Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30875 (Hints)
The Saturday Crossword Club (hosted by crypticsue)
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
A very cold and grey Saturday morning brings another Saturday Prize Puzzle from NY Doorknob, which as I said to Mr CS when I was solving it, is bound to divide opinions. I enjoyed both solving and blogging the Hints and the Full Review, even though one of the solutions has left me with an ear worm!
Please ask for help if you are stuck on clues I haven’t hinted, but before doing so, please read the comments that appear before yours, so that you are not duplicating questions, and make sure you obey both THE INSTRUCTIONS IN RED at the end of the Hints and the blog’s Comment Etiquette – Big Dave’s Crossword Blog)
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.
Across
5a Leading club optimistic (6)
Ahead (leading) and strike with a heavy stick
13a, 1a, 24a Should my sibling adopt that mischievous child … (3,2,1,7,5)
Something you’d be able to say were your sibling to adopt a mischievous child
14a Atahualpa say almost eaten by lion? (4)
Almost all of a two-word abbreviated way of describing where one would be be if eaten by a lion or other feline
16a Something unknown in humour about bowlers? (7)
A synonym for humour goes about bowlers that go on one’s head
27a Sioux sent back satisfactory inside information (6)
An informal word meaning satisfactory reversed (sent back) and then inserted into some information
28a Incautious taking wine and pork pie before run (8)
A type of sparkling wine, an untruth (pork pie) and the cricket abbreviation for Run
30a Useless personnel for city in South 27 (8)
This name for useless personnel is he same as a city in South 27
Down
1d Object in cooker: this might be hidden! (6)
Object or aim inserted into a range cooker
3d Blade made with three metals (5)
The chemical symbols for three different metal elements
4d You must meet Hindu god in Jewish school (7)
An archaic way of saying you and an alternative spelling for the name of a Hindu god
8d Go without an item of underwear in burlesque (8)
A verb meaning to go or attempt goes outside (without) A (an) and a piece of underwear
11d 19a Several coming before spirit, grotesque demon in film (1,3,4,3)
A two-word phrase meaning several goes before energy (spirit) and an anagram (grotesque) of DEMON
15d Last-but-one batter in Starmer’s residence? (6,3)
The last but one person in the batting order or where Sir Keir lives
23d Be annoyed and stop when you do this? (3,3)
Be very angry or a sign for motorists that they should stop
As this is a Prize crossword, please don’t put any ANSWERS, whether WHOLE, PARTIAL or INCORRECT, or any ALTERNATIVE CLUES in your comment. If in doubt, leave it out
Please read these instructions carefully – they are not subject to debate or discussion. Offending comments may be redacted or, in extreme cases, deleted. In all cases the administrator’s decision is final.
If you don’t understand, or don’t wish to comply with, the conventions for commenting on weekend prize puzzles then please don’t leave a comment.
The Quick Crossword pun: FRAY + DEE + MURK + CURIE = FREDDIE MERCURY
NYDK at his Marnite® best! I loved it!
Candidates for favourite – 29a, 30a, 1d, 3d, and 22d – and the winner is 1d.
Thanks to NYDK and CS.
Never tried Marnite, can’t find it anywhere 😉
I know it’s Saturday and a prize one and all that, but that was hard with a capital H.
Never heard of 4d, but knew the god, so it just fitted in, also got 27a because it couldn’t be much else.
Can’t see how to get the middle two letters in the 11a combo from the clue, so hope it’s included in the hints.
Strangely I didn’t really warm to this one as I usually love the convoluted multiword puzzles, oh well, let’s see what tomorrow brings….
Look at the middle four letters of your solution to 11a and read the clue again
Ta, ( meant 11d , of course), got it from your clue for ‘spirit’, I was stuck on a drink.
2*/4*. Well, there is no doubt as to the author of this quirky and fun puzzle! Just a shame to see the Yorkshire pudding appearing in 15d.
My top picks were 13/1/24, 1d, 6d, 21d & 22d.
Many thanks to NYDK and to CS.
Guess most of the blog will know my opinion of this very difficult puzzle.
*****/*
I concur
Me too Brian. Sigh.
For me, the easiest and most enjoyable prize cryptic in ages. Go figure!
Yes, it’s all about the wavelength….
