DT 30869 (full review)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30869

A full review by Rahmat Ali

+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +

This puzzle was published on 8^th March 2025

BD Rating – Difficulty *** – Enjoyment ***

Greetings from Kolkata. A great Saturday puzzle from NYDK that I enjoyed solving and thereafter writing a review of the same for your kind perusal and precious comments.

I was eager to know the etymology of the phrase ‘anyone for tennis’, the answer to the clue of the combo of 5a & 25a, and so explored the net and enriched myself. The phrase primarily belongs to the twentieth century. It is used to invoke a stereotype of shallow, leisured, upper-class toffs that refer to people with an aristocratic background or belonging to the landed gentry, particularly those who exude an air of superiority. Tennis was, mainly before the widespread advent of public courts in the later twentieth century, seen as a posh game for the rich, with courts popular at country clubs and private estates. It is a stereotypical entrance or exit line given to a young man of his class in a superficial drawing-room comedy. We find a close paraphrase of the saying in George Bernard Shaw’s 1914 drawing-room comedy entitled ‘Misalliance’, in which Johnny Tarleton asks “Anybody on for a game of tennis?” “Anyone for tennis?” is also particularly associated with the early career of Hollywood star Humphrey Bogart, and he is cited as the first person to use the phrase on stage. At the start of his career, in the 1920s and early 1930s, Bogart appeared in many Broadway plays in what Jeffrey Meyers characterised as “charming and fatuous roles, in one of which he is supposed to have said “Tennis, anyone?”

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

1a          Grand piano fully entertains at one toccata’s conclusion (8)
PALATIAL: The definition of an adjective meaning majestic, magnificent or grand is derived from P (piano) as an abbreviation for piano in a piece of music, denoting an instruction to play quietly followed by ALL (fully) as fully, wholly or completely that takes inside (entertains) a combo of AT from the clue, I (one) as the Roman numeral for one and the concluding or terminal letter (conclusion) of [TOCCAT]A (toccata’s)

5a and 25 Across             Summons to have company appearing at court? (6,3,6)
ANYONE FOR TENNIS: A cryptic definition of casual, often humorous invitations or calls (summons) to tennis players (have company) to play a game in a tennis court (appearing at court)

9a          No longer a burning passion? (3,5)
OLD FLAME: The definition of someone with whom a person once had a romantic relationship is cryptically arrived at from old i.e. no longer a burning one or relevant in today’s context and flame i.e. referring to a violent or intense passion

10a        Gulag has twenty guards horrified (6)
AGHAST: Part of or hidden inside (guards) [GUL]AG HAS T[WENTY] guides to the definition of an adjective meaning filled with horror or shock

12a        Penny with hard line mad to carry on (9)
PHILANDER: P (penny) as the abbreviation for new penny or new pence and (with) an anagram (mad) of HARD LINE brings forth the definition of a verb meaning to carry on flirtations or of a man, to make love with a woman one cannot or will not marry

13a        Some irony from tense painter (5)
TROPE: The definition of a figure of speech, properly one in which a word or expression is used in other than its literal sense, an example of which is irony i.e. a trope that involves incongruity between what is expected and what occurs is deduced from a charade of T (tense) as tense in its abbreviated form and ROPE (painter) as painter is a rope that is attached to the bow of a dinghy, canoe or other small boat and used for tying up or towing

14a        Carbon-free goods carried in mythical ship (4)
ARGO: [C]ARGO (goods) as goods carried on a ship, aircraft or motor vehicle that is without C that serves as the chemical symbol for carbon (carbon-free) or free from carbon, leading to the definition of the ship in Greek mythology in which Jason sailed in search of the Golden Fleece

16a        Guarantee seaside stroll is ending in Margate (7)
PROMISE: The definition of a verb meaning to guarantee or assure someone that one will definitely do something or that something will happen is reached from PROM (seaside stroll) as a contraction of promenade that is a leisurely walk or ride on the paved terrace along the seaside or riverside followed by IS from the clue and the end or terminal letter (ending) in [MARGAT]E

