DT 30568

84 comments on “DT 30568”

1. Very gentle but nevertheless enjoyable */*** Thanks to setter.

2. Started doing this one whilst waiting for an ultrasound appointment at the very new Aldershot Centre for Health. No sooner got the cap off the pen before I was called in 25 minutes early, great place and the parking was a fraction of the cost of that at Frimley Park. Faith once again restored in the NHS.
   As to the puzzle, pretty fair for a Friday with no real hold ups apart from 18d which took a bit of thinking.

   Can’t see how 29a works so now off to see the hints. Favourites today were 1a and the lovely 21d. Can’t wait for the weekend offerings.

   1. Just read the hint for 29a, still don’t really understand it, do you say ‘your style’ like you would your highness? If so I’ve never heard of it used that way.

      1. I think it refers to a style of office or form of address.

         1. Ta Ciaran, it might just be me, but I’m still not really getting the concept here, can anyone put it in a sentence to show how its used?

            1. Having just looked at the hint, it seems I wasn’t much help as I more or less just repeated it…oops. I too am having difficulty putting it in a sentence, does the wikipedia introduction help at all ?

               https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Style_(form_of_address)

               1. Yep, got it now, don’t reckon I’ll ever need it on a daily basis though, thanks again Ciaran.

            2. Hi, how about “Caesar titled/styled himself as Tiberius Caesar Augustus”? I’m sure there are better examples.

               1. Ta Silvanus, that makes it pretty plain now, sanity restored 😁

               2. Here’s something that may surprise some of you: Caesar wasn’t an emperor but a dictator in the Roman Republic.

                  To quote Maurice Micklewhite…..not a lot of people know that.

                  Thank you for a top-notch teaser, SV. Highly enjoyable.

                  I’m sure, when you saw 6d, you thought……Hmm, how am I going to construct this one?

                  It was very nicely done.

                  1. The first Emperor I believe was August or Octavian as was, at least it was when I was reading Roman History at Uni.

                     1. It certainly was Brian. Your memory still serves you right.

                        The order of the first five emperors is as simple as ABCDE…

                        (A)ugustus
                        Ti(B)erius
                        (C)aligula
                        Clau(D)ius
                        N(E)ro

                        1. It was F(lorian) who ruined your alphabetical run (by 208 years), or you could have continued until you got to the letter J

                           1. Good shout

            3. How about “Harry styles himself the Prince of Montecito?”

               1. …..or Harry Styles, the Prince of Bel…….end.

                  1. 

                     Fresh, Tom, fresh …

                     1. Like it, Musty.

                        Am I getting ‘Musty’ past you?

                        I’ve got a sneaky feeling that I will…

         2. Agree. Don’t even understand the hint.

            1. I’ve added a link to a Wikipedia article which uses the required synonym a few times.

               1. Thanks for that, very interesting. Who said “every day is a school day?”

3. As Mr K said in his introduction, super smooth surfaces which suggests that the setter is he who was also responsible for yesterday’s Toughie – 2.5*/4.5*

   As usual, the solving of 29a was distracted by thoughts of the ‘Harry’ being the Duke of Montecito before the PDM on the use of title.

   Candidates for favourite – 14a, 28a, and 30a – and the winner is 30a.

   Thanks to Silvanus, or whomsoever if it is not he, and to Mr K.

4. My only delay in completing this otherwise fairly friendly but most entertaining Friday puzzle was working out how 29a could be parsed. It was obviously what it was, but justifying it took a while. 1a went in immediately and remained my favourite throughout the solve.

   Many thanks to our setter and Mr K.

5. Hurrah!
   It’s Friday.
   The NE delayed an
   Otherwise reasonably
   Paced progress to
   Completion.
   Crowded podium with
   13a the winner by a nose.
   1d the most elusive
   Lurker for ages.
   Many thanks to the
   Setter and Mr K.

6. Back-to-back belters. So enjoyable.

   It smacks of Mr Smooth with oodles of great surfaces. My LOI, that pushed me into 3 stars, was 28a as I couldn’t get ‘ive’ out of my mind which drove me ‘out of my mind’. My knowledge of our feathered friends is truly dreadful. So, 25a was one to add to the list to learn (great parsing).

   My podium is 1a (outstanding), 9a and 15d.

   Many thanks to the aforementioned and Mr K.

   3*/5*

7. Definitely a Silvanus puzzle and another joy to solve, following on from yesterday’s excellent Toughie.
   All beautifully and fairly clued although some required more head scratching than others.
   As a birder, I will pick 25a as my COD.
   Thanks to Silvanus and Mr K.

