DT 29296 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 29296

by 2Kiwis  

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 29296

Hints and tips by 2Kiwis

BD Rating – Difficulty **– Enjoyment ****

Kia ora from Aotearoa.

We have been away for a few days. Taumarunui is a small town in the centre of the North Island and from there we did a day trip which involved a jet boat ride on the upper Whanganui river and then a self-drive excursion in converted golf carts along a section of discontinued railway. The whole line is about 140 Km but we only did about 40km of this. Through interesting countryside with plenty of tunnels as well. For more details Google ‘Forgotten World Adventures’.
Great fun and thoroughly enjoyed. Something to include on your next visit to New Zealand.

All the usual fun from Jay in today’s puzzle too.

 Please leave a comment telling us how you got on.

Across

7a     Dependent may see trouble returning during split (7)
RELIANT : A three letter synonym for trouble is reversed within a split or tear.

8a     Succeed, applying universal rate to most of journey (7)
TRIUMPH : Start with a four letter word for a journey and remove its last letter, then U(niversal) and rate expressed as distance covered in relation to time.

10a     Under pressure after spat about verb form (4,5)
PAST TENSE : An anagram (about) of SPAT and then a word meaning under pressure.

11a     Group meet regularly after month (5)
OCTET : The tenth month of the year is followed by the second and fourth letters of meet.

12a     Levels pitches (5)
ROLLS : Two ways of understanding this clue. Either as a cryptic definition of ‘prepares a cricketing surface’ or as a double definition where pitches means delivers with an underarm motion.

13a     Muscle resistance seen in retired player (9)
RETRACTOR : The abbreviation for retired and a theatrical player are separated by the physics symbol for resistance.

15a     Irreligious young lad with no answer needing to be reformed (7)
UNGODLY : An anagram (needing to be reformed) of YOUNG L(a)D once the A(nswer) has been removed.

17a     Sucker riding small brown horse (7)
MUSTANG : A sucker or dupe contains S(mall) and light brown.

18a     Took off tired, as is confused (9)
SATIRISED : An anagram (confused) of TIRED AS IS.

20a     Chaste line taken by church article (5)
CLEAN : The Anglican Church contains L(ine) and then one of the forms of the indefinite article.

21a      Sort of nerve required, seeing credit cut after work (5)
OPTIC : An artistic work and then a slang word for credit loses its last letter.

23a     Rioters rioting about races for coffee (9)
RISTRETTO : The two letters used for races such as those held on the Isle of Man are inside an anagram (rioting) of RIOTERS.

24a     Top ticket perhaps requiring time (7)
SINGLET : A ticket required by one passenger plus T(ime).

25a     Stickers of Independent politician found during checks (7)
LIMPETS : An archaic synonym for checks or restrains encloses I(ndependent) and a Member of Parliament.

Down

1d     Escape, grabbing whip and torch (10)
FLASHLIGHT : A synonym for whip is enclosed by an escape or hasty departure.

2d     Experiences of son supporting discrimination (6)
TASTES : Discrimination or refinement is followed by the abbreviation for son.

3d     Mean to eat mainly raw fish (8)
STINGRAY : Mean or ungenerous contains the first two letters of raw.

4d     Bear witness in appointment set tactfully up (6)
ATTEST : A reversed lurker hiding in the clue.

5d     Bishop providing topless pubs and glasses (8)
BIFOCALS : The chess abbreviation for bishop, a short word for providing, and then remove the first letter from pubs that are close to one’s home.

6d     Black bits found in butcher’s mutton (4)
SMUT : A lurker (going forward this time) hiding in the clue.

7d     Consequences of putting soldiers on the drums succeeded (13)
REPERCUSSIONS : Engineering soldiers, then the section of an orchestra where drums are found and S(ucceeded).

9d     Strange rote — see enough of different parts (13)
HETEROGENEOUS : An anagram (strange) of ROTE SEE ENOUGH.

14d     Parodies efforts to pinch a waistcoat for the Americans (10)
TRAVESTIES : Efforts or attempts surround ‘A’ from the clue and what Americans call a waistcoat.

