Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30263
A full review by crypticsue
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This puzzle was published on 1st April 2023
BD Rating – Difficulty */** – Enjoyment ***
A slightly different ‘feel’ to this week’s Saturday Prize Puzzle, but it turned out once again to be the work of Cephas
Please leave a comment telling us what you thought
Across
1a Slip by government calculator (5,4)
SLIDE RULE – SLIDE (slip) RULE (government)
8a What rep may be after when amounts sold reduce (5,8)
SALES CONTRACT – SALES (amounts sold) CONTRACT (reduce)
11a Singer Bill drops in (5)
VOICE – an inVOICE drops the IN
12a Tight finish (5)
CLOSE – Tight in fit, or a verb meaning to finish
13a Surprise opening (5)
START – Surprise or startle; opening or beginning
16a Feel sorry about welcome lacking energy (6)
REGRET – RE (about) GREeT (lacking energy indicating the need to omit one of the abbreviations for Energy
17a Natural protection for viewer (6)
EYELID – A cryptic definition of a ‘natural’ protection for an eye (viewer)
18a Large instrument‘s mouthpiece (5)
ORGAN – A large musical instrument or a source of information and opinion, such as a newspaper (mouthpiece)
19a Musical party in top style (6)
HAIRDO – HAIR (a musical from the late 1960s) and DO (party)
20a Vehicle at all times needed for occupation (6)
CAREER – CAR (vehicle) EER (poetical word for ever, at all times)
21a Get rid of pundit chewing sandwiches (5)
DITCH – Sandwiched by punDIT CHewing
24a Beginning violent attack (5)
ONSET – The beginning of something or a violent attack
26a Meat embargo enveloping company (5)
BACON – BAN (embargo) ‘enveloping’ CO (company)
27a Kind offer he’d rate poorly (6-7)
TENDER-HEARTED – TENDER (offer) followed by an anagram (poorly) of HED RATE
28a Youngster on first flight (9)
FLEDGLING – A cryptic definition of a young bird on its first flight
Down
2d Unending elegy I composed in Belgian city (5)
LIEGE – An anagram (composed) of ELEGy I (‘unending’ tell you to omit the Y)
3d Avoiding exposure? That’s respectable (6)
DECENT – An informal word meaning sufficiently clothed to be seen by another person can also mean respectable
4d Athlete in second place not at university (6)
RUNNER – RUNNER UP (in second place) without the UP (not at university)
5d Typically, Rice might pen this (5)
LYRIC – Something Tim Rice might pen is hidden in typicalLY RICe
6d One gives better advice (6,7)
RACING TIPSTER – Someone giving advice to a person betting on a horse race
7d Paid informer (13)
SCHOOLTEACHER – Someone paid to inform and educate
9d Aim high but go too far (9)
OVERSHOOT – To aim for a target but go too far
10d Toiletry too darned awkward (9)
DEODORANT – An anagram (awkward) of TOO DARNED
13d What sitting member did at election? (5)
STOOD – What a sitting member of parliament did if he wanted to be re-elected
14d Every now and then, carnage on street leads to anxiety (5)
ANGST – Alternate (every now and then) letters of cArNaGe oN followed by ST (street)
15d Awful smell, head cut off fish (5)
TENCH – Remove the head or first letter from sTENCH (awful smell)
22d Scandinavian girl? Put her letters here! (6)
INGRID – Letters put IN GRID
23d Breakfast show in instalments, reportedly (6)
CEREAL – A homophone (reportedly) of SERIAL (show in instalments)
25d Wave that is destructive always lingering initially (5)
TIDAL – The initial letters of That Is Destructive Always Lingering
26d Peer keeping nothing in farm building (5)
BARON – O (nothing) ‘kept in’ BARN (farm building)
2*/3* …
liked 22D “Scandinavian girl? Put her letters here! (6)”
Failed on 8 across.
Thought it might have been “safer contract” if sales were low.☹️