Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2586 (Hints)
Hints and tips by Big Dave
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As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, I will select a few of the better clues and provide hints for them.
Don’t forget that you can give your assessment of the puzzle. Five stars if you thought it was great, one if you hated it, four, three or two if it was somewhere in between.
Could new readers please read the Welcome post before asking questions about the site.
Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also”.
A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions, which is Tuesday, 10th May.
Across
1a Subscribe a pound? That’s notable (6)
A charade of a verb meaning to subscribe or enlist with A and the abbreviation for a pound sterling gives an adjective meaning notable or important
4a Shows moving state of affairs, briefly, about employment (8)
These shows involving acrobats and clowns are created by putting the abbreviated form of a word meaning the state of one’s affairs (5) around employment or application
17a Fatted calf, say, present for festive occasion (8,6)
What could describe a calf, fatted or otherwise, being inserted into legwear is actually a present for a festive occasion
27a Showing effects of strain in fight with editor (6)
An adjective meaning showing the effects of strain is a charade of a fight with an ED(itor)
Down
1d Wise behaviour, having extended account with financial centre (8)
This wise behaviour is a charade of an extended account or chronicle and the financial centre of London
5d Risk about article leading to bitterness about this volume (8,6)
Put a word meaning risk around the indefinite article, add words meaning bitterness and about or concerning and the result is a non-metric measure of volume
15d Quick movement, penning boy’s first name (9)
Put this swiftness of movement around (penning) B (Boy’s first) to get a name or allegedly famous person
22d Gripping part of hobby expert alone comprehends (5)
This part of a bird used for gripping is hidden inside the rest of the clue
If you need further help then please ask and I will see what I can do.
As this is a Prize crossword, please don’t put whole or partial answers or alternative clues in your comment, else they may be censored!
Today it’s Happy Birthday to Ray Parker, Jr (57), Rita Coolidge (66) and Judy Collins (72)
Another very enjoyable puzzle from Virgilius. The NE corner took me the longest by far but the resolution was extremely satisfying. Thanks to Virgilius and to BD.
… which is precisely where I’m stuck- will come back it later.
Another enjoyable Sunday puzzle. The NE corner was difficult – the last in for me were 4a & 7d – pleased that I didn’t revert to “cheating” although these two clues took ages.
17a – “Fatted Calf” – very amusing!
I fail to understand the relevance of “..in charge” in 14a?
The second word is a routine or turn inside a charge or monetary amount.
Aahh! Everything is now clear! Thanks Gazza!
I did struggle with this one and wondered whether I was suffering from post-London gathering disorder so was relieved to learn that everyone else struggled with the NE corner too. Thanks to Virgilius for the crossword and BD for the hints.
Hi Dave glad you all had a good day yesterday, I am still stuck on 6d and 13a, any help off anyone would be very welcome :-)
ok Gnomes law got 6d now only 13a to go
Got 2d but don’t understand the last bit? still not got 13a
13a Inside right container I loaded maximally (7)
The definition is loaded maximally (i.e. to the greatest extent). Put I between Right and a container.
loaded as in wealth Gazza?
If so then I have 7d wrong!
yes.
thanks for that now I just need 7d! :-)
7d Birds to shoot – precisely (5)
A verb to shoot precisely and from a distance is also types of bird (singular same as plural).
Thnaks Gazza, never heard that used as a verb, well maybe I have and have just forgotten! :-)
7d is difficult to explain without breaking the Prize Crossword rules.
It’s a double definition
1) Birds that have the same form in both singular and plural (so no need for a final “s”).
2) to shoot from a (hidden position) – “precisely” – only if they hit the intended victim!
thanks Franco so if you put an ‘r’ on the end you might get a hidden shooter? thank you :-)
Mary, Yes – Loads of money!!
thanks Franco, 7d??
2d The left-winger is an abbreviated form of a type of Communist.
Oh yes I see that now Duh!
Pretty straightforward, but very enjoyable puzzle. I find myself looking forward to Sunday’s DT crossword nowadays.
I also found this an “easier” Virgilus puzzle, but enjoyed it immensely. Now if I could only say the same for the Quick which I found more difficult than the Cryptic…
I really have no interest at all in “quick” crosswords. I’ve always found them tedious, with no sense of having achieved anything on completion.
The “Quick” took me two and a half times as long as the Cryptic!
Thanks to Daves hints and Gazzas help I have finished all but 7d, perservation once again the name of the game! Having said that I enjoyed several clues today, 10a, 21a, 26a, 11a and 6d when I eventually ‘saw’ it! maybe 7d will come to me in a dream tonight! thanks both for your help, good day for Liverpool today, Arsenal leading Man U at the moment – Yes! :-)
Re 7d: It’s a double definition; the first is the first word, the second is the other three.
thanks Qix thats why I put ‘swift’ at first but I really can’t think of the right answer unless if you added an ‘e’ on the end it would give you a type of soldier maybe?
sorry that’s all wrong please ignore me!
