DT 30140 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 30140

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30140

Hints and tips by 2Kiwis

BD Rating – Difficulty ** Enjoyment ****

Kia ora from Aotearoa.

An extra challenge for us this week. We’re juggling our time around a hospital eye clinic appointment. So a bit of blurry vision to cope with as well. With any luck it will still all get sorted well before publishing time.

A beautiful spring day here at last which we are appreciating.

Please leave a comment telling us how you got on.

Across

1a     Rest recovering from cold, once across valleys (10)
CONVALESCE : The letter from the top of a cold tap and ‘once’ from the clue surround a poetic word for valleys.

6a     Stone circle, mostly white (4)
OPAL : The circular letter and then a word for white or pasty without its last letter.

10a     A role to play in relief work? (5)
CAMEO : A role to play, as Hitchcock sometimes did in his own movies.

11a     The highest level of compensation rejected by crown (3,6)
TOP DRAWER : A crown or peak and the reversal (rejected) of compensation or bounty.

12a     Person who might vote in change of role, etc? (7)
ELECTOR : An anagram (change of) of ROLE ETC.

13a     Sally may see almost nothing in French about job (7)
RIPOSTE : A job or situation is enclosed by the French word meaning nothing without its last letter.

14a     Unfortunately, Labour is in with America — that’s not healthy (12)
INSALUBRIOUS : An anagram (unfortunately) of LABOUR IS IN plus the two letter abbreviation for America.

18a     Fail, since worker is taken in by credit stream (5,3,4)
CRASH AND BURN : A synonym for since and a four letter word for a worker are contained by CR(edit) and a Scottish word for a stream.

21a     Mocks date disheartened with fairground attractions (7)
DERIDES : The two outside letters of date (disheartened) and rollercoasters and Ferris wheels perhaps.

23a     One young reporter employed by tabloid sent west is a nightmare (7)
INCUBUS : The Roman numeral one, then a term for a young reporter is enclosed by the reversal (sent west) of a well-known tabloid newspaper.

24a     Reverse tendency with test covering international leader (9)
EDITORIAL : A tendency like the coming and going of seawater is reversed, then a test that is not written contains I(nternational).

25a     Name that identifies savings account? (5)
ISAAC : A 2,1 phrase that might mean ‘that identifies’ and then the abbreviation for account. (We’re not too sure about this parsing. Any thoughts?)

26a     Come down heavily when fitting over (4)
TEEM : The reversal of a word meaning fitting or suitable.

27a     Planter almost clashed, keeping racket idea, oddly (10)
JARDINIERE : A racket or loud noise and the first and third letters of ‘idea’ are inside clashed or was discordant with the last letter removed.

Down

1d     Prestige of a revolutionary in court (6)
CACHET : The two letter abbreviation for court contains ‘A’ from the clue and crosswords’ favourite revolutionary.

2d     Count without feeling fear occasionally (6)
NUMBER : Without feeling or anaesthetised and then the second and fourth letters of fear.

3d     The first steps on the road if too wobbly? (1,4,2,3,4)
A FOOT IN THE DOOR : An anagram (wobbly) of ON THE ROAD IF TOO.

4d     Create a diversion in harbour (9)
ENTERTAIN : A double definition. Create a diversion as a performer might and harbour as a verb.

5d     Primate trapped in case of clear scam (5)
CAPER : The first and last letters (case) of clear contain a primate animal.

7d     Men bound to obtain a loan here? (8)
PAWNSHOP : Chessmen and then bound like a kangaroo.

8d     Generosity that’s shown by Superman, we hear? (8)
LARGESSE : It sounds like how the first letter of Clark Kent’s alias is written in the clue and on his chest.

9d     Right group must cover right half, for example (6,8)
PROPER FRACTION : Right or correct and an often dissenting group contains R(ight).

15d     With no restraints — and German is outside to take offence (9)
UNBRIDLED : The German word for ‘and’ surrounds take offence or raise one’s hackles.

16d     Appraisal of police department on trial (4,4)
ACID TEST : An investigating police department and another word for trial. (We think there might be an ‘A’ missing form this clue.)

