!!

  7. I didn’t find this as easy as others and made liberal use of the Thesaurus. Thanks to BD for the explanation to 10a which I got but don’t think I’d ever have fully parsed myself.

    Had to consult the dictionary for the first definition of 22a as I didn’t know that flier.

    I loved the clever 16d and 23a, but on the whole this was not my favourite puzzle of the week.

    Many thanks to BD and the setter.

    PS: BD I always tick the “save my name for next time” button, but it never works. Is there something I’m doing wrong?

  8. A splendid challenge but I have to mention the slip-up with 25a as I see it very often in crosswords: he was a dictator.

    xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

    1. Please read about what is acceptable in a comment on a prize puzzle before commenting again, especially as you are incorrect in that you have assumed that the definition is a specific person. The term can be applied to any of the people defined by the answer coming from the city alluded to in the clue. It is better to prefix a comment such as yours with “in my opinion”.

  9. Sorry to disagree but I found this very hard. Needed the invaluable hints but I still don’t fully understand my answer to 22a, xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

    Completing this was a real slog needing persistence and with very little fun.
    Thx for the hints
    ****/**

      1. Ah now that’s not something I have come across before. I did look up my answer but didn’t go down to the bottom of the list. So nothing to do with xxxxxxxx. (Don’t know if this comment will get me to the naughty step but I’ve just made a Delia chocolate fudge cake which I am happy to share with any fellow incumbents.)

        1. I’m not going to join you in the Corner (it is too nice a day to be indoors and the garden is calling out for a bit of tidying) but I’d love a piece of that cake

        1. Hi Peter,
          It’s an affectionate name for the Big Red Book – Chamber’s Dictionary, which is indeed both big and red!

    1. Brian if you look up your answer to 22a in the BRB and scroll right down to the final definition you should find it. That’s what I had to do.

      1. Hi Margaret – full marks last Saturday, even though I completed and submitted it from Helsinki!

        1. Hi HJ you’ve reminded me to check last week’s results and I too got full marks, things are hopefully looking up!

    2. 22a was a problem here too. This is a “flier” that never comes to mind early here but I have noticed it is fast becoming a crossword regular so I will try and put it higher up in the mental list of fliers I go to.

  10. My goodness I struggled with this, so the bat droppings in Church have waited much longer than expected to be swept up!
    Without BD s help I would not have made it. So many thanks to him and the setter.

  11. Well, what a difficult puzzle today. 4 clues completed by myself before BD came to the rescue. And I’m still struggling with the SW corner.
    After yesterday’s success I thought I’d cracked crossword land. But no, one step forward, one step back.
    Thanks BD for the hints

  12. Bit of a mixed bag, which I guess is good for a Saturday. All proceeded quite well but needed Mr Google for the 22a flier and the 20a safe both of which I’ve never heard of. And 10a was a bung in which I didn’t spend too long trying to parse so thanks BD for the explanation. It’s a very long time since I had one of those! So overall **/*** for me. Thanks to all. Enjoy the Sunny day and the cricket. Prayers to the hurricane battered Bahamians now facing T/S Humberto.

  13. Enjoyed the humour in this one, even the couple of chestnuts that were included.
    Favourite was 10a which took a bit of lateral thinking.

    Thanks to our setter and to BD for the club.

  14. This one gave me lots of smiles and a good number of ticks on my page. 12A and 16D are my favorites. Thanks BD and today’s setter.

  15. Thanks to setter and BD for the hints. I needed a few as time was/is in short supply. The dishwasher is in bits after a decoke and the kitchen is in a state. Liked 15a today and appreciated how BD emphasised the definition in the hint.
    Looks like BD himself on the 9d too!

  16. Very enjoyable and the sprinkling of oldies but goodies, including 22a and 16d which I managed to remember, helped – 2.5*/3.5*.
    Candidates for favourite – 8a, 12a, and 21d – and the winner is 8a.
    Thanks to the setter and BD.

  17. Hotter here in Cambridge than it was in Madeira last week! Nice puzzle, I particularly liked 10a and 16d. Thanks to the setter and BD for some of the parsing. Not sure if 11a is a good definition?

    1. As I said to Brian earlier about another clue – have a look in the dictionary – the second definition is there in the middle of a lot of other ones

  18. From first read through thought this was going to be a killer but in fact once underway (weigh?) it went quite smoothly. I’m with others re not knowing/remembering 22a so that was a bung-in. Liked 12a (combination of GK and Cryptic). Wrongly used in charge so got 16d ending wrong which meant 25a remained unsolved. Thank you Mysteron and BD.

  19. At first glance I only got 3 in but after a major wavelength adjustment the clues began to come.
    Not my finest hour!
    3*/3.5*
    Thanks to setter & BD for review & direction

  20. A ***/*** from me. The SE corner went in very easily but the rest was difficult but enjoyable. 12a and 16d my favourites. Thanks to the setter and Big Dave for his hint for 7a which was last one in. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

    1. Putting .com twice at the end of your email address sent you into moderation

      The part of your comment I’ve redacted should probably be saved for Friday’s review as you are giving too much information about the personal problem for a Saturday comment

  21. I’m with Brian on this, I did find it hard, but I did enjoy it. A number of clues made me laugh, in particular 16d which I had not seen before.
    It is nice to finish without need of the hints, but I did use them to verify a couple of answers so thanks BD. and of course, the setter.

