Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3257 (Hints)
Hints and tips by Senf
A very good Sunday morning from Winnipeg where Spring may have sprung but the grass has not riz but we do have birdies especially the ones who stay with us all year round and the eponymous geese have returned from their stay down South. However, as we have been having mid-February temperatures, they are probably thinking that they should have delayed their return for at least a couple of weeks!
For me, and I stress for me, Dada not as friendly as he has been, and assuming that I have counted correctly, nine anagrams (five partials) – but two of them are only three letters, do they count? – one lurker, and no homophones, all in a slightly asymmetric 27 clues; with 14 hints ‘sprinkled’ throughout the grid, you should be able to get the checkers to enable the solving of the unhinted clues. And, remember, the Naughty Step is OPEN!
Candidates for favourite – 1a, 12a, 13a, 7d, 19d, and 21d.
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
1a Yell, like great soprano! (6)
A synonym of yell and a two letter synonym of like (as an adverb?).
8a Boxer with cut covering up, tho’ woozy (8)
A verbal synonym of cut (wood?) containing (covering) an anagram (woozy) of UP, THO’.
12a Chief criminal element in campanologist? (10)
A metallic element said to be in a pencil, but it isn’t, inserted into in a synonym for campanologist.
13a Search is around country for underwear (12)
A synonym of search and IS from the clue containing (around) a synonym of (non-specific) country.
16a Unfriendly attitude in Arctic bear (4,8)
Some lateral thinking required and nothing to do with Arctic animals – how one might describe the meteorological conditions in the Arctic and a synonym of bear (as in withstand).
22a Con elected ally (6)
A two letter synonym of elected and a synonym of ally.
25a Steward originally found in bus garage, tyrant (6)
The first letter (originally) of Steward inserted into (found in) a term for bus garage – I do consider that there should be an indication that ‘bus garage’ is but one type of the word required for the answer.
Down
1d Loco partner of Bill smuggles in illicit whisky (4-4)
A three letter word often used with (partner of) bill to indicate behaviour or talk in a very loving or sentimental way contains (smuggles in) a term for illicit whisky (or whiskey or any other type of spirits come to that).
5d Too upset about a nightmare play (7)
A three letter anagram (upset) of TOO containing a synonym of a nightmare.
7d Line in lease looked up for one of those residing in toolshed? (6)
A synonym of line inserted into (in) a three letter verbal synonym of lease reversed (looked up).
14d Change one’s tune in second song (9)
A synonym of second (as in support) and a term for a song on, say, an LP record.
15d Party animal, teacher is into the dancing (8)
The second three letter anagram – a (university) teacher and IS from the clue all inserted into an anagram (dancing) of THE.
19d Cue is raised and brown finally pocketed by girl (6)
IS from the clue reversed (raised) followed by the last letter (finally) of browN contained (pocketed) by a dialectal version of girl.
21d First of chords, large number — for a song! (5)
The first letter of Chords and an informal term for a large number.
Quick Crossword Pun:
LEMON + OCCURRED = LEMON CURD
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American singer, songwriter, and record producer Lionel Richie had only one UK Number One hit which reached that position on this day in 1984 and stayed there for 6 weeks. This is from a live performance in 2007:
Classic , 1d my winner .
2*/4*. This was good fun and I thought it was relatively light with 1d my favourite.
The definition for 4d, while perfectly accurate, did seem a little incongruous.
Many thanks to Dada and to Senf.
I thought this was really good today. I hadn’t heard of the underwear in 13a, but the answer was obvious from the wordplay.
Ticks against 1a, 4a, 14d and 17d, but my runaway favourite was my last one in – 1d.
Many thanks to Dada, and to Senf. 2*/4.5*.
The abbreviated form of 13a was a word that my great aunt frequently used. As she was born during Queen Victoria’s reign, it may possibly be considered as archaic!
Dada’s back on form this week in spite of the high number of anagrams – thanks to him and Senf.
