ST 3120

Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3120

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This puzzle was published on 8^th August 2021

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

A Sunday Prize Puzzle from Dada that I found a bit trickier than ‘usual’, possibly because the grid is one of those where you solve one corner at a time.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

7a    After little time ship set off (7)
TRIGGER – T (little or abbreviated time) RIGGER (ship)

10a    Towelling fabric cut, one row (7)
TERRACE – Towelling is made of TERRy fabric, cut telling you to remove the final letter. ACE (one) should then be added

11a    People from Asia trained spaniel (7)
NEPALIS – An anagram (trained) of SPANIEL

12a    Initially minimum stress, as leaving US city (7)
MEMPHIS – M (the initial letter of Minimum) EMPHasIS (stress without (leaving) the AS)

13a    Visual science test follows work on book (9)
OPTOMETRY – TRY (test) follows OP (work) TOME (book)

15a    Box concealing ultimate in offensive weapon (5)
SPEAR – SPAR (box) concealing the ultimate letter of offensivE

16a    Clean up throne seen in a mess during banquet (7,4,4)
FEATHER ONES NEST – An anagram (in a mess) of THRONE SEEN inserted into (during) FEAST (banquet)

21a    Proper to defend a king of myth (5)
PRIAM – PRIM (proper) to ‘defend’ A (from the clue)

23a    Artist — arresting sort? (9)
CONSTABLE – Double definition

25a    Leave a group performing (7)
ABANDON – A (from the clue) BAND (group) ON (performing)

26a    Officer: bit of a nut, by the sound of it? (7)
COLONEL – A homophone (by the sound of it) of KERNEL (bit of a nut)

27a    King of Israel one day (7)
SOLOMON – SOLO (one) MON (day)

28a    Still bald, scratching head (7)
AIRLESS – Scratch the head of hAIRLESS (bald)

Down

1d    Rugby player in deadlock situation? (5-3)
STAND-OFF – Double definition, apparently the second one is ‘chiefly North American’

2d    Girl, some looker? (4)
IRIS – A girl’s name or part of the eye (some looker)

3d    Corporation screened by agent in squat (6)
STUMPY – TUM (corporation) ‘screened’ by SPY (agent)

4d    My bits (6)
CRUMBS – An interjection of surprise or some bits

5d    Change, perhaps, bare fabric (8)
CASHMERE – CASH (change perhaps) MERE (bare)

6d    Some tables, seriously lower (6)
LESSER – Hidden in some tabLES SERiously

8d    Popular place to get data (5)
INPUT – IN (popular) PUT (place)

9d    Chunk saved by crone served up for tramp (7)
GALUMPH – Such a splendid word! LUMP (chunk) ‘saved’ by a reversal (served up in a Down solution) of HAG (crone)

14d    Sailor, one leaving ship when capsized? (3)
TAR – Reverse your solution to get the one leaving a sinking (when capsized) ship

17d    Friendly message preceded by reflective query? (8)
AMICABLE – CABLE (message) preceded by AM I (reflective query)

18d    Elderly woman leads on neighbour at night (3)
NAN – The leads of Neighbour At Night

19d    Colonist, one footing the bill? (7)
SETTLER – Double definition

20d    Like a plain fish secured by lock (8)
TREELESS – EEL (fish) ‘secured’ by TRESS (lock)

21d    Force to close off a lift (6)
PRAISE – PRISE (force) to ‘close off’ A (from the clue)

22d    Woman earned about a million (6)
MADAME – MADE (earned) goes ‘about’ A (from the clue) M (million) – the eighth ‘insertion’ clue

23d    Dog — biter? (6)
CANINE – Double definition

24d    Head cold in cranium, for example? (5)
BONCE – C (cold) in BONE (cranium for example)

26d    Overcook fish (4)
CHAR – And for the seventh and final time, I type the words “double definition”