Pretty tough but enjoyable. The multiwords kept me guessing and some of the general knowledge was beyond me and needed electronic confirmation. 1d was last in and my favourite.
Many thanks to the setter and to CS for the hints.
30a isn’t it just a double definition of an employee usually older who is past their best and a town in the place made up of South and 27a
.. usually older! C’mon that’s not very PC. This type of personnel can be any age but what defines them is lack of ability and enthusiasm.
BTW .. didn’t like today’s offering and I’ve at a loss justifying 27a. I get the geographical and historical connections and the word play for the solution but ….🤔.
My last in and cotd though was 8d.
Hi BE
SC is saying that, more often than not (usually), a long-serving employee who is more than likely an oldie gets the Spanish archer (El Bow) ahead of a rookie (probably a youngie) which I agree with.
It’s a comment based on stats not a non-PC jobbie.
.. your interpretation is not mine! I do agree though that the older employee is more likely to get elbowed .. but usually because of pay rates for longer service rather that anything to do with ability.
I probably made my point clumsily.
My guess – and it is only a guess – is that the average age of 30a is over 40.
That’s all our tardy trainer was saying.
It’s not non-PC.
We love a Rood Bonk ‘sprawler’ as it means you get a second crack at a quadrant if you get stuck. Great fun.
Sue, I rarely can’t parse a clue once I have the answer but 14a is one of those instances.
I’ve looked at your hint but am none the wiser. ‘About’ isn’t in the clue and I can’t think of a four letter word (minus its last letter) where you may get eaten by a lion (feline). I appreciate you can’t make it more obvious. So, I’ll wait until Friday.
This was an enjoyable solve with plenty to like. I know the main three Hindu gods. So, that got me home with 4d which is a new term for me though it won’t be for Brian.
My podium is 5a, 28a and 29a.
Many thanks to the aforementioned and she of the crypt.
2*/4*
I’d like to say that I always leave a deliberate mistake to make sure people are reading my words of wisdom, but actually it wasn’t. I’ve rewritten the hint which I hope should help
Ah, gotcha.
Thanks, Sue.
TDS65, to put you out of your misery regarding 14a, you are looking for a two word phrase (2,3) meaning “eaten by lion” with the last letter removed (“almost”). It was a LOL PDM for me!
Thank you, Ardy.
It made me smile once I clocked it.
To quote RogerB…it was indeed a PDM.
Sorry for the duplication but better twice than never! I was typing while CS was amending the hint.
No problem.
I’m glad you did as I never would have imagined you using the term LOL which made me LOL.
Ur so dan wiv der kidz.
Before you know it, you’ll be on a skateboard, donning a snapback, saying ‘innit’ to your sick mates down at the rec.
Thomas, how presumptuous of you.
Rogan
Rogelio
Rogelyn
Robert Oscar Graham
🤔
Like it, Todge. Like it.
30a is a double definition of useless personnel (usually older past their best employees) and town in the place identified as South 27a
Of course it is, I’ll rewrite the hint
Re 27a. The “informal word meaning satisfactory” needs to be reversed (sent back).
I’m writing to complain in the strongest possible terms about ‘Cryptic Sue’ (I remain convinced that this is a pseudonym).
I had two clues to which I needed hints, but does this so-called Cryptic Sue offer me the much needed help I sought? Oh no! She tells us all about cricketers and things that are unknown. It’s a disgrace. These hints should be arranged to fit my needs. That should be Cryptic Sue’s only criteria.
Even though I had all the checking letters I struggled for a l-o-n-g time with 7d, and the same at 29a. Where was the help when I needed it? Eh? Eh?
Hold on right there! You’re saying you had all those checking letters and couldn’t fathom the answers? You need to seek professional help pal!
Well, yes, I errrr… nontheless… I… err… OK I withdraw my complaint.
And err…. thanks to NYDK and PC Security (anag)
This was tougher than usual for a Saturday NYDK and I had to grind out some of the answers. I was grateful for the chat about 14a as the parsing had passed me by. 30a brought to mind [redacted] and I had to google confirmation of the film in the 11d/19a combo. A new one on me. Cotd is going to 8d which just pipped 30a. Thanks to NYDK and CS.
Oops. Sorry. Wondered if I might have been near the step.
Do you really need the latin abbreviation in 14across?
