Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3270 (Hints)
Hints and tips by Senf
A very good Sunday morning from Winnipeg where it is getting warmer but still with plenty of rain.
Another c*ck up at Telegraph Towers, the enumeration of 9d, in two on-line sources, is incorrectly shown as (11) – correctly it is (4,7). What does the paper say?
For me, and I stress for me, a real stinker not helped by the incorrect enumeration of 9d, with six anagrams (one partial), three lurkers (one reversed), and no homophones all in an economically symmetric 26 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 – 7a, 14a, 15a, 23a, 1d, and 13d.
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 Empire, unreasonable country? (7)
The abbreviated form of a three word term that can be considered equivalent to unreasonable and one of our favourite Middle Eastern countries.
10a Technocrat’s tailored garment (6,4)
An anagram (‘s tailored) of TECHNOCRAT.
14a Manager’s back in the commercial line (6)
The last letter (‘s back) of manager inserted into (in) THE from the clue and a two letter abbreviated form of a synonym of commercial.
15a Character with a cheesy grin? (8,3)
A character the first word of which is a county and a cheese.
20a Help Persian perhaps with cut lip (8)
While the clue may suggest ‘Persian perhaps’ followed by (with) ‘cut lip’ it is actually the other way round – LIp with the last letter removed (cut) and (with) a six letter term for a four legged Persian (perhaps).
25a Quiet place, sign really empty (7)
One of the signs of the Zodiac and ReallY with the interior letters removed (empty).
26a Part of kettle, one of those on a table? (7)
A double definition – one of those on a table is one of 118.
Down
1d Winger breaks the whole bone (7)
One of Jane’s and many others favourite wingers inserted into (breaks) a three letter term for the whole.
4d It appears in fine caption (8)
IT from the clue inserted into (appears in) a synonym of fine.
6d Cocktail is served up with dash of cognac in honey (7)
The reversal (served up) of IS from the clue and (with) the first letter (dash) of Cognac inserted into a synonym of honey (used as a term of address expressing affection).
9d Sturdy fabric I brought in from a different Scottish town (4,7)
As discussed in the preamble, the enumeration was incorrect in two on-line sources – A type of sturdy fabric with a heavyweight weave which is perfect for trousers, jeans, and jackets and I from the clue all contained by (brought in) an anagram (different) of FROM A.
16d Maestro with chest rub for treatment (8)
An anagram (for treatment) of CHEST RUB.
21d Scammer or musician on it? (6)
Read the clue ‘as scammer on it or musician on it’ for a word with two distinct meanings.
24d Some house miniaturised – half of that? (4)
A lurker (some) found in the succeeding two words.
Quick Crossword Pun:
EYE + KEY + DOUGH = AIKIDO – a modern Japanese martial art
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English musician Paul Arthurs, known professionally as Bonehead, best known as one of the co-founders, rhythm guitarist, and occasional keyboardist and bassist of the rock band Oasis was born on June 23, 1965. Here he is, with the rest of Oasis, performing their first number one Some Might Say, from 1965, at The Knebworth Festival in 1996:
2*/3.5*. Apart from one raised eyebrow and an odd surface or two, this was light and good fun. I also can’t see anything at all cryptic about 15a.
I don’t think 21d works because the answer as defined by the wordplay should be (3,6) which obviously wouldn’t fit!
Many thanks to the setter and to Senf.
PS. Re 9d, the paper gives the enumeration as (4,7).
We thought the same at first. But if read as the scammer or musician is on the ****** it works
I agree, Pommette, but the conclusion I came to is that although ” the ****** ” would be OK as the answer, ” ****** ” on its own is not.
9d is correct in paper version.
some real mental calisthenics in this one !! good fun. Only just now managed to parse 23 ;) .18 is a smile. I have to say I am not convinced by’scammer’ in 21 .. scam perhaps.
As someone who relies on the good old-fashioned paperboy, I suffered none of the electronic gremlins of the last two days so I look forward to the expressions of outrage! (Is the Telegraph disintegrating along with the Tory party?)
Bit of a mixed bag from Dada today, I thought – some gifts, some pleasingly quirky clues and a few real pencil chewers. The 1d/7a corner definitely slowed me down, and IMHO 6d is a great clue but my personal COTD goes to 20a, very satisfying when the penny dropped.
My thanks to Dada and Senf (nice Oasis pun!)
The enumeration for 9d was correct on the Puzzles Site just before 9 this morning
A bit trickier than recent weeks – I wonder if that was because there were fewer anagrams?
Thanks to Dada and Senf
Thanks Sue. So, while I was sleeping, much belated proof reading and correction was completed on the Puzzles Site but I note that it has not been corrected on the Puzzles App (on my Android phone).
