DT 31024

75 comments on “DT 31024”

1. Okay, we know its Friday, but that was tougher than a scarpyard Alsatian.

   Thought I was going to have to give it up as a bad job, but gradually they came kicking and screaming onto the grid, and the solving got quicker as the grid got inkier.

   Last one in was 18a, a really great clue as the penny finally drops.

   My two of the day were 5a and the brilliant 3d.

   Many thanks to our setter today, but a word to the wise, Stay off the magic mushrooms son!

   1. I am not going to get this finished before I have to go out, but I agree that 3d is an outstanding clue. It’s going quite well for me. Is it really a Friday guzzle?

2. I thought this to be a great way to end the week. Yes, it was tricky but, like yesterday’s offering from silvanus, it was doable even if the grey cells overheated a bit. There were a couple, such as 17d, I couldn’t parse so will need the hints for explanations. The good reverend was quite gentle and amusing at 1d and I liked actor Johnny being stuck in a corner at 5a. I have two for the top spot – 10a and 18a but I’m nominating posts from Amazon and eBay at 18a as my COTD.

   Thank you, setter for a tricky but fun crossword. Thank you, Mr K for the hints.

   The Quickie pun was rather topical. 😀 The answer isn’t given to the pun, Mr. K.

3. Having just started back on these after a long absence instead of struggling and only getting two on first look through, I wait to see the crossword rating and first comments! After seeing today’s rating I’m not going to struggle with this and will work through it with the hints, thanks Mr K, roll on Saturday puzzle!!!!

4. This was very testing and took some time to get into it. I enjoyed 11a, 14a and 18a which is my COTD. In the end I was just happy to complete it. Thanks to Mr K and the setter.

5. I loved this. Perfectly pitched for a Friday and ticks and smiles all over the place here at Shabbo Towers. I hope the setter pops in to take a bow.
   Far too many great clues to list here and all fell into place once I got to the bottom of 24d.
   The only one I don’t understand is the Quickie Pun. Can anyone help with this?
   Bravo setter and thanks to Mr K.

   1. Hi, Shabbo. The pun is to do with the present incumbent of Number 10.

   2. The 3rd word of the pun sounds like our PM …

      1. Got it now. Thank you.

         1. Quickie Pun spot on today, made me chuckle!

            1. Whatever one’s views, politics should have no place in crosswords. It is something one does in order to get away from that sort of thing.

               1. Hear hear!
                  I could make neither head nor tail of the quickie pun – but once it was pointed out in this blog I was disgusted.
                  This is not what I come to these puzzles for. I am most surprised that the editor allowed it. Very questionable judgement.

6. Another enjoyable Friday cranial workout which I suspect is not the work of any member of The Friday Triumvirate. If it is the most likely candidate would be Zandio. 3.5*/4*

   Candidates for favourite – 5a, 6d, 7d, and 17d – and the winner is 17d.

   Thanks to whomsoever and Mr K.

7. Brilliant puzzle with some very amusing surface readings … especially 3d.🤣

   Thanks, Setter and Mr K.

8. I found this significantly tougher than yesterday, and frankly above my pay grade. Trickiest Friday for several weeks, in my opinion.

   How on earth is ‘shower’ a synonym for the last three letters in 1a?

   *****/***

   1. As in ‘She showered him with gifts’.

      1. Oh. Ok. Fair enough.

         Ta.

      2. Thanks, both — I was struggling with that as well!

9. What an absolute cracker, a perfect backpager for Friday elevenses. Rattled through it clockwise from NW, pausing only to chortle – and in one case snigger – before coming to a stop for my last four in the SW. The light then dawned and those too succumbed.

   Honours could go to so many clues but shall limit to 10a (such a smooth surface), 3d (COTD) & 23d, with special mentions to 17d & the snigger-worthy 24d.

   Many thanks to the setter (Zandio for my buck, what with the music references and all) and Mr K

10. A top-notch Friday puzzle – thanks to our setter and Mr K.
    Among many ticks on my printout are 9a, 11a, 3d, 16d and 24d.

11. What a superb puzzle! Apart from 10a, which was my last in, the rest fell into place very nicely.
    Many thanks to the setter and to Mr K for the write-up.
    2*/4.5* for me.

12. Another puzzle I wish I had not ventured on this week. Starting to feel like the back pagers are becoming toughies.
    I have not enjoyed the last three puzzles for this week.

    No comment on the Friday puzzle.
    It’s me … but will be interested to see comments.

    I am 11a today, not sure when to say 28a, and feel 5a with these puzzles this week.
    I am just hoping for some good 12a with the Saturday puzzle.

    Thanks to setter and Mr K

13. Unlike the majority I found this much easier than yesterday’s offering. No real holdups with 1d and 9a last to fall.
    3d, 1d and 7d favourites today
    2.5/4.5*
    Great Friday entertainment

14. A cracking Friday puzzle! From Z? Great clues, a tricky challenge and a satisfying tussle. Plenty of ticks and I’ll go for 3d as my favourite. 4*/4.5*.

