Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31074
Hints and tips by Smylers
Hello and welcome to hints and explanations for today’s Telegraph Crossword. No obscure vocabulary in this one, so I think those who are good at anagrams will find it quite gentle.
It’s the end of the school half-term holidays here, which have featured a wedding anniversary weekend away in Alnwick (the 8-course tasting menu in Sonnet was wonderful), doing a tree-top ropes course with relatives, getting the children to so many children’s dance rehearsals I lost count (at least some of which were actually at the advertised times), running a tots-to-teens board games afternoon at our church, and seeing Matilda the Musical — which was one of the best things I’ve ever seen on stage, and well worth experiencing if it’s on near you. This morning we waved the 11-year-old off on a 3-day residential trip for their first year at secondary school, a mere 3 months after their previous residential trip to mark the end of primary school!
Please do leave a comment below saying how you found the crossword, or if a hint is unclear or an illustration baffling — or just to update us on your life in general. It’d be especially lovely to hear from you if you haven’t commented before. We are all guests here, so please consult Big Dave’s etiquette guide for the house rules.
Across
4a Mangled, headless, star rodeo rider found in arena (8)
TOREADOR: Make ‘star’ headless by removing its first letter. Then mangle what’s left together with all of ‘rodeo’ to spell out the answer.
Pic credit: © Carole Raddato, CC BY-SA 2.0
8a Evaluate dullards before beginning of semester (6)
ASSESS: I wrongly presumed a dullard was somebody who’s dull, so I’ve already learnt something in today’s crossword. As most of you probably already know, it’s actually somebody who’s stupid. We need another word for that, then to pluralize it and append the beginning letter of ‘semester’
9a Is French friend hosting one judge? (8)
ESTIMATE: Start with the French for ‘is’. End with another word for ‘friend’. Between them make them host the Roman numeral for one.
10a Dine badly, bile upset: it’s not fit to eat! (8)
INEDIBLE: This is two anagrams next to each other: a bad arrangement of ‘dine’ followed by ‘bile’ after it’s been upset.
11a Oil not stirred in moisturiser (6)
LOTION: Stir the letters of ‘oil not’.
12a Colour to get bike in that’s used again (8)
RECYCLED: A particular colour goes around the outside (the definition being in the past tense is helpful for picking which one). It gets another word for ‘bike’ put inside it.
13a Former pupils better hidden (8)
OBSCURED: We need a term for a former pupil — specifically somebody who used to be a male pupil at a school. That is then abbreviated and pluralized, and followed by an adjective meaning ‘better’, in the sense of no longer having an illness.
16a Prolongs sit-ups, on exercising (5,3)
SPINS OUT: Exercise the letters of ‘sit-ups on’ to make them spell out the answeer.
19a Success other eccentric displays up till now (8)
HITHERTO: This answer ends with the letters of ‘other’ displayed in an eccentric order. Simple subtraction then tells us how long the word meaning [a] ‘success’ that precedes it is.
21a An old frame Charlie’s cut for coat (6)
ANORAK: Insert in order: ‘an’ from the clue; the abbreviation for ‘old’; and a word for ‘frame’ from which the letter represented by Charlie in the Nato phonetic alphabet has been cut.
23a Chance to cross a sea for ineffectual person (4,4)
LAME DUCK: We need the ‘a’ from the clue and the informal shortening of the name of a particular sea. Crossing round the outside of those is another word for ‘chance’.
24a Husband to appear twice during saga in odd Asian city (8)
SHANGHAI: Make ‘saga in’ (slightly) odd by moving one of its letters elsewhere, then twice make the abbreviation for ‘husband’ appear inside it.
25a Note from singer heard? (6)
TENNER: This note isn’t a musical one, but it sounds like the word for a particular type of singer.
26a Egg’s first put into a very soft, whipped pile for this sweet (5,3)
APPLE PIE: Assemble the ‘a’ from the clue, the musical abbreviation for ‘very soft’ play, and ‘pile’ with its letters whipped into a different order. Somewhere in the middle of the combination put the first letter of ‘egg’, to make a specific sweet.
