Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31195
Hints and tips by Huntsman
+ – + – + – + – + – + – + – + – +
BD Rating – Difficulty * Enjoyment ***
A Typically Tuesdayish puzzle, as Senf would say, that I assume is an Anthony Plumb production. I was going great guns solving in an anti-clockwise direction & on course to comfortably better yesterday’s solve time until a bit of brain fog near the finish line in the NE. As ever nicely clued throughout & very enjoyable too.
As usual there is a selection of music to enjoy or ignore.
In the hints below the definition element of each clue has been underlined, anagrams are CAPITALISED & the crossword technique “indicator words” are in brackets. The answers are concealed under the Click Here buttons. Please leave a comment below telling us what you thought & how you got on with the puzzle.
Across
1a My godson seems almost wild (8,2)
GOODNESS ME: an anagram (wild/almost) of GODSON SEEM[s]. I’ll spare you Peter Sellers & Sophia Loren.
6a State again wanting carbon cut (4)
REAP: remove (wanting) the chemical element symbol for C[arbon] from a synonym for state again/summarise.
10a Problem in the US simply rejected (5)
ISSUE: hidden in reverse (in/rejected).
11a Doctor cures most clients (9)
CUSTOMERS: an anagram (doctor) of CURES MOST.
12a Keep quiet about what Novak Djokovic might do (8)
PRESERVE: quiet/P[iano] in music + split 2-5 for what the Serbian tennis player is required to do if his first effort doesn’t 8d.
13a Initially some cows and sheep get lost (5)
SCRAM: the 1st letters (initially) of words 2 & 3 of the clue followed by a male sheep.
15a Padre is bizarrely commended (7)
PRAISED: an anagram (bizarrely) of PADRE IS.
17a Small oars scratching top of picnic hampers (7)
SADDLES: S[mall] + a type of oar suitable for kayaking or canoeing less the 1st letter (scratching top) of P[icnic].
19a Too much silver found in church residence (7)
COTTAGE: insert (found in) the usual abbreviation for too much/exaggerated + the chemical element symbol for silver (from the Latin Argentum) inside of the abbreviation for the Anglican church.
21a Unusual row after second tango (7)
STRANGE: a synonym of row/chain preceded by (comes after) S[econd] & T[ango] (NATO alphabet).
22a Mammal moved nearer lake (5)
CAMEL: moved nearer/approached + L[ake].
24a Victorian grew flower (8)
PRIMROSE: Victorian/strait-laced + grew/burgeoned.
27a Someone who helps animal is hesitant? Not half! (9)
ASSISTANT: an animal of the horse family with a braying call + IS from the wordplay + 50% of (not half) of hesi[TANT].
28a Silly bats ignoring spades (5)
INANE: bats/bonkers less (ignoring) the card suit abbreviation for S[pades].
29a First-rate student welcomes exam (4)
TEST: hidden (welcomes).
30a Where riders might compete, no matter what (2,3,5)
IN ANY EVENT: I guess this could be deemed a double definition but I’ve only underlined the last bit – either way it’s a reference to sporty types atop an animal or a motorbike for example.
Down
1d Forbidding finally crossing border (4)
GRIM: crossin[G] (finally) + border/edge.
2d Quick to notice biblical book lacks first page? (9)
OBSERVANT: remove the initial letter (lacks first) from a book in the Old Testament + a page/attendant.
3d Regularly infer editor’s requirements (5)
NEEDS: the even letters (regularly) of the 2nd word of the clue + the usual abbreviation for ED[itor] with the possessive ‘s.
4d Start keeping worthless dog tied up (7)
SECURED: a synonym for start/inception goes around (keeping) a term for a worthless dog.
5d Gains a thorough knowledge of 1,000 plants (7)
MASTERS: the Roman numeral for 1,000 + daisy-like perennials.
7d Muslim leader always embraces this writer (5)
EMEER: a poetic always goes round (embraces) a first-person singular personal pronoun for this writer. The wordplay was clear but the variant spelling maybe less so.
8d Do assemble below gap in the mountains (4,6)
PASS MUSTER: a col/gap in the mountains + (under/down clue) + a synonym for to assemble/gather.
