DT 29409 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 29409

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 29409

Hints and tips by Mr K

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BD Rating  -  Difficulty *** Enjoyment ***

Hello, everyone.  Apologies for today’s minimalist blog – work is currently consuming all my time. 

In the hints below most indicators are italicized and underlining identifies precise definitions and cryptic definitions.  Clicking on the answer will be here buttons will reveal the answers.  In some hints hyperlinks provide additional explanation or background.  Please leave a comment telling us how you got on.

 

Across

9a    One in transport mum uses getting dad to Paris (5)
PRIAM:  The Roman one inserted in what a mum might use to transport a baby.  The dad in question was a king of Troy

10a   Director Jack with opposite number (9)
TARANTINO:  Link together a usual sailor (jack), a synonym of opposite, and an abbreviation for number to get a film director

11a   Light making one darker? (7)
SUNLAMP:  A cryptic definition of a light source that makes skin darker 

12a   Bird died exiting dilapidated old attic (4,3)
COAL TIT:  The abbreviation for died is deleted from (exiting) an anagram (dilapidated) of OLD ATTIC 

13a   Area near steamship that's very deep (5)
ABYSS:  Put together the abbreviation for area, a synonym of near, and the abbreviation for steamship 

14a   Unaccompanied singing in palace -- with lap dancing! (1,8)
A CAPPELLA:  An anagram (dancing) of PALACE LAP 

16a   Remind coalition about covering all the angles (15)
OMNIDIRECTIONAL:  An anagram (about) of REMIND COALITION 

19a   Order CID back after Italian club trashed at front (9)
INTERDICT:  Assemble the informal name for a Milan football club, the reversal (back) of CID, and the first letter (… at front) of Trashed 

21a   Labour man in street naked (5)
STRAW:  The map abbreviation for street with a synonym of naked.  The man is a former Labour politician

23a   Excitement where party drops leader (7)
AROUSAL:  A drinking bout or party loses its first letter (drops leader)

25a   Her veal needs cooking in port (2,5)
LE HAVRE:  An anagram (cooking) of HER VEAL 

27a   At that point in lead gets beaten (9)
LEATHERED:  A word meaning “at that point” is inserted in LEAD from the clue 

28a   Fabric in car departing Cumbrian city (5)
LISLE:  Delete CAR from a Cumbrian city

 

Down

1d    Drink nothing having turned up for work (4)
OPUS:  A synonym of drink and the letter that looks like zero or nothing are joined and then reversed (turned up, in a down clue) 

2d    Iodine oddly found in vital organ (6)
KIDNEY:  The odd letters of iodine are inserted in a synonym of vital 

3d    Mossad in tangle with Arab diplomat (10)
AMBASSADOR:  An anagram (… in tangle with…) of MOSSAD ARAB

4d    Ideal society finest one featured in posh article (6)
UTOPIA:  A synonym of finest and the Roman one are sandwiched between (featured in) the letter denoting posh or upper class and a grammatical article

5d    Like poet's feet caught in crashing chariot (8)
TROCHAIC:  The cricket abbreviation for caught is inserted in an anagram (crashing) of CHARIOT.  The answer is explained here 

6d    Long-dead people -- some reincarnated (4)
INCA:  The answer is hidden as some of the remainder of the clue 

7d    Sports event in large Irish town neither completed (8)
BIATHLON:  A synonym of large is followed by an Irish town, with the last letters of both words deleted (neither completed

8d    Traffic system continued with fliers close to ground (10)
CONTRAFLOW:  Concatenate an abbreviation for continued, some UK military fliers, and a word meaning “close to (the) ground” 

13d   Snowman could be so  abhorrent! (10)
ABOMINABLE:  The yeti is sometimes described as being this type of snowman 

15d   Tories help building secret chamber (6,4)
PRIEST HOLE:  An anagram (building) of TORIES HELP 

17d   Race generating more than local interest? (8)
NATIONAL:  The short name for a well-known horse steeplechase also describes something relevant to a whole country 

18d   Topless characters felt line should be banter (8)
RAILLERY:  All but the first letter (topless) of a language of characters that are read by touch is followed by an abbreviation for railway (line)

20d   Fuss about the French in Spanish location (6)
TOLEDO:  A (2-2) fuss is wrapped about a French word for “the”

22d   Spots six brought inside to delight (6)
RAVISH:  The Roman six is inserted in (brought inside) an area of redness and spots on the skin 

24d   Very hot round West End area (4)
SOHO:  Glue together a synonym of very, the single letter for hot, and the round letter 

26d   Remove lid to drain jug (4)
EWER:  Delete the first letter of (remove lid to …) a drain for waste 

 

Thanks to today’s setter. Which clues did you like best?