Down
1d Apart, in the manner shown below (7)
ASUNDER: Here we need a conjuction meaning ‘in the manner shown’ followed by another word for ‘below’.
2d Lead Sindy astray? It could be lust (6,3)
DEADLY SIN: This is something that ‘lust’ is an example of. Form it by making the letters of ‘Lead Sindy’ go astray.
Pic credit: © Anderson’s All-Purpose, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
3d I will get blasé about this woman (6)
ISABEL: The answer is a woman’s name, starting with the I from the clue. The rest of it can be made by turning the letters of ‘blasé’ about (and losing the accent).
Pic credit: © Policy Exchange, CC BY 2.0
4d I held on then, with feet broken, as far as you can go (3,3,2,3,4)
THE END OF THE LINE: By the time I got to the this clue, I had enough letters from the across answers that, combined with the enumeration, the answer was obvious. I presume it’s an anagram of ‘I held on then feet’, but really who has time to check?
5d King David’s ancestor missing? That’s harsh (8)
RUTHLESS: An ancestor of King David, who has their own book of the Bible, is followed by a word which can mean ‘missing’.
6d Show in Bill, with German following (5)
ADMIT: I like how in this clue ‘in’ is part of the defintion. We need a word for a bill (as in a poster; ignore the capital B). The German word for ‘with’ follows it.
7d Not in company with me? Result! (7)
OUTCOME: Enter in turn: a single word that indicates ‘not in’; the abbreviation for ‘company’; and the ‘me’ from the clue.
14d Never stopping to entertain British, stiff and formal (9)
UNBENDING: A word meaning ‘never stopping’ entertains an abbreviation for ‘British’ by welcoming it inside.
15d Hotel in Midlands town becomes industrial unit (8)
WORKSHOP: Put the letter represented by ‘Hotel’ in the Nato phonetic alphabet into the name of a market town in the East Midlands.
17d Old magazine not down in fight (5-2)
PUNCH-UP: This is the name of a former satirical magazine, and a word meaning ‘not down’.
Pic credit: © Karen Field, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
18d Badge has small heart (7)
STICKER: Follow the clothing-label symbol for ‘small’ with a colloquial term for somebody’s heart.
20d Runner put in also, as salad ingredient (6)
TOMATO: This runner is the strip of cloth used on tables; we need another word for that, then to put it inside a synonym for ‘also’.
22d Learn cooking of kidneys (5)
RENAL: Cook the letters of ‘learn’ until they spell out the answer.
Quickie Pun
The first 4 clues in today’s Quick Crossword are italicized, meaning their answers when spoken together sound like another word or phrase:
BUYS + HIC + HULL + PEDDLE = BICYCLE PEDAL
Recent Reading
I read this book expecting it not to be one I review here, because I reviewed the previous book in the series — but the ending in this whodunnit is so good that I had to recommend it.
Death in the Spotlight is the 7th in the Murder Most Unladylike series, but you don’t need to have read the others to appreciate this mystery. After reading a few crime books where the solution has felt a little arbitrary (and the interest has more been about the characters or the setting, or in some cases the author), it was so satisfying to read one with a proper puzzle, where the explanation both took me by surprise and retrospectively seemed inevitable once the clues were properly assembled. It’s a true classic of the genre.
Don’t be put off by this being in the children’s section. Robin Stevens writes better than many authors of adult crime books, and the language doesn’t feel simplified — I was surprised to encounter words like ‘ewer’, for instance, but instead of avoiding them, the author has included a glossary at the back of words that may be unfamiliar to younger readers. If you like whodunnits, treat yourself to this one. It’s a popular series, so probably available in a library or second-hand bookshop.
I needed help with 4a because I simply could not see it but the rest succumbed without much of a fight. I was fortunate in getting the long 4d straight away and that gave a number of useful checkers. I did like King David’s ancestor at 5d and learning how to cook kidneys at 22d had a great surface. My COTD is the result at 7d.
Thank you, setter for a fun Monday puzzle. Thank you, Smylers for the hints.
Most of the village is without internet because some idiot drove into the junction box. Fortunately, I have Starlink.
Because 4a only exists in the minds of certain French opera composers, not in real life.
