ST 3345 (Full Review)

Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3345

A full review by Rahmat Ali

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This puzzle was published on 30^th November 2025

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

Greetings from Kolkata. A straightforward and gentle puzzle from Dada this Sunday that I enjoyed solving and thereafter writing a full review of his puzzle for your kind perusal and valuable feedback.

Come down to earth, the definition to the clue at 15a, was very interesting. Building castles in the air, of course, means pursuing imaginary or unrealistic plans, projects or hopes. The setter is perhaps rightly suggesting that solvers should come down to earth and give up such vague ideas. But I see no respite from building castles even on earth, at least somewhere. That place is not a small one, but a large country where people are free to build their castles. All they need is to take the classic option known as “building castles in Spain.”

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

8a           Vicar’s ciggy? Good Lord! (4,5)
HOLY SMOKE: SMOKE (ciggy) is something which may be smoked, for example, tobacco, cigarette, cigar or its shortened version ciggy and vicar’s ciggy can be ciggy belonging to vicar who is a parson of a parish or a bishop’s deputy and regarded as a holy person and by extension vicar’s ciggy may be cryptically defined as ‘holy smoke’ that is an exclamatory phrase used to express surprise, astonishment, alarm or dismay, an example of which is the interjection ‘Good Lord’ that is used to express strong feelings like surprise, shock, astonishment, frustration or even relief

10a        Crawling in a bath (5)
AWASH: The definition of an adjective meaning crawling with or doused or covered with water is got from a combo of A from the clue and WASH (bath) as a bath or shower

11a        Transformation of said zoo, fetching bull or lion, say? (4,2,3,6)
SIGN OF THE ZODIAC: An anagram (transformation) of SAID ZOO, FETCHING guides to the definition of one of twelve astrological divisions, each linked to constellations and symbols like animals or figures, used to describe personality traits and influences, an example of which, among other symbols, is a bull or lion

12a        Drip in alehouse returning for drinking session (5-2)
BOOZE-UP: OOZE (drip) as to drip, trickle or seep placed inside (in) PUB (alehouse) as a colloquial term for a public house that is an alehouse or a building chiefly used for selling alcoholic liquors to be consumed on the premises coming from the other end (returning) as a reversal in the across clue takes to the definition of a drinking spree, bout or session

13a        Into Niger I tread, African country (7)
ERITREA: Part of or hidden inside (into) [NIG]ER I TREA[D] leads to the definition of a north-east African country on the Red Sea coast

15a        Vacate castle in the air – and land? (4,4,2,5)
COME DOWN TO EARTH: The definition of the idiom suggesting one to come back to reality is cryptically arrived at from instructing them to leave (vacate) the daydream or unrealistic idea (castle in the air) and come down to earth (land) signifying return to reality in this all-in-one clue

19a        Manage back, then make notes, in hospital career (7)
NURSING: RUN (manage) as to manage or be in charge of something coming from the other end (back) as a reversal in the across clue followed by (then) SING (make notes) as to produce musical sounds or notes with the voice, especially in a connected series, as in giving voice to a song takes to the definition of the practice or profession of caring for the sick and injured that can be a career in a hospital

22a        A Spanish gentleman passing outlaw in desert (7)
ABANDON: A combo of A from the clue and DON (Spanish gentleman) as referring to a Spanish nobleman or a Spaniard extending across BAN (outlaw) as to officially or legally prohibit something or to outlaw i.e. to ban or make illegal guides to the definition of a verb meaning to desert, leave behind or forsake utterly

24a        Sports field where card shown after poor quality delivery (8,7)
BASEBALL DIAMOND: The definition of the baseball playing field  is obtained from DIAMOND (card) as one of the four suits in a deck of playing cards preceded by or following (shown after) a combo of BASE (poor quality) as an adjective denoting low-quality, inferior or coarse and BALL (delivery) as a delivery of a ball in cricket and other sports

26a        Expression of sympathy arrived (5)
THERE: Double definition; the second denoting having reached a destination, for example, to the question, “Are we there yet?”, the reply, “We’re there” means “We have arrived” that takes to the first denoting an expression of sympathy, for example, the soothing expression, “There, there” is said to comfort someone.

27a        Small vehicle rotates, we being turned (3-6)
TWO-SEATER: The definition of a small vehicle with seats for two people is obtained when ROTATES, WE is subject to an anagram (being turned)

Down

1d           A little cloth used like that (4)
THUS: Part of or hidden inside (a little) [CLO]TH US[ED] takes to the definition of an adverb meaning like this, like that or in this manner or in that manner

2d           On solid ground, a positive, by the sound of it? (6)
ASHORE: The definition of an adverb denoting on solid ground or dry land rather than at sea or on the water is obtained from a combo of A from the clue and a homophone heard by the audience (by the sound of it) of SURE (positive) as an adverb meaning positive, certain or clear