  22. A slow start, but it all came together quite quickly in the end. My favourite and chuckle moment has to be with 16 down, closely followed by 25 across. Angry with myself for having to look up 22 across as the flier in question was quite familiar to me. IMHO the level of difficulty is fair enough . . . . after all it is a prize puzzle. A very entertaining solve, completed partly over a nice cuppa after a morning spent shopping in Shropshire’s so called ‘New Town’. Thanks to both setter and BD.

  23. I found this quite difficult to get into but then gradually a few pennies dropped and it came together without any hints, except for 22a which after some mental struggle still eludes me. A ****/*** for me. Really liked 12 and 25a. Many thanks to the setter and BD, I’d really hoped for a 22a hint there!

  24. Have to say that I struggled a bit with this one….but got there in the end. I seem to be bucking the trend by finding the NE corner the most troublesome…but things finally fell into place when I got 8d.

    Blowing an absolute hooley here …..and not particularly warm either, which made our guided walk around Hidden Broughty Ferry this morning a bit more of an adventure than we expected.

  25. Well I made hard work of solving this crossword! I just wasn’t at the races. Eventually having completed I was able to appreciate it. 10a was out and out favourite.
    Thanks to the setter, and to BD for the hints.

  26. I found it really difficult to get on wavelength, and having solved a couple I had no idea why, the checkers just fitted; e.g. 10a, so thanks BD for that. I guffawed long and loud when I read your hint.
    I liked lots, 12a, ‘cos I remembered back at least 50 years, 7a for the giggle factor and so on.
    Even with your hint I couldn’t find the slang for safe, I didn’t know there were so many dictionaries, got it with a word search.
    Thanks for the fun, setter, and help in finishing BD, needed that.

  27. I didn’t get to see todays puzzle until this evening because of meeting friends from uni for Lunch in Leintwardine, Herefordshire. When I did finally sit down to start it my mind went blank. I could not crack any of the clues. I then got 8a and others began to fall into place but it was slow progress. I did not know that 22a was a flier. My favourites were 16d and, because it came to me first, 8a.

    Grateful thanks to all concerned.

    The lunch was great fun, by the way!

  28. I think I’m at odds with almost everyone this week as I found this the easiest one so far. Not that is anything to go by as I found Mondays to Fridays really difficult, this one marginally less so hence my “early” comment. Favourite 9d just because it took so long to think of the first word. Many thanks to the setter and BD. I can’t tell you how pleased I am people are commenting after me. Please feel free to do so again I won’t say another word.

  29. As often “join the clan”. Couldn’t get going at all, as last week, so thanks for the hints BD..
    Last in was 22a but not convinced with my answer. Started with 9d and 15a and then not a lot. However I did find some of the clues entertaining eg 23a. Despite the clever joke on 10a I have never heard of the description in the answer(?)
    I hope that next week will be back to normal though!

  30. This took me three sittings which is why I’m so late commenting. Quite tricky in parts but some clever clues. I dredged 22a up from somewhere and loved 10a – my favourite. Thanks to the setter and BD.

  31. I remember seeing 16d, when the encumbant had just been xxxxxxxx, I was attempting to help my grandad with the DT crossword. One of the few clues that has stuck in my jogging.
    Tricky, but lots of good clues, not sure I have seen this setter before…
    Thanks both.

  32. I didn’t get round to doing this one until late (too late) last night by which time I was a bit past my best!
    I found it quite difficult in places and thought there were a lot of good clues.
    15 and 23a stood out for me and my favourite was 10a.
    With thanks to the setter and to BD.
    Off to do some ‘post-family visit’ clearing up now and then today’s crossword, and maybe NTSPP too.

  33. Only one answer after first read through and that was 24d! Fortunately another half dozen fell into place second time around. I gradually got there with several wonderful penny dropping moments. I had many ticks for enjoyable clues 7a,15a, 19a, 23a,5d, 9d 16d so it was well worth the effort. My favourite was 10a – it took me ages to see why my answer was right. Thank you setter and BD.

  34. Enjoyed this very much and, like lots of others, my favourite was 10a. Wasn’t keen on 4d. Also like others, 22a was my last one in – funnily enough, when I eventually had the sense to look in my BRB, I found that the flier was definition no 1. Thanks to the setter and BD.

  35. BD, 17d. Regarding the anagram indicator, (in my opinion, with some evidence) the word used is an adverb meaning flexible (it’s listed as such in Collins Online) and is an alternative spelling without the usual E. I’ve seen this version used in cryptic clues several times before. It may not be in the latest BRB, but just about valid?

    1. If you read my hint again, that is what I am saying (and it is in the latest version of the BRB) – I was pointing out that supply, as an act of supplying, would not work as an anagram indicator.

      1. Thanks for the elucidation. I (reasonably) misinterpreted your comment because when reviewers use italics it often means there’s something amiss with the clue, but here I now see it’s just an advisory note. Incidentally, when I got home I checked in my old (1997, revised) BRB and that version of supply (adverb) is listed in there also.

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