Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30610
Hints and tips by Mr K
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BD Rating - Difficulty **** - Enjoyment **
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Friday. In today’s challenging puzzle I found myself doing more reverse engineering of wordplay from definitions than I really enjoy, and I was left with the feeling that in several clues surface smoothness was sacrificed to allow clever wordplay. But perhaps that’s just me feeling tired and grumpy after a long and frustrating day at work.
In the hints below most indicators are italicized, and underlining identifies precise definitions and cryptic definitions. Clicking on the answer buttons will reveal the answers. In some hints hyperlinks provide additional explanation or background. Clicking on a picture will enlarge it or display a bonus illustration and a hover (computer) or long press (mobile) might explain more about the picture. Please leave a comment telling us how you got on.
Across
1a Waterway company engaged in cover-up - one should belt up (6,4)
TRENCH COAT: Link together a small waterway, an abbreviation for company, and “engaged in” or “up to”
6a Drinks rounds (4)
LAPS: A double definition. Drinks like a cat, for example
9a Grim end? (Hardback offers two more versions) (5)
STERN: A synonym of grim is also one end of a boat. Splitting HARDBACK in half yields two more synonyms or versions of the answer
10a Sort of pitta she stuffed with good food (9)
SPAGHETTI: An anagram of (sort of) PITTA SHE containing (stuffed with) the single letter for good
12a Dream with King and Queen maybe boarding at station for Legoland? (9,4)
AMUSEMENT PARK: The fusion of dream or ponder and what king and queen define by example (maybe) in chess is inserted in (boarding) AT from the clue, and that’s all followed by station or locate MUSE (dream) + MEN (king & queen maybe) inserted together in AT + PARK (station)
14a Yet aren't cooks in demand? (8)
ENTREATY: An anagram (cooks) of YET AREN’T
15a Make light batter dipped in mint on the counter (6)
WHITEN: Batter or beat inserted in (dipped in) the reversal (on the counter) of mint or unused HIT in the reversal of NEW
17a For instance, religion's terminal splits are over incense (6)
ENRAGE: “For instance” or “for example” in abbreviated Latin is followed by the last letter (…’s terminal) of RELIGION that’s inserted in (splits) ARE from the clue, and then that whole thing is reversed (over) EG + AR(N)E all reversed
19a Perhaps UK citizenry matters (8)
SUBJECTS: Another double definition. What the UK citizenry defines by example (perhaps) can also be matters or topics taught at school
21a Catch-22 or Wild Bunch? (7,6)
VICIOUS CIRCLE: Wild or savage and a bunch or group
24a Bishop going into sin and evil - I managed to get out of sight (9)
INVISIBLE: The chess abbreviation for bishop inserted in (going in) an anagram (managed) of SIN EVIL I
25a Going to church, you'll need pound or something smaller (5)
PENCE: Coming before (going to) the abbreviation for the Church of England is a pound or enclosure. The definition refers back to the rest of the clue
26a Recruits in retreat, seeing regulars knocked out monarch's address (4)
SIRE: Alternate letters of (seeing regulars knocked out) of the reversal (in retreat) of RECRUITS
27a Global elite gush when meeting folk like me? (3-7)
JET-SETTERS: Gush or spurt with people like the writer of the clue
Down
1d Appeal after tax given in VAT charge (4)
TASK: Appeal or enquire comes after how tax is represented in (given in) the abbreviation VAT
2d Neat electronic limb fitted on creature with six of them (7)
ELEGANT: Join together the single letter for electronic, a three-letter limb, and a six-legged creature often encountered in crosswordland
3d Rip-off figure put on Queen great's stuff for sale (8,5)
CONSUMER GOODS: Concatenate rip-off or scam, figure or total, the Latin abbreviation for Queen Elizabeth, and a synonym of great with its S from the clue
4d Possible musical selection chronic, as set text shows (8)
CASSETTE: The letter combination CHRONIC AS SET TEXT hides (shows) the answer
5d Wow, you could get lost in it (5)
AMAZE: The answer split (1,4) is something you could get lost in
7d Pull and stretch at first (7)
ATTRACT: A stretch or expanse comes after AT from the clue (… at first)
8d Tacky nature of criticism over one point (10)
STICKINESS: Glue together an informal synonym of criticism, the Roman one, and a point or headland
11d Clean up 'Beat' article with Kerouac, say, on marijuana (3,3,7)
HIT THE JACKPOT: Cement together beat or batter, a grammatical article, a first name that Kerouac the Beat Generation author defines by example (say), and an informal word for marijuana
13d Rivers rose when stormy - and these? (10)
RESERVOIRS: The wordplay is an anagram (when stormy) of RIVERS ROSE. The entire clue can serve as a definition
16d Upcoming delicatessen - I subcontracted sandwiches trade (8)
BUSINESS: The reversal (upcoming) of DELICATESSEN I SUBCONTRACTED hides (sandwiches) the answer
18d Rally in playground ended (7)
RECOVER: An informal name for a playground or sports ground with a synonym of ended
20d Purge English infiltrating Highland families, Wallace's base (7)
CLEANSE: The single letter for English inserted in (infiltrating) another word for extended Scottish families followed by the last letter (…’s base) of WALLACE. As a foreigner I’m not familiar with the event referenced by the surface reading. Can somebody enlighten me?
