DT 30389 (full review)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30389

A full review by Rahmat Ali

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This puzzle was published on 26^th Aug 2023

BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***

Greetings from Kolkata. A very friendly and straightforward Saturday puzzle from Cephas that I enjoyed solving and thereafter writing a review of the same for your kind perusal and significant feedback.

While solving the puzzle, I developed a keen interest in knowing more about rest, part of the wordplay to the clue of 7d, and so afterwards visited the net and acquired a lot of information to my satisfaction. Other than in snooker, rests are used in blackball and English billiards. These rests are poles used as supports that enable players to reach the cue ball when it is out of reach for them to go for a normal shot. Although adults might get away without a rest on a six-foot table for children, there are several shots that are impossible even on a four-foot or a five-foot table without a rest. Hence, for the children and youngsters, a rest as an accessory comes in handy. Any snooker or billiards table, big or small, cannot be without a rest of some sort and larger tables need several. There are various types of rests, such as swan or goose neck, spider, cross and long rests. Long rests may be half-butt or full-butt which serve as part of the standard repository for a full-size snooker table and quite useful for shots where a normal rest is not long enough. The full-butt is only used for a shot down the full length of the table where the white is very near the other end of the table. The half-butt is for shots somewhere in-between that and the rest. For all sizes of snooker and billiard tables, a straight-forward cross rest is normally top of the list of accessories. The standard length of a cross rest is roughly sixty inches and it is the commonest of all rests that helps the player get to those out-of-reach shots.

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Across

1a     One hoping not to miss the post (9)
APPLICANT: A cryptic definition of a person hoping to get a job by formally applying for the post as per advertisement or vacancy

8a    Boxing promoter? Refuse to be handled by one (5,8)
SCRAP MERCHANT: A charade of SCRAP (boxing) as to fight, usually with the fist and MERCHANT (promoter) as a promoter who exchanges goods or services for money guides to the definition of a person who deals in or handles scrap metal or any matter thrown away or rejected as worthless

11a    One trebles it (5)
THIRD: A cryptic definition of one of three equal parts of a divisible whole

12a    Complete western part of golf course (5)
WHOLE: The definition of an adjective meaning total, entire or complete is arrived at from a charade of W (western) as the abbreviation for Western and HOLE (part of golf course) as a cavity or receptacle 4¼ inches in diameter on a golf course, typically one of eighteen or nine, into which the ball must be hit

13a    Welcome cry (5)
GREET: Double verbal definition; the first denoting to give a polite word of recognition or sign of welcome when meeting someone and the second a Scottish term meaning to weep or cry

16a    Oddly, love wearing quaint little number (6)
TWELVE: The oddly-placed letters of L[O]V[e] getting covered (wearing) TWEE (quaint) as excessively or affectedly quaint, pretty or sentimental guides to the definition of the cardinal number between eleven and thirteen

17a    Delight taking in a show (6)
REVEAL: REVEL (delight) as to take great pleasure or delight accepting inside (taking in) A from the clue leads to the definition of a verb meaning to show, exhibit or display

18a    Green bottled water sent back? (5)
NAIVE: EVIAN (bottled water) as the French brand of bottled mineral still water from several sources near Évian-les-Bains, on the south shore of Lake Geneva made to return (sent back) as a reversal in the across clue takes to the definition of an adjective meaning showing a lack of experience, wisdom or judgment, especially of a person or action

19a    Maiden to speak, speak indistinctly (6)
MUTTER: A charade of M (maiden) as the abbreviation for ‘maiden over’ in cricket and UTTER (to speak) as to speak, pronounce or to give voice to leads to the definition of a verb meaning to speak in low, indistinct tones without much movement of the lips

20a    Weapon — mine’s sort of hollow (6)
ARMPIT: A charade of ARM (weapon) as a weapon or a means of offence and defence and PIT (mine) as a mine, especially a coalmine or a place from where minerals are dug yields the definition of the hollow under the arm at the shoulder

21a    Crew correct after change of leader (5)
EIGHT: [R]IGHT (correct) as true or correct as a fact after change of R, its initial or leading letter (leader) arrives at the definition of an eight-oared rowing boat or its crew

24a    One tends to help others feel better (5)
NURSE: A cryptic definition of a person employed for taking care of or looking after indisposed persons to help them feel better

26a    Item of food not cooked in pot adult leaves (5)
PRAWN: RAW (not cooked) as an adjective meaning not cooked or dressed, especially of food placed inside (in) P[A]N (pot) as a usually shallow and open metal container that has a handle and used for cooking or baking from which A (adult) as the abbreviation for adult signifying the rating of motion pictures meant for only the adult viewers in some countries comes out (leaves), arriving at the definition of a small edible shrimp-like crustacean

27a    Choice alternatives? (3,2,3,5)
ONE OR THE OTHER: A cryptic definition of a phrase used to indicate a choice between two options but also used in a more general sense to indicate a choice between any number of options