17d     Hospital transport company’s shock starts here (8)
HAIRLINE : H(ospital) and then a transport company such as Qantas.

19d     Fiery sailor with zeal to reform (6)
ABLAZE :Two letter abbreviation for a sailor and then an anagram (to reform) of ZEAL.

20d     Spirit shown by tipsy chef? (6)
PSYCHE : A lurker, hiding in the clue.

22d     Hindu destroyer of verse found in branch of Islam (5)
SHIVA : One of the significant branches of Islam contains V(erse).

8d is our favourite today.

Quickie pun    force    +    aches    =   forsakes

66 comments on “DT 30140

  1. I was briefly held up by a spelling mistake in 14a and a trip to the dictionary to confirm my construction in 23a.

    9d was my favourite clue this morning with 18a runner up.

    Thanks to today’s setter and the 2Ks (I also pondered the A in 16d)

  2. Super puzzle, right out of the 11a, with clever wordplay and parsings throughout. The Superman clue made me smile but my biggest ticks go to 11&18a plus 7d (LOL) with top spot going to the ever so smart 17d.
    Many thanks to the setter and the Ks.

    25a …ISA (a tax free savings scheme) plus AC (account)

  3. 3*/4.5*. All the usual Wednesday fun although I did find the NE corner quite a tough nut to crack.

    I’m not sure that 25a quite works. 2Ks – ISA is abbreviation for Individual Savings Account, so account seems to be doing double duty: “Savings account?” = ISA and “Account” = AC.

    I had a lot of ticks, and 8d was my favourite.

    Many thanks to the three birds.

    1. I thought similarly, RD, “Individual Savings Account Account” gives you Isacac (or Isaccacc) unless you treat ISA as an acronym rather than an abbreviation or initialism.

      1. Mustafa, do you go into a bank and say I’d like to open an ISA account or do you go into a bank and say I’d like to open an Individual Savings Account account? I think I know the answer.

            1. Like Stephen L. I don’t see a problem here – ISA is a long established acronym and is listed by banks as a type of savings account along with others such as Easy Access etc.

  4. This was a DNF, largely because i put Credit as a synonym of prestige for 1d. It seemed logical; red for revolutionary, ct for court and 1 standing in for a in the clue. Not my finest hour and the puzzle was not really my cup of tea. Any ideas where the A came from in 16d anyone? Th anks to the Kiwis for the much-needed hints and to the compiler for his efforts

  5. For me, more friendly than yesterday. Mostly plain sailing though I was held up for a while by the brilliant misdirection at 17d. I too wondered about the missing ‘a’ in 16d. I especially liked 27a, 1d, 7d and 9d. My favourite was the aforementioned 17d. Thanks to the compiler and the 2Ks.

  6. Certainly no stroll in the park for me today. If it’s a Jay production (which I assume it is) then maybe it was more suited to his Logman envelope but either way very enjoyable. Other than the dubious A at 16d & 3d, which I didn’t overly care for, very nicely clued throughout – can’t see anything wrong with 25a. The parsing of a couple (1&18a) came after the answer & took an age to figure out the fodder for 14a. Noted 1d was alternatively clued in yesterday’s Serpent Toughie. Top 3 for me – 7,8&17d with 23a just out of the frame.
    Thanks to the setter & 2Ks

  7. 17d, my COTD and LOI, held me up briefly in this amusing and witty gem by our Wednesday guru. I did LOL with 8d, though we have seen that old chestnut before, and very much enjoyed 12a (‘Je ne regrette rien!’), 18a, 7d, & 27a. Certainly felt like Jay to me, so thanks to him and to the Kiwis. ** / ****

    A rather freakish November hurricane, Nicole, is headed our way tonight, so here we go again!

    1. Good luck tonight. It looks like we’re getting a “pass” by Big Massa yet again, can’t believe it.

    2. Good luck with Nicole. We’re a bit north of Merusa, and currently under a Hurricane Warning and Tropical Storm Watch. Expected here at 1am. Like you say, a bit freakish, just when we were beginning to relax as we got into November…

      1. Hello to both of you, Merusa and BusyLizzie, and thanks for the ‘good luck’ wishes–and best of luck to you in…is it the Palm Beach area, BL?

