ST 3219 (Hints) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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ST 3219 (Hints)

by Senf  

Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3219 (Hints)

Hints and tips by Senf

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

A very good Sunday morning from Winnipeg, where, across the Province, we have had thunder storms, tornado watches. tornado warnings, and tornadoes – all part of a Prairie Summer.

For me, etc, Dada in a friendly mood even with a dire shortage of anagrams, three (two partials), one lurker, and no homophones, – all in a slightly asymmetric 28 clues; with 14 hints ‘sprinkled’ throughout the grid, you should be able to get the checkers to enable the solving of the unhinted clues.

When I submitted my completed puzzle using the Old Web Site I was ‘told’ that my answers for 10a and 2d were incorrect – I disagree!

Candidates for favourite – 9a, 20, 27a, 8d, 18d, 21d, and several more!.

As is usual for the weekend prize crosswords, a number of the more difficult clues have been selected and hints provided for them.

Don’t forget to follow the instructions in RED at the bottom of the hints!

Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also”. Where the hint describes a construct as “usual” this means that more help can be found in The Usual Suspects, which gives a number of the elements commonly used in the wordplay. Another useful page is Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, which features words with meanings that are not always immediately obvious.

A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions.

Some hints follow:

Across

7a Newshound referring to carrier (8)
The two letters frequently used to represent referring to and a synonym of carrier (once seen at a railway station?).

11a Artist Samuel’s back rubbed (8)
The surname of an artist (a French impressionist) and an abbreviated form of Samuel all reversed (back).

12a Battle with new formats prior to start of decisive card game (8,6)
Some Lego required – an anagram (new) of FORMATS placed before (prior to) the first letter (start) of Decisive, and a popular card game (involving two teams of two) – a little North of Terence’s ‘haunt’ in SW6!

19a Travel by tube? (4)
I am not sure that one ‘?’ is enough – a double definition(?) -the best I can come up with is that the first could refer to travelling downhill.

20a Oath or cuss — but not bad? (4-6,4)
Chalk and cheese compared to 19a – a descriptive phrase that can be applied to oath or cuss but cannot be applied to bad – outstandingly brilliant!

23a Boa perhaps meeting wicked gangster (8)
What boa can be a non-reptilian type of followed by (meeting) a synonym of wicked in one its modern usages.

28a Paintings beat film noir? (3,5)
Nothing to do with a visit to the cinema – consider as (4,4), one of the generic terms for types of paintings and a synonym of beat.

Down

1d Poor show (4)
A double definition – the second relates to explaining.

5d Sardinian, say, vilified by me? (8)
Written as (1,7) the perpendicular personal pronoun and to cast verbal aspersions all equivalent to vilified by me.

8d Annoying editor promises to pay after end of August (7)
The abbreviated form of editor and the four letters indicating acknowledgement of debts (promises to pay) all placed after the last letter (end) of AugusT.

13d Deal with predicament, stoppage on the way? (7,3)
A synonym of deal (in illegal substances?) and (with) a three letter synonym of predicament.

18d Plant where whistler comes into work (7)
The abbreviated form of a type of whistler (controlling a sports event) inserted into (comes into) a synonym of work.

21d Grey retreat south of meadow (6)
A synonym of (a male?) retreat placed after South of a type of meadow – often applied to the appearance of the sky.

26d Valve left out of timer (4)
The single letter for Left removed from (out of) a type of timer.

Quick Crossword Pun:

NATTILY + WOULD = NATALIE WOOD

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As this is a Prize crossword, please don’t put any ANSWERS, whether WHOLE, PARTIAL or INCORRECT, or any ALTERNATIVE CLUES OR HINTS in your comment.

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British soul band Hot Chocolate, popular during the 1970s and 1980s, had at least one hit song every year on the UK Singles Chart from 1970 to 1980. This is the band’s only number one which began three weeks in the top spot on this day in 1977

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68 comments on “ST 3219 (Hints)”

  1. Despite not being overly keen on a couple I thought 9,11&28a were absolute crackers and worth the admission fee alone. Could have mentioned several more “winners” so overall very enjoyable indeed.
    Many thanks to Dada and Senf.

  2. The old website problem with 10a and 2d was corrected at 840 this morning almost immediately after the Crossword Editor read my email pointing out the problem

    1. Many thanks, Senf, I thought I was going nuts.
      My correct answers could not be anything else.

  3. Great guzzle with one left to do. Now in Andalsnes where I appear to have picked up Hertigruten’s Wi-Fi so thanks for that. Had awful heartburn all last night so a bit weary and will finish guzzle later. Thanks to all.

      2. That is beautiful. My own experience of Norway was on a Navex flight when I was in the RAF. A Navex flight is a navigational exercise. We flew to Bodo near the Arctic Circle and I was amazed by the beauty of the country.

  5. 2*/4*. Just right for a Sunday. This was very enjoyable apart from what for me were a couple of over-stretched synonyms.

    I had a lot of ticks with 9a, 20a & 28a making the final podium cut.

    Many thanks to Dada and to Senf.