I think the definition of 12a is just ‘chief criminal’ with the element being a metallic one.
Medallists for me are 4a, 1d and 14d.
Thanks Gazza – after a night in the arms of Morpheus and reading your comment I can see it now. The hint completely revised.
Always enjoy Dada
Such inventive
Clueing.
Perhaps took too
Long on 1d and 4a.
So, 3*/5*
Thanks and to Senf.
An ok dada but with some very poor clues as in 24a (clumsy) and 7d. No idea who the soprano was (opera def not my thing) and not sure I would describe 4a as popular.
All in all not my favourite Dada, I feel he has done much better puzzles.
Thx for the much needed hints
***/**
Brian – you’re the best. Never change.
Having got the answer to 24a. I cannot parsed it.
Man in 24a is a reference to the well known 8 x 8 board.
Although I knew who the soprano was I agree with you about the rest, Brian. I also wonder if the animal in 3d was clued as such because, to give it its normal animal classification, the idea of one running home, like the ‘animal’ itself, wouldn’t have a leg to stand on!
Favourite clues for me were 1d and 15d but, given the whisky controversy, I’ll go for 15d.
Thanks to Senf for the explanations.
Wot Gazza said including his picks though I’d have 1d on top of the podium.
Thanks to D&S
A bit of a curates’ egg for me. Plenty to like but others not so much. I don’t quite get 1d and 24a took a lot of head scratching. I do, however, have a COTD, which is the dancing teacher in 15d.
Thank you, Dada. A bit of a mixed bag I thought but that’s the way the cake disintegrates. Thank you, Senf for the hints.
Dada definitely not particularly friendly today, several clues caused some head-scratching and others elicited an exasperated sigh.
Thank goodness 13a’s were out of fashion when I was young – those liberty bodices were bad enough!
After due consideration, I handed out the awards to 12a plus 1&14d.
Thanks to Dada and to Senf for the hints – nice to hear from Lionel again.
I thoroughly enjoyed this. Dada’s indubitably back on form and huzzah for that. Yes, it was anagram-heavy but, during the solve, it didn’t seem so. I guess the partials provided some dilution. 4a’s fun, 13a made me smile and19d’s jolly. Fond of 1d to boot. But 8a’s surface did it for me. Many thanks to Dada and Senf. Ta also to Brian – your operatic gripe gave me a much-needed Sunday morning nudge!
ALP – I am not sure that you had a complete answer yesterday about Kath and “favourites”. I know you were told that Kath was a super Hinty Person before she became ill, she is also extremely kind and caring and went out of her way to contact me when DD1 was diagnosed some years ago. She is one of the reasons I love this site. But Kath maintains that you can only have One Favourite, multiple favourites are anathema to her and the punishment I suspect could be worse than being on the naughty step. Definitely no cake 🍰. Possibly not even bread and water. So there may be several that you like but only one favourite is allowed. Compris? I hope that helps. 😊
Well said Daisy, you summed up our Kath perfectly. Thank you.
Got it. Thank you, Daisy. Really appreciate the heads-up. Kath is, of course, absolutely right! She sounds lovely – and eminently sensible.
A very light */*** for me. Thanks Dada and Senf. I took 14 d. just as a word that can mean second and then the song, and not specifically anything to do with vinyl.
Thanks to you, and Philbert, on 14d – hint completely revised. I probably need to reduce my consumption of the amber nectar so that I can better control my imagination on a Saturday evening.
For me, and I stress for me, I was able to get enough checkers to enable the solving of the unhinted clues (™ Senf).
However, on first seeing this crossword, my brain decided to leave my mortal being and go for a long holiday on a beach in Cape Verde. Consequently, I have solved this guzzle with the intellectual resources of a gnu.