22d Running Bear's weapon (5)
SABRE: An anagram (running) of BEAR’S
23d Hardy girl needs time off after fifty? Not so (4)
LESS: The first name of a girl in a Thomas Hardy novel, minus the physics symbol for time (needs time off) comes after the Roman fifty
Thanks to today’s setter. Which clues did you like best?
The Quick Crossword pun: EYE + SCREAM + SUNDAYS = ICE CREAM SUNDAES
Found this one really hard, requiring a few checking letters on the app to allow a finish. Now working my way through the explanations, as there were quite a few that completely bamboozled me – e.g. 1a, 9a, 9d. (For 1a I had “trent” as the waterway, and couldn’t get past that).
Rather, embarrassingly, I suspected the ‘hardback’ part of 9a was a comment by the setter which had been left in by mistake.
4.5*/2.5*
Impossible, as ever, to disagree with Mr K. I did find 9a’s clever-clever “hardback” etc annoyingly superfluous and, frankly, I’m just too hot for 12a’s Lego, as fizzy as it is. I did very much like 11d though. Very smart. Thanks to the setter and Mr K.
Even for a Friday back pager this was very challenging and, overall, it was not much fun – ****/**
Smiles for 12a, 19a, and 20d.
Thanks to, presumably, Zandio and to Mr K for his accurate assessment.
It’s not just you Mr K, I felt the compiler was trying too hard to create clever word play at the expense of clarity and lucidity. In the end , I gave up, as I really wasn’t enjoying this particular challenge. Thanks for the hints, which I ‘ll now read so I can at leeast learn soomethingfrom rrhis experience. Thanks to the compiler, it must have required a lot of effort to compile a puzzle like this, but it’s a DNF for me . Now for some gardening as it’s a lovely day in South Oxfordshire.
I can never quite decide if the compiler is trying to be clever, or aiming to defeat. It’s usually not much fun either way.
A difficult puzzle especially the NW corner with 1d and 9a!- thanks Mr K for the parsing
Favourites were 21a and12a.
Going for a ****/** as per our blogger
5*/1*. A wrong envelope day for me combining some very tough clueing with several questionable surfaces, particularly 3d which I can’t interpret at all sensibly.
I don’t think 25a works. Doesn’t “something” imply something singular? The answer is plural.
There were some very clever clues but I found the whole thing too hard to be enjoyable.
Thanks any way to the setter and to Mr K.
I presume 3d is saying that too high a reserve figure has been placed on Brian May’s memorabilia which has been put up for auction.
Thanks very much, Gazza. Although it seems a bit contrived that does make sense
Are you honestly suggesting that the auction price of the memorabilia of a singer of adult nursey rhymes is a clue in an adult cryptic crossword? No wonder we live in a world where standards are so low.
Gazza is probably right about the surface read in 3d. But why be concerned about the surface? You don’t need to like or know anything at all about Queen or auctions – just regard the surface as a contrived statement to conveniently sustain the cryptic word-play, which parses perfectly well even if you don’t understand the surface at all. Why do people worry so much about surfaces? Concentrate on the cryptic word-play, that’s what I say!