16d     Immediately and with fatal consequences holding court (8)
DIRECTLY : The abbreviation for court is inside a word meaning with fatal or very serious consequences.

17d     Melody dances across street without pretension (8)
MODESTLY : An anagram (dances) of MELODY contains ST(reet).

19d     Fairy godmother ultimately enveloped in rancour (6)
SPRITE : The last letter of godmother is inside rancour or malice.

20d     Italian city underpinning church element (6)
CHROME : The abbreviation for church and then Italy’s capital city.

22d     Tie up and hit hard (4)
TONK : The reversal of ‘tie up’ perhaps with string.

Quickie pun    win    +    ebay    +    goes    =     Winnebagos

84 comments on “DT 29296”

  1. 2*/4*. Not too difficult and all the usual fun from Jay.

    I took the second definition for 12a to relate to a ship in a rough sea.

    As a chemist of long ago I was surprised to see 20d described as an element, and even more surprised to see it defined as that in my BRB.

    My podium today comprises 12a, 5d & 14d.

    Many thanks to our three regular Wednesday birds.

    1. My inner chemist was also troubled by 20d. I have always assumed, perhaps wrongly, that the solution means “plated with chromium”. Obviously the BRB has a different interpretation.

    3. Re your comment about 12a: Hmm :-)
      Pitch and Roll are not the same thing.
      Pitch is a fore-and-aft oscillation of a ship. Roll is a side-to-side oscillation.

  2. I had great difficulty ggetting startedon this and only got 4 clues on the first pass. As is often the case things slowly came together and I finished in 3/4* time. Thanks to the Kiwis for the hints, which helped with the ones I wasn’t sure about. I’d never heard of the coffee and had to google it. Harder than your average Jay but quite enjoyable (***) with lots of really wily misdirection. I enjoyed the 2 anagrams, 7d and 9d and my favourite was 5d.

    1. I too,had never heard of the coffee,but now I want to try it! 3*/3* for myself and as Rabbit Dave says-Thanks to the three birds!!

  3. I’m another who hadn’t heard of the coffee – how many varieties are there, I wonder?
    The muscle gave pause for thought, as did the spelling of 9d, but all completed in good time.
    Favourite was the bishop with his topless bars and the horse-riding sucker.

    Many thanks to Jay and to our 2Ks – sounds as though you enjoyed your recent adventure on North Island.

    1. When I retired my colleagues gave me a Nespresso Coffee machine, which was a marvellous gift and has been used at least three times daily since then. The choice of coffees they offer is mind-boggling and, after trying a few different varieties, I settled on one “normal” one and one espresso. When I tried at the end of last week to reorder my capsules, they informed me that my preferred espresso type had been discontinued. They proposed several possible alternatives, one of which by sheer coincidence was 23a. Interestingly all the options they offered were more expensive – how strange is that? :unsure:

      1. Typical Nespresso charging more for less. I grind my own beans and use a basic Gaggia home machine to make espresso. As I understand it 23a is the same as an espresso but the flow of water is even more restricted (23a being Italian for restricted) giving a smaller but stronger shot of coffee. I usually want as much and as strong as poss and occasionally add a dash of milk foam making a Macchiato.
        I am not really a coffee snob – I drink endless instant at work but when I am home I like to experiment. I am unable to do any of the fancy coffee art that some baristas do but I can do a pretty decent flat white.

        1. Funny, we went the opposite way. Had a Gaggia for about 5 years, producing great coffee, but it was very temperamental and needed a lot of fiddling and coaxing to get it to perform. We finally gave in and went for the Nespresso machine instead. Love it. Now we can each have our own favourite, particularly good for us as I cannot have caffeine under doctor’s orders. And so easy I can even use it 😊

          1. We (for that read husband) have a Sage – I can’t be bothered – it’s a faff and noisy so I have proper coffee in a little stove top espresso – two decent sized mugs and after that I go on to instant for the rest of the day – don’t drink tea at all – can’t stand it – yuk!