Fewer anagrams because of fewer clues? :smile:
Trickier than usual I thought with a welcome reduction in Dada’s recent quota of anagrams – thanks to him and Senf.
Top clues for me were 12a, 23a, 1d and 6d.
Started this when it was released (7pm) my time. Struggled with the center and gave up. This morning 9d is 4.7 rather than 11 which helps somewhat. Otherwise a very good puzzle.
1d last in and fav
Would agree that today’s is a bit of a stinker not helped by a difficult grid. This is Dada in a very bad mood, he must be a Tory supporter!
No favs, it’s just a tedious slog today with very little going for it. Such a contrast to yesterdays super offering.
*****/*
Thx for the hints
I thought this was going to be a walk in the park after the first few answers popped into my head quickly but it turned into a bit of a struggle as time went on.
I was stuck for ages with 9D until I realised the numbering was incorrect – grrr!
I thought 23A was very clever and it gets my vote as favourite.
Thanks to Dada for the brain workout and Senf for the hints, although I managed without them.
9d still bad at 7ish UK time this morning. Thought this was harder than usual, but why not for a prize puzzle.
I think fave has to be 23a, just a fun clue.
Confess to cheating on 9d, last in. Pity because I know the place, and indeed stage managed and had a couple of lines in a play there once for one night as part of our student dramsoc tour of the highlands and islands. (Importance of Being Earnest if I recall!)
Adventures from late 60s….
Really tricky. Needed lots of assistance. Can anyone explain the parsing to 18d? I can’t see how wasting money has anything to do with the answer…
Look up the last 5 letters of your answer in the BRB.
Gotcha! Thanks.
We struggled on 18d too. Maybe a bit of a Scottish theme going on as that’s where we’ve heard the last 5 letters used
I don’t get it either! But it has to be.
I thunk if you say the last bit in Scottish, it means xxxxxx
I agree with Senf and others that this was tricky. I lulled myself into a false sense of security and felt a bit smug when I had done about half but then really struggled to get the rest. I did not have the excuse that 9d was wrong as it was correct in the digital edition.
That said I really enjoyed the battle with 23a my favourite.
Many thanks to Dada and to Senf for the hints
I cannot understand 18d. Neither can AI. The solution is clear with 3 letters from other clues, with the definition on the left, but “wasting money”?
Any wisdom appreciated.
There’s a helpful suggestion from Gazza at comment 10
A bit of a struggle with a couple of clues today. As we didn’t print it until about 10am BST we were okay on the enumeration of 9d – although it was our last 1 in.
Not keen on 12a and as I say every time i see 23a, I don’t think they are a biscuit. Although what they class as I have no idea.
3*/3* for us – and easier than many a Dada.
Thanks for the puzzle Dada and to Senf for the blog
That was a bit challenging today but got there in the end. Needed some of the hints to explain the parsing of several answers.
Favourites 7a and 13d.
Sitting outside to take advantage of the beautiful weather but needing headphones to drown out the noise from over the fence. Perhaps they are building a boat ready for the next deluge?
Thanks to Dada and Senf.
Unlike most of the comments so far I thought this Dada puzzle was definitely at the easier end of his spectrum. Not quirky and kept his own thesaurus closed this week.
1.5*/4.5*
Favourites 15a, 19a, 22a, 1d & 21d — with winners 15a & 1d
Smiles for 10a, 15a, 3d & 21d
Thanks to Dada & Senf for blog/hints
I didn’t notice the enumeration problem with 9d mainly as it leapt off the stylus as I am quite familiar with the place, I hope my music choice is not too much for a Prize Puzzle but Gaelic speakers may know it by one of the places here;
Thanks to Senf and Dada
I came to a grinding halt with eight clues to go. Fortunately the hints came to the rescue and I have to admit cheating on 28a as it’s not the first biscuit that comes to my mind. Cotd is 16d. Thanks to Dada and Senf for the very necessary hints.
I struggled with today’s offering but eventually completed it. Despite the hard work I made of it there were smiles along the way. I had 20a for ages in my head but was pronouncing it incorrectly so I felt a right fool when the penny dropped.
Top picks for me were 23a, 20a, 5d and 9d.
Thanks to Senf and Dada.
Cruised along quite well until hitting a brick wall behind which lurked 12&20a plus 18d. Those three took longer to sort out than the rest of the puzzle put together.
Podium places going to 23a plus 1&6d.
Thanks to Dada and to Senf for the hints – can’t say I was ever an Oasis fan but plenty of people obviously were as they sold a lot of records!