A cryptic crossword clue is supposed to hide a cryptic reading which adheres to cryptic grammar convention beneath a surface reading which typically provides misdirection. A setter can choose to make things easier for themselves by not worrying about the surface reading, but in my opinion that makes the result an inferior clue. But that’s just me. Of course, all that matters with crosswords is personal enjoyment and we have a wide range of solvers here who find that pleasure in different ways, including some who don’t care about surface readings and some who don’t care about cryptic grammar or parsing clues, regarding the puzzle as solved once the grid is filled with correct answers.
I totally agree with you, Mr K. 👍
Spot on Mr K thank you.
Absolutely, Mr K, all that is axiomatic. Of course, we all prefer cryptic clues that have smooth, misdirectional surfaces that are perfectly literal and contain brilliant cryptic wordplay – but that certainly doesn’t happen all the time. I merely comment on the reality. My reply to Corky was to point out that he complained when he (belatedly) found out that the surface read might relate to Queen/auctions and he didn’t seem to like it. In this case (as with many others) you don’t need to understand the surface read because it’s got nothing to with solving the cryptic word-play contained within. In fact, if you don’t understand the surface read it adds to its misdirection. That is why I suggested concentrating on the cryptic word-play and don’t worry too much about what the surface says. Good, general advice in my opinion….
PS. Mr K, if you have time and whilst I might have your attention, could you kindly explain the legitimacy of something/pence in 25a – as I’m sure TDS65 and myself haven’t made a particularly good job of doing so. Thank you.
25a. A 20p coin is something smaller (in value) than a pound, and it’s also a singular item.
Yes, but that doesn’t help the definition because the answer is not 20p or 20 pence. The answer on its own is plural.
This is an interesting one, gents.
There’s no doubt that the original expression was ‘one penny’ and pence is the plural. But, I have said ‘one pence’ many times over the years though not so much these days, of course.
Hmm….
Btw, RD, I think 3d reads perfectly well, as it’s a very feasible scenario.
Think of it like this (it’s about context). You go to the corner shop for a 10p item and you tender a five pound note in payment. The shop keeper asks: “Haven’t you got something smaller?” They don’t say “some things smaller?” And the “something smaller” is maybe a 10p or 20p piece – both a singular representation of “pence”.
Nice try, Jose, but I don’t buy it. You are comparing a single coin (which is irrelevant to the clue) with a plural amount of money (the answer).
P.S. It won’t be long before this debate is only of historical interest when real money has disappeared and we become a cashless society. Ugh!
I think you’ve been listening to that Ximenes bloke too much
Forgive me, RD & J, as I skimmed your conversation as I was doing something else. Most remiss. So, ignore my earlier post.
People say ‘Do you have something smaller as I can’t change that £10 note or, in this case, £1?’
So, the smaller thing could be a singular or a plural. Or am I having another shocker? Apologies if I am.
Also, something smaller means smaller in value which can be singular or plural.
I need a drink…….another one….
Difficult to explain clearly, this one. The clue is obviously referring to something smaller than a pound – some change (and that’s the specific context). And that amount, whatever it is, has to be “pence”. But that amount is tendered as a singular sum of money, not as how many individual pennies/pence it contains. Conversely, you wouldn’t claim that a sum of “a pound” is plural because in contains 100 “pence”. I’m sure that Z or CL (who must be happy with the clue) could explain definitively instead of letting us mere mortals flounder with it.
*Much better than going to the pub or cinema on a Friday night, this is!
Thank you, Jose.
I know some people aren’t in to discussing clues forensically but, just like your good self, I’m a fan.
A properly challenging Friday back-pager, but even so the step-up in difficulty from the last couple of back-page grids caught me by surprise. Did not instantly see the first few so went to the basement and worked upwards from there, only coming to the treacle stage when finishing in the NW.
1a’s cover-up seems to contain unnecessary padding and I wasn’t convinced that trench=waterway – the BRB does not appear to define it as such; a few stilted surfaces but many absolutely brilliant; lots of very clever clueing and plenty of variety.