    *For all you guitar fans – have a listen to this fantastic duo playing flamenco:

    1. The beginning reminded me of Roy Harper at Cropredy who spent the first 10 mins of his set on the Chinese folk classic “Tew Ning”
       Very accomplished when they started, thanks Jose

    2. Brilliant! Puts my passing Grade 3 classical guitar into perspective! 🤣

15. Foxed by 3d until until I realised that German toast has a couple of different spellings.
    For once, the spoonerism made me smile. Well done.

16. Tough but it is Friday, and I did get there in the end and enjoyed the battle.
    I needed help with the parsing of a couple including 17d. 3d was my favourite.

    Many thanks to the setter and to Mr K for the hints.

17. I found this very difficult and nearly threw in the towel. Got there eventually though.

    Some great clues, my top picks were 24d, 3d, 28a and 16d.

    Thanks to Mr K and the setter.

18. Very tough and at first glance I thought impossible, but rewarding once completed. I particularly liked the spoonerism and Mr Depp in the corner, but I’ll put 18a, 23d and 3d on the podium. Thanks to the compiler for the brain mangling and Mr K for the hints.

19. Couldn’t get started yesterday and couldn’t get anywhere today either.

    Not the most opportune day for the DT to send me the renewal reminder for my Puzzles sub!

    1. 😊

20. Got on famously with this, for about 5 minutes, then ground to a screeching halt. Not helped by putting in respray for 1 across. Clues are excellent if tough (for me anyway). Thanks to setter and Mr K for much needed hints.

    1. I started this at 2 a.m. and found it quite tricky, but, as usual, the clues went in more easily as more checkers went in. I then got bogged down in the SW but, after a brief nap, inspiration enabled me to omplete the guzzle. I loved the 1d Spoonerism, the 2d lurker and my COTD, the 17d lurker, whixh was brilliant. Themanks to Mr K and the compuler

21. Two or three sittings required and a visit to the 13d for extra thinking time, but I got there in the end.
    Thanks to Setter and MrK
    TTTAE

    

    1. Brilliant!!

    2. Love it! Many years ago we had a friend who’s cat used to sit over the plughole in the kitchen sink!

22. Sheer class!! Beautifully crafted, and a pleasure throughout.
    Many thanks

23. An enjoyable Friday workout, with nice clever clues. 24d a reminder of the spectacle to behold on the evening of the 7th Sep.

24. I must have been on wavelength as I fairly breezed through this, not always the case I might add. 16d took a bit of parsing but I got it. Several candidates for favourite but I’ll go with 3d. Thanks to the setter and Mr. K.

25. Thanks to the setter and MrK for the hints (which we didn’t need). Definitely a tough one even for a Friday. NE last ones to go in. COTD 3d.

26. Enjoyable and somewhat simpler than previous Fridays for me © etc. Loved the 3d German cheers, the 10a pledge, the 11a female and the 18a posts.

    Thanks to the setter and Mr K.

27. I feel like yesterday’s workout paid off today, with the grey cells, reduced in number to be sure, ever so slightly sharper. It wasn’t quick, but it was steady, with many many ticks along the way. 24d probably my fave for the mischief. 23d was the real penny drop moment, though. I had an idea what the answer should be but couldn’t see how the last word of the clue worked. Only when I wrote the answer out and saw the last three letters staring back at me did it all make sense. Great entertainment.

28. Didn’t have chance to look at the puzzle earlier but am glad that I made time for it this afternoon. A couple in the NW held out for a while but it all came together in the end. Plenty of ticks including 11,22&28a plus 1,7,15&17d.

    Thanks to our setter for a fun Friday solve and to Mr K for the review.

29. Tricky but fair with the spoonerism as my favourite, thank you compiler and Mr K .. and Jose for the music. Ps what a weird quickie pun!?

30. Good afternoon

    That was a tussle! I’m happy to report pen down with a full grid, but my word, I was made to work for it! And that should be taken as a compliment to our setter, by the way!

    Some excellent clueing, with too many contenders today for COTD; I am going to mention the ones that stood out the most. 3d, 23d, and 24d (*Sid James cackle!*)

    Many thanks to our setter – I’m terrible at working out who it could be, so I’m going to plump (if plumping is allowed, as they used to say on Call My Bluff) for The Mind of Zandio.

    Thank you also to Mr K.

31. Another gnarly one but so much more satisfying and enjoyable than yesterdays offering. Thanks to Mr K and setter. 23d the standout.

32. Setter here.

    Thanks for all comments and feedback, as ever much appreciated.

    1. Thank you, Dharma for a terrific puzzle and for dropping in to say hello. It is always appreciated. 👍

    2. Thanks from me also for a great Friday puzzle.

    3. Thanks, Dharma, for a very, very entertaining puzzle!

       Haven’t we met somewhere before? Big Dave’s Rookie Corner?