For me, and I stress for me (™ Senf), I encountered a huge struggle with this guzzle, both with solving and parsing. However I was able to get enough checkers to enable the solving of the glues.
Completed earlier today as we have just returned from a trip to IKEA in Reading. Picked up a few bits and bobs that H says we need; however the queues for luncheon were over thirty minutes so we had a quick coffee (diet cola for me) and drove back. The M4 was benevolent both ways which is higly unusual. Soundtrack was a Steely Dan playlist via Spotify.
Thanks to Da-doo-ron-ron for the challenge, and the always helpful Man From Manitoba.
IKEA at the weekend! You must be fond of a treat
More Steely Dan to be heard on the toughie blog
(IKEA on a Sunday was a slightly daft idea but we had a ‘click and collect’ item that had to be picked up today.)
RE – the Toughie: Funnily enough, on the way back, H remarked that ‘Haitian Divorce’ is her favourite Steely Dan track…
Ha ha – it isn’t Jane’s Steely Dan got a thumbs down from Ynys Mon, but happy to see that H has good taste!
We found this enjoyable but tricky in both solving and parsing, there were a number that made us think very hard indeed. There were also lots of contenders for favourite and we’ll go with 13d. Thanks to Dada and Senf.
I’m posting before reading the hints or comments. I thought this so weird, is it really Dada? I had to use copious word search, fortunately I solved enough to get checkers. I was encouraged when 1a went in without hesitation. I have so many ?? next to my grid, I just hope they’re hinted; 12a, 20a, 23a, 4d … more but I’ll leave it at those for a start. I thought 10a was one word?
Thank you Dada, I may want to miss Sundays as well in the future. Thank you Senf, I’ll see if my questionables are correct and why!
I’ve read the hints, isn’t 20a clever? I’m just too stooooopid. I don’t get the “violet” part of 23a, it doesn’t matter, tomorrow is another day! Ooops, just got it, another clever one … too clever for me!
A strange experience with Dada’s offering today for me. I usually set off at a very slow pace then speed up. Today, I set off at a terrific pace and came to a grinding halt. As others have said, it was at the tougher end of his spectrum but doable with a bit of dandruff disturbance. I did like 23a but my COTD is the honey with a dash of brandy at 6d.
Thank you, Dada for the fun challenge. That you, Senf for the hints.
It was 29 degrees in the kitchen today so the Aga has been turned off. 🥵
It’s now confirmed. I have a totally contrary brain. Yesterday which everyone thought friendly, I found tricky. Today, when most seem to have found this one tricky, I thought it was Dada being very benevolent. Really enjoyed it. Too many favourites to pick one, 15a, 20a, 26a, 13d and 21d. 9a did print correctly here (but I am 5 hours behind), albeit as 4.7 and not 4,7. Never seen jeans made of xxxxx? LI was 23a for which I definitely needed help. Thanks Dada for a lovely Sunday romp, and to Senf.
Have you ever looked up the material that jeans are made from in a dictionary?
No can’t say I have. I have only ever seen denim jeans. I guess I am not looking in the right places.
Oops, I stand corrected, I see now that denim in a xxxxx fabric. Apologies for my ignorance. I truly had no idea,
Good afternoon
My first Sunday attempt in weeks! What with one thing and another, we’re busier on Sundays than on weekdays sometimes. It’s second time around for my wife and me, so between us we have five adult bairns, four grandbairns and one on the way, plus wor lass’s parents live nearby. There’s always something going on – except for today. We’re having Sunday in the garden.
So: to the crozzie. An excellent challenge, pitched at just the correct level. Some excellent misdirection and wordplay, with 1d taking the honours for COTD and my last to fall.
Many thanks to Dada and Senf.
Not for me today – absolutely hopeless. Quite often I can get as far as ‘yes, but why’ – lots of them today I just can’t even say ‘yes’ let alone ‘yes’! Oh dear!
My excuse is just too tired and an awful lot of noise – we’ve been with our Elder Lamb and her partner – our eldest grandson was seven today – general chaos!
I liked 15a even though I can’t see anything cryptic – suppose there must be something that I just can’t see . . .
Thanks to Dada and to Senf.
Tough today with no standout clues … unusual for Dada … and needed three hints from Senf, much appreciated. Could have been worse though, could have been at Manchester airport 😥
Not at the races with this one – perhaps a bit too tired but the crossword brain appears to have gone walkies. Needed a prod from Senf for both 4d&7a & 12a still eludes me so I’ll take a nudge if it’s going. The parsing of a number of others very slow penny drops. 9d my favourite.
Thanks to D for the drubbing & to S the assistance
Nothing untoward, v steady solve.