 


The Quick Crossword pun:  HOLE + SAILOR = WHOLESALER


98 comments on “DT 29409

  1. Second crossword in two days where I have lost the will to live. Too many bung-in’s to be enjoyable. Looking forward to the hints.
    Thank goodness for Jay tomorrow.
    Thanks all.

  2. A little harder than usual, perhaps, for a Tuesday but great fun to solve. Some excellent clues throughout of which the clever 3d was my favourite. An honourable mention to the anagram in 16a.

    Thanks to our setter for the challenge and to Mr K. I hope the setter puts in an appearance later to claim ownership.

  3. I very much enjoyed this crossword, although there were a lot of General Knowledge related clues and this may not please everyone. I like 9a, which was simple but effective and 10a because I don’t usually find clues with directors involved are easy to fathom. There were lots of other good clues, some of them geogrphical, which I usually enjoy. Many thanks to Mr K for getting the review published when you are so busy. Thanks also to the setter.

  4. I’ve had a couple of interesting searches on the internet this morning. I worked out 5d but had never heard of it before. I now know a lot about different types of meter when writing poetry. I feel quite excited by this. I also had to google “dad to Paris” because I didn’t know, or perhaps I’d forgotten if it’s come up before. The rest of the puzzle was straightforward and very enjoyable. Thank you setter and Mr K. Now to cooking. I have 13 eggs going out of date today. I know that they last longer than the date, but I need to use them up. I have 30 more arriving tomorrow.

      1. Thank you for the tip. I will make a chocolate orange liqueur cake. It uses up six egg whites which you whisk into meringue consistency, then fold it into the rest of the ingredients, including the 6 egg yolks. That’s only 7 eggs left to deal with.

      2. Ice cream to use the egg yolks and Angel Food cake (very American but surprisingly good and easy) for the egg whites. Otherwise make 2 cakes and freeze one. Mind, 30 eggs will take a lot of dealing with! Good luck

    1. Theo Randall’s utterly amazing Lemon Tart – a real faff to make, well, I think so anyway. It takes exactly 13 eggs and, because it’s finished off under the grill and ends up with little dark brown/black spots, is always called Leopard Tart in our house.

      1. Ooh, that sounds nice. I love lemony things. Perhaps I should try that using the fresh eggs arriving tomorrow. I have lemons in the fridge, so will disappear and count them.

  5. Toughest Tuesday for some time I thought. Enough “gimmes” to get to hold then steady progression. Held up by SW corner. Overall a satisfying solve with some good clues. LOI 18d I liked, but 9a, simple yet clever, my COTD.
    Thanks to setter and Mr K for burning the midnight oil to do the review.

  6. Apologies to the setter but I didn’t really take to this puzzle. I thought there was a wide variation in clue difficulty, some almost childishly easy (27& 28a where the wordplay was almost giving the definition) and some quite obscure ( such as 5d, which were guess and check). My favourite was the director, probably the only living one I’ve heard of, 12& 23a making up the podium.
    2/2*
    Many thanks to the setter and to Mr K for the entertainment.

    1. How odd Stephen – 27&28a struck me as rather good clues – by no means difficult but not blindingly obvious (at least to me) either.

  7. More difficult than usual for a Tuesday puzzle, I enjoyed the solve and going for a ***/*** as per Mr K.
    Nicely varied cluing, liked the SW corner as a whole and especially19a, favourite was 9a which raised a smile.
    Failed to parse 18d-thanks Mr K .

  8. I have not started this yet but have to say The Toughie by Silvanus is reasonably acceptable today with a some nice anagrams to get you started.

    1. Thanks Mr K & setter.

      I found this the most straightforward puzzle for a long time. Strange how things pan out. Probably as some have commented because of the general knowledge aspect.

      9a best today for me.