       1. Hi Franco
          Yes I was once of that parish along with several other nationally published setters. A great legacy from Big Dave for which we should all be very grateful.

    4. Thanks, Stephen, for a nice puzzle to solve and to hint.

       Thanks also to everyone who commented today. Now that I’ve finally figured out what had to be done to get the blog running properly again, I might have time to look for a few cat pics.

       1. Thank you for all you do to keep this blog running, Mr K. It’s really appreciated.

          1. Hear, hear. 👍

33. I was amazed, and pleased, to find this puzzle today after struggling mightily with yesterday’s. This was definitely not read and write, and I did have to put on my thinking head, but managed to finish. Confess to needing the hints for 18a, 2d and 15d, but LOL at 23d. Overall very enjoyable. Thanks to Dharma and Mr. K. Now I need to go and check on how that blob in the Atlantic is doing…

34. What a truly fantastic puzzle! Best for ages in my book. So many clever clues, tough but fair and definitely worth the struggle….

35. 3*/4*. This was nicely challenging and a lot of fun. I solved it over breakfast but have been busy all day since then doing a late summer fish pond maintenance.

    I was going to say that I didn’t think this was the work of our normal Friday threesome, and I see I was right.

    Many thanks to Dharma and to Mr K.

36. Started this late as a result of new TV and hi-fi, with the concomitant need to spend several hours swearing at inanimate objects. A great puzzle though, and I was pleased to see a reference to the somewhat off-kilter Welsh band at 27a among a plethora of excellent clues. My favourite may well be the Lego at 3d. Thanks very much to the setter and to Mr K.

37. Great work from Dharma, with the hilarious 24D as my COTD. VMT also to Mr K.

38. Managed to get on the wavelength today, unlike yesterday.

    Needed the hint to pass 9a but otherwise a straightforward and enjoyable solve.

    Thanks to all.

39. Absolutely super puzzle! 4.5* for entertainment.
    I was on the right wavelength from the start.
    Teasing out the subtle wordplay was very rewarding. As a result I have far too many ticks on my printout to list them all. They include for example 3d, 7d, 13d, 23d, 24d, 18a, and 28a. I must also add 9a. (Incidentally did anyone else notice a ‘cereal’ , which is purportedly ‘good for you’, lurking in the words? Very amusing and, of course, irrelevant.)
    It was a real treat to have this delightful cryptic, for which many thanks to Dharma.
    Many thanks too to Mr K for the review and for explaining 17d which was the only clue I wasn’t able to parse. What a topnotch clue it is!

40. Aarrrrrgh.

    1. 😊

41. Had this one pegged as a Zandio production so a little surprised to see it’s by our old reviewer on his second excursion from t’other place. Thoroughly enjoyed the puzzle. Ticks aplenty in what was a brisk completion with the wordplay at 16&17d the two crumpet scratchers. 9,11&25a plus 3,7,17& 24d particular likes.
    Thanks to Dharma (& for popping in) & to Mr K

    1. Great quickie pun.

42. What a great finish to the week with nearly every surface a winner.

    I’m not aware of Dharma but I most certainly am now!

    Lots of humour with some great random scenes: 3d is totes hilaire.

    Picking a pody seems futile but I’ll go with 10a (perfect), 27a (for getting Super Furry Animals into a clue) and, of course, 3d.

    MT to ‘Dharma the Don’ and Special K.

    3*/5*

43. Like yesterday I ve felt tired today and when I started this earlier , I almost thought I couldn’t be bothered as I could tell it would be a brain ache. Luckily I rallied as, hooray , I’m not a quitter and plugged away at it in between painting (door, not art ) and dog walk and got there in the end but found a few quite sticky. I’ll need to check a few hints for the parsings . Thanks To Dharma – (I too thought Zandio) , and Mr K.

44. 4*/4* …
    liked 2D “Old counter drab, a customer claims (6)”

45. Yeay! Just finished it, all by my own and only needed to look at Mr K’s hints for 9a. Everything else was exactly what it said on the packet if you read, and reread, the clue. I particularly liked the cheeky (!) 24d. Many thanks Dharma, I feel a real sense of achievement!!!

46. A tough Friday battle with that one but eventually got there. Took an age to work out my last one (24D)

47. Thank you to Dharma. This was slightly above my current solving ability, but I didn’t mind because there was so much fun along the way — and of course because I knew I had Mr K to explain the ones I couldn’t work out, for which also many thanks.

    I’ve learnt the German for ‘cheers’ (strangely the then-12-year-old didn’t mention it after their school trip to Cologne last year!). My top few included 5a, 9a, 15d, and 17d, with my favourite being 16d for the nicely hidden “Maybe the” at the start.

48. COTD for me was 19D.

49. Good crossword. Happy to finish. Didn’t understand the end-less promise at the end of 9a?

    1. VO is the endless promise.

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