I feel as though I have attempted to take on Mike Tyson at his peak, and that my bonce has been biffed first one way, and then the other, only to find we are merely twenty seconds into round one. As a result of this endeavour, I suspect that, for me, normality will never return and I will be forever staring at 1d in bewilderment.
Thus, my crack team of lawyers have started legal proceedings against Mr Lancaster, the owners of The Telegraph (whoever they are this week), Da-doo-ron-ron, and Taylor Swift, because she has pots of money.
We are going out for a lovely walk and taking a couple of boxes of H’s books to the local mini-library, which is sited in a bus shelter.
I have never thrown away a book in my life, but H takes a more pragmatic approach.
Thanks to Da-doo-ron-ron and The Man From Manitoba.
Thank you Terence, that brought a huge smile to my face. This wasn’t because of your troubles with the guzzle but your description of your reaction.
I hope the mini library is doing well.
Me too, whatever you said! Though I did “get” 1d eventually.
It is a lovely afternoon for a lovely walk with your lovely wife. Forget about the guzzle.
A nicely challenging puzzle from Dada. All fell into place nicely though the underwear was a new one for me.
A note on 14d, the answer is a synonym of second (verb) followed by one of song rather than referring to that on the reverse of a disc.
Thanks Senf and Dada
Enjoyed this a lot. Tricky in places but doable. 4a my last one in. At the risk of causing a furore, IMHO he only wrote one thing and then made 200,000 variations! Bet that puts the cat among the pigeons. Thanks to all.
I will bite my tongue Manders!
Well, I for one found this definitely trickier than a normal Dada puzzle this week with good use of his thesaurus as well as his quirkiness at times.
2.5*/3.5*
Favourites 12a, 16a, 1d, 5d & 15d — with winner 1d
Thanks to Dada & Senf for hints/blog
I enjoyed this although it took a while to get into. I’m still unsure if my 24a is correct but shall try to remember to check next week.
My top picks were 1a, 1d and 13a.
Thanks to Senf and Dada.
34a is giving me a headache!
Not surprising about 34a giving you a headache – there isn’t one!
My mother would have asked if you had been eating vinegar off a knife! Very sharp. Yep – I noticed that but thought I’d let it go. That’s the trouble with auto correct combined with arthritic fingers, it leads to some strange sentences. How are you getting on? You seem to be getting back into the swing of things. 🥰
(Why do I use things I hate them really )
Not a walk in the park on this beautifully sunny day but nevertheless a lot of fun. South was smoothest area. Yell in reference to 1a makes me cringe and not sure whether “saturated” works for 4a. 1d was Fav with some reservation as to “partner” and “residing” in 7d is a bit loose. Oh dear I do seem to have been over critical but all are minor points and certainly didn’t detract from the overall enjoyment of the solve. Thank you Dada and Senf.
Considering the difficulty of the rest of the week’s puzzles this was nowhere that level. Mainly straightforward with a few head scratchers. We liked it. Favourite was 15d. Thanks to Dada and Senf.
I’m disappointed, not a lot of fun this week and I had been looking forward to a Dada. No problem, about six unsolved but I can’t spend any more time on this, I’ve got a life! I did have some smilers, 12a and 1d were winners, but fave is 15d.
Thank you Dada, a little more soft pedal next time please. Thanks for your hints, Senf, I’ll now try to solve the unsolved!
Some very good contenders for favourite this afternoon, but 1d is the winner by a distance. Despite the number of anagrams, this was a terrifically entertaining puzzle with just enough head-scratching to make it a good challenge.
Thanks to Dada and Senf.
Firstly I have to grovel for having a second moan about my hospital scam. I had completely forgotten that I had offloaded that earlier in the week but it shows you what an impact it had on me. Sadly when one is very old one is inclined to repeat oneself. I thought this was great until I got to the SW corner and 24a and 17d have me stumped. You can have the pen, Steve. It’s not often I walk away but I’m out, as they say. Thanks to Messrs Dada & Senf.