The Spirit of Rufus lives on! A splendidly enjoyable start to the cruciverbaling week – */*****
Candidates for favourite – 8a, 23a, 1d, 5d, and 15d – and the winner is 1d.
Thanks to whomsoever (X-Type?) and Smylers.
Good morning. Typical Monday fare; a read and fill. Thought a new record was possible, but not to be. Much needed after a disappointing effort with Saturday’s offering. The following are my favourites 9a, 19a, 1d, 5d, 6d and 14d. Thanks to setter for the puzzle and Smylers for the review.
A nice start to the week from Mr X (?).
It’s only just hit me that there is both a county and a region called West Midlands. A tad slow out of the traps there, Tom.
I made up a word that helps people remember the initials of the 2ds that almost sounds like it could be a sin:
Slapage.
Sloth
Lust
Avarice
Pride
Anger
Gluttony
Envy
A way to remember that Jane Austen is on the back of a 25a is that ‘ten’ is at the end of her surname.
I’m full of ’em today!
My podium is 24a, 3d and 7d.
MT to the setter and Smylers.
2*/3*
I do like your Bon mots. (Or mnemonic in this instance) we are all wordsmiths in this group.
Thanks, Splitseeze.
I’m getting closer and closer to an animated TV show based around 8 year old Sir Linkalot on his trusty steed, Trotalot (known as Trot), and his 6 year old sister Lil Linka.
Here’s hoping….
Sounds exciting – good luck!
Thank you
Elegantly clued, nothing obscure, follow the instructions and job done. Great fun, with 5d my favourite of many.
Thank you setter, for the fun. Thanks, too, to Smylers.
A lovely gentle start to the week which is just as it should be. Can I be the only one to whom a ruder alternative occurred at 23a with all checkers in. Fav today was 4d for no other reason than it prompted the playing of The Allman Brothers Band’s great song
Thanks to the setter & to Smylers.
Well it didn’t occur to me at the time – but now that I have “seen” your rude version I can’t unsee it!
I cannot imagine what you mean. But I do wish I was brave enough to tell you an awful faux pas I inadvertently made at Addenbrookes last week – at least it had the whole clinic in stitches (not surgical ones).
Talking of faux pas, I had an essay submitted for marking and it had the title “Root Canal Treatment”.
Unfortunately, the student had omitted the letter “C”.
Love it!
Light but a very enjoyable way to kick off the week (and I often find Mondays trickier than they should be after generally skipping the weekend and rust meanwhile rapidly taking hold). I particularly liked the clever 1d and the Biblical absentee at 5d. Thanks very much to the setter and to Smylers.
1.5*/4*. This was light and fun, as it should be on a Monday! I would have finished in under my 1* time if I hadn’t written in “road” as the last word for 4d. This was based on the checking letters for the first three words together with the definition, and then stupidly not bothering to check the anagram fodder.
One or two slightly dodgy surfaces prevented this from being awarded 5* for enjoyment.
My podium selection was 1d, 5d & 15d.
Many thanks to the setter and to Smylers.
Busy morning and glad that our crossword was very accessible. 17 down made for a smile. Thanks all round and a good start to the week.
A cheery guzzle.
By the 1980s the magazine featured at 17d had a tiny circulation; I was one of the small band of weekly readers. It was a delightful read, featuring a sparkling selection of witty writers and columnists, with a splendid assortment of regular cartoonists. It was very much its golden age under the editiorship of Alan Coren. Yet nobody, other than me and about 9,999 others bought it. As each copy cost about double the cost of the revenue generated, it was inevitable it would close.
Its closest successor today is The Oldie, a monthly magazine that has many echoes of the style of 1980s 17d. Thus, I am a subscriber.
I subscribe to too many magazines, to the detriment of the time left to tackle the mountain that is my book pile.
Thanks to the setter and The Lad From Ilkley.
We were two of those who took that wonderful weekly magazine and oh, what a hole it left when it folded. I shall have to try The Oldie, at least the name is appropriate for us.
My dad thought it was a good “all-round educational” magazine for me in my mid-teens and set up a subscription until it ceased to be!
A perfect start to a rather drab day which involves indoor chores as it’s too wet to tackle outdoor tasks.