19a        Arm and leg finally shackled by barbarian (7)
HANDGUN: The definition of any firearm that can be held and fired with one hand is reached from a combo of AND from the clue and the final or terminal letter (finally) of [LE]G confined or put inside (shackled) by HUN (barbarian) as referring to a barbarous, destructive person

21a        Water pipe new that blocks lavatory? (4)
BONG: The definition of a water pipe used for smoking cannabis or other drugs is fetched from N (new) as the abbreviation for new that gets in or interrupts (blocks) BOG (lavatory) as a slang term for a lavatory

24a        Card sharp hiding nothing (5)
TAROT: The definition of any of a set of 22 playing cards bearing allegorical representations, used for fortune-telling is arrived at from TART (sharp) as sharp in character, spirit or expression retaining inside (hiding) O (nothing) as the letter representing naught or nothing

25a        See 5 Across:

27a        Tincture team in anger knocked back (6)
ELIXIR: The definition of a tincture composed of a sweetened solution of alcohol to which has been added a small amount of the drug to be administered is reached from IX (team) as the Roman numeral for eleven indicating a team of eleven players as in cricket, football, hockey etc taken inside (in) RILE (anger) as to annoy or irritate someone or to make them angrily excited going in a backward direction (knocked back) as a reversal in the across clue

28a        Sleep on Pope’s instruction: clear? (8)
BULLDOZE: DOZE (sleep) as to sleep lightly and intermittently placed on BULL (Pope’s instruction) as an edict of the pope with his seal affixed i.e. DOZE on BULL or, precisely, BULL-DOZE that takes to the definition of a verb meaning to clear, move, level or reshape the contours of with or as if with a heavy, driver-operated machine

29a        Tries a drop in house (3,1,2)
HAS A GO: The definition of a phrasal verb meaning tries or attempts something is got from a combo of A from the clue and SAG (drop) as to fall, drop or sink placed inside (in) HO (house) as the abbreviation for house

30a        Southern woman’s club: Notts Forest (8)
SHERWOOD: A charade of S (southern) as the abbreviation for southern, HER (woman’s) as belonging to or associated with a female person, for example a woman or a girl and WOOD (club) as a golf club with a long shaft used to hit long shots leads to the definition of the remnants of an ancient royal forest in Nottinghamshire, England, having a historic association with the legend of Robin Hood that is also known as Notts Forest in its abbreviated form

Down

1d          On time, supply lines to erring actor? (6)
PROMPT: Double definition; the second being a verb meaning to supply lines to erring actor or reciter i.e. to assist them by providing the next words of a forgotten passage that takes to the first an adjective denoting performed or executed without delay, punctual or being on time

2d          Scottish boy to include in story (6)
LADDIE: The definition of an informal Scottish term for a boy or young man, often as a form of address is reached from ADD (include) as to say or write further or to include placed inside (in) LIE (story) as a made-up or trumped-up story

3d          Temperature lowered initially in America’s city (5)
TULSA: T (temperature) as the symbol for temperature as in physics followed by the initial or beginning letter (initially) of L[OWERED] placed inside (in) USA (America) as the abbreviation for United States of America guides to the definition of the second-most-populous city in the state of Oklahoma, after Oklahoma City and the 48^th-most-populous city in the United States

4d and 17 Down              Prepared for battle in theatre, MoD ordered choppers (5,2,3,5)
ARMED TO THE TEETH: The definition of an idiom meaning armed with a lot of weapons or with very effective weapons or is fully prepared for any combat or battle that requires strength or protection is obtained from an anagram (ordered) of THEATRE, MOD followed by TEETH (choppers) as a set of hard, bony enamel-coated structures in the jaws of most vertebrates, used for breaking down or biting and chewing

6d          Late shift? (9)
NIGHTGOWN: The definition of a nightie or nightdress that is a loosely hanging item of nightwear, common worn by women and girls, is cryptically arrived at from late i.e. occurring at an advanced hour, especially well into the evening or night and shift i.e. a type of woman’s dress in which the cloth falls straight from the shoulders and has darts around the bust, an example of which is a gown that is typically more formal and often longer