I’ve rewritten the hint – don’t know what I was thinking when I wrote the original hint
😀
A lovely very challenging but really satisfying puzzle. I didn’t finish without help from the hints (thank you CS). Also thank to setter – unlike some I really like the multi-clues. Still stuck on 10a – I have a goddess [redacted] but I can’t parse her so perhaps there is another goddess?
See my reply to Tipcat further up the comments
👍 thanks again
The penny has dropped – [redacted]
Well that was pleasingly tricky for a sunny Saturday morning. As always, I like unravelling the multiword answers, and 14a was very clever, but my favourite was 21d.
My thanks to Donny for the challenge and to Sue.
Well, I really like 13 1 24 because it isn’t really a crossword clue. At least, not a conventional one. Is it even a cryptic definition? I don’t know, but I’ll take it.
The usual delightful bunch, I’ll podium that one, and have 6 26 & 11 19 as runners-up.
Thanks Sue and NYDK.
I also really liked the 13a, 1a, 24a combo and I don’t recall ever having seen anything like it before in a puzzle. I thought there might be a name for this device and it turns out there is. It is an example of an anapodoton, a rhetorical device in which a main clause is implied by a subordinate clause but never fully expressed, leaving the audience to supply the missing part of the sentence (for emphasis or dramatic effect). It is like observing a school trip being disrupted by one unruly child and commenting “One bad apple, …”. I thought it worked marvelously here.
Tricky, but then it is a Saturday prize, some excellent clues, I particularly enjoyed 27 & 28a and one awful one – in my humble opinion – in 14a
****/***
Thanks to setter and Sue
Not to my taste and, in addition to the pesky multi-word clues, there was quite a bit of obscure GK to make this guzzle harder than NYD’s usual Saturday offering. I did get some satisfaction out of finishing and submitting it butenjoyable it wasn’t. Thank goodness for Mr Google, as I couldn’t rememberthe spelling of 4d.However I really lijed the geographical double definition at 30a and the anagram at 17d and the lwgo clue at 8d. Thanks to CS for the hints and ro the compiler.
I struggled with this. 4d was new to me as was the 13 1 24 combo.
Top picks for me were 23d, 2d and 1d. I also liked the Quickie pun.
Thanks to CrypticSue and NYDK.
Do not agree with all those saying it was tricky – I walked through this close to my fastest ever time for a prize puzzle
3d is a great clue, I thought
Great fun. (redacted – the instructions in red ask that alternative clues are not included in comments)
My favourite puzzle of the week, it wasn’t easy but fairly clued. Had to google to check a few answers and Atahualpa !
Best clues from the many I liked 2d, 30a and 6d
3* / 4.5*
Thanks to setter and Sue
Another fun Saturday with NYDK and his multi-word clues. So much fun and head scratching with these!
Great puzzle yet again this week, although as I said, I did do a little more hair pulling today. Took me a little longer than the last few.
2.5*/4* for me
Favourites include 13/1/24a, 25a/18d, 2d, 6/26d, 7d & 15d — with co-winners 13/1/24a & 6/26d
Thanks to NYDK & CS for blog/hints
Crikey that was tough – but it is a prize puzzle so that’s as it should be. Have an issue with 2d – I don’t think it was a very fair clue and needed a little more steering towards the lady in question in my opinion.
Normally really enjoy this setters puzzles but this one left me a bit cold if I’m honest. Thanks to NYDK and CS for the hints which I shall now read.
I took three goes at this, I started with the (inside) back page as I wanted to mark the plethora of multi-word clues but made such a Horlicks® of it I tried again on the app. I gave up there and printed it out before I was satisfied 🥴 Thanks to Cryptic Sue and the American Ironmongery
Composed over coffee and scones by the Sea in Bamburgh/Seahorses. We are going to amble home via er.. Amble Alnmouth and the Northumberland Coastal Route
Seahorses ! (Just kidding)
Gods country
Of all the words to autocorrect it had to pick that one!
A nice cup of tea and a scone was had in Seahouses during some lovely weather on the Castles and Coast Route. Home now for more tea (or something stronger perhaps)
I learned a few things here including a school name and a prayer, but 13a was very tricky because I forgot about the possibility of an unhinged apostrophe! Thank you CS and of course NYDK
I feel like I might be a bit Brianish (is that a word?) today. I found the puzzle on the tougher side for a Saturday but a steady solve.
