Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3079
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This puzzle was published on 25th October 2020
BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***
Dada successfully combined solver-friendliness and enjoyment in this particular Sunday Prize Puzzle.
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Across
7a Criticise long dash (7)
PANACHE – PAN (criticise) ACHE (long)
8a Country anti-US, I suspect (7)
TUNISIA – An anagram (suspect) of ANTI US I
10a Large measure of wine like that in meal he cooked (10)
METHUSELAH – An anagram (cooked) of MEAL HE into which is inserted THUS (like that)
11a Slight rest (4)
LEAN – Double definition, slight in the sense of thin
12a Stop working: finished: start playing! (6,2)
STRIKE UP – STRIKE (stop working) UP (finished)
14a Large number rarely cut back beyond zero (6)
OODLES – A reversal (back) of SELDOm (rarely – cut indicating that you don’t need the last letter) goes after (beyond) O (zero)
15a Americans go wild for old presidential policies (11)
REAGANOMICS – An anagram (wild) of AMERICANS GO
19a Throaty animal, reportedly? (6)
HOARSE – Sounds like (reportedly) HORSE (animal)
20a Hit by water perhaps, hut behind mountains knocked over (8)
SPLASHED – SHED (hut) goes behind or after a reversal (knocked over) of ALPS (mountains)
22a Originally resembling hairy emu, another flightless bird (4)
RHEA – The original letters of Resembling Hairy Emu Another
23a Get language absolutely right that’s applied digitally (4,6)
NAIL POLISH – NAIL (get absolutely right) POLISH (language)
25a Teal wrong, colour changed (7)
ALTERED – An anagram (wrong) of TEAL followed by RED (colour)
26a Happy matter (7)
CONTENT – Double definition
Down
1d Royal power James abused, treachery in the extreme (7)
MAJESTY – An anagram (abused) of JAMES followed by the ‘extreme’ letters of TreacherY
2d Impulsive eruption (4)
RASH – Double definition
3d Pure Hispanic has terrific features (6)
CHASTE – Featured in hispaniC HAS TErrific
4d Expand space beneath mess (8)
MUSHROOM – ROOM (space) goes beneath (in a Down solution) MUSH (mess)
5d Go under: so could swimming dinosaur (10)
DIPLODOCUS – DIP (go under) followed by an anagram (swimming) of SO COULD
6d Position a cheek upward, exercising to improve posture etc (7)
PILATES – A reversal (upward in a Down clue) of SET (position) A LIP (cheek)
9d Toss hat in air and lose it? (4,4,3)
FLIP ONES LID – LID being an informal term for a hat
13d Pick, perhaps, specialised ship (10)
ICEBREAKER – Double definition
16d First of tales penned, author taking a drink (5,3)
GREEN TEA – GREENE (Graham the author) ‘penning’ the first letter of Tales and then ‘taking’ A (from the clue) at the end
17d Remarkably hot fluid filling pastry up (3,4)
NOT HALF – An anagram (fluid) of HOT filling or going inside a reversal (up) of FLAN (pastry)
18d Character in power with reason to reform (7)
PERSONA – P (power) with an anagram (to reform) of REASON
21d Computer showing leg and head (6)
LAPTOP – LAP (leg, part of a race) TOP (head)
24d One instrument having topped another (4)
LUTE – We’ve had a lot of flutes losing their ‘top’ lately – here’s another one