Hon mentions to 11d, 3d, 24a & 21a.
4* / 3*
Many thanks to the setter (it does feel rather Zandio-ish) and Mr k
MG. A trench is (amongst other things) a drainage ditch to get rid of surplus water. One definition of waterway in the BRB is “any channel for water”. So, I’d say it’s fine.
Not a lot of laughs today and, like others, I found it a struggle with little enjoyment to be had. I needed quite a number of Mr K’s excellent detailed answers to see what was what.
Thank you, setter but not for me, I’m afraid. Mind you, it is Friday! Thank you Mr. K. for making some sense of it for me.
Still warm in The Marches but the sun is hazy.
Very tricky, even for a Friday and I needed help with the parsing on a couple of the clues. Thank you, Mr K.
On the whole I enjoyed it, I think!
The four-letter clues were my last ones in.
Thank you, setter for a proper Friday workout.
Although I agree with much of what has been said I did enjoy the puzzle over all and found that it got a little easier as I progressed down the grid. There were some suspect surface reads, a few elastic synonyms and, for me, a couple of impossible parsings. I don’t think I would have sorted out 9a, my LOI in a month of Sundays, so many thanks to Mr K. I also appreciate your detailed explanations ( and the kitty pics of course) No absolute favourite today but a crowded podium of 12a, 15a, 21a, 11d and 20d. Thanks to our setter.
I am a little surprised today about the comments on the difficulty for Friday this week. A found it a nice work through with south to north the completion with very little I struggled with.
A couple of answers I can’t figure the parsing as I did this Friday evening sitting in the sun at 25C today. Will check in the morning.
2.5*/3.5*
Favourites include 1a, 9a, 19a, 2d, 5d & 11d — with winner 1a
Thanks to setter and& Mr K for blog/hints and all the rest he does.
I didn’t see anyone give Mr. K the answer to his query at 20d. William Wallace was one if the leaders in the first war of Scottish independence in 1290 something, eventually executed in 1305. Think Braveheart. IMHO the reference is there to confuse and provide a letter.
As with others, I found this tough. My yardstick is having to reveal the answers in the hints to get the solution, and I had to do that three or four times today. Slightly too hard to be enjoyable for me.
I don’t think we had to know anything about Wallace. Just needed his base being the E
Agreed. But the question was asked by Mr K.
And thank you for the background information. Much appreciated.
That’s what I thought too. Having quickly dismissed Stirling as an answer. ( my first thought
In terms of difficulty I thought this was on a par with most Fridays, which is when we’re supposed to get the trickiest back-pager of the week.
I enjoyed it with my top clues being 21a, 3d and 11d.
Thanks to the setter and Mr K.
A very pleasing puzzle, which I’m guessing is the work of the refreshingly unconventional Zandio. Good clues, a pretty tough challenge and an enjoyable tussle – just the thing for a Friday. No complaints from me about any slightly dodgy/clunky surfaces – which can be somewhat contrived to sustain the cryptic word-play, which must be spot on. I have ticked a fair few and will pick 11d as my favourite. 4*/4.5*.
Well I also found this one a bit of tussle and though I did eventually get there I was left scratching my head over some of the parsings.
So thank you Mr k for the necessary explanations and to our mystery setter for bringing me back to earth.
As usual with this setter, my paper is littered with ‘hmms’ and question marks. Only smile came from Mr K’s Lego cats!
Thanks anyway to Zandio for his efforts and to Mr K for persevering to bring us the review.
‘As usual’ seems a tad harsh, Jane. I remember you praised one of his recently, saying ‘More like this, please.’
I think I wrote that in the hope that it would encourage him to construct more puzzles in a similar style – didn’t work as we’re back to ‘business as usual’.
Now that we know who Zandio is (Comment #26) … I wonder if he needs your encouragement?
I already knew exactly who he is!
Agree Jane. Mine is littered with sad faces.
I ve got the top 4 to do but the Pocket To key has just arrived and I’m needed in the garden. Planting out the tubs and baskets time. I’ll be back to read Mr K’s hints later but on a quick glance it looks as though it has been a bit of a struggle.