  9. I thoroughly enjoyed this Tuesday gift, even though a couple of recalcitrant clues–18d and 7d (my LOI)–pushed me into 3* time. There’s an interesting literariness at heart (and of course that pleases this old college prof) but also some great surface-reads and tricky misdirection, which began immediately with 9a (brilliant!) and kept it up with 5, 7, and 18d (my medallists today, with the last two tied). Took me a while to parse both 7 and 18d, but the penny finally dropped.
    Thanks to Mr K (get some rest!) and today’s setter. 3* / 4.5*

  10. A very nice puzzle – relatively straightforward – apart from 5d which required electronic help. I liked the general knowledge content and was pleased that I had recently ploughed through the gory Illiad. Out of the fun clues I will nominate 18d as COTD.

  11. 2*/3*. I found this enjoyable and quite light, apart from 18d which was my last one in taking up most of my 2* time. 28a was a new word for me and needed a BRB check to confirm the answer. Unusually I had two anagrams fighting it out for top place: 16a & 3d, with the latter getting the nod.

    Many thanks to the setter and to Mr K.

    1. 28a stockings were those thick impenetrable ones worn by schoolgirls and grandmothers back in the day. Today’s thermolactyl tights are the same thing but called opaque now instead of fuddy duddy

      1. That takes me back. We had quite a few older unmarried teachers when I
        was at grammar school. They all wore 28a stockings, brogue lace-up shoes and had their hair in a bun with a narrow velvet hair band to hold the hair back from their faces at the front.

  12. Strangely enough I found this a lot easier than yesterdays. It was certainly educational, I didn’t know that 9a was Paris dad and I had to look up the meaning of 28a. 5d and 18d are both new words to me. My favs were 10a, 21a and 22d.
    All in all, a very enjoyable puzzle.
    Thx to all
    **/****

  13. There are some lovely phrases here. I particularly enjoyed “dad to Paris” (9a), “palace with lap dancing” (14a) and “characters felt” (18d).
    The 28a fabric felt strangely familiar.
    Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

    1. Most enjoyable comment, such lyrical awareness. Thanks, Gazza. Wasn’t 28a one of yours quite recently?

      1. Yes indeed “bulletproof” stockings in that fabric were part of compulsory school uniform prior to the luxury of nylons brought from USA!

        1. Ours were green to fit in with the school colours – by the time we reached 6th form, black ones were allowed – so risqué!

            1. Our uniform was quite sharp – navy with pin striped shirts. But stockings/tights were colour-restricted – only beige or American Tan allowed. Fine ribbed tights came in later and even diamond patterned, but only small diameter. Black stockings were far too Carry On Nurse and as common as common could be.
              Does anyone remember stemming the inevitable ladders with colourless nail polish?

              1. We had to have tan in the summer ( yes I remember the clear nail varnish) and navy wool in the winter. If the bus couldn’t reach you in the winter because of snow, we all still walked to school, so the wool was very much needed. By the time I got into the sixth form the dress code had changed. We were allowed to wear trousers. Less work for the Senior Mistress. She didn’t have to measure the distance between the bottom of our miniskirts and the middle of our knees.

                1. Trousers! Golly you are much younger than I am, Miss K F Wade LLD would have fainted if we had turned up in trousers.

  14. Well there we are… I found this rather tricky and I am considering starting a petition to put the setter on the naughty step for 9a and 5d. I could have stared at them both till nightfall without getting the answers. As Shakespeare nearly said, I was “parsing through nature to eternity.”
    However, with the help of the busy Mr K., I see that I should have ‘got’ them without needing specialist knowledge.
    Exciting times here as it is bin day and the council chariot has just departed, luckily without any poet’s feet caught up within its noisy machinery.
    Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

    1. I agree – 9a and 5d required the assistance of Mr Wik – always an admission of defeat. Unlike yesterday’s excellent puzzle, I didn’t enjoy this much.

    2. Terence – I do believe your comments have overtaken Brian’s as the ones I most look forward to……

    3. Slight worry here, Terence, have you actually decided what you will do with regard to allowing Lola access to enjoy her indoor comforts when the weather deteriorates?

      1. Jane – it’s a good question. I like Lola to make her own decisions about where she wants to be and I never impose any lifestyle on her. She can come and go, in and out of the house whenever she wishes – with the one exception of night time. However she has learned over the last couple of years that if she is in at lock up time, she stays in; and if she chooses to go out, she stays out (as we don’t have a cat flap). Last winter she chose to spend almost all nights indoors (she has a litter tray, a bed, water bowl, and access around the whole house).
        If she does spend the night outside, she has an insulated shelter that I built for her, with cushions inside, which she loves. It’s off the ground and she can look out and survey her kingdom in comfort. She has a rather splendid life as she has two households, next door to each other, both loving her to bits.

