DT 30263 (Full Review)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30263

A full review by crypticsue

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This puzzle was published on 1^st April 2023

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

A slightly different ‘feel’ to this week’s Saturday Prize Puzzle, but it turned out once again to be the work of Cephas

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Across

1a    Slip by government calculator (5,4)
SLIDE RULE – SLIDE (slip) RULE (government)

8a    What rep may be after when amounts sold reduce (5,8)
SALES CONTRACT – SALES (amounts sold) CONTRACT (reduce)

11a    Singer Bill drops in (5)
VOICE – an inVOICE drops the IN

12a    Tight finish (5)
CLOSE – Tight in fit, or a verb meaning to finish

13a    Surprise opening (5)
START – Surprise or startle; opening or beginning

16a    Feel sorry about welcome lacking energy (6)
REGRET – RE (about) GREeT (lacking energy indicating the need to omit one of the abbreviations for Energy

17a    Natural protection for viewer (6)
EYELID – A cryptic definition of a ‘natural’ protection for an eye (viewer)

18a    Large instrument‘s mouthpiece (5)
ORGAN – A large musical instrument or a source of information and opinion, such as a newspaper (mouthpiece)

19a    Musical party in top style (6)
HAIRDO – HAIR (a musical from the late 1960s) and DO (party)

20a    Vehicle at all times needed for occupation (6)
CAREER – CAR (vehicle) EER (poetical word for ever, at all times)

21a    Get rid of pundit chewing sandwiches (5)
DITCH – Sandwiched by punDIT CHewing

24a    Beginning violent attack (5)
ONSET – The beginning of something or a violent attack

26a    Meat embargo enveloping company (5)
BACON – BAN (embargo) ‘enveloping’ CO (company)

27a    Kind offer he’d rate poorly (6-7)
TENDER-HEARTED – TENDER (offer) followed by an anagram (poorly) of HED RATE

28a    Youngster on first flight (9)
FLEDGLING – A cryptic definition of a young bird on its first flight

Down

2d    Unending elegy I composed in Belgian city (5)
LIEGE – An anagram (composed) of ELEGy I (‘unending’ tell you to omit the Y)

3d    Avoiding exposure? That’s respectable (6)
DECENT – An informal word meaning sufficiently clothed to be seen by another person can also mean respectable

4d    Athlete in second place not at university (6)
RUNNER – RUNNER UP (in second place) without the UP (not at university)

5d    Typically, Rice might pen this (5)
LYRIC – Something Tim Rice might pen is hidden in typicalLY RICe

6d    One gives better advice (6,7)
RACING TIPSTER – Someone giving advice to a person betting on a horse race

7d    Paid informer (13)
SCHOOLTEACHER – Someone paid to inform and educate

9d    Aim high but go too far (9)
OVERSHOOT – To aim for a target but go too far

10d    Toiletry too darned awkward (9)
DEODORANT – An anagram (awkward) of TOO DARNED

13d    What sitting member did at election? (5)
STOOD – What a sitting member of parliament did if he wanted to be re-elected

14d    Every now and then, carnage on street leads to anxiety (5)
ANGST – Alternate (every now and then) letters of cArNaGe oN followed by ST (street)

15d    Awful smell, head cut off fish (5)
TENCH – Remove the head or first letter from sTENCH (awful smell)

22d    Scandinavian girl? Put her letters here! (6)
INGRID – Letters put IN GRID

23d    Breakfast show in instalments, reportedly (6)
CEREAL – A homophone (reportedly) of SERIAL (show in instalments)

25d    Wave that is destructive always lingering initially (5)
TIDAL – The initial letters of That Is Destructive Always Lingering

26d    Peer keeping nothing in farm building (5)
BARON – O (nothing) ‘kept in’ BARN (farm building)