Yes finished ‘with a little help from my friends’ as the Beatles sang – thanks all that’s a relief :-D
Now I hope you are not going to gloat Mary. I thought I would watch it until the first goal as the sun was nice and hot outside, needless to say I didn’t have long to wait. Well done, at least Sunderland had the same outcome yesterday so gloating rights are with you, should you choose to use them. I went and had a nice warm afternoon in the garden watching the sweet peas and talking to myself.
As if Nubian! :-) it happens to us all, why were you talking to yourself when you could have talked to the sweet peas? I love sweet peas
All done bar 13a. Needed Big Dave to get me started. My fav 17a. LOL
Hi Makada – welcome to the blog.
For 13a see comment #4 above.
Is there a word for the kind of clue 22d is? As well as the answer being part of “hobby expert alone comprehends”, it is also part of a hobby.
Difficult?
It’s a hidden clue! Definition: “Gripping part…”(?)
I think that the definition is “gripping part of hobby” (a hobby being a type of falcon).
Surely if the definition includes hobby then the rest of the clue doesn’t make sense. With just “gripping part” being the definition then the use of the word
hobby is either coincidental or clever. I was just wondering if there was a possibly amusing word in crosswordland for the inclusion of a
word that, while it could have been anything, happens to enhance the definition part, i.e., as suggested, a hidden clue.
Very little is coincidental in a Virgilius clue. The definition is “gripping part of hobby” and the answer is hidden (comprehends) in the remainder of the clue. The surface reading is trying to misdirect you into thinking of hobby as a pastime.
22d – Unless I’m wrong, I still think this is a “hidden” clue. I’m now wondering what is the relevance of “…comprehends”.
Very strange, but I read this clue and instantly entered the right (?) answer. I’m surprised to have missed so many nuances! Perhaps, I’m always looking for at least one “hidden” clue in each Crossword?
Comprehends is telling you that “expert alone” comprehends (contains) the hidden answer.
I bow to your superior knowledge! How do you know such things? Very impressed! I always thought that a hobby was just a “hobby”.
Months and months ago I asked for a hint on an ST clue. BD’s reply was, something like, ‘Virgilius is the master of the hidden word’. So now I always look out for them on a Sunday!
Have managed to finish at about the fourth session and with some help from the hints – thanks BD! Don’t think 17a would ever have dawned without you – what a lovely clue, once you get the answer. Don’t think 4a would have clicked, either, though it should have as I kept thinking of that 3-letter word that means to employ – hey ho! the brain can get a bit “locked in” on a single track sometimes, can’t it? Always pleased if I finish the Sunday one, so many thanks for hints.
I enjoyed this puzzle very much. South east corner held me up but got there in time to watch the Toon come a cropper. :( Favourite today was 22d. Hope the smiley works Mary. Thanks to setter and BD
you are expert now Mike :-D, good day for Liverpool sorry, we can’t all be winners!
Thanks Mary. :*
I started this one confidently, and then ground to a halt with half a dozen left. My last one in was 7d.
I thought this was trickier than recent Sunday puzzles, but no less fun.
Thanks to Virgilius, and to BD.
last one for me too Jezza as you can see from above!
Unstuck now, after a good walk by the river and a little help from Mary and Gazza on 13a/7d (thank you!). A puzzle of two halves for me, with the left side going in much more easily than the right.
Most enjoyable, thanks to Virgilius and BD, needed some of the hints for the right side
Is the answer to the clue about being loaded a proper noun named after a man who invented a scale?
Patsy – Is the clue in question 13a?
I don’t think it’s anything to do with the scale used to measure Earthquakes.
See Comment #4 above – if you navigate your way through this comment you may find the answer. Good Luck!
Very rarely do the Sunday crossword from the paper version but, as I was visiting parents this weekend, today was an exception. It took almost as long to find the crossword as it took to solve it! On-line solving sometimes has its advantages!
Many thanks to Virgilius for another gem and to BD for the notes. I agree that the NE corner was the trickiest with 4a and 7d with the last to fall,
Thanks Franco. It’s the equivalet of Fat, Fatter FATTEST, right?
It’s a superlative, yes (from “maximally” in the clue). I think that you have it!
Superlative adjective describing someone with the most “wonga”.
Just got round to giving this some serious thought. Stuck on 8d only. I think I know what it is but can’t convince myself. Favourite clue was 22d which I thought very clever. Thanks to V & to BD.
Now I’ll press “Post” & wait a gnoment…
Told you!
Thanks to virgilus and big dave
17a and 22d were my favourites
I almost gave up on the last 6 clues
but resisted the temptation to look at the hints
then 17a came as a ‘lightbulb’ moment
which allowed me to finish unaided – well,
with the help of Chambers of course.
Very late input from me as got the grid late on Sunday and was too occupied watching the Crucible to start!
Did the puzzle in spasms yesterday and today.
Very enjoyable Virgilius!
Favourites were : 14a, 17a, 5d, 9d & 22d.