DT 30653 (Full Review)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30653

A full review by crypticsue

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This puzzle was published on 29^th June 2024

BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ****

This NY Doorknob crossword didn’t take me long to solve but I enjoyed it while it lasted

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought

Across

1a           Frightful house I’d renovated (7)
HIDEOUS – An anagram (renovated) of HOUSE ID

5a           See 22 Across

9a           Work with large amount of money to find animal (7)
OPOSSUM – OP (work) OS (oversized, large) SUM (amount of money)

10a         Suggested mischievous child told stories (7)
IMPLIED – IMP (mischievous child) LIED (told stories)

11a         Sort of roll: A-E etc? (9)
ELECTORAL – An anagram (sort) of ROLL A E ETC

12a         Field, river and tree enclosing area (5)
REALM – R (river) and ELM (tree) ‘enclosing; A (area)

13a         Quite thin fabric (5)
SHEER – An adverb meaning quite or a type of very thin fabric

15a         General course Renaissance painter announced (9)
TACTICIAN – homophones (announced) of TACK (course of a sailing ship) and TITIAN (Renaissance painter)

17a         Access to food: trout’s tail in best batter? (3-6)
TIN-OPENER – T (The tail of trout) IN (from the clue) and OPENER (best batter)

19a         Wanderer has no bananas (5)
NOMAD – NO (from the clue) MAD (bananas)

22a/5a Hidden, as was Hank Marvin? (2,3,7)
IN THE SHADOWS – Hank Marvin was, of course, IN THE SHADOWS

23a         La mer most turbulent here? (9)
MAELSTROM – An anagram (turbulent) of LA MER MOST

25a         Catching fish is English setter’s mission (7)
EMBASSY – E (English) MY (setter’s) ‘catching’ BASS (fish)

26a         1980s singer, man in Genesis, six-footer (4,3)
ADAM ANT – ADAM (the first man in the Book of Genesis) ANT (insect with six feet)

27a         Downtrodden machine worker? (7)
TREADLE – Something pressed down with the foot to work a machine

28a         Los Angeles less than clean? (7)
LAUNDER – LA (Los Angeles) UNDER (less than)

Down

1d           Owls or those bats? (7)
HOOTERS – An anagram (bats) of OR THOSE

2d           See duck in chop suey regularly (7)
DIOCESE – O (cricket duck) inserted in DICE (chop) and followed by the regular letters of SuEy

3d           Start working hard (5)
ONSET – ON (working) SET (hard)

4d           Devil about to damage one do-gooder (9)
SAMARITAN – SATAN (devil) goes ‘about’ MAR (damage) and I (Roman numeral for one)

5d           Fall sick after swamp drained (5)
SPILL – ILL (stick) goes after the outside (drained) letters of SwamP

6d           Slight pains, sore, needing massage (9)
ASPERSION – An anagram (needing massage) of PAINS SORE

7d           Leaves creased old suit with French friend (7)
ORIGAMI – O (old) RIG (suit) AMI (French friend)

8d           Band member nominated is back (7)
SIDEMAN – One of the members of a band or orchestra who performs occasional solo passages – A reversal (back) of NAMED (nominated) IS

14d         Hacks through grass that’s kept down (9)
REPRESSED – PRESS (hacks, journalists) inserted in (through) REED (grass)

16d         Something unexpected in Bend It Like Beckham? (9)
CURVEBALL – Something unexpected or what David Beckham might do to  a football

17d         Move to intercept explosive weapon (7)
TRIDENT – RIDE (move) ‘intercepts’ TNT (explosive)

18d         Distinguished restaurant full? (7)
NOTABLE – This week’s Old Friend – if a restaurant was full there would be NO TABLE

20d         Queen Mother in dark raised fabulous female (7)
MERMAID – A reversal (raised) of DIM (dark) into which is inserted ER (the regnal cipher of our late Queen) and MA (mother)

21d         Goddess encountered among forest grazers (7)
DEMETER – MET (encountered) inserted among DEER (forest grazers)

23d         Springtime insect heard possibly (5)
MAYBE – MAY (springtime) and a homophone (heard) of BEE (insect)

24d         United supporters up for chaos (5)
SNAFU – North American military slang for chaos – U (united) FANS (supporters) all reversed (up)