9d Think about prisoners on island, ruddy upset (8)
CONSIDER: the usual slang term for prisoners + the single letter for I[sland] + a reversed (upset) synonym for ruddy.
14d RAF accepts new rocket? (10)
SPACECRAFT: an anagram (new) of RAF ACCEPTS.
16d Most wee from cat smells around Charlie’s shed (8)
SMALLEST: another anagram (around) of [c]AT SMELLS ignoring (shed) C[harlie] (NATO alphabet).
18d Constable maybe produced this bag and small cloak (9)
LANDSCAPE: a synonym for bag/acquire + S[mall] + a sleeveless outer garment.
20d European cross with dodgy plan I describe (7)
EXPLAIN: E[uropean] + the letter that resembles a cross followed by an anagram (dodgy) of PLAN I.
21d Besotted with German after last of tweets on X (7)
SMITTEN: the German for with preceded by (after) tweet[S] (last of) + the number X represents (Roman numeral).
23d Maiden begs for veils (5)
MASKS: M[aiden] (cricket abbrev) + begs/requests.
25d Breed fish, we’re told (5)
RAISE: a homophone (we’re told) of flat-bodied fish, loosely synonymous with the definition in agricultural/animal contexts.
26d Kinky inclination (4)
BENT: double definition.
8d was my pick of today’s bunch & I also liked 13a + 2,16,18&21d so they can fight it out between themselves for podium spots. Please tell us which clues you liked best.
Today’s Quick Crossword pun: COP + EEK + HATS = COPY CATS
This morning’s listening while preparing the blog has been Christine Perfect’s (later McVie) Blue Horizon Sessions recording in her pre Fleetwood Mac days – here’s her version of a great song I first heard sung by Bobby Bland.
A gentle but still enjoyable puzzle.
Top picks for me were 8d, 2d, 6a and 18d.
Thanks to Huntsman and the setter.
Check you out, beating SC and Cons to the punch, you crazy river you! The early upload caught them out but a win is win.
The score on the doors, btw, are 20 to Stevie baby and 6 to the challenger.
As Steve has been preoccupied with other matters, I have held my fire from posting first. But still aiming for a podium placement…..though not first place.
Yep, the silver is yours.
I didn’t get on so well with the professor today but I put that down to running late. I had to take Hudson to the vet to have his dressing changed. Coming to a crossword late always throws me off my stride. Still, I got there in the end and, as ever, wondered why I had struggled because it was clued fairly. 16d was rather lavatorial. My COTD was the Victorian at 24a.
Thank you, AP for the puzzle but I could not do it justice. Thank you, Hintsman for the hunts.
I’m back on the marking again so my postings may become somewhat erratic. 😳
I was thinking of the Victorian as my COTD but opted instead for the lavatorial humour at 16d. The answer at 24a may have been more apt than the setter might have been aware, apparently being the favourite flower of Benjamin D’Israeli and the name of the League founded in his honour by Randolph Churchill.
Surely in the context of the clue 16d doesn’t actually need to be considered lavatorially.
The first pass allowed for a generous fill of the grid, after which it was a case of filling in the blanks. The exclamation at 1a, the Victorian at 24a and the gymkhana at 30 across are my top picks. 2, 8, 18, 21, 23 and 26 down are also worthy contenders. Many thanks to the setter and hinter
A little tricky for a Tuesday though more enjoyable for it, I thought. Several definitions were hard to spot, until a few checkers were in place. LOI was 7D. Needed the hint to parse 2D (thanks Huntsman), though the answer was clear.
Pody picks awarded to 1A’s meaning and surface, I have sympathy for 4D’s dog and 16D’s cat (well, Charlie).
Also a shout out to 18D as one of my favourite painters, especially his darker work in Sussex, created during sadder times for him.
Many thanks to setter and H ⭐️
Very mild today with 30a and 8d my favourites. Thanks very much to the setter and to Huntsman for the hints and clips.
I tend to associate ‘Someone To Watch Over Me’ with Ella, but this Sarah Vaughan version is absolutely delicious; the orchestration is wonderful. Another beautiful voice – Christine Perfect/McVie. Great choices from The Hintsman.
Not showing orf as I have average skills only, but I managed to trundle through this guzzle quite steadily.
How tiresome these ‘international breaks’ are. The only consolation is that Chelsea can’t lose during them. Although I wouldn’t put it past them to find a way.
