Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 2857
A full review by crypticsue
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BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
The usual great Sunday solving experience although, probably for the first time ever, there wasn’t a single star by any of the clues marking them as a ‘favourite’.
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Across
1a Is, within very short time, providing make-up for face (6)
VISAGE – IS (from the clue) inserted within V (the ‘short’ abbreviation for very) and AGE (time)
4a Delivering article after wife returned (8)
BIRTHING – THING (article) goes after a reversal (returned) of RIB (Biblical wife, see Genesis 2.21 – 23)
10a Heartless girl, passionate and beautiful (9)
GLAMOROUS – GL (the outside letters (heartless) of girl) and AMOROUS (passionate)
11a Two pieces of tapas exchanged for Italian food (5)
PASTA – Two letters of TAPAS are exchanged or moved to the end of the word.
12a Put out text initially rejected in court (7)
EXTINCT – ‘Reject’ the initial letter of TEXT, add IN (from the clue) and finish with CT, the abbreviation for court.
13a Moved to CID, in manner of speaking (7)
DICTION – An anagram (moved) of TO CID IN
14a Isn’t mistaken about capital of Uganda, or other African capital (5)
TUNIS – An anagram (mistaken) of ISNT put ‘about’ U, the capital of Uganda.
15a Cut link between eastern parts of Russia and Poland (8)
ABRIDGED – BRIDGE (link) goes between the eastern parts, or last letters of, RussiA and PolanD
18a Electoral analyst inserting lines in notice (8)
POLLSTER – LL (two abbreviations for Line) go in POSTER (notice)
20a Competitor on track runs after people (5)
RACER – R (runs in cricket score) go after RACE (people)
23a Male with sign who takes part in moving protest? (7)
MARCHER – M (male) and ARCHER (another way of referring to the Sign of the Zodiac, Sagittarius)
25a Operating aquatic sport around river (7)
DRIVING – DIVING (aquatic sport) goes ‘around’ R (river)
26a Prepared to be belligerent in popular media (5)
ARMED – Lurking in populAR MEDia
27a Run down gradient in disarray, heading east (9)
DENIGRATE – An anagram (in disarray) of GRADIENT heading, or preceding, E (east)
28a Offered caretaker abbreviated education (8)
TENDERED – TENDER (caretaker) goes before ED (abbreviated education).
29a Pour so badly, unable to retain liquid (6)
POROUS – An anagram (badly) of POUR SO
Down
1d Brief evocative piece in novel given title, oddly (8)
VIGNETTE – An anagram novel) of GIVEN followed by the odd letters of TiTlE
2d Small furry mammal seen in spruce (7)
SMARTEN – S (small) MARTEN – (furry mammal) which can indeed be found in spruce trees, although, of course, spruce here is an adjective rather than a noun.
3d Weed land encircling house on European lake (9)
GROUNDSEL – GROUNDS (land encircling house) E (European) L (lake)
5d Illicit dealing that’s never seen in open-air market? (7,7)
INSIDER TRADING – which relates to illegal dealings at the Stock Exchange rather than at an outdoor market.
6d Subject to minimal change in charge (5)
TOPIC – TO (from the clue) P (penny, minimal change) IC (In Charge)
7d Occupying position overlooking church, fire (7)
INSPIRE – IN (occupying) SPIRE (position overlooking church)
8d Good and wet? It’s not clear (6)
GRAINY – G (good) RAINY (wet)
9d Get position of captain for game (8,6)
CONTRACT BRIDGE – CONTRACT (get) BRIDGE (position of captain on a ship)
16d Heroic actions going wrong in unconventional rising (7-2)
DERRING-DO – ERRING (going wrong) inserted into a reversal (rising) of ODD (unconventional)
17d Advance publicity covering monstrous female (8)
PROGRESS – PR (publicity) ‘covering’ OGRESS (monstrous female)
19d Agitated as Roman chap having a row (7)
OARSMAN – An anagram (agitated) of AS ROMAN
21d Smart move, going around a city in US (7)
CHICAGO – CHIC (smart) and GO (move) going around A (from the clue)
22d Partly declaim, partly communicate (6)
IMPART – Lurking partly in declaIM PARTly
24d Reduce risk of loss in hospital — proceed with caution (5)
HEDGE – H (hospital) EDGE (proceed with caution)
S2