8. Brilliant. Super smooth surfaces throughout, not too many anagrams and some very clever parsing conundrums. Right up my street. I found I was doing quite a bit of reverse engineering, getting the answer then sorting out why. I do like to know the why! The only one I needéd the hint for was 7d as I had ignored the relevance of the word ‘describes’ and already had ‘pal’ at the beginning of the answer. All in all, for me, the most enjoyable of the week Podium places for 16a, 6d and 8d. Thanks to our setter and Mr K.

9. Can anyone explain the function of MAYBE in 26d?

   1. Cadet could mean a trainee for many learners, usually uniformed so it could be for army, navy or police for example (maybe)…

   2. Hi Vince, the clue didn’t originally contain “maybe”, but the editor added it because he felt, quite justifiably, that the police force is just one of several entities where a 26d would train.

      1. Thanks, Silvanus, but I think the fact that you didn’t include MAYBE initially justifies my question. It’s irrelevant that other organisations use the same word fot their trainees. The police do, therefore the clue is perfectly acceptable without MAYBE.

         1. I agree Vince – the editor was wrong. Adding “Maybe” is coddling the solver to an unnecessary, bordering on ridiculous, degree (especially in a Friday back-pager which is supposed to be pretty tough). A Police trainee is called a cadet – end of story! The clue contains the word Police – so why would anyone be tempted into considering any other organisations?

            1. I don’t think anyone would complain that the clue was unfair without the “maybe”. I suspect that the change was made because the editor did not want to create a precedent for the Telegraph allowing unindicated definitions by example.

               1. That’s probably the case, but still overly cautious and not necessary. “Police” is indication enough because Police trainees are invariably called cadets. I could understand (but still oppose) the “Maybe” on a Monday or Tuesday but not on a Friday or in a Toughie. In this case it’s irrelevant that some other organisations might call also their trainees cadets – because “Police” is in the clue, so solvers have no reason to consider any other institutions.

                  1. And it was the easiest clue with or without the added word. In fact Police trainee would do but then it wouldn’t be cryptic

10. Another very entertaining puzzle from the prolific Silvanus – thanks to him and Mr K.
    It’s difficult to make a selection from such a fine lot of clues but I’ll nominate 10a, 19a, 29a and 15d.

11. Execellent! Some witty and clever cluing… my thanks to Mr K… and to the setter – how on earth do people think up such great clues?

12. Top draw puzzle today, favourites are charades 9a and 16a.
    Last in was 29a, my old Chambers confirmed style for title and visa versa plus the s from sympathy achieving Harry.
    Agree with Mr K and a ***/****
    Thanks to Silvanus.

13. We really are being spoilt – Mr Smooth two days in a row! Plenty to enjoy in this one and I’ll go with Shabbo in nominating 25a as my favourite. Other ticks went to 8&15d with several more in close contention.

    Thanks to Silvanus for another very enjoyable puzzle and to Mr K for the review – good to see the felines back on parade today.

14. Many thanks to Silvanus for a most enjoyable puzzle.
    29a was the only one that required some thought.
    When I looked at 9a (rock singer), my first thought was Lorelei; perhaps I have seen it clued in that way before somewhere.
    Glorious sunshine here in Valencia, and 24c; off to a garden chair with a g&t to make the most of it.

    1. Sounds fantastic, Jezza.

       Well jel.

15. This guzzle took me breakfast and lunch, but mainly because v pressed for time (golf lesson this am!)
    Held up in the top left corner by (mis)spelling 9a (as I always do) with ei instead of ie.
    Lots to like in the downs. Glad that MrK confirms my parsing of 6d!I
    15, 18 & 21d great fun too. Hesitating between 15&21 for faves, but finally 21d gets the Gold.
    Many thanks to Silvanus and Mr K.

    1. Hi LNL

       I have no clues about German but it looks like you pronounce the second vowel, e.g with Einstein you pronounce the i and with 9a you pronounce the e.

       So, if you hear i, spell it ‘ei’ and, if you hear e, spell it ‘ie’.

       There may be exceptions but, having just watched a couple of online clips, it looks like a fairly good rule of thumb.

       1. Thanks for that, sounds good. My problem is that I’ve always pronounced it RISE, incorrectly, or more likely, incorrigibly.

          1. Hopefully, this tip will put paid to that. If not, then drown your sorrows in the plain white suds.

          2. You’re not alone, with both the pronunciation & the spelling. Today I remembered it was i before the e but still instinctively wanted to enter it t’other way round.

