January 5, 2026 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog

DT 31128

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31128

Hints and tips by Falcon

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BD Rating  –  Difficulty * –  Enjoyment ****

Greetings from Ottawa on this twelfth day of Christmas. I hope you were able to concentrate on the puzzle despite the din from the twelve drummers who arrived today – not to mention all the birds, maids, ladies, lords and pipers who preceded them over the past eleven days.

X-Type has given us a gentle exercise with which to ease back into the crossword routine after the recent festivities. He seems to have taken a page out of RayT’s book and given us a puzzle that will appeal to those of us who have not outgrown our schoolboy sense of humour.

In the hints below, underlining identifies precise definitions and cryptic definitions, FODDER is capitalized, and indicators are italicized. The answers will be revealed by clicking on the ANSWER buttons.

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