  8. I thought this a tad tougher than most fellow BD contributors at ***/*** although I agree there were some super clues it just felt all a bit uphill but for some reason I didn’t sleep well so that could account for it. 24a and the illustrious 17d were my favourites with the latter being my COTD. Thank you to our Antipodean friends for their efforts under some adversity and to the setter – Jay if it is indeed he – for his ingenuity.

  9. I enjoyed 27a and the smooth double définition in 4d but clue of the day goes to the elegant 23a. Many thanks to setter and the Kiwis

  10. A touch harder than ** in my opinion. Not entirely happy with 3d, but 25a is fine. Some great clues though,18a,7d and 17d my favs. Agree **** for entertainment.

  11. I found this a little tougher than the average Jay puzzle, being delayed in the S – wanting to use ‘rag’ for tabloid, and ‘exam’ or ‘trial’ for test. Some super clueing, of course, with special mentions to 1a, 10a, 13a, 18a and 7d.

    2.5* / 3*

    Many thanks to Jay and to the 2Ks – hope the eye problem has settled down now.

  12. Jay assisted by Logman! ***/****

    Candidates for favourite – 10a, 13a, 21a, 9d, and 16d – and the winner is 9d.

    Thanks to Jay and the 2Kiwis.

  13. I would seriously contest the clues which lead to the answer to 26a. The meanings of both ‘Come down heavily’ and the reversal of a word meaning fitting are very dubious or, at best, obscure. However, 8d – the Superman clue – is a classic.

    1. Welcome to the blog

      The rain round here has been doing a lot of ‘coming down heavily’ lately. The BRB defines the ‘fitting’ word as archaic or formal

  14. That took some sorting and was achieved in a very haphazard way filling in all over the shop. Don’t think I have met 23a previously nor 22d destroyer. Joint Favs 16d and 17d. Thank you Jay (?) and 2 Kiwis.

  15. I found this tough and have to record a DNF. I’m with ChrisCross in that I had “credit” for 1d and I’m not familiar with the term at 18a. I couldn’t decipher 9d for the life of me and I have never associated 5d with a scam. Oh well, tomorrow is another day. :smile:

    Many thanks to Jay and the 2Kiwis.

    Beautiful sunny day at the moment in The Marches. I hope it continues because both Hudson and I got drenched on our walk yesterday.

    1. Now that you’re back contributing on a daily basis Steve let’s start a petition & see if we can get Chelsea’s number one fan to do likewise…..,

      1. I definitely second that, Huntsman. If you are monitoring, Terence do pop in and say hello. I can vouch for the fact that the water is lovely! :good:

  16. A most entertaining puzzle from one of our regular Wednesday setters with a plethora of ticks that produced 17d as my favourite. Nice to see the sun today after an horrendous drive through torrential rain on the M5 yesterday.

    Many thanks to our three resident birds.

  17. Struggled a bit today, though when completed I can’t see why…….the old wavelength issue again? Well clued throughout, only needed Mr.G for 27d.
    A good anagram in 3d plus special mentions for 9 & 17d were my favourites here.
    Thanks to the setter and the 2 Kiwis.

  18. I found this difficult today.
    I’ve never met 18a and didn’t know that a scam was anything to do with 5d – oh well.
    Everything felt as if it was all a bit of a struggle today – don’t know why – just me, I think.
    I liked 14a once I’d sorted out how to spell it!!
    Thanks to Jay and to the K’s.

  19. Too clever by half. The half I did manage were no compensation for the struggle to solve too many gnomic and I thought dubious clues.

    I hope the eye appointment went well and blurry sight is not a problem.

    Thanks to the 2Ks and the setter.

  20. Good afternoon from North Devon where we’ve had bucketloads of rain in the last few days. You’d have thought that would go some way to filling our depleted reservoirs, but no – the local water company has complained that it’s ‘the wrong type of rain’!
    I thought there were some lovely misleading definitions here. I ticked 23a, 7d and 8d but my favourite has to be 17d.
    Many thanks to Jay and 2Ks.

