ST 3298 (Full Review) – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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ST 3298 (Full Review)

Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3298

A full review by crypticsue

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This puzzle was published on 5th January 2025

BD Rating – Difficulty * – Enjoyment ***

A particularly friendly Sunday Prize Puzzle with several anagrams and quite a few ‘old friends’ of the experienced cryptic crossword solver

Please let us know what you thought

Across

1a           Colourful flier Real Madrid distributed (3,7)
RED ADMIRAL – An anagram (distributed) of REAL MADRID

6a           Others yet to be discussed behind back (2,2)
ET AL – A reversal (back) of LATE (behind)

9a           Start enjoying assignment in lecture (4,2,4)
TAKE TO TASK – TAKE TO (start enjoying) TASK (assignment)

10a         Soar without opening wing (4)
LIMB – cLIMB (soar) without its opening letter

12a         Ranking – of chicken farms? (7,5)
PECKING ORDER – What chickens have and people too!

15a         Last slogan and first of bywords reversed (6)
BOTTOM – A reversal of MOTTO (slogan) and the first letter of Bywords

16a         Game bird lowly farmhand has caught ending in broth (8)
PHEASANT – PEASANT (lowly farmhand) has caught H (the ending in broth)

18a         Scribbled note on grammatical term not allowed (8)
VERBOTEN – An anagram (scribbled) of NOTE goes on or after VERB (grammatical term)

19a         Journalist specified it ordering pens (6)
EDITOR – Penned by specifiED IT ORdering

21a         One side of Germany run by machine, possibly (6,6)
BAYERN MUNICH – An anagram (possibly) of RUN BY MACHINE

24a         Wine, a blend that’s unfinished (4)
ASTI – A (from the clue) STIr (blend ‘unfinished’)

25a         Sickening destruction of a planet and sun (10)
UNPLEASANT – An anagram (destruction) of A PLANET and SUN

26a         March second follows first and second of December (4)
DEMO – MO (second) follows the first and second letters of December

27a         Bullet after bullet for poisoner (4,6)
SLUG PELLET – PELLET (bullet) goes after SLUG (bullet)

Down

1d           Greatly admire speed (4)
RATE – Double definition

2d           Noble instrument: daughter on it (4)
DUKE – The abbreviation for Daughter goes on UKE (ukelele – instrument)

3d           Serve cheat with top cards (2,3,7)
DO THE HONOURS – DO (cheat) THE HONOURS (the top four cards in a game of whist or bridge)

4d           Crop that’s neat I gathered, sack finally tied up (6)
INTAKE – An anagram (gathered) of NEAT IT into which is inserted (tied up) the final letter of sacK

5d           Sailor’s in the drink (8)
ABSINTHE – AB’S (sailor’s) IN THE

7d           Number divided by five hundred, average score for intermediary (5,5)
THIRD PARTY – THIRTY (number) ‘divided’ by D (Roman numeral for 500) and PAR (average score)

8d           Chemist’s workplace, political choice? (10)
LABORATORY – LAB OR A TORY (political choice)

11d         Crawlas might a fiddler? (3,3,6)
BOW AND SCRAPE – Behave sycophantically or literally what a violinist might do

13d         Legitimate leading directors? (5-5)
ABOVE-BOARD – ABOVE (leading) BOARD (directors)

14d         Order smartest say, though not a brilliant arrangement? (4,6)
STAR SYSTEM – An anagram (order) of SMARTEST SaY without (though not) one of the As

17d         Last tramline on circuitous route? (8)
TERMINAL – An anagram (on circuitous route) of TRAMLINE

20d         Remove a French advertisement (6)
UNPLUG – UN (French indefinite article) PLUG (advertisement)

22d         Audible gender message (4)
MAIL – A homophone (audible) of MALE (gender)

23d         A bird on the go (2,2)
AT IT – A (from the clue) TIT (bird)

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