I agree with a number of us that I don’t like the linked clues. I usually spot them as a whole rather than by parsing which reduces my enjoyment of the puzzle.
So ***/** for me and I hope thatsome future Saturdays might be unlinked ? Thanks to all.
I really, really enjoyed this – delightfully playful. Some lovely lingo too. 13a+, 14a, 30a and 2d all made me chuckle. Many thanks to NYDK and Sue.
I won’t moan about the linked clues but I really don’t like them! Not too bad today. I have an answer for 2d but really can’t see why it is what it is. Anyway thanks to compiler and CS on another perishing day. To Madflower: lovely quiche and salad for lunch at the Reading Rooms today.
Very difficult to tell you without ending up in the Naughty Corner where for once there isn’t any cake
Try looking up the first word of the clue and the solution
Ah, CS. I had the right answer using the rest of the clue. I eventually googled fictional Fionas! Is that a naughty step comment? Hope not.
Ooh I’m envious. The cakes there are amazing.
Had to look up the gentleman in 14a and check the lady in 2d and the school in 4d. Most of the difficulty for the rest came from having to dodge all over the place. Favourite was 30a. Thanks to NYD and CS.
The minute I pulled this off the printer I knew I was in trouble. Four multi word linked clues no less. And downhill from there for me I regret to say. Most of the ones I solved were reversed engineered, with minimal enjoyment. But had a good few days at the start of the week. Here’s hoping Dada is benevolent tomorrow. Thanks NYDK and to CS.
I think I am turning into Brian. Tortuous. For me anyway!
Two thirds of that was pretty easy, the other third was really rather tricky. Slightly weird, but enjoyable nonetheless. Favourites for me were 16a, 1d and 2d.
Cheers to CS and NYDK,
Mr G needed for a few confirmations (Fiona, the city location, the combo idiom & the fella at 14a) in addition to being pretty to twig the parsing on one or two. A frustratingly slow solve but I appreciated the puzzle much more reading back through it once eventually completed. Podium places for 1,3&8d.
Thanks to Donny & Sue
Ps love this new version of Brian – his comment left us in no doubt as to his views.
pretty slow
I didn’t find this one too bad , not a walk in the park certainly but not overly tough, and enjoyable too. There were a couple of parsings I just had to check , and I didn’t quite get 4d right , and I googled to check, finding I had the second letter wrong. Thanks to NYDK and CS
Hello. Thanks to all for comments, and to PC Security (better than my old anagrams) for the bloggery.
Cheers
NYDK
People really do seem to be split about today’s guzzle. I’m quite definitely in the happy camp – thought this was one of the best, and most enjoyable offering we’ve had in a very long time. Didn’t know 14a or 30a but they couldn’t be much else once I had the other letters. Favourite was “Fiona”. Thanks to NYDK and CS.
Hmm, finished before bath went cold (sounds like a cryptic clue!) but then checked hints to
see my stab at 23d was just off. Now I’m actually doing 23d. Thanks anyway
Very tough NYDK,,.very tough!
But thank you for the challenge, and also to CS for today’s blog ‘n hints (particularly for the parsing of the 11D long ‘un!🙄)
Cheers!
Sorry but I thought this was awful. If you don’t get the multiple clues you’re stuffed and I only got one. There was also a disproportionate amount of American general knowledge required. I just wasn’t on the same wavelength at all.
Got nowhere with this after 45 mins and gave up. Way too obscure for me.
Did a first pass and decided this was so far beyond my abilities that i wouldn’t bother trying to solve.
Glad a few geniuses managed to solve.
Finally finished this enjoyable puzzle, not really because of it being difficult, which it was, but because I ran out of time, with only half done. Finished the rest this am in fairly good time.
Funnily enough my first one in would have been 14a, and finally put it in when the checkers confirmed my answer, but needed CS to parse it. Also liked the 27a, 30a combo. All memories from long ago, [redacted]
Many thanks to NYDK and CS.
I found this very difficult, not helped by the fact that since they got rid of the silly waving women every time I leave the crossword and go back it resets to skip letters in clues.
Any body else had this problem.
Thanks to NYDK and CS
Got there in the end but too many linked clues for my liking.
3*/3* ….
liked 28A “Incautious taking wine and pork pie before run (8)”