DT 29269

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 29269

A full review by crypticsue

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This puzzle was published on 25^th January 2020

BD Rating – Difficulty **/*** – Enjoyment ***

I always take a smidgen longer to solve the crossword when on the train, often because there is, as was the case on Saturday morning, a fellow passenger who thought everyone in the carriage needed to hear their views on something.   I did enjoy the solve more than the background noise – this time from someone who, on learning that her fellow passenger was going to Ebbsfleet to catch the Eurostar to Amsterdam, thought the whole carriage might like to know her views on visiting that city.   

We had some discussion at the Birthday Bash as to who might have set this Prize Puzzle but didn’t reach any satisfactory conclusions – if the setter would like to admit that it was them, it would make at least ten people very happy

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

1a    Completely fill it at sea when stormy (7)
SATIATE – An anagram (when stormy) of IT AT SEA

5a    Cool drink setter had in flat (7)
INSIPID – IN (cool, fashionable) SIP (drink) I’D (the setter had)

9a    Journey to the bar and back? (5,4)
ROUND TRIP – This journey might describe one of the trips to the bar of Bridge House

10a    English lake strange and disturbing (5)
EERIE – E (English) ERIE (lake)

11a    Pancake containing a lot of fish sauce (7)
TABASCO – TACO (pancake) containing a lot (but not all) of a BASs (fish)

12a    One to resist change as Hera did somehow (7)
DIEHARD – An anagram (somehow) of HERA DID

13a    Male lacking finesse becomes cruel (9)
HEARTLESS – HE (male) ARTLESS (lacking finesse)

16a    Horse cooked in casserole wife chucked out (5)
STEED – ‘chuck out’ the W (wife) from STEwED (cooked in casserole)

17a    Firm support for lethal striker (5)
COBRA – CO (company, firm) BRA (support)

18a    Last on tap drunk following the birth (9)
POSTNATAL – An anagram (drunk) of LAST ON TAP

21a    TV show about female with fine prospects (3,4)
SET FAIR – SET (TV) AIR (show) goes ‘about’ F (female)

22a    Sort out drink for public platform (7)
ROSTRUM – An anagram (out) of SORT followed by RUM (drink)

25a    Keep away from an abyss (5)
AVOID – A (an) VOID (abyss)

26a    Beer after milk drink good — hurry (5,1,3)
SHAKE A LEG – ALE (beer) goes after SHAKE (milk drink), G (good) being added at the end)

27a    Stadium, large, accommodates second team (7)
ARSENAL – ARENA (stadium) L (large) ‘accommodates’ S (second)

28a    Foreign currency earners in old harbour towns? (7)
EXPORTS – Old harbour towns might be EX PORTS

Down

1d    Mark caught rodent in school (7)
SCRATCH – C (caught) RAT (rodent) inserted into SCH (school)

2d    One opposed to other manual workers? (5)
THUMB – A cryptic definition that took the checking letters for the penny to drop

3d    Mountains in Patagonian Desert (5)
ANDES – Lurking in PatagoniAN DESert

4d    Nobleman given award for organ piece? (7)
EARLOBE – EARL (nobleman) given OBE (award)

5d    Mischievous child crushed seed in hampers (7)
IMPEDES – IMP (mischievous child) and an anagram (crushed) of SEED

6d    Be sensible before arriving in time (3,6)
SEE REASON – ERE (before) ‘arriving’ in SEASON (time)

7d    Enduring exercises with chap in charge (9)
PERMANENT – PE (exercises) and MAN (chap) inserted into RENT (charge)

8d    Much disliked — as lurgy! (7)
DREADED – I really liked this clue – someone at the bash didn’t!

14d    Impressive winger‘s successful long shot? (9)
ALBATROSS – An impressive bird with large wingers or a successful golf shot

15d    Wild rage Dante exhibited in restaurant (3,6)
TEA GARDEN – An anagram (wild) of RAGE DANTE

17d    Starch idiot put into sparkling wine (7)
CASSAVA – ASS (idiot) put into CAVA (sparkling wine)

18d    Soldiers look up for overhead protection (7)
PARASOL – PARAS (soldiers) and a reversal (up in a Down clue) of LO (look)

19d    Expert beneath waves that break skin (7)
SURFACE – ACE (expert) goes ‘beneath’ SURF (waves that break)

20d    Stories about cat in French city (7)
LIMOGES – LIES (stories) go ‘about’ MOG (cat)

23d    Excessive energy used in part of flight (5)
STEEP – E (energy) ‘used’ in STEP (part of flight)

24d    Monarch has regret about Left and Right (5)
RULER – RUE (regret) ‘about’ L (left) with R (right) added at the end