DT 27707

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 27707

A full review by gnomethang

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BD Rating – Difficulty ***– Enjoyment **

This puzzle was published on Saturday, 24th January 2015

Morning All! A few head scratch moments here and a couple of pretty fairly weak cryptic or double definitions (as far as I was concerened).

Across

3a           Piano works — ‘Aida’, for instance? (5,5)
GRAND OPERA – A charade of GRAND (a type of piano) and OPERA – The plural of the Latin word OPUS or work. Aida in the clue kind of gives it away!.

8a           Realise one can do this at the bank (6)
ENCASH – Two definitions that are not very dissimilar.

9a           Rebuke Simon had brought about (8)
ADMONISH – An anagram (brought about) of SIMON HAD.

10a         Having retired, little woman retrospectively retains value (8)
EMERITUS – As a professor. Reverse SUE (a short/little versio0n of a woman’s name) and then insert MERIT or value.

11a         Quick — doctor’s in river! (6)
NIMBLE – MB (one of the many ab. For a doctor) inside the NILE river.

12a         Space for painting needed by dull little apartment (6,4)
STUDIO FLAT – A charade of the STUDIO (place for painting) and FLAT for dull.

14a         Management takes action in drawn-out dispute (7,6)
RUNNING BATTLE – The action of the management of a company is the cryptic definition.

20a         I put scroll round iron grating (10)
PORTCULLIS – An anagram (round) of I PUT SCROLL.

22a         Ill-treatment of inspirational woman is to be admitted (6)
MISUSE – Place IS (from the clue) inside a MUSE or woman of (artistic) inspiration in the classical sense.

23a         Rebel Frenchman aged badly (8)
RENEGADE – The usual suspect Frenchman RENE followed by an anagram (badly) of AGED.

24a         Command — it’s what winner of horse race had? (8)
BESTRIDE – As in ‘To bestride the world as a Titan”. The winning jockey in a horse race will have the BEST RIDE.

25a         One gathers that you don’t want to meet if it’s grim (6)
REAPER – q.v. The (grim) REAPER of souls.

26a         Dolefully idle? (10)
UNEMPLOYED – A pretty straightforward cryptic definition for someone who draws the dole.

Down

1d           Not Maria’s woolly drawer (8)
ANIMATOR – An anagram (woolly) of NOT MARIA.

2d           Broadcast bothered an angry woman (8)
HARRIDAN – I had the answer but needed the hint from the day to realise the justification. HARRID (A homophone (broadcast) of harried/bothered/troubled) ) followd by AN from the clue.

3d           Hospital within reach in poor quarter (6)
GHETTO – Place H for Hospital inside GET TO or reach.

4d           A final unending exclamation of grief (4)
ALAS – A form the clue then LAS(t) final with the end off the end.

5d           Unfortunate condition of Parisian I meant to resolve (8)
DEMENTIA – Of in French can be DE – add an anagram, indicated by ‘to resolve’ of I MEANT.

6d           Parents going round an isthmus (6)
PANAMA – Place both your parents (both PA and MA) around AN from the clue.

7d           Outcome? About second last, in short (6)
RESULT – A charade of RE (about/reference), S for second and then ULT, the abb. or shortened version of Ultimate or last.

13d         The French and German drink (5)
LAGER – LA (the in French for a feminine noun) followed by GER – one of the anagrams of GER(man).

15d         Endanger surrounding area, which is magnificent (8)
IMPERIAL – Place IMPERIL (endanger) around the outside of A for area.

16d         Cable TV, it’s said, has little weight (8)
TELEGRAM – A homophone (it’s said) of telly/TV is TELE. Add a GRAM or little weight.

17d         Bad performer (4-4)
EVIL-DOER – A not very cryptic definition unless you immediately think of actors and then confuse yourself.

18d         Team’s negative response written up in profile (4-2)
SIDE-ON – The team is the SIDE then reverse (written up) NO, the negative response.

19d         Habit makes copper most upset (6)
CUSTOM – CU, the chemical element for copper followed by an anagram (upset) of MOST.

21d         Ugly rumour may oust leader from firm (6)
CANARD – As Big Dave pointed ot CAN does not necessarily mean ‘may’ but start with this then remove/oust the leader of (h)ARD or firm.

23d         Count coming from Loire — lynched (4)
RELY – A hidden word (coming from) the elision of the last two words in the clue

 

Thanks to the setter – I’ll see you all next Friday.