28a    Young Robin’s early years? (9)
CHILDHOOD: A charade of CHILD (young) as a young human being below the age of puberty or below the legal age of majority and HOOD (Robin) as the surname of the legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore leads to the definition of the early years of life during which human beings develop their physical bodies and their mental abilities

Down

2d    Minimum cash deposited for tartan (5)
PLAID: A charade of P (minimum cash) as the abbreviation for new penny which is the smallest amount of money and LAID (deposited) as a verb in the past tense meaning produced and deposited guides to the definition of a long, rectangular piece of tartan worn over the left shoulder as part of the Scottish national costume

3d    Clumsily move discarded old furniture (6)
LUMBER: Double definition; the second being a noun referring to articles of furniture or other household items that are no longer useful and inconveniently take up storage space that takes to the first a verb meaning to move in a slow, heavy, awkward way

4d    Surly fellow took in cleric (6)
CURATE: A charade of CUR (surly fellow) as a surly or cowardly fellow and ATE (took in) as a verb in the past tense meaning took in and absorbed as food or took a meal takes to the definition of a clergyman in the Church of England, assisting a rector or vicar

5d    Expertise on the radio? Not at all (5)
NOHOW: KNOW-HOW (expertise) as expertise or the knowledge of how to do something smoothly and efficiently serving as a homophone heard by the audience (on the radio) guides to the definition of a colloquial adverb denoting not in any way, in no definable way or not at all

6d    Fancy connected pair could be more likely to get hurt (8-5)
ACCIDENT-PRONE: An anagram (fancy) of CONNECTED PAIR brings the definition of an adjective, usually predicative, meaning more likely to have greater than average number of accidents or to have accidents frequently

7d    One who might need a rest during the game (7,6)
SNOOKER PLAYER: A cryptic definition of a player who is involved in the game of snooker, played with 15 red balls, 1 white cue ball and 6 balls of other colours, the object being to pocket the non-white balls in a certain order and gain more points in so doing than one’s opponent and who might sometimes need one of the various sorts of rest, such as the swan, spider or cross rake for playing shots that are difficult to play by hand

9d    Report of panic — workers finally revolt (9)
STATEMENT: STATE (panic) as an informal term for an agitated or anxious condition of mind, MEN (workers) as members collectively of a workforce, team etc and the final or concluding letter (finally) of [REVOL]T guides to the definition of a monthly report sent to a debtor or bank depositor

10d    Letting down the economy? (9)
DEFLATING: A cryptic definition of a verb in the continuous form meaning letting down or lowering a person’s ego, hopes or spirits in general but can also mean bringing down the price level from an inflated condition or causing a volume of credit to contract in an economy

13d    Info about literary style, perhaps (5)
GENRE: A charade of GEN (info) as a slang term for general information and RE (about) as a commercial jargon used to indicate ‘referring to’, ‘concerning’, ‘on’ or ‘about’ takes to the definition of category of artistic, musical or literary composition characterised by a particular style, form or content

14d    Oriental ruler making up required measure (5)
EKING: A charade E (Oriental) as the abbreviation for Eastern that is also represented by the term ‘oriental’ or ‘Oriental’; as being EET in Eastern European Time and having ‘oriental’ as a synonym and KING (ruler) as the male ruler of an independent state, especially one who inherits the position by right of birth leads to the definition of a verb in the continuous form meaning supplementing or making up to the required measure

15d    Handle danger hospital ignored (5)
TREAT: T[H]REAT (danger) as an impending danger that has the potential to cause serious harm having H (hospital) as the abbreviation for hospital removed (ignored), leading to the definition of a verb meaning to handle, use or act toward in a usually stated way

22d    Impress cousins tiling houses (6)
INSTIL: Part of or hidden inside (houses) [COUS]INS TIL[ING] guides to the definition of a verb meaning to gradually but firmly establish an idea or attitude in a person’s mind

23d    Hard work ethic in advanced technology (2,4)
HI TECH: H (hard) as the symbol of hard in lead pencils followed by an anagram (work) of ETHIC takes to the definition of a short and less formal version of high technology that is an advanced, sophisticated technology in specialist fields

25d    Manage to turn up before husband for a long time (5)
EPOCH: The definition of a geological or historical age or a long period of time, especially one in which there are new developments and great change is arrived at from COPE (manage) as to deal effectively with something difficult to go up (turn up) as a reversal in the down clue placed before (before) H (husband) as the genealogical abbreviation for husband as h/o in ‘husband of’

26d    Girl I love and court (5)
PATIO: PAT (girl) as the name of a girl, I from the clue and O (love) as the score for zero in a game of tennis guide to the definition of a paved outdoor area adjoining a house

The clues that I liked in this puzzle were 1a, 8a, 11a, 18a, 20a, 28a, 6d and 10d; 28a being the best of the lot. My prayers to the Almighty for the eternal rest and peace of BD and my thanks to Cephas for the entertainment and to Gazza for the assistance. Looking forward to being here again. Have a nice day.