            1. Over 47 years we have owned numerous percolators, coffee machines, grinders etc. Gave up on all of them and now solely use a cafetière. First of the day is in the smallest size before I get up. Easy to wash, no instructions needed, no capsules to insert and not hard on the planet. Even take them on holiday. In order to get a cup of coffee in a Radisson Hotel I had to line my IPad up alongside the coffee maker and watch a YouTube video.

            2. I went off tea for some reason, and just couldn’t stand it after drinking it most of my life. I then switched to camomile tea, which I enjoyed until it started to irritate my throat. Now my afternoon cuppa is Pomegranate and Raspberry tea, quite refreshing. Husband sticks with good old English Breakfast tea. Friends from England introduced us to cafetière coffee, which we do also make on occasion. But it always seems sludgy to me. Obviously not doing it correctly.

              1. I was always a devoted coffee person, until PanAm tanked and I lost my job. I started drinking tea in the mornings as a cost-saving measure and have kept it up ever since!

                1. Consider yourself lucky.
                  After loosing your job, you could easily have switched to much harder stuff.
                  Must have been a harrowing experience.

  4. I, too, found this a slow burner, and had the same issues as others ahead of me. I could have sworn that 20d wasn’t an element, didn’t know the coffee and didn’t recognise the ‘checks’ in 25a.

    The SW took too long as I spent ages trying to see why a ‘ticket’ should be a ‘double’. Doh!

    All done in a steady *** time, many thanks to Jay and the 2 Ks.

  5. Another Wednesday, another piece of excellence from Jay. I, too, was surprised that 20d was an element, and the coffee was new to me, but Jay’s top wordplay meant I got the answer anyway. I would go for 5 and 14d as co-favourites this morning.

    Thanks to our three regular contributors.

  7. Not a lot of laughs but pleasant enough. No Fav. In spite of being an espresso drinker was unfamiliar with 23a so Costa here I come (oh dear have just read Hrothgar’s comment!). 22d and its various meanings including hit hard are new to me. Wasn’t sure about 12a but on balance I go along with your thinking RD. Thank you Jay and the 2Kiwis – accounts of your intrepid adventures around the country always make for fascinating reading.

  8. It’s Wednesday – **/*****!
    Although, like others, I had a big Hmm on the 20d element and the 23a coffee took some teasing out.
    Candidates for favourite – 1d, 5d, and 7d – and the winner is 5d.
    Thanks to Jay and the 2Ks.
    P.S. The Giovanni Toughie is really a Friday back pager of yore.

  9. Concur with the 2K’s with a **/**** today.
    22a was new to me too ,I was not sure of the way round for the I and E but guessed correctly!
    I don’t remember seeing the abbreviation in 13a but as usual this was confirmed by my old Chambers.
    Straight forward fun provided by Jay.
    Like RD , I am a retired chemist and 20d surprised me too.
    Off to Beaumaris for a few days- no masks required so far I believe,

  10. This was on my wavelength today and I fairly sailed through. Lucky for me I enjoy a cup of 23a and my c grade O-level chemistry was not enough to make me question whether 20d is indeed an element. My favourite clue was 5d today. Thanks to Jay and the 2Ks.

  11. The motorised theme made me smile with The Robin at 7ac. The Herald or Mayflower at 8ac. The Royce at 12ac. The farm vehicle in 13ac. The Ford at 17ac. The Corvette at 3d. (My sister-in-laws car) The Frog Eye at 19d and all with a fair bit of 20d for decoration. All in all another winner from Jay and a great blog from the 2ks. Thanks to all.

    1. Must admit, I didn’t see the motor connection but had great fun searching for them after reading your post! :good:

      1. A distillation of chemists, a reflux of chemists (rather unpleasant sounding)? You can’t have a bootful of chemists as everyone knows that’s the collective noun for pharmacists. I’ll stop now.

    2. Perhaps because it’s a discipline requiring attention to detail or is that nit-picking pedantry? I was once told chemists often make good accountants…😂

    3. I think Mr. K did a survey on the breakdown of what contributors here studied/did for a living. I seem to remember, maybe surprising for such a wordy hobby, that Mathematicians featured most highly. Chemistry sounds like it would be up there too.

