DT 28036 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
No comments

DT 28036

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 28036

A full review by crypticsue

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

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!

 

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.  You can also add your assessment by selecting from one to five best!

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