3d           Leader with the right to push a revolutionary west (8)
SOUTHPAW: The definition of a boxer who leads with the right hand and off the right foot as opposed to the orthodox style of leading with the left arrives when TO PUSH A is subject to an anagram (revolutionary) followed by W (west) as the abbreviation for west

4d           Case of suite Frenchman composed (6)
SERENE: The outermost letters (case) of S[UIT]E followed by RENÉ (Frenchman) as a common and traditional male name in France guides to the definition of an adjective denoting calm, content or composed

5d           Old plugs sealing off fuel (8)
GASOLINE: O (old) as the abbreviation for old fills in or comes inside (plugs) in an anagram (off) of SEALING, leading to the definition of a fuel i.e. a low-boiling petroleum distillate or the ordinary word for petrol in North America

6d           Posh nosh coming through into saloon, say (6)
CAVIAR: The definition of the salted sturgeon roe that is globally associated with luxury and expensive fine dining, an example of which is the phrase posh nosh i.e. a top-class or expensive food is got from VIA (through) as a preposition denoting by way of, by means of or through placed inside (into) CAR (saloon, say) as a four-wheeled road vehicle that is powered by an engine and is able to carry a small number of people, an example of which is a saloon i.e. a motor car with two or four doors and enclosed compartment for driver and passengers

7d           Smart nestling brushing off tail (4)
CHIC: The definition of an adjective meaning smart, fashionable or stylish is got from CHIC[K] (nestling) as young chicken or other bird  as a young bird especially of domestic fowl or a bird that is still young, an example of which is a nestling i.e. a young bird that has not yet left its nest dismissing or ignoring (brushing off) its last or bottommost letter in the down clue (tail)

9d           Space dock set up (7)
LEGROOM: The definition of a space in which a seated person can put their legs is got from a combo of MOOR (dock) and to dock and GEL (set) as to set or become more solid

12d        Streaky painter? (5)
BACON: The definition of the surname of a twentieth-century Irish-born British figurative painter Francis BACON known for his raw, unsettling imagery is cryptically arrived at from streaky, an adjective meaning fat and lean in alternate layers, especially of bacon

14d        A small chicken pasty (5)
ASHEN: A from the clue followed by S (small) as the abbreviation for small and HEN (chicken) as a female domestic fowl takes to the definition of an adjective denoting extremely pale, pallid or pasty

16d        Slobbering football player? (8)
DRIBBLER: A cryptic definition of a football player who dribbles or moves the ball forward little by little, tricking opponents is whimsically linked to dribbling meaning slobbering i.e. letting saliva run from the mouth

17d        Broken tap, order liquid from duct (4,4)
TEAR DROP: An anagram (broken) of TAP, ORDER guides to the definition of a tear that comes from a tear duct that is a small tube that drains tears from the eye into the nasal cavity

18d        Soldier once feeding duck to ginger tom (7)
REDCOAT: The definition of a British soldier, especially one serving during the American Revolution is arrived at from O (duck) as a batsman’s score of nought or zero in cricket going inside (feeding … to) a combo of RED (ginger) as one of the shades of red and CAT (tom) as a small domesticated carnivorous mammal kept as a pet, an example of which is a tom i.e. the male of various animals, especially the cat

20d        Less cautious 12 Down? (6)
RASHER: Double definition; the second being a noun referring to a thin slice of bacon that is cryptically reached from the first that serves as comparative degree of the adjective ‘rash’ meaning more reckless or incautious and hence less cautious

21d        Stew let go, popping in a sweet (6)
GELATO: An anagram (stew) of LET GO taking inside (popping in) A from the clue leads to the definition of the Italian style of ice cream made from milk, cream, sugar, and fruit or other flavours mixed together and frozen and treated as a cold, soft, sweet food

23d        Stupefied, all inside Alcatraz having escaped into a sea (6)
AMAZED: The definition of an adjective meaning greatly surprised, astonished or stupefied is deduced from A[LCATRA]Z subject to having only the outermost letters (all inside … having escaped) placed inside (into) a combo of A from the clue and MED (sea) as the informal term for the Mediterranean Sea

24d        Cask, however, picked up? (4)
BUTT: The definition of a cask, typically used for wine, beer or water is reached from a homophone heard by the audience (picked up) of BUT (however) as used to introduce a contrast, an exception or a contradiction or as a conjunction meaning, however, yet, still or nevertheless

25d        Miserable sovereign I had flipped over (4)
DIRE: The definition of an adjective meaning distressing, grim or wretched, an example of which is miserable i.e. wretchedly unhappy or uncomfortable is arrived at from a combination of ER (sovereign) as the abbreviation for Edwardus Rex in New Latin meaning King Edward and I’D (I had) as a contraction for ‘I had’ or ‘I would’ in an upside down situation (flipped over) as reversals in the down clue

There were many clues that I liked in this puzzle such as 8a, 11a, 15a, 3d, 12d, 14d, 18d, 20d and 23d; 8a being the best of the lot. My prayers to the Almighty for the eternal rest and peace of BD and my thanks to Dada for the entertainment. Looking forward to being here again.