  6. Really enjoyed this
    Apart from the DT hiccup with 10a and 2d.
    Good surfaces, absolutely brilliant 27
    And 28a.
    Only questionable clue 19a, my last
    In.
    Many thanks Dada
    And Senf.

  7. I didn’t find this as friendly as Senf – for me it was definitely a two mugs of coffee puzzle. Loved it though – a mix of challenging and fun clues. Hats off to the setter for 20a but my fave and COTD was 28a. Now to sit back and see if Stokes & co can achieve the impossible at Lords.

  8. Great stuff from Dada – thanks to him and Senf.
    19a was my last answer and I presume it’s meant to be a cryptic definition.
    There are lots of top-notch clues here including 9a, 20a, 23a, 28a and 14d.

    I wondered whether Dada was having a bit of a whinge in 8d.

  9. Just right for Sunday morning and 11a, 20a, 28a setting the light hearted tone. 19a as said in hints, a bit weak otherwise all very gettable.
    Thanks to setter.

  10. A “game” of two halves with South gentler than North. I’m being very thick but still can’t reconcile first 4 words of 2d clue for bung-in. 25a and 28a dead-heat Favs. Thank you Dada and Senf.

    1. All I will say for this PP is that the three letters required for the cricket game make an abbreviation for, I presume, a ‘white ball’ format.

      1. if you google it it becomes a duration and a type – not a thing I have previously heard of as an acronym tbh

        1. I guessed it but had never heard of this cricket contest. A bit obscure, perhaps.

      2. Thanks Senf but I fear I am still befuddled but have decided to retire wounded – life’s too short! 😰

  11. A late start for me as our paper boy decided to have a nice lie in and just as he arrived I had to drive into Wantage to pick up Jim’s prescription. Fortunately it was a friendly Dada, nicely judged for difficulty in a backpage SPP. I liked the well-misdirected 11a, the geographical 27a, the cunning cryptic defi ition, 20a and COTD, 12a, the clue that had everything. Rhanks to Dada, particularly for the clever mix of clueing techniques in the latter. Thanks to Senf for the hints. Strange weather your having in North America; my cousin in Pittsburgh sent me a picture of ‘Canadian smoke’ from your wildfires, which has affected visibility there

    1. We are quite generous. We will share our smoke with anybody, even if they don’t ask for it. :wink:

    2. Our paper boy was late too and delivered bits of three different newspapers, as the Mail on Sunday and Express are not even fit for fish and chips I will have to have a word!

  12. I tend to agree that this was a most enjoyable challenge but for a couple of synonyms that were somewhat elastic. There were some good misdirections along the way, and 28a proved to be my favourite.

    Thanks to Dada and Senf.

  13. Excellent puzzle which I thoroughly enjoyed 5*. Favourites were 9A, 11A, 27A, 18D but, COTD was the very clever 2D. Thanks to setter

  14. Late start for me having sat up until stupid-o’clock to finish off my latest read – The White Hare (Jane Johnson).
    Quite enjoyed this eclectic mix from our setter although not overly keen on 19a.
    Top three here were 28a plus 8&14d.

    Thanks to Dada and to Senf for the hints and music – another ‘hummable’ blast from the past courtesy of Hot Chocolate!

    1. Happens to me all the time Jane. When close to finishing a good book, if I decide it is getting too late and put it down unfinished and go to sleep, I will invariably wake up around 2:00am with my brain demanding to know the ending 😊. So, like you, I often read much too late so that I can finish instead.

  15. For me Dada at his best. I love the way his clues misdirect as in 25a and my fav 28a.
    Probably not his most difficult but just right for Mrs B and I.
    Thx to all
    ***/*****

  16. I found this slightly tougher than others seem to have but I got there in the end. For the life of me I cannot parse 2d assuming, of course, I have it correct. Neither could I see what “flaky” had to do with 14d but I will await the review to sort these two out. I thought 11a and 25a were both cracking clues and the latter is my COTD.

    Thank you, Dada for the fun challenge and to Senf for the hints.

    The farm next door is now keeping Alpacas and I have three bags of Alpaca poo – wonderful fertiliser!

    Now to perform the ritual ceremony! :grin:

    1. 2d is my last one too. Now up a mountain via a cable car and brill Wi-Fi here. No seats for us this pm on precooked excursion and apparently they don’t do refunds! A challenge I’m looking forward to. Oh yes I am! Will look again at 2d when we get back

    2. 14d – typical Dada – what a ‘drift might be made from could be described as flaky.

    3. Envy you easy access to that fertilizer ☺️. Our local Starbucks used to give away free bags of coffee grounds, which is so good for the garden, but they don’t seem to offer it any more. I do save and crush all our egg shells (quite a lot as I make our ice cream) as that is also good, but takes a very long time to work. I recently read that banana peels are good for roses, but haven’t figured out how to store them. Too smelly for indoors, and too hot outdoors.

      Hope Mrs C is doing well.

