Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 28036
A full review by crypticsue
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BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment **
This puzzle was published on Saturday, 13th February 2016
A fairly typical Saturday puzzle that didn’t take long to sort out.
I must say, however, that if one of the “crèche” had sent me a crossword to test with nine clues requiring something (a letter, word or abbreviation), to be put inside into something else, I might have suggested that this was probably too many for one puzzle!
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Across
4a Some bits of cricket, fiery, went too far (8)
OVERSHOT – OVERS (bits of a cricket match) HOT (fiery)
8a Wish for river to engulf schoolmaster (6)
DESIRE – The river DEE ‘engulfs’ SIR (schoolmaster)
9a Person managing test no longer an underground worker (8)
EXAMINER – Split 2, 1, 5 and this person would be EX A MINER (no longer an underground worker)
10a A liberal college head entertains jolly local dignitary (8)
ALDERMAN – A (from the clue) L (liberal) DEAN (college head) entertaining RM (a Royal Marine is informally known as a ‘jolly’).
11a One’s checked sailor’s effect of sun (6)
TARTAN – TAR (sailor) TAN (effect of sun)
12a Runs into Greek character with gun to bring into church (8)
CHRISTEN – R (runs in cricket scores) inserted into CHI (Greek character) and followed by STEN (gun)
13a Enjoyed touring North, then fell in farmyard tip (8)
DUNGHILL – The fourth insertion – DUG (enjoyed) ‘touring’ N (north) and then HILL (fell)
16a Pick out assorted thin cuts (8)
UNSTITCH – An anagram (assorted) of THIN CUTS
19a Sportsman unlikely to win grounded in disarray (8)
UNDERDOG – An anagram (in disarray) of GROUNDED.
21a Make mistake about every other letter of answer? You need this (6)
ERASER – ERR (make mistake) goes about every other letter of AnSwEr.
23a Ready for business (4,4)
CASH FLOW – A cryptic definition
24a Cleese character, one around church (8)
BASILICA – BASIL (possibly the best known of the characters portrayed by John Cleese) I (one) and CA (circa, around).
25a Assistance from match official about position of ball (6)
RELIEF – By now you probably won’t be surprised to learn that REF (match official) goes ‘about’ LIE (position of a [golf] ball).
26a Standard equipment for jousting in a manner of speaking (8)
PARLANCE – PAR (standard) LANCE (equipment for jousting)
Down
1d The yawl in storm is rolling (7)
WEALTHY – An anagram (in storm) of THE YAWL – rolling here being a slang term meaning extremely rich.
2d Running away, restraining anger, gives a warm glow (9)
FIRELIGHT – ‘restraining’ tells us IRE (anger) is to be kept inside FLIGHT (running away)
3d What to do with hair? Pass (6)
PERMIT – Split the solution 4, 2 and you see what to do with your hair.
4d It’s clear-cut what to do at start and finish of packing (4-3-4,4)
OPEN-AND-SHUT CASE – Simple, easy, obvious, or what you do before going on holiday.
5d Difficult old partner on stage (8)
EXACTING – EX (old partner) ACTING (on stage)
6d Winter sportsman shot upwards (5)
SKIER – A description of our blogger, Dutch, on his half-term holidays, or an alternative spelling for a cricket ball hit high into the air.
7d Queen entering cricket ground left protective cover (7)
OVERALL – ER (the cipher of our current Queen) enters OVAL (cricket ground) and the result is finished with L (left.
14d Outrageously flatter the man at the top — being sincere? (9)
HEARTFELT – HE (the man) goes before (at the top of) an anagram (outrageously) of FLATTER
15d Flamboyant Grant’s is Aquarius (4,4)
STAR SIGN – An anagram (flamboyant) of GRANTS IS.
17d Cooked Navarin — sheer bliss (7)
NIRVANA – An anagram (cooked) of NAVARIN.
18d One investigates the method of passing oxygen in tight spot (7)
CORONER – O (oxygen) inserted into CORNER (tight spot).
20d Leave desolate place (6)
DESERT – Double definition, one a verb, the other a noun
22d Work following South Pacific (5)
STILL – Misleading capital times – pacific here meaning peaceful, tranquil. S (south) TILL (work the land)
S2