Oh my. I have just fallen in to 17d. I saw one only this morning. How clever. 👏👏
And then of course I got 24a so, sorry Steve, no pen this week.
The Mythical has evaded me for 50 years, DG! Another week is an atom in a lifetime. I will let you add yet another to your collection! 😊
Well that was the week that was… a disappointing one for me. Agree with Senf that this one was not as friendly as recent Dada offerings. Was so looking forward to some relief today, but Dada put on his tricky hat instead. Not helped by coffee machine playing up this morning. Found 8d an awful clue, and never called the other side of a 45 rpm by the answer to 14d, but something completely different. Thanks Dada but clearly one for the clever folks, and thanks to Senf also.
My coffee maker is broken and I am sure it would cost as much to repair as to buy a new one. I can make it work by sticking my finger in to place the capsule squarely but the girl in JL says that is not safe. Do I lash out or do I just use the cafetière? So many problems to deal with!
The answer to 14d is another way of saying change one’s tune, or to rethink, or to go down a different route. The wordplay is a synonym of (to) second followed by a song.
Exactly what I wrote after responding to Wahoo and Philbert!
Reading/reviewing the hints before commenting can be beneficial
I think you only changed your hint shortly before she commented. That was why I replied to her post.
Would somone please explain the “partner of Bill” –> 3-letter word thing. I’ve found a couple of references (and a film!), but is there a clearer explanation?
Other that that, I found this one pretty tough, thought the clues were, by and large, very finely crafted. ****/***
Never mind, I found a reference. New to me, perhaps an old-fashioned term?
I remember it from a song, I believe sung by Bing Crosby, so that tells you how long it’s been!
A Song for Swinging Pigeons perhaps
Done…eventually!
Too much time trying to work out my last one in – 1D… I’m surprised many of you on the other side of the pond didn’t here the massive ‘clunk’ as the penny finally dropped! 🙄
unlike others this my least favourite clue…a tad forced, even for our esteemed Sunday ‘master of distraction & misdirection’!
Anyway, thoroughly enjoyed all the rest and am, as ever thankful to Dad for the challenge, and to Senf for another great blog ‘n hints👍 – particularly for the ‘Hello’ video…one of my piano repertoire pieces with a decent dram in me 😜
Thanks Senf, lots of fun, and nice to return to the Telegraph where this lunacy first started for me.
I think ‘Whisky’ should have had a ‘,say’ after it as I think ‘xxxxx’ can be any illicit spirit. Happy to be corrected.
Thanks Dada(Paul)
Agreed on ‘whisky’ and I sort of covered it in my hint.
Wot? No naughty step?
Well spotted
I think it’s there. Would you like to be sent there to check?
Oops, sorry, used to the Guardian blog.
Oh dear – traitor – how could you!!
Good puzzle which took a while to solve.
1d definitely COTD for me™ too although the underwear raised a laugh even if I had in mind the men’s version that Great Grandpa Emm was sewn into for the duration.
Thanks to Dada and Senf
I only managed this one with the hints, for me it was too tricky at the end of a very hectic day. I really liked 1d once it clicked.
Many thanks to Dada and to Senf for the much needed hints
Perhaps the stars were aligned for me today. For the first time ever, I have whizzed through a Dada Sunday cryptic from beginning to end with no hesitation or assistance. By no means easy but def on my wavelength. Needless to say I really enjoyed it. I only ever do DT cryptics on the day following publication. Odd perhaps, but it works for me and has done so for about 40 years. Regarding the mythical. I am the very lucky recipient of four of the blighters. The initial one took about 15 years to arrive, but I just continued enjoying the puzzles, still do and will keep on until I am unable. Good brain food One first prize and three runners-up. To see that arrive on the kitchen table of a morn is a real thrill, to my old eyes anyway. My thanks not only to Dada and Senf but also to all the other bloggers and readers here. The wit, humour and tongue in cheek comments really lift me. All the best, Nick