7d          Men at old port for work (8)
ORATORIO: OR (men) as the abbreviation for other ranks that describe the military personnel who are not commissioned officers, AT from the clue, O (old) as the abbreviation for old as OT in Old Testament and RIO (port) as referring to Rio de Janeiro that is a city and port in Brazil guides to the definition of a major, usually multipart musical work for solo voices, chorus and orchestra, which generally has a dramatic theme but which is designed for performance in concert rather than on stage

8d          Highly valued English horse touring Middle East (8)
ESTEEMED: The definition of an adjective meaning respected, highly valued or having an illustrious reputation is got from E (English) as the abbreviation for English followed by STEED (horse) as a horse, especially a spirited horse going round (touring) ME (Middle East) as the abbreviation for Middle East

11d        Bag grouse endlessly (4)
GRIP: The definition of a small bag used to carry belongings when travelling is reached from GRIP[E] (grouse) as a verb meaning to grouse, whine or nag that is devoid of its ending or terminal letter (endlessly)

15d        Wife stops correcting Conservative (5-4)
RIGHT-WING: W (wife) as the genealogical abbreviation for wife interrupts or gets inside (stops) RIGHTING (correcting) as correcting or rectifying a wrong or mistaken action, leading to the definition of the Conservative group or section of a political party or system

17d        See 4 Down

18d        Disturbed Lear isn’t showing what’s inside (8)
ENTRAILS: An anagram (disturbed) of LEAR ISN’T guides to the definition of the internal organs collectively, especially the intestines or those in the abdominal cavity

20d        Cool revolutionary beginning to feel inferior (4)
NAFF: FAN (cool) as to cool someone or something by waving an object to create a current of air overturning (revolutionary) as a reversal in the down clue followed by the beginning or starting letter (beginning) to F[EEL] that takes to the definition of an adjective meaning inferior or worthless, especially in style or taste

21d        Poorly after pong from pit comes to town (7)
BOROUGH: ROUGH (poorly) as unwell or poorly placed after or preceded by (after) BO (pong from pit) as an abbreviation for body odour that is an unpleasant smell caused by sweat on a person’s body or armpit, guiding to the definition of town, as distinct from a city, with a corporation and privileges granted by a royal charter

22d        I love to absorb holy book and its predecessor entirely (2,4)
IN TOTO: I from the clue and O (love) as love or the score of zero in a game of tennis to have inside (absorb) a combo of NT (holy book) as abbreviation for New Testament that is the collection of books related to second part of the Christian Bible, consisting of writings about Christ and the Apostles after his death, and documents from the very first years of the Christian Church and OT (its predecessor) as the abbreviated form of Old Testament that is considered as the predecessor of the New Testament that comprises the chief texts of the law, history, prophecy and wisdom literature of the ancient people of Israel that takes to the definition of an adverb meaning altogether, totally or entirely

23d        Commercial in which scene cut to scale (6)
ASCEND: AD (commercial) as an informal term for an advertisement, a type of which could be commercial, that is an advertisement included with another broadcast as on radio, television or a podcast having inside (in which) SCEN[E] from the clue without its ending letter or having undergone a strip (cut) guides to the definition of a verb meaning to climb, mount, scale or go up

26d        The French in their way sent up Swiss polymath (5)
EULER: LE (the French) as the definite article ‘the’ in French language used with singular, masculine words placed inside (in) RUE (their way) as the word in the French language for their ‘way’ or street in an upward direction (sent up) as a reversal in the down clue yields the definition of a Swiss polymath who was active as a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, logician, geographer and engineer and whose full name was Leonhard Euler

There were several clues that I liked in this puzzle such as 5a-25a, 12a, 28a, 30a, 4d-7d, 6d, 21d and 22d; 5a-25a being the best of the lot. My prayers to the Almighty for the eternal rest and peace of BD and my thanks to NYDK for the entertainment and to Gazza for the assistance. Looking forward to seeing you here again. Have a wonderful day.