DT 30881 (full review)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30881

A full review by Rahmat Ali

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This puzzle was published on 22^nd March 2025

BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***

Greetings from Kolkata. A nice entertaining Saturday puzzle from the setter that I enjoyed solving and thereafter writing a review of the same for your kind perusal and valuable feedback.

I was aware of Mae West, the answer to the clue of 28a, both as the celebrated American actress who was born in the nineteenth century and an inflatable life jacket, originally as issued to RAF personnel during the Second World War during my twenties. The second is well connected to the first. I now learnt from the net that the actress was only five when she first entertained a crowd at a church social. She also started appearing in amateur shows at the age of seven and often won prizes at local talent contests. She began performing professionally in vaudeville in the Hal Clarendon Stock Company in 1907 at the age of fourteen. She remained active until 1979, one year prior to her death in 1980. During her career spanning well over seven decades, she evolved into a successful actress, singer, comedian, screenwriter and playwright. She was regarded as a sex symbol and was known for her breezy sexual independence and her light-hearted bawdy double entendres, often delivered in a husky contralto voice. Even when her film career ended, she wrote books and plays, continued to perform in Las Vegas and London and on radio and television and recorded rock and roll albums. In 1999, the American Film Institute posthumously voted her the 15^th-greatest female screen legend of classic American cinema. She was noted for her voluptuous figure and during World War II, Allied aircrews called their yellow inflatable, vest-like life preserver jackets ‘Mae Wests’ partly from rhyming slang for ‘breasts’ and ‘life vests’ and partly because of her resemblance to her torso.

On a lighter note, I would like to add that I passed M.A. (Arabic) in First Division with Distinction from the Indira Gandhi National Open University and received my degree at its 38^th Convocation earlier this month. This was my tenth master’s degree. A clip from Morning India, Kolkata of 14^th instant is attached below for your reference.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

8a          Satchmo played the organ! (7)
STOMACH: An anagram (played) of SATCHMO guides to the definition of an organ in the body where food is digested

10a        Hospital in Herts town cut – why? (4,3)
WHAT FOR: H (hospital) as the abbreviation for hospital placed inside WATFOR[D] (Herts town) as a town and non-metropolitan district with borough status in Herts i.e. Hertfordshire, England that is devoid or shortened of its last letter (cut) takes to the definition of an interrogative phrase denoting why or for what reason

11a        Slough river filled with a lot, if rubbish (9)
EXFOLIATE: The definition of a verb meaning to wash or rub a part of the body with a granular substance to remove dead skin cells, an example of which is to slough i.e. to shed or remove a layer of dead skin is reached from EXE (river) as a river in England that rises at Exe Head, near the village of Simonsbath, on Exmoor in Somerset, with most of its length lying in Devon having inside (filled with) an anagram (rubbish) of A LOT, IF

12a        Wine in port certainly from Hamburg? (5)
RIOJA: The definition of a red or white wine, with a distinctive vanilla bouquet and flavour, from the Rioja region of northern Spain is got from RIO (port) as referring to Rio de Janeiro that is a city and port in Brazil followed by JA (certainly from Hamburg) as a German word meaning ‘yes’ or ‘certainly’ that can be heard in Hamburg, a German city

13a        Fruit did you say? Straight up! (5)
PLUMB: A homophone heard by the audience (did you say) of PLUM (fruit) as an oval drupe or stone-fruit with juicy, sweet-tasting yellowish flesh and typically a purple skin when ripe guides to the definition of an adjective meaning vertical, perpendicular or straight up

14a        Language passing between lips in stag party (7)
SHINDIG: HINDI (language) as one of the official languages of India, spoken especially in northern India coming inside (passing between) the letters at the edges (lips) in S[TA]G takes to the definition of an informal terms for a large, lively party, especially one celebrating something

17a        Totally exposed – as a collective? (2,3,10)
IN THE ALTOGETHER: Double phrasal definition; the second meaning in total or all things considered that takes to the first denoting in a completely naked position or in a situation where one is stripped of everything, including clothing

19a        Dart, ammo half-heartedly thrown – one aiming for the bull? (7)
MATADOR: An anagram (thrown) of a combo of DART and AM[M]O with half or 50% of the middle letters taken (half-heartedly) guides to the definition of the principal bullfighter who is appointed to make the final passes and kill the bull

21a        Bird exploring where wings clipped (5)
ROBIN: The definition of the redbreast or robin redbreast, Erithacus rubecula, a widely-spread singing bird with reddish-orange breast is deduced from [P]ROBIN[G] (exploring) as penetrating or exploring physically, in order to find or discover something having (where) the outermost letters (wings) extracted or taken away (clipped)

24a        Firstly threatening revolution, online menace (5)
TROLL: The first or initial letter (firstly) of T[HREATENING] followed by ROLL (revolution) as a movement in which someone or something turns or is turned over on itself, an example of which is revolution i.e. the movement of an object in a circular or elliptical course around another or about an axis or centre takes to the definition of a deliberately offensive or provocative online post.