    4. It is bin day here too but I missed the chariot as I was still at work. My printout has numerous anagrams of chariot +1 but by hometime, I had narrowed it down to a ? against what the dictionary confirmed. I did remember Paris’ Dad and 18d was a nice one to solve as well and shares the podium with 3d.
      Thanks to Mr K. and setter and thanks to Terence and Lola for their entertaining posts.

  15. I’m in the ‘slightly trickier than the usual Tuesday’ camp but I rather enjoyed this one.
    Top three here were 9a plus 8&18d.

    Thanks to our setter and to the hard-working Mr K – sorry not to get one of your usual fun-filled reviews but we’ll appreciate them all the more when your work-load eases off!

  16. I agree with the 3* rating. Three left at the end – 7d which I might have got with a little more effort, 23a ditto, although mostly used to the uncropped version with “ing” on the end and 18d, which I was unlikely to get without the L from 23. Slightly historical term, derived from masterly (characters felt) clueing.
    I don’t mind the GK as long as there’s an outside chance I might remember something for the future.
    Thanks setter and Mr K.
    Need to get grass seed in before showers start…….

  17. I found this one a bit of a mixture. Some easy, some not hence 3* / 2*. Not my favourite puzzle. Favourite 3d. Thanks to all.

  18. A very enjoyable puzzle that might have been a little more challenging for a Tuesday, but not by much, completed at a gallop – 2*/3.5*.
    With three of the four checkers I was able to come up with what looked like a plausible answer for 5d which needed a BRB check for confirmation.
    Candidates for favourite – 9a, 10a, 1d, and 2d – and the winner is 9a.
    Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

    P.S. My solving time for Sunday’s Dada was about the same as today’s.

  19. Managed to get to this late morning before/after my first hair chop at the barbershop since March 😄.
    Really enjoyed today’s ***/****, some good stuff in the word play etc….Favourites 9a,14a,5d, with 15d my COTD – bringing back memories of such in my native Lancashire Tudor Halls (Speke, Astley & Houghton Tower) and Nicholas Owen the builder of many.
    Thx to Setter and Mr K

    1. 15d reminded me of staying at The Stow Lodge Hotel (Stow-on-the-Wold) where there was one in a corner of our bedroom. Think it was the first time I’d ever seen one – not exactly a comfortable place to hide in for any length of time!

      1. One wonders why you needed to hide in your hotel bedroom, but let’s pass quickly over that …

        Stow-on-the-Wold is in a delightful part of the country.

        1. You would have been proud of me, RD. On a glorious afternoon we walked down the country lane leading out of the square and watched a local cricket match in the sunshine.
          As for the ‘hiding’ bit – anyone for ‘hide and seek’? In my defence, I was considerably younger then!

          1. I “won” an epic game of hide and seek in Brougham Castle with that technique. Eventually they had to call the dogs in to find me! ( also younger – the dog that found me is long gone)

  20. I am in the “slightly difficult than normal for a Tuesday” camp. I did get off to a good start but, like yesterday, I ground to a halt. I did not know the father of Paris, so that is a new nugget for the memory bank. I could not, for the life of me, unravel the anagram at 16a and had to resort to the hints. Putting “Roundabout” in 8d slowed me down considerably. Favourite clues today are 2a and 10a with the latter being my COTD.

    Many thanks to the setter for the challenge and to Mr. K. for giving the hints while under pressure.

    1. Actually, roundabout wasn’t a bad idea – with only two checkers in place, I was trying to think along the lines of a filter system but ‘filtration’ didn’t seem to work!

      1. It’s why I put it because I had 10a and 14a. I then tried to make “sprat” fit in 21a. :grin:

  21. That was great. Good to have some challenging moments e.g. 10a, 21a (forgot about him!), 14a, 5d and 9a which ultimately became my Fav. Lazily resorted to electronic help for the long-drawn-out 16a. Thank you Mysteron and MrK particularly for making time for hints amidst your work commitments.

  22. I really enjoyed this and agree with the general consensus that it was more difficult than usual for a Tuesday.
    I’m no ‘setter spotter’ but could it be Chris Lancaster?
    18d was my last one and reminded me of our ancient great aunt who was almost totally blind and read books in Braille – my sister and I were always fascinated by her ability to read in the dark.
    Tried to make 10a Hitchcock – Jack, as in lift up or hitch but then it went a bit wrong so gave up.
    Quite a bit of general knowledge and geographical stuff.
    A long list of clues that I thought were particularly good but just a few were 9, 14 and 19a and 2, 5, 7 and 8d.
    Thanks to whoever set this and to Mr K.