             1. Maybe ‘I before e except after c’ should apply here too!

16. An absolute gem. Loved this puzzle and was sorry to finish it. Setter, I doff my cap

17. 1st pass was not promising but further study revealed a nice elegant little puzzle with some very clever clues as in 21d and 14a.
    Very enjoyable solve esp after yesterdays so called crossword, cross being the operative word.
    Thx to all
    ***/****

18. I always find Silvanus tough and this was no exception, but all fairly clued…I particularly liked 21d (when I finally saw it)…

19. Light and enjoyable while it lasted – some lovely surfaces, as ever, and tight clueing. Podium places to 29a, 7d & 15d.

    1. 5 / 3

    Many thanks to Silvanus and Mr K.

20. Not my cup of tea and I needed quite some prompting particularly in NE. 29a didn’t ring any bells for me nor did 2d so both were bung-ins. Fav 21d. Fun pun. Thank you Silvanus and MrK.

21. I have not yet tackled the puzzle today, my brain is trying to comprehend the Orwellian Doublespeak message that the Telegraph sent me this morning:
    “Your favourite puzzles have a new home.
    Dear ****
    We’re delighted to introduce a new Puzzles section to your Telegraph app.
    This means that the Puzzles section will soon be leaving the digital edition of our newspaper. We’ll also be removing PlusWord and Cross Atlantic from the Home section. You’ll now find these daily games, plus a range of other brain-teasers, in the new Puzzles section.
    Better still, as one of our most loyal puzzles players, we’re giving you a truly unmissable offer, so you can try our new Puzzles section for yourself.

    Add 12 months of Puzzles to your current subscription completely free of charge.
    Please note that you may need to update your Telegraph app to access the new Puzzles section.”

    When I first started the Telegraph Crossword about 70 years ago it was a friendly, free, extra on the back page. We are apparently heading for the time that it will only be a paid-for product (note it will be free for a year – but then what?) at which time I think we will all be free to criticise it as much as we like since it will cost us. And note the warning that it might not work anyway.

    As a final comment, genuinely thanking our Setters and Analysts, am I the only person who thinks that the last few weeks have seen a step-change in difficulty? Yesterdays Cryptic seemed much harder than the Toughie.

    1. Well that’s a bummer. I will probably drop the TG if I have to pay more.

    2. Same here, although they want five quid a month as I’m only a “digital” subscriber. Changing the contents of my subscription mid-term seems a bit off, but no doubt it’s in their T&Cs somewhere. I will have a moan at them and see how far I get.

22. Lovely puzzle with 25a being my favourite as my partner is an avid birder and I’ve spent many an hour gazing into trees trying to spot these beautiful little devils.
    Thanks to Mr K for help parsing 29a and to Silvanus for the brain workout.

23. This was a real Toughie for me, and a DNF by quite a few, but I’ve always said Silvanus is fair. There is nothing here that isn’t workable, I’m just too thick. Re the explanation for Naked Attraction, all I can say is Really? Who would watch that? I had some real smilers, 1a stood out, as did 16a. All is not lost, it’s Friday and pussycat time! Loved them all.
    Thank you Silvanus, a little lighter on the foot pedal next time please. Your unravelling and solving of many was much appreciated Mr. K.

24. Many thanks as always to Mr K and to everyone taking the trouble to comment. Even Brian was happy, I’m shocked!

    May I wish everyone a good weekend.

    1. Thanks for dropping in and for an excellent puzzle to solve and to blog.

    2. Sorry to report that today’s puzzle only good enough for a silver medal in this week’s chart thus far behind the bloke who set yesterday’s Toughie.
       Many thanks & to Mr K for a great review.

       1. You big meanie! Twas excellent today but I have to agree as yesterday’s was especially good. Shame more people didn’t have a crack, really. Cos if you like this, you’ll LOVE that.

25. Worth the entry fee for 11d alone, getting Naked Attraction into a Telegraph puzzle is genius, and the clue is perfect.
    Excellent puzzle to end the week, with my other favourite being 1a.
    Thanks to all

26. Another excellent puzzle from Silvanus. Great clues, a good challenge and an enjoyable solve. I have ticked quite a few clues and my favourite could be any one of at least half a dozen. 3.5*/4.5*.

    *Mr K, 25a. I’m a bit confused by the Detailed Explanation, but maybe the asterisk is relevant? Shouldn’t it read something like: FIR + E(C)REST?

    1. Yeah, I meant to put parentheses around the anagram fodder in the 25a explanation. Now fixed.

       1. Thank you.

          PS. I was wondering, are the Statistics Tables now finished or can they be updated somehow?

          1. BD left no guidance on how many parts of the site operated, and so I’m having to reverse engineer almost everything. I will try to get the stats updating again, but it’s not the highest priority at the moment.