  13. Thanks to the 2Ks for explaining 12a, and thanks to MP for pointing out the ‘motorised’ theme – I’m surprised I didn’t spot it. It must be quite difficult to not only compile a cryptic puzzle, but also to work in a theme like that.

  14. I took ages to break into this one but, after leaving it alone for an hour or so, it started to reveal its secrets. A great puzzle! I had the same issues as others with 22a and 20d and agree with LBR regarding elements ended in “ium”. Then I remembered Tin!

    Favourite today is 7d.

    Grateful thanks to Jay for a really interesting puzzle and to the 2K’s for the hints.

      1. 32 of 118 by my count and I can only think of four that have alternative names – chrome (Chromium), kalium (Potassium), quicksilver (Mercury) and wolfram (Tungsten) but none of these alternatives appear in the Periodic Table of the Elements
        Useless fact of the day: Google named their browser Chrome because they felt it was associated with fast cars and therefore suggested speed, as they strived for a minimal user interface to increase browsing speed

  15. I was also v slow to get started and then fairly quickly completed the right half with nothing at all on the left side….anyway, eventually got there (though stuck on 22d for a while). Also missed the auto theme, but it adds to the enjoyment of what was already a great puzzle…

  16. Hi 2 kiwis

    My wife and I did the Forgotten Road trip a couple of years ago. Great fun. Glad you enjoyed it

  17. Like Jane, I found The spelling of 9d required checking. I seemed to have too many ees. I have heard of the coffee but have never had one so cannot enlighten anyone. I hadn’t noticed all the cars but remember them. I used to have a sunbeam alpine and I think the Sprite came from the same stable. 14d favourite.

  18. Enjoyed that – after staring at it blankly for a bit, it all fell painlessly into place. And learnt a new word today (22a).

  19. I should look back to check my performance on Jay’s puzzles to see if I’ve finished one without looking at hints or uncovering answers because I managed it today. So many thanks to Jay. I don’t know if it was at the easier end of his puzzles or he had noted my miserable moaning in the past, or possibly I am tuning in to his wavelength. The latter I hope but not very convinced about it. Next Wednesday will be the test.

    7d my favourite.

    Thank you to the 2Ks for their blog.

  21. Another fine Wednesday offering; 2*/4* for me.

    No trouble with the coffee at 23a – I have a box of the capsules for my Dolce Gusto machine. It’s the strongest espresso I have managed to find; they give it an intensity rating of 13.

    Many thanks to Jay, and to the 2Kiwis.

  22. Apart from the coffee, for which I needed a touch of electronic help with to confirm, I found this quite straightforward but with no compromise on the enjoyment factor. Though the answer was obvious I couldn’t justify the checks/lets synonym at 25a, but I have no problem with the double definition of 12a.
    Favourite in a strong field was 5d.
    2*/4*
    Many thanks to Jay and to the 2Ks for their excellent works.

    1. A ‘let’ in tennis is when the ball is checked as it touches the top of the net.
      British passports still request foreign authorities to “allow the bearer to pass without let or hindrance.”

  23. Most enjoyable puzzle again from Jay, fast becoming the Master Setter for me, though in my early days with him, I struggled mightily. loved 3,7,& 9d, but, oddly, 22d was my last one in. Many thanks to Jay and the 2 Kiwis. **/****

  24. For the second week in succession l was able to complete a J. crossword.Indeed l had completed before the hints were available.Like many others l did not know the coffee and had some reservations about the element.However these are minor niggles in what is a superb puzzle.Thankyou to all.

  25. I thought this was enjoyable as Wednesdays always are but seem to be a bit out of step with others today – I found it really difficult.
    Having read all the across clues through I had about three answers – the downs went better but not much so the whole thing took me ages.
    Like almost everyone else I hadn’t met the 23a coffee and, anyway, I’d already scuppered that corner by having the wrong ending for 9d – that’s what happens when I don’t write down all the letters of the anagram! :roll:
    I’ve heard other meanings of 22d but not this one!
    I think my favourite was 17a but I also like several others including 13a and 7d.
    Thanks to Jay and the Kiwis.