      1. Mrs. C is doing fine now thank you, BL and is as well as can be expected.
        I have some of the alpaca poo in a bucket of water and I will leave it a few days. It will then make a wonderful feed for the outdoor pot plants. As for egg shells, I put them in the compost bins. In fact I throw anything I can into the bins – paper, egg boxes, cardboard etc – all supplemented with my own supply of nitrogen and pest repellent. ☺️
        After a long time, there has just been a shower of rain. Sadly, not enough to help but there is now a wonderful odour. I believe it is called petrichor – that wonderful earthy smell after a fresh fall of rain following an extended dry period.

        1. I tried a compost heap once, until I found a snake/s living in it. I’m told they love it. No more compost for me.

  17. I too am stuck on 2d but maybe if I concentrate on the periodic table it will come, even though unparsed. So many brilliant clues, how on earth can I choose one, Kath? 11,12,27&28a all qualify but like Crisscross I am going for 12a. After a day at Henley yesterday and fighting our way down to the start I am exhausted, not to mention the cooking for two grandsons & partners who have sporty appetites. I am always amazed that an occasion which attracts so many thousands of people does not rate more media coverage! George did enjoy it so much, bless him. I managed to offload quite a bit of ‘stuff’ on the boys as they left, china etc, 😄 I’ll face the washing tomorrow. ☹️. Many thanks to Messrs Setter & Senf, purveyors of fine mustard.

  18. Not as sparkling as some Dada crosswords but certainly not his worst. Thought 19a was a bit of a stretch. Cotd was 20a once the full cleverness of was pointed out. Thanks to Dada and Senf.

  19. Late to this puzzle today. For me, I found this one trickier/quirkier than recent offerings from Dada.

    3*/3* today

    Podium contenders include 7a, 12a, 20a, 6d & 22d — with winner 20a
    Still can’t get the parsing for 2d.

    Thanks to Dada and Senf

  20. I struggled with this today (I often take a while to click with Dada] but have finally finished. 20a and 28a took ages to drop but were both really clever and 20a is my one favourite! There were lots of great clues once I got the hang of it.

    Many thanks to Dada and to Senf for the hints.

  21. Not easy doing this excellent puzzle whilst watching the test match thank you Dada and Senf – 28a as my favourite

  22. I didn’t think this was the slightest bit friendly at all.
    My feeling was coloured by the scarcity of anagrams, only one lurker and no homophones – in other words the lack of anything that a person like a Kath needs to get going! Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear!
    I’m not really complaining – just saying!
    I’ve never heard of a newshound – so assumed what it was – can’t find it in BRB.
    Needless to say that I haven’t met the “crickety bit” of 2d.
    I appreciated 28a and 6 and 22d. I think my favourite was 17a.
    Thanks to Dada for the crossword and to Senf for the hints.

    1. On 2d I found a suitable Element then thought of a three letter problem in arithmetic to go round three letters which I googled and discovered the crickety meaning. Does that help? Am I now on the naughty step?

      1. Thanks DG – yes, that’s what I’d done too – but I hadn’t met it before, I meant. Thanks any way!
        I suspect that from tomorrow we’ll be the ones enjoying the sport for the next couple of weeks – that’s probably ‘labelling’ us as sexist!

        1. PS I can’t see why you should be stuck on the naughty step.
          PPS . . . and I’m not sexist either!!

  23. Thanks Senf. I think 19a is referring to the type of stock used for such travel, rather than downhill.

  24. Mostly OK for me today…until it wasn’t when I ground to a halt with the unhinted 14d. Eventually figured it out.

    Thanks to Senf and to Dada.

    Still sunny then cloudy then a spot of rain then sunny again and blustery all the time here…..too bad the really good weather has broken just as the schools are out for the summer here ….but not unusual.

  25. I surprised myself by doing rather well today, especially as I was so useless yesterday. Two confounded me, 19a which I think is a bit stretched to either definition, and 14d, if I have it right. LI was 16d. 2d was a guess as I had every other letter. Thanks to Dada for an enjoyable challenge today and to Senf for the hints.

  26. I never find Dada easy, but today I could solve enough around the grid to have lots of checkers. There were some real giggle-worthies, 20a was as good as thy get, how clever, and that’s my fave. Once I got the second word at 12a and battle, I thought of the answer right away. I must have learnt that in second form, how on earth did I remember that? ‘Nuff said about 19a.
    Thank you Dada for the fun, and, of course, thanks to Senf for unravelling so much.

  27. Found this a bit of a struggle. I thought it was unusual to have 6 double definitions to solve – no doubt that had something to do with it!
    20a the clear winner amongst the rest of the clues.
    Thanks to Dada and Senf for confirming the parsing on a few.

  28. Finished this almost unaided, but when I gave in and looked to see if there was a hint for 19a, was pleased to see that Senf appeared to be as mystified as I was, but presumably having the same answer as I thought it must be. Some very clever clues, several raised a smile, all very enjoyable. COTD 20a. Thanks to Dada and Senf.

  30. Think something has gone awry with across clues in paper version of 3220 crossword today around 12 and 14.

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