             1. Thanks for the info.

27. Well, Silvanus is on fire at the minute. But then he generally is. Very gentle, for sure, but so sweetly done. The simple 11d tickled me no end. But I was a tad surprised by his imperative use of “rock” in 9a. It doesn’t bother me one jot – and it’s a lovely clue, to boot – but it seems slightly un-Ximenean and thus unlike him. Am I wrong? Quite possibly! Many thanks to S and K.

    1. Hi, ALP. In Ximenes on the Art of the Crossword the man himself describes how he devised a clue for VIOLAS:

       “Is oval” is an anagram and violins, etc., are pear-shaped: there’s our connexion. “They’re pear-shaped: otherwise shape is oval” (shape being, of course, an imperative verb). Easy? Yes, but we want some easy ones.

       1. Sorry, I hit the wrong button there. I’ve replied to you at #29. Hugely impressed that you have a copy of that book. I thought it was almost impossible to get hold of these days..

          1. The Ximenes book was reprinted several years ago, and I found a copy of that edition on Ebay. There are still a few copies listed there, although the price is creeping up now. For example: https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/87029851?iid=335229002281

             1. Oh, that’s brilliant, thank you. It would be a very handy addition!

    2. Imperatives are frequently used as anagram indicators, ALP, but to work they naturally must always precede the anagram fodder concerned. I’m glad you liked 11d, it amused me greatly too

       1. Huge thanks for your generous reply, SIlvanus. I think we all look to you for crossword etiquette! Very interesting. May I ask just one more question, please? Are “eventually” and “latest” acceptable alternatives for finally/at last, etc? I know they can be seen as temporal but you do see them used. Are they a Xim no-no, or not?

          1. I would tend to use “ultimately” if I wanted an alternative to “finally”, I’d be uncomfortable using “eventually”, to be honest. “Latest in” or “latest of” would be okay, in my opinion, but “latest” just on its own I’d say is best avoided.

             1. I feared you would say that! Thank you.

28. Late on parade today, having visited my 98 year old aunt who is still as bright as a button.

    What an absolute treat to have two superb Silvanus puzzles on consecutive days. I thought this was at the easier end of his spectrum but no less enjoyable for that. My rating is 2*/5* with 29a top of the pile.

    Many thanks to Silvanus and to Mr K.

29. Huge thanks for this, Mr K. Fascinating. Ximenean perfection remains a strange and foreign land.

    But … is that definitely an imperative there? Obviously, I’ve not read the book. However, could “otherwise shape” not mean “in another shape” which would make it, I think, an adverb. Even if that’s not the case, an imperative does seem more grammatically clean in that context than today’s 9a, where you’ve got an imperative followed by an inclusion. To me. “Rocky/rocked singer guzzling” would be more accurate – but it would, of course, ruin the clue!

    As I’ve said, this sort of construction doesn’t bother me at all – I’m all for it. But as a born Libertarian, I always like to know what is and what isn’t acceptably Ximenean!

30. Took me a while to get into this but then found it very satisfying as ever. So many great clues and a couple that I needed to use the hints to parse. 1a my favourite but so many others could have been.

    Many thanks to Silvanus and to Mr K for the hints and explanations.

31. Of course I found this difficult, after all it is Friday 😳 ****/*** Favourites 1a, 14a, 25a (of course) Thanks to Sylvanus and to Mr K
    The only clue that I could not fathom or parse was 7d Pal-A fine/ n fine/. but a nameless Roman Catholic = TIAL was strange RC is the abbreviation for a Roman Catholic and Latin has not been the language of the Mass for many many years 🤔

    1. 7d is maybe simpler than you thought. It’s actually LATI(N) with PAL outside it.

32. I found this very hard work. Thought it was going to be a massive DNF at one point with less than a third of the clues solved.

    However, I persevered and managed to solve unaided.

    12a is a new term for me. Not heard of the bird in 25a either (that applies to 99% of birds probably).

    Glad I made the effort to finish. I think I say more or less exactly the same thing with each Silvanus crossword.

    Thanks to all.

33. I know I’m a day late so probably writing to myself. Out all say yesterday at at an amateur performance of Évita last night. On first glance difficult and got into it half way down. So easy to work out even if you had never heard of something g eg the bird. I thought I’d be left with a couple I. The NW and SE but got them without hint or Google – the last one being the explosive. Style was very familiar to me. Too many favourites to list so I’ll opt for 13a. Thank you Silvanus and Mr K.

34. 3*/3* ….
    liked 15D “Childish supporter wears trendy hat (9)”

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