26a        Coloured italics, so red? (9)
SOCIALIST: An anagram (coloured) of ITALICS, SO leads to the definition of a person who supports or belongs to the left-wing or progressive section of a political party or system, also known as communist or ‘Red’ as the colour associated with the party

27a        Almost reach peak for atomic device (7)
REACTOR: Most of the letters (almost) of REAC[H] followed by TOR (peak) as a rocky peak or hill guides to the definition of a large device in which atoms are either divided or joined in order to produce power

28a        Old player we found in various teams (3,4)
MAE WEST: WE from the clue noticed inside (found in) an anagram (various) of TEAMS takes to the definition of the legendary American actress, singer, comedian, screenwriter and playwright of the yesteryears whose career spanned over seven decades

Down

1d          Unconscious, general crushed by snake (6)
ASLEEP: The definition of an adjective meaning not conscious or lacking awareness and the capacity for sensory perception as if dead is obtained from LEE (general) as referring to the Confederate general known for his role in the American Civil War, whose full name was Robert Edward Lee overcome or surrounded by (crushed by) ASP (snake) as a venomous snake of various kinds, including Vipera aspis of southern Europe etc

2d          Turned out fatal more than necessary (2,1,5)
TO A FAULT: An anagram (turned) of OUT FATAL yields the definition of an idiom denoting more than necessary or to a degree exceeding normal or proper limits

3d          Basic earnings, paper money (5,5)
DAILY BREAD: The definition of a phrase denoting one’s living or livelihood or the basic earnings that one needs in order to live is reached from a charade of DAILY (paper) as referring to a newspaper that is published every day and BREAD (money) as a slang term for money

4d          Darling, notice where best to make contact (5,4)
SWEET SPOT: A charade of SWEET (darling) as a form of address used to a beloved person, an example of which is darling or referring to a person very much loved, often used as a term of address and SPOT (notice) as notice or detect guides to the definition of the place on a golf club, tennis or squash racket etc where, for best effect and control, the ball should ideally make contact

5d          Beautiful blonde (4)
FAIR: Double adjectival definition; the second denoting blonde i.e. pale or light-coloured, especially used to describe hair or skin that takes to the first meaning beautiful or lovely to look at

6d          Spare a female US president? (6)
AFFORD: The definition of a verb meaning to manage to spare or give up is arrived at from A from the clue, F (female) as the abbreviation for female and FORD (US president) as referring to Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr, the American politician and lawyer who served as the 38th President of the United States from 1974 to 1977

7d          Manager, a warden we hear? (8)
ARRANGER: The definition of a person who organises and makes plans for an event or deal, an example of which is a manager or one who organises other people’s activities is arrived from A from the clue and a homophone heard by the audience (we hear) of RANGER (warden) as a warden or a person employed to patrol a State or national park or forest

9d          Nut consumed, packed with energy (4)
HEAD: The definition of the uppermost part of the human body that contains the brain, an example of which is nut i.e. a slang term for head that typically means the brain or mind is reached from HAD (consumed) as a verb in the past tense meaning took a meal or consumed food having inside (packed with) E (energy) as the symbol for energy as a quantitative property in physics

15d        Vessel opener at parties? (10)
ICEBREAKER: Double nounal definition; the second serving as an opener at parties or social events where a conversation starter or activity designed to help people get to know each other and ease any awkwardness that leads to the first referring to a sturdy ship that is built for breaking a passage through icebound waters

16d        Stumbling firstly, or arranging practice? (9)
FLORISTRY: An anagram (stumbling) of FIRSTLY, OR guides to the definition of essentially the flower trade, encompassing everything from growing and selling flowers to creating and arranging floral displays.

17d        Juvenile, yours truly is with mother, true to form (8)
IMMATURE: The definition of an adjective meaning childish or juvenile or having or showing an emotional or intellectual development appropriate to someone younger is reached when I’M (yours truly) as a colloquial term used by a speaker to mean themselves is followed by (with) MA (mother) as a childish contraction for mamma or mother and TRUE from the clue subject to an anagram (to form)

18d        Islands with men marrying grooms? (8)
HEBRIDES: The definition of an archipelago comprising hundreds of islands off the northwest coast of Scotland is deduced from HE-BRIDES (men marrying grooms) as suggesting men, in place of women as brides, marrying their bridegrooms or completing their marriage with members of the same-sex

20d        A kick going up ending in pond – that’s a shame (3,3)
TOO BAD: A combo of A from the clue and BOOT (kick) as an informal term for a hard kick in an upward direction (going up) as a reversal in the down clue and followed by the end letter (ending) in [PON]D leads to the definition of an informal phrase meaning a shame, regrettable or what a pity!

22d        Record a lack of modern art? (6)
NOTATE: The definite of a verb meaning to record or to note, mark or set down in a system of notation is arrived from NO TATE (a lack of modern art) as referring to the absence of Tate i.e. an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom’s national collection of British art and international modern and contemporary art

23d        Dregs in society called utter muppets, first of all (4)
SCUM: The definition of a noun denoting a worthless or contemptible person or group of people or the dregs of society is fetched from the first or initial letters (first of all) of each of S[OCIETY] C[ALLED] U[TTER] M[UPPETS]

25d        Instrument needing no introduction – stringed one? (4)
LUTE: [F]LUTE (instrument) as a high-pitched woodwind instrument consisting of a slender tube closed at one end with keys and finger holes on the sides and an opening near the closed end across which the breath is blown without the introductory or initial letter (needing no introduction) takes to the definition of an old stringed instrument shaped like half a pear

There were several clues that I liked in this puzzle such as 10a, 13a, 14a, 17a, 3d, 4d, 16d, 18d and 22d; that last being the best of the lot. My prayers to the Almighty for the eternal rest and peace of BD and my thanks to the setter for the entertainment and to Gazza for the assistance. Looking forward to seeing you here again. Have a wonderful day.