I am hoping for the perfect storm of a good wind in one direction to blow the leaves off the trees and put them neatly in one place! Of course ideally it also needs to be dry. I am not asking much. Back to the puzzle, it was just right for a Monday and I hope some novices will give it a go. I liked 4a and will have it as my favourite.
Many thanks to the setter and to Smylers for the hints….I am not sure how you have time to solve the crossword and do the blog you are so busy it exhausts me reading about it…..time for coffee I think!
A gentle puzzle for Monday but having an incredible 11 anagrams in 27 clues would surely earn a rebuke if the puzzle appeared in Rookie Corner.
Thanks to the setter and to Smylers for the review.
I liked 6d and 7d.
A fair comment: and I also hesitated about using so many anagrams. But each clue that used one seemed to me to be the best way to frame it and make it both workable and fun. I did wonder whether Ed would object – but it seems the clues were liked well enough to pass muster, without complaint. Glad you all like the puzzle and had some favourite clues…
Thanks for popping in and confirming authorship, X-Type. It’s always lovely to get comments from setters.
I love anagrams and there can never be too many for me. Thank you for a delightful Monday guzzle.
I am also a lover of anagrams, cannot have too many.
Me three!
A lovely gentle start to the week.
Top picks for me were 23a, 5d and 18d.
Thanks to Smylers and the setter.
Found this to be a bit trickier than everyone else – on reflection I can’t see why!! All fairly clued and some lovely surfaces – as others have already pointed out there were a few too many anagrams but fortunately for TDS blood pressure – none had any obscure indicators (I refer to Saturday’s ’embarrassed’ gate!)
Thanks to the setter and to Smylers for the review
Embarrassgate (or Egate for short) is a great shout, MHUK.
Ooooo, those blimin’ dodgy AIs!
Embarrassgate was yesterday, Sunday. I had to have a two-hour lie-in to recover. Phew!
As egate went on forever. shall we call it elongate or stick with embarrassgate?
Elongate – love it!
You are quite correct – I was so rattled by it that I got my days of the week jumbled (or should that be ’embarrassed’?)
Totes embarrassed, MHUK!
I wouldn’t mind you got the days wrong from the weekend before. But, yesterday?
Perleeeeze.
Very enjoyable Monday fare. So many ticks on my page to pick a podium so at random I’ll pick lustful Sindy in 2d as my cotd. Thanks to compiler and Smylers.
Love anagrams so my kind of puzzle but got stuck on 15d and 24a for a while!!!!! Thanks Smylers tho didn’t need much help today, just getting back into crosswords so still a 2* for difficulty for me, Mondays and Rufus were always my favourites🥰
You aren’t alone, Pepsib: I found this ★★ as well! But it contained so many anagrams I felt sure that most solvers would find it more straightforward than I did, so I risked rating it as just ★.
That’s really good to hear Smylers 😊 thank you
A very gentle quicktic and an enjoyable enough puzzle, for me marred by the excessively high anagram count – don’t get me wrong, I enjoy anagrams and rarely need to write them out, but more than a handful in any puzzle is too many, let alone 10 or 11. I enjoyed 1a but what a gory surface read!
Thanks X-Type, but more variety next time, please; thanks also to Smylers.
A gentle start to the non-working week, just right for someone like me who had trouble ‘getting her ducks in a row’ this morning! Plenty of humour to amuse the solver with 1d eventually taking the top prize.
Many thanks to our setter for the enjoyment and to Smylers for the review.
Hooray for the start of a fresh cruciverbal week after closing last week on a low. So nice to have clues which read smoothly even if not quite logically! SE brought up the rear but not for long. 20d bunged in as I failed to identify runner likewise frame in 10a. My Fav was 1d. TVM XType and Smylers for being there in case of need.
Good start for the week. I had decided 17d was favourite because of my devotion to that magazine, dragging up Hunter Davies as one of my favourite contributors, but I also thought the runner in 20d was neat. Many thanks to XType and Smylers. Oh those happy days with the children when we were wanted and necessary instead of being just old and worn out. Enjoy them Smylers- suddenly they have flown the nest.
