DT 30995 (Full Review)

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30995

A full review by crypticsue

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This puzzle was published on 2^nd August 2025

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

An email from Telegraph Towers on Wednesday 30^th July  indicated that this Saturday Prize Puzzle would be a bit different to the usual Prize Puzzle: “Don’t miss this Saturday’s Prize Cryptic. Complete it before 8 August and you could win a guided tour of Bletchley Park. Hint: it’s not for the faint-hearted.”

They weren’t kidding – it was apparently set by GCHQ and the clues certainly took some decoding. Then, lucky old me, I had to decode it twice, once for the hints and then for this review

Across

8a           Festival starts in Cheltenham? Once per year text … (4,4)
FAIR COPY – FAIR (festival) and the ‘starts’ in Cheltenham Once Per Year

9a           … trader running one horse (6)
HOSIER – An anagram running of I (Roman numeral for one) and HORSE

10a         Maybe twist old weapon guards called large (6,4)
ORANGE PEEL – O (old) EPEE (weapon) ‘guards’ RANG (called).   L (large) is added at the end

11a         China’s here, since given tips for Information Assurance (4)
ASIA – AS (since) and the ‘tips’ for Information Assurance

12a         One French figure reported “eyes” taking in female journo (7)
UNIFIED – UN (French number), two I’s (homophone (reported) of eyes) ‘taking in F (female), the result finished with the usual journalist

14a         Who initially avoids flying to abandon e.g. secret agents? (7)
DISAVOW  – Disclaim knowledge of and so abandon secret agents to their fate.  An anagram (flying) of W (who initially) and AVOIDS

15a         Criminal’s HQ where 24’s opponent loses head (4)
LAIR – [Tony] bLAIR (John Major’s opponent) without the first letter (head) of his surname

17a         [This puzzle was written by GCHQ for the Telegraph crossword centenary, and GCHQ have hidden this clue – look around for it] (5)
The clue is revealed ‘around’ the outside of the grid.  Foul traitor reveals war secrets

The solution is hidden in the first two words of the clue.  Ultra was the designation adopted by British military intelligence in June 1941 for wartime signals intelligence obtained by breaking high-level encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter communications at the Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park

18a         Has to pay off Moscow espionage rings (4)
OWES – Ringed by moscOW ESpionage

19a         Expecting duty on article after thanks by foremost triumvirate in Bletchley (7)
TAXABLE – TA (thanks) A (indefinite article) going after TA (thanks) the result followed by the first three letters (foremost triumvirate) in BLEtchley

21a         Ace US spies in brief time (7)
SPECIAL – CIA (US spies) inserted into truncated (brief) SPELl (time)

25a         Some paper backing up in Enigma error (4)
REAM – Hidden in reverse (backing up) in enigMA ERror

26a         Game with tricks – a sign of dishonour mostly by heads of intelligence agencies (5,5)
BLACK MARIA – BLACK MARk (most of a sign of dishonour) and the ‘heads’ of Intelligence and Agencies

27a         Made good, done over by defector with no right (6)
ATONED – An anagram (over) of DONE put by a rAT (defector with no R for right)

28a         Protective layer: wrapper of ochre on deliveries Hut’s opening (8)
OVERSHOE – The outside letters (wrapper) of OchrE go on or after OVERS (deliveries) and the ‘opening’ of Hut

Down

1d           Our NSA works to reveal novel adversary (6)
SAURON – An anagram (works) of OUR NASA gives us the name of the title character and main adversary in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings

2d           Subsidy, say, or agent’s fee to recruit left-winger? (8,7)
TRANSFER PAYMENT – An example of a subsidy or a football agent’s fee

3d           Ancient period once wasted in extremes of espionage (6)
EOCENE – An anagram (wasted) of ONCE inserted into the ‘extremes’ of EspionagE

4d           Honey for 007 extracted from sugary derivative (5)
RYDER – The character played by Ursula Andress in Dr No is hidden in (extracted from) sugaRY DERivative

5d           MI6 boss fell on MI5’s middle meal (6)
CHILLI – C (head of MI6) HILL (fell) and I (middle of MI5)

6d           Promise on pay scuppered a local USA secret (9,6)
ESCALATOR CLAUSE – An anagram (scuppered) of A LOCAL USA SECRET

7d           Interval is no time to backtrack in case of surveillance (8)
SEMITONE – A musical interval is a reversal (to backtrack) of NO TIME inserted into the ‘case’ of SurveillancE

13d         Probe intercepted material? Key even gets uncovered (5)
DELVE – DEL (key on computer keyboard) and the inside (uncovered) letters of eVEn

14d         Challenges taken over by Morse radio (5)
DARES – Hidden in reverse (taken over by) in morSE RADio

16d         A covering I must keep half secret for biscuits (8)
AMARETTI – A (from the clue) MAT (covering) and I between which is inserted (must keep) the second half of secRET

20d         Passion of FBI cut by a third in recreational facility (6)
LIBIDO – Remove the first letter of fBI (cut by a third) and insert into LIDO (recreational facility)

22d         Fine hiding in wharf, like more thorough cryptanalyst, say? (6)
POKIER  – OK (fine) ‘hiding’ in PIER (wharf)

23d         “Primarily all Signals Intelligence minimises our vulnerability”, one read (6)
ASIMOV – The primary letters of All Signals Intelligence Minimises Our Vulnerability

24d         Military rank that’s studied by Americans (5)
MAJOR – A military rank or the main subject studied by an American university student