    1. If this was the work of CL, then I’m a banana …cue for CL to post ‘Roy’s a banana’

  23. I’m also in the bit tougher camp. Needed to check my Irish towns, poetic feet, and Greek fathers which rather took the edge of my enjoyment. 15d was my favourite and had me head scratching until the penny dropped. A parcel of green walnuts has arrived so I plan to prep these for pickling ahead of switching to the toughie. Straight 3s from me today.

  24. We managed it with just a hint for 5d which immediately brought back memories of Mrs. Spridgeon’s Eng. Lang. classes which piece of knowledge had, of course, become buried over the years. I knew 5a, didn’t he have other attributes? 16a was a word I have never found the need for but now I have found it I must try and use it. 27a reminded me of MushMush Mush Tooralliallee which George used to sing for the rowing club after a few pints – I think a shelalegh was involved. I am feeling quite lightheaded as the lovely Gary came this morning and cut my hair – I keep looking in the mirror as I look so normal now. Picked more beans this morning we may be in danger of getting tired of them. Thanks to everyone as usual – I could do with some 28a stockings on today / brrr

  25. This started off at speed with the first 6 across and down clues dropping straight in. The south was a very different story! I just couldn’t work out the anagram at 16a, probably because I’ve never heard the word before. But there were some clever clues – 9, 10a and 8, 18 and 13d so no complaints.
    Thanks to the busy Mr. K and to the setter who has enhanced my knowledge of poetic meter and sports events!
    No excuses now not to finish cutting the grass before the rain comes!

  26. I found this to be a “mixed bag”, some straightforward and others not. I too tried to get roundabout to fit for 8d to begin with. I thought 21a and 28a were a bit on the weak side but several others compensated, eg 10a, 18d. Favourite clue was 15d – too bad if you were claustrophobic! Overall, I enjoyed the puzzle. Thanks to the compiler and Mr K, especially as time is of the essence.

  27. Was a a bit miffed by the GK. However without that it may have been too easy. So in retrospect enjoyable. Needed the explanation for 10a because I missed the anti bit, and for some reason I spelt the felt letters with just 4 letters. Thanks to both

  28. Some super clues and 2 anagrams at 5 d and 16a where l now have 2 ew words in my vocabulary.It will be interesting to see how long they stay there.Funny how things imbibed 65 or so years ago stick whilst recent knowledge is transient.Thanks to setter and Mr.K.

  29. Found this tricky with 5d & 14a new to me 😳 I think this means that I am left brained rather than right (or no brained) ***/*** Favourites were 😃 Big thank you to Mr K and to the fiendish Setter

  30. A fairly laboured solve today & for me at least it was a good deal more demanding than the usual Tuesday fare & very enjoyable. Not usually a fan of too many anagrams but thought those at 14&16a plus 3&15d were all excellent. My last in was 5d & I’m fairly certain trochee has cropped up a couple of times recently & surprisingly was one of the few bits of knowledge retained from the mass acquired from crosswords. Plenty of good clues in competition for a podium spot but the photo finish has 7&8d just edged out by 10a in a bunched finish with 9,16&28a plus 18d also in the mix.
    Many thanks to the setter & to Mr K

  31. This was a steady solve I knew 14 across but the spelling threw me, i enjoyed 16 & 27 when the penny dropped, 5 down was new to mme and 7 7 8 down leapt out at me as well as 13 down, i have no COTD but this was enjoyable, thank you to the setter and to Mr. K.

    Stay safe everyone

  32. Quite tricky for a Tuesday. 4 good anagrams got me started but slowed soon after not helped by spelling 13d wrong. Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

  33. I felt this was a GK in the guise of a cryptic, particularly 9a and 5d. If I have to ask Mr Google for help then what’s the point? I’ll try to keep these in mind for future crosswords. I have only seen 14a spelt with one p, so when I penned that in it made an instant mess of my crossword, and I had to check for the alternate spelling. I too couldn’t unravel the 16a anagram, having not heard of that term, although of course Mr BL had, and was amazed at my ignorance. So not a very good effort on my part. Clearly above my pay grade today. Thanks to setter and to Mr K. How you managed to do this quickly I have no idea.