  21. A bit under the weather this morning after a wonderful evening in Queens’ College last night. I love that joyously overdecorated hall and the cloisters in the moonlight are so romantic…….But to work, 17d my favourite as it made me laugh but I also liked 10a 7d and 30d. 14a is a fabulous word, a favourite of my grandmother’s. Many thanks to Jay and the two Kay’s – I’m going to go and have a little nap!

  22. I thought this was about the same as usual for a Jay Wednesday but then I suppose it helps if you know the ‘unknowns’, although as I said to Mr CS, 14a isn’t a word you often try to spell over breakfast!

    It is a lovely sunny day here today although I expect the rain will be back, heavier than ever, before we know it

    Thanks very much to Jay and the 2Ks

  23. A very nice mid-week puzzle. Good clues, middling difficulty and very enjoyable. Of the handful I’ve ticked I’ll choose 17d as my favorite. 3*/4*.

  24. A solid 3* time.
    Very novel clueing for the most part.
    Last in, 27a and 17d.
    Latter my COTD.
    Many thanks to the setter and the 2Kiwis.

  25. A super puzzle today – for once I’ve done it on the same day – I’m usually playing catch-up! Favourite clue for me had to be 27a – the answer is such a lovely word. Many thanks to Jay and to the 2Kiwis.

  26. Thanks to the setter and to the 2 Kiwis for the review and hints. A very enjoyable puzzle, that I found very tricky. Was beaten by the second word in 9d, and 27a. I’d never heard of the latter. Favourite was 17d. Was 4* /4* for me.

  27. This puzzle today a Jay/Logman production, perhaps?
    2.5*/3.5 *

    Favourites include 1a, 14a, 15a, 24a, 2d, 3d & 18d — with winner 3d.
    However I got smiles from 1a, 18a & 9d

    Thanks to Jay and 2K’s

  28. I did this in two halves today as I went to an Arts Society meeting on the Maya civilisation in between trying to complete it. My favourites were 8d and 14a. 9d took a while to sort out. Thankyou setter and Kiwis.

  29. Looks like another beautiful day coming up here so the shorts do not have to go back in the drawer after all,
    We’re still not sure how 25a works. We did know from previous crosswords what an ISA is in UK but can only guess whether it is used in combination with the word account in common parlance, or as a stand-alone description. Whatever, the answer is pretty obvious from the checking letters and ‘that identifies’ just serves as a link phrase.
    Cheers.

    1. I just thought

      Isaac is a name

      Isa = uk savings

      ac = account

      I am but a child in these matters though and I expect embarrassingly naïve

      1. I think you are right. No-on calls it an Individual Account in full so the clue works. I would say I have got an ISA without too much thought about what the acronym stands for so what NAS says sums it up.

  30. I found this a tad trickier than the Wednesday norm, but as enjoyable as ever. Lots of smiles, with 8d the biggest for me. Thanks to Jay and to the 2Ks.

  31. I struggled to make a significant start, eventually got going but couldn’t finish unaided. Many thanks to the setter and the 2 Kiwis. As said earlier ‘tomorrow is another day’!

    I was out all day and not back until late evening, yesterday. Caught up with the comments and it was lovely to hear from Jane. Though sorry to learn that you haven’t fully recovered from your fall(s). They can certainly leave you shaken, especially ones confidence. Take good care.

  32. Obviously on my own in finding this very difficult. Gave up with less than half solved.

    Thanks to all.

    1. You certainly weren’t on your own. I found this very difficult and gave up with about 10 clues to solve.

  33. Must be Jay as I was not on wavelength at all. Got there though. Favourite was 18a. Thanks to the setter and 2K’s. I may have to reassess my comment at 16 above as the mention of one of our erstwhile bloggers sent me into moderation, I do try and not be contentious.

  34. Enjoyed the puzzle today – NW took a while – still don’t really like 4d – bit of a stretch although generally not keen on just double definitions – always find them a tad lazy in some ways.

  35. I enjoyed cracking this one, but must admit to failing at 22d which having looked at the answer, I could have thoroughly kicked myself.

  36. 3*/2*….
    liked 23A ” One young reporter employed by tabloid sent west is a nightmare (7)”

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