For a Friday this was straightforward. Last one in 4a grrrr. Thanks to setter and Mr K. Favourite 3d followed by 22d .
It’s strange how we get on the wavelength of certain puzzles and not others. I don’t usually have a problem with Friday puzzles; I found this one to be hideous.
Completed but only by letter insertion. I think the best description of this for me is Ghastly!
Quirky and bizarre are others.
Zero fun.
*****/0
Thx for the hints to explain some of the dafter clues.
I fairly ripped through this until I got to the NW which was a tussle.
9a is a great surface and ‘hardback’ is clever but I had to wave the white flag, annoyingly. So, it was a DNF jobbie.
Some of the surfaces didn’t flow which affected the enjoyment factor but there were some goodies.
My podium is 21a, 22d with the gold going to the most excellent 11d.
Many thanks to the setter and Mr K.
3*/3*
Wow, that was difficult. Nothing on 1st pass. 6a in first and immediately on pangram alert after seeing the ‘A”. However after firing up my anagram solver and employing Mr G, I seemed to get on the right wavelength and the rest went in without a struggle. So a */**** for me today!?
Now off to the hospital to get my big toenail removed.🙃
Good luck with the toenail.
It won’t be as bad as you fear.
Two challenges this week boxing the 3 very enjoyable midweek puzzles. No particular favorites except maybe 27a
A struggle for me …mainly solved by guessing . So not really my cup of tea.
Last ones in 1a and 1d…which lowers the confidence a bit.
I’m afraid I cannot shed more light on 20d than Dryden does at 12.
Wallace was one of the main protagonists in the first Scottish War of Independence but , like Dryden I cannot see why he was in the clue other than to provide a letter.
Thanks to the setter and to Mr K….great pics as always.
Still struggling with the worst cold/cough in the world……have upped the medication from honey and lemon to Benylin.
I think he was there to provide the E
Oh dear, you’ve had that cold for a while! I hope it’s better soon. Hot toddy with rum should do it!
Surfaces are usually just contrivances to sustain the cryptic word-play, they don’t have to be factual or historically correct. Wallace is in there to provide the E (base) and because he was a famous Scottish knight generally/sort of fits in with the surface theme.
Rather tricky but it is Friday
I did like 25a. A pity it was one I had to look up!
I’m putting my tuppence in before reading the hints or comments, I don’t want to be put off by reading how easy this was and what a joy to solve. I’ve got about a quarter but am giving up as I’m swimming in molasses and not having a bushel load of fun. Give credit where it’s due, I loved 11d and 19a.
Thank you setter, my fifty cents is on Zandio, and Mr. K for the hints, which I will now read and hope my day is brightened by kittycats.
Please, no raps on the knuckles about negativity!
As I’m scrolling up, I see the pic at 25a … my day is made, I can go back to bed!
Hello, compiler here. Thanks very much for taking the time to solve, analyse and discuss.
Just got back to Devon from Cornwall, where I had the pleasure of meeting up with Chris Lancaster, the Telegraph Puzzles Editor, after a five-year gap. Great editor and a really great guy. We sat in a pub garden for five hours and both ended up red-faced.
Meeting in the West Country, we inevitably had a jaw about the first time we met, in 2013, at the North Devon funeral of James Leonard, the founding editor of the Telegraph’s Enigmatic Variations series. James also set Toughies as Citrus and EVs as Rustic. He was renowned for the brevity of his emails, whereas Chris, who replaced James as EV Editor, is the exact opposite.
James’s funeral was in a tiny church and half of us had to listen from outside as his old friends talked about his achievements in Eton fives, rackets and real tennis. Unfortunately, the heavens opened with a monsoon, so we didn’t catch too much of the tributes but we certainly caught the rain.
I liked Chris instantly, and asked him to take over editing the EV, and eventually in 2018 he took over from me as Puzzles Editor.
Have a super weekend, and maybe give the Sunday Toughie a go.