* / ***
Nice gentle start to the week, good fun. Ticks went to the 26a sweet and 5d missing ancestor. Having now read the comments, I too can’t put the alternate rude version of 23a out of my mind!
Many thanks to X-Type and Smylers.
A really good puzzle today – thanks X-Type. It was */***** for me and plenty of anagrams added to the enjoyment. A real confidence booster! Favourites included: 24a, 28a, 7d, and 15d. Also thanks to Smylers for the hints.
On a different thread, someone mentioned Tim Tams in Saturday’s comments. Oh dear, we remembered them from our Australian visits so off I went to (successfully) source a couple of packs from the local Sainsbury’s. Yes, they are delicious, so thanks for that information!
Another nice start to the non-work week again with this Monday puzzle.
1.5*/4* today
Favourites 12a, 26a, 4d, 6d, 15d & 17d — with winner 12a … made me chuckle
Smiles for 25a, 3d & 22d
Thanks to X-Type & Smylers
Am I going barmy? I’ve not yet had my daily G,nT but this guzzle is flagged up as 31,075 and my newspaper says 31,074. If it is a deliberate mistake do I get a prize for spotting it?
Ooops. Well spotted, Daisygirl. I tried to save time by creating the empty post yesterday evening, which involves ‘predicting’ the puzzle number before it is published. Somehow I messed up my maths, for which I apologise. Monday puzzles are aways an even number, so I’ve no idea how I ended up with a number ending in 5.
(And apologies in advance to tomorrow’s blogger for appropriating your slug!)
Light and fun all the way through, thank you compiler and lovely illustration from Smylers (including the wonderful Annie Lennox who we saw at the Royal Albert Hall earlier this year – what a concert that was!)
As others have said, a great start to the week. My only hold up was that at first I hastily bunged in “to the end of the road” for 4d without checking that the letters worked, and thus threw myself off course for 23a etc. Saw 4a in action in a visit to Magaluf many moons ago. Very much enjoyed this friendly puzzle. Thanks for X-type and Smylers.
Thanks to X-Type and Smylers. Quick but very enjoyable solve that was ideal for a Monday. COTD 15d. LOI 9a. Chilly enough to have lit the wood burner!
Very light, as befits a Monday.
My favourites were 13a and 15d.
Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.
A very welcome light and enjoyable puzzle to start the week. I have been away – home tomorrow, and am behind with the puzzles so have a couple to catch up on . It’s funny how tiredness affects the ability to engage and solve. Hopefully will get back on track this week. Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.
“The end of the Nile “!! I had a four letter word, all the letters and two checkers and I chose Nile.
As if that’s not bad enough, it then took me quite a long time to see my error.
Who’s ever heard of the end of the Nile?
Oh, and while I’m here, DG, you may be old, if pushed I’ll give you that, but you are definitelynot worn out. Rarely have I heard of someone so involved in so many things on a daily / weekly basis.
You are an example to us all
That’s hilarious, Banksie — thank you for sharing!
A straightforward and enjoyable solve despite 4a causing a dnf. Got the answer from the hint though.
Thanks to all.
Leading Sindy astray was my favourite in a fun Monday puzzle. VMT X-Type and Smylers.
Yes, a gentle, confidence boosting stroll this evening although I had to check the bullfighter spelling electronically. Always like an anagram. COTD 1d for its construction and surface. */**** Thanks to X-type and Smylers
One of my quickest solves. Not sure whether it was because of the generous number of anagrams or because I went to my Age UK exercise class (Strength and Balance) this morning and it wakened up my little grey cells. Lots to like. Many thanks to X-Type and Smylers. Nothing but rain all day here and set for the whole week. Relieved we don’t live near to river!
1* / 4* An excellent and gentle start to the week with plenty of wit. For my top three I’ll go for 26a pud, 17d fight and the stiff and formal 14d
Thanks to X Type and Smylers
Never heard of the strip of cloth in 20d being called a runner but I did manage to find a river in Albania called the Mat so at least that avoided it being a bung for me albeit for apparently the wrong reasons, I was rather proud of that though. Apart from that about right for a Monday. Favourite was 15d. Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.