    2. I found it very tricky, but got there eventually with 2K hints – thanks to all! Interesting that so many of we crossword solvers have Nespresso machines! My favourite is Arpeggio. 😘

  26. **/****. Another great Wednesday puzzle. Hadn’t spotted the motoring connection – very clever. Thanks to the 2Ks and Jay. The trip in NZ looks great fun.

  27. Lost the knob again with this one. A real struggle needing lots of help from various sources.
    Did know the coffee but not the hitting one at 22d.
    Didn’t enjoy it I’m afraid.

    What about a retort of chemists ?

    Thanks to Jay and to the 2 Kiwis.

  28. Great crossword again from our favourite Wednesday setter.
    1d made me laugh.
    Thanks to Jay and to 2kiwis for the review.

  29. Another fun Jay day but decidedly trickier than usual. I’d never heard of the coffee but the thesaurus had, I had no idea how many coffees there are. Last in was 3d and I have no idea why. I knew I can’t spell 9d so looked it up before writing it in. From the clue I decided 22d had to be that, so looked it up as well, total surprise that’s a word.
    Fave was 5d, with 17a and 14d earning honourable mention.
    Thanks to Jay and the 2Kiwis for the fun. I really enjoy your snapshots – off to google!

  30. Morning all.
    Carol did know the 22a coffee but we were rather surprised when we were checking in BRB and could not find it there.
    Suspect that the vehicle related ghost theme is more than just coincidence as the Quickie pun would also make the list.
    Looks like our spell of beautiful fine weather is going to continue today. Hope yours is the same wherever you may be.
    Cheers.

    1. I had noticed the Winnebago at 8.00am but had forgotten about it by the time I got round to commmenting.

  31. Usual Jay puzzle, far too wordy, lots of involved wordplay that makes it easier just to find the definition and solve the clue from that.
    Very little fun, just a slog teasing out the definition.
    **/*
    Thx for the hints

    1. Of the twenty eight clues
      17 definitions are at the beginning of the clue
      10 definitions are at the end of the clue
      1 clue is a two word double definition
      Teasing out the definitions is only as hard as you choose to make it

  32. I struggled to get going and never really got a grip on it. Needed too many hints so low satisfaction level. Never heard of 20a meaning chaste? And still puzzling my head over the answer to 22d? Thanks to Jay, and to 2Kiwis for the trip information. Sounds great and something to add to the list.

    1. 22dn If you “tie” something you make a 4 letter word, then reverse it (“up” in a down clue) to get the definition “hit hard”. I think the “up” may have been incorrectly used in the hint. But thanks to all anyway.

  33. A slog this evening & not an overwhelming amount of enjoyment ☹️3.5*/2.5*
    But I put this down to my struggle with Solving Jay puzzles.
    Thanks to Jay & 2KWs for review & guidance

      1. I enjoy the crossword every single day and have done for a very long time – I just enjoy some more than others – I really enjoyed the one today and am very sure that I will love tomorrow’s, and the review! :smile:

  34. No problems today, a typically well-crafted puzzle from Jay.
    I didn’t know the coffee and had a punt at the different parts which proved correct.
    Thanks Jay and the two kiwis

  35. Hard to get started, but finished unaided, which is satisfying. Don’t really like 12a, and never heard of the coffee, but it was fairly clear from the letters and clue. 20d is inaccurate. ***/* for me.

  36. I found this a tough slog today to get going more like ***/** for me.
    Didn’t know 25a for the checks, 23a never heard of it, and I agree that 20a is not an element.
    Liked 5d, (was a doh! until penny dropped), and 10a.
    Thanks J & 2K

  37. Great puzzle. Anyone else initially put “flats” in for 12a and “lash” for 22d? Unusual to have two clues with plausible alternatives in one puzzle.

  38. Surely the double meaning of “rolls” 12a is of cricket pitches,agreed, and ships in a swell ?
    First comment from grateful User!

    1. Welcome to the blog – now you’ve delurked, I hope you’ll return and comment on a regular basis

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