  34. 18d threw me into three star territory because I assumed ‘ribaldry’ and that was the SW corner done for … thanks to Mr K and the setter

  35. Late on parade today. I too found this a lot trickier than normal for a Tuesday but fairly clued. Ta to all

  36. Easier for me today than I thought the puzzle might have been given the 3* rating. Several tricky words for certain (as in 9a, 5d & 18d). Wasn’t familiar with the answer for 28a, but easy to check when the cities were reviewed in Cumbria after following the clues instructions. Favourites today 12a, 25a, 2d, 7d & 15d with winner being 15d

    Thanks to setter and Mr K

  37. Two days running I’ve not done very well. Too tricky for me, I just could not get on with it. Oh well I’m hopeful for tomorrow.
    Thanks to all.

  38. Definitely trickier than usual in the south, north was doable but needed e-help for 5d and 8d.
    The SW was my last corner, needed lots of e-help there, particularly for the 16a anagram and 18d.
    Some answers came to me in a flash, 9a, 10a, 13d, and 15d.
    Thanks to our setter and to Mr. K for unraveling so many answers for me.
    Rats, dark skies, thunder and lightning, meaning no pool for now!

    1. Hope that ‘rats’ was an exclamation, Merusa, surely you’re not infested with those as well!

      1. Pure Charlie Brown! I might add that the huge lizard is still in the sitooterie, still under the sofa.

        However, I wish to thank whoever participated in the great drink-up and helped in the production of more Marmite. My tub arrived today! Yay!

        1. That reminds me. I must get my Marmite out of the fridge ready for tomorrow’s breakfast toast.

          Quite partial to Gentleman’s Relish as well.

  39. Great crossword despite a couple of obscurities, the clueing allowed correct answers to be deduced – favourite was 7d
    Am I the only one who doesn’t get to start the puzzle until after a days work? – always late to the party
    Thanks to setter and Mr K

  40. I’m in the “Curates egg” camp this evening. Most of this was straightforward until it wasn’t. Like others I made up a word for that sounded like it might be a word for 5d and Googled it, likewise with 19a. I couldn’t parse 18 down but bunged it in anyway. I thought 21a a bit iffy. Favourite by far was 9a which, with the three checkers, was the only word I could see …… and then the penny dropped. I’ve made a study of the Trojan war. Hard for a Tuesday. Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

  41. Really good fun to work through with several stops for head-scratching along the way. Find it hard to believe now that we had to get all the checkers in place before we worked out the anagram for 27a.
    Thanks Mr Ron and Mr K.

    1. I didn’t see it as an anagram, more a word inserted in another word.

      1. You’re right of course. Was actually looking at 27a in the Toughie when I wrote the comment. One of the problems of writing a comment a day after having solved the puzzles.

  42. Felt rather uninspired by this one, although that may have been because I could only focus on it for brief periods in between other activities, including shopping and a delightful 85th birthday tea in a garden on a beautiful sunny day (not my birthday and not my garden). So just completed late this evening. Favourites 12a and 1d. Un-favourites 21a and 7d. Not keen on clues involving current or recent politicians, and particularly not one whose name has other meanings. But then my view may just be affected by the fact that he was at a conference I attended and gave me a strange stare.

  43. Thanks to the setter and to Mr Kitty for the review and hints. I enjoyed this one very much, a few to make you think. I liked the misdirection in 8d, and 28a made me laugh, but my favourite was 7d, got the answer quickly, but took ages to parse it. Last in was 18d, the penultimate was 23a, another good clue. Was 3*/3* for me.

  44. Nice little distraction before getting to bed. It’s getting rather late here.
    Very interesting constructions made this an interesting challenge.
    Thought 9a was great.
    Our Prime Minister just retired after being elected Mayor of Le Havre.
    The new one is someone nobody ever heard of before getting appointed.
    Thanks to the setter and to Mr K for the review.

  45. It seems that after the poor showing of En Marche in the local elections the President is determined to take full charge himself and hence his reshuffle including the little known career civil servant Jean Castex?

  46. Enjoyable but flummoxed by the SW corner and needed Mr K’s help. Managed the anagrams and liked 16a & 3d. Didn’t spot any lurkers. Did ok with the general knowledge except 19a. For me, 9a takes first place. Thanks to busy Mr K and setter.

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