Phil McNeill (Zandio)
As usual my Friday was too busy Working early in order to run Mama Bee about to various appointments but I enjoyed reading the Blog and comments, thanks to Mr K for that Thanks to Zandio too for letting me know who to expect on Sunday I hope it is a tad gentler than this appears to be
I’m not sure on my verdict on this one, has been a bit of a roller coaster. I started way too early this morning and struggled to find anything. I came back to it later and started making decent headway through complex clues. Currently I’ve got 3 clues left to solve, all in the top right corner. Avoiding the hints so far, I think if 6a comes to me then the others will follow
Such is the way of these things that I took the hint for 6a which turned out to be easier than some of the ones I’d solved but the other two did follow. There’s a few of the hints I need to revisit as there were a few answers I guessed based on half of the clue
Tricky even by Friday standards, and I will have to be content with the 8 answers I got before I took a quick look at the hints. Seeing the **** and a couple of detailed explanations just confirmed my suspicion that I had wasted paper and ink this morning. And the sight of you know who in 25a was enough to out me off my breakfast. Too much to do this morning, so throwing in the towel. Mr K you are truly brilliant to figure all this out.
Ha! I chance upon which type of address it would be straight away … but then spoilt that by spending far too long trying to make ‘ma’am’ fit the wordplay!
I am afraid I did not enjoy. I couldn’t work out whether 23d ended in T or L as I don’t think of less meaning not so. Thinking more I realise I can just about do it. The only stars I gave were to 3d and 21a. I got con.sum.ER. Gs for greats which left me with ood. I’ll now look at Mr K’s hint and try to work it out. I have no argument with pence. It took me a long time to get the first word of 21a. Looking on line it is suggested that the two expressions don’t mean the same thing but they’ll do for me. 26 a very devious. I went through synonyms for recruit and looked for short names of palaces.
Thank you Zandio, and for the anecdote. Glad you got to get an in-person catch-up with Chris Lancaster.
For me℠ this seemed relatively straightforward: I completed this in a little less time than the typical Zandio backpager, I did need Mr K’s help with understanding a couple, though annoyingly it turned out what I was missing was AT in 12a and ARE in 17a, both of which are simply taken straight from the clue — ooops!
15a (“light batter”), 21a (“Wild Bunch”), and 16d (”delicatessen”) were highlights, with my favourite being the quadruple definition in 9a.
Objection!! “To get” in line one is “padding”.
For me this was definitely at my limit of abilities and I was short of time. I therefore put in a lot of guesses and needed a couple of hints to complete it. I often say I find Ray T tricky because of the brevity, today was the opposite, I tied myself up in knots with the longer clues. All that said having read the hints all the clues would probably have been possible if I had stuck with it.
Thanks to Zandio and to Mr K for the hints, pics and detailed explanations.
Your comment went into moderation because you used a ‘new’ e-mail – msn.com instead of the previously used gmail.com – both should work from now on.
Sorry, a senior moment! It must be a pain having to deal with all our slip ups, not sure where that one came from. My iPad does try and help me by autocorrecting things…..usually incorrectly!
Great challenge and a fascinating post from Zandio! Thanks also to Mr K and indirectly to editor Chris Lancaster
Found this tricky as expected on a Friday, needing quite a lot of help 🤔 ****/*** Favourites 21a and 11d 😃 Thanks to Zandio and to Mr K
PS was surprised at the answer to 6a as on first run through I filled in “spin” thinking of course it was “nips” backwards. Will you be after having a “wee nip or two?” 😳
Very Fridayish and I needed the hints to fully parse 9a and 1d, apart from those I rather enjoyed the challenge. Favourite was 12a. Thanks to Zandio and Mr. K.
I long for the Fridays of Giovanni. Those were the good old days.
A challenge today which I came to quite late as I’ve been out butterfly spotting.
Last one in was 26a with 6a close behind.
Top picks for me were 9a, 12a, 15a, 21a and 11d.
Thanks to Mr K and Zandio
Thank you for the hints … really needed a few of them today!
Regarding the request for enlightenment in connection with 20d, the way I see it is that “cleanse” is a synonym of “purge” … as in ethnic cleansing etc. – not a particularly nice subject, but that’s what I think the connection is.
Thank you again for the tips today ….
Very much like yesterday’s Kcit Toughie the answers went in without too much trouble until the brick wall of two clues. TG & Beaver not alone with 1d & 9a. I lost patience & revealed the checker but even then needed our reviewer to explain the why of 9a properly. I also saw Trent as the waterway at 1a so made a horlicks of parsing that one too. Despite this I rather enjoyed the puzzle more than most. My favourite rather predictably was 21a (good films both) & also particularly liked 3&11d.
Thanks to Zandio (& for popping in as ever) & to Mr K
Good evening
Well, I’ve had a canny run over the last few weeks when I’ve been pitted against the Mind of Zandio, but I fell at the last hurdle today. It’s a DNF – I completely ran out of steam as I struggled to the NW quadrant, and I’ve had to hoy the sponge in with 1d and 9a left to go.
Obviously, now I’ve read Mr K’s explanations, I understand ’em – however there were three solutions that I just couldn’t parse, viz 12, 15, and 17a.
Excellent crozzie, though, and I enjoyed the challenge. 21a and 11d are joint COTD.
Many thanks to the Mind of Zandio and to Mr K.
Here I am, late in the day again. Today’s crossword presented me with a good challenge this morning, before spending time watching a granddaughter’s ballet ‘contest’. I thought she was brilliant (natch), but she didn’t win the award.
Although I managed to solve the final two clues, 9a and 15a, I needed Mr K’s help in understanding them fully.
There is a lot of in depth analysis on Big Dave. As a simple soul I take solutions at their face value and do not question the setter’s logic. This helps me to move on with the rest of my day, but I do enjoy reading the thoughts of others.
I am pleased to find I am not alone in my antipathy to this gnarly offering from MrMcN 👎🏻. I was way off wavelength and very early on decided to sink my pride and seek help from MrG et al and eventually managed to make inroads into the South but the North was a different kettle of fish. Too many hmms to make individual comments. Enough said! Thank you Zandio and MrK for your much needed clarification.
Watched Rafa (a.k.a cute buns) yesterday at Rome. He’s looking pretty fit and strong, think he’s a contender for big stuff this year?
“Cute buns!”
Here’s me thinking you were a genteel lady, Merusa. 🤭
Have you seen Rafa? Isn’t that name apt?
Oh dear, 2 days of disappointment.
Yes, I expected to struggle yesterday as I am another universe away from Ray T in terms of understanding his clues. And indeed got nowhere.
But today … first read through gave me no solutions, second (slower) read through still no solutions. Looked at several of the hints but none the wiser.
Oh well, go back to sitting with a glass of wine on our Skipton terrace with a sunlit evening view of the Aire valley. Could be worse off!
Thanks to compilers and hinters.
As with most others I found this very hard.
A dnf due to 1d and 9a.
Worth the effort of solving what I could for the mirth ensuing from solving 11d
Thanks to all.
I looked at the clues before setting the printer to work and then thought….no, this isn’t one for me! A bit defeatist probably but looking at Mr K’s answers, I wouldn’t have gotten some of them in a month of Sundays! I did find lurking in a corner a Sylvanus toughie from December and that was a very fine puzzle indeed.
Thanks and well done to Mr K and apologies to Zandio, just not my cup of Lapsang Souchong.
It’s too nice an evening to spend hours looking at this after a hard days work.. I’ll print it and give it a go on a rainy day.
Oof – this was tricky! Started off well in random bits of the grid then ground to a halt. A pause then some light bulb moments so many thanks to Mr K for the rest! 10A was so misleading! Grrs for 12A & 15A! 2D was a bit of a strange one. Thanks to the setter for the mental gymnastics!
After struggling yesterday with RayT’s head scratcher, I expected today’s offering to be impossible, but much to my surprise I managed to get a good start and finally completed the puzzle within my normal time limits.
Thanks to Zandio for setting a do-able Friday puzzle, and Mr.K for the hints.
5*/3* …. hints apprecoiated !
liked 27A “Global elite gush when meeting folk like me? (3-7”
As a novice, this one was too hard and the clues seemed a bit over-contrived. thanks for the hints
Welcome to the blog, Pug.
Friday’s puzzle is almost always the trickiest of the week so don’t be downhearted if you found it hard. Stay with us and you’ll be surprised by how much your solving improves.