Ta to the setter and Andy On The First Tee.
Outstanding. I have ticked almost every clue for its surface. The prof is in fine form.
Regarding 13a, I initially (!) thought that ‘scasg’ meant ‘lost’ which I was but not for long.
Here’s one for Jose, Senf et al….7d was a new word as it’s a variant and it made me think what word has the most variant spellings? I have four with csar, czar, tsar and tzar. Is there one with more?
It’s all booting off at the base of the podium but I’ll give the silverware to 1a (excellent construction), 16d (natch) and the splendid 21d.
Wunderbar!
MTTTA and Hoots!
1*/5*
I’ve resent that article Tom which you ought to be able to access without being a subscriber as those that are can gift 15articles free per month
Thanking you.
What a fascinating list.
I’m glad they have Casablanca as numero uno. The Godfather gives it a good run but it’s the daddy. I’m also pleased to see Coda get a load of rotten tomatoes thrown at it. Dearie me.
I only saw Annie Hall for the first time last week and enjoyed it. I need to see more of his films as he is an amazing talent. Midnight Cowboy, which I’m sure you know is the only X Rated winner, just didn’t grab me when I saw it last year. Butch Cassidy should have won that year. What a great last scene!
I was surprised to see these so low in the rankings…
Oliver! 50
The Sting 53
The Sound of Music 80
The King’s Speech 92
Slumdog Millionaire 94
Green Book 95
The last one gets slated so much which I find odd as I enjoyed it hugely. They were both brilliant and had great chemistry.
Thanks again.
Allen films a must see in batting order – Manhattan, Hannah & Her Sisters & Crimes & Misdemeanours. I’ve a soft spot for Manhattan Murder Mystery & also Husbands & Wives.
Agree about Coda – Power of The Dog was a wonderful film & truly robbed. I also enjoyed Green Book though I agree with Spike Lee that the ref made a dud call (wouldn’t have given it his BlacKKlansman though) – thought A Star is Born was terrific & the best of the 3 versions I’ve seen.
All duly noted. Thank you squire.
You probably won’t like this Tom but here goes anyway. Confirmed by The Crimson Tome, like tsar, 7d has four variants but the winner appears to be the eagles nest with five variants eyrie/eyry/aerie/aery/ayrie.
Love it.
So, Chumpers has its uses, after all.
Thank you, S.
This was a very gentle examination set by the Professor today but, as always, it was beautifully clued and a joy to complete. My schoolboyish sense of humour allows me to pick 16d as my favourite.
My thanks to AP and The Hintsman.
On the easier side but it was a pleasure to solve.Some outstanding clues .7d a new one on me . Liked the constable clue and 8d . Thanks to all .
An enjoyable mid-morning Tuesday interlude, a thankfully gentle respite from last Friday’s Elgar Toughie, which continues to befuddle me: 10 left, now.
Honours to 8d, 30a & 19a
Many thanks to the setter and to Huntsman
Jeepers! That must be a brute of a crossword. M.
It was indeed, Tom, and it defeated me: I had to turn to CS and her brilliant tips for the last couple of clues. Elgar’s 300th Toughie, with a 30-letter anagram wandering over the grid, and every fiendish trick in his book – or so it felt. Evil but splendid.
As the yoof of today would say…..props to you for taking that on, MG.
Gosh that must have been a brute . I always think you find everything easy ! Good luck with getting that over the line. I am sure you will succeed.
Oh , yes I see you did. Well done 🥳
Typically Tuesdayish until I slowed myself down in the NW by inexplicably transposing the third and fourth letters in 15a which made 2d impossible to solve. A severe self-talking to was required when I realised my error. **/****
I would suggest that it is now time for 14d to join Serengeti, Orchestra, and others.
Candidates for favourite – 19a, 24a, 28a, and 26d – and the winner is the delightful 24a.
Thanks to Mr Plumb and Huntsman.
I agree re 14d.
4d is getting a lot of air time but not as much as the aforementioned.
A really enjoyable puzzle with smooth surfaces throughout – thanks to our setter and Huntsman.
My ticks went to 6a, 2d, 21 and (my favourite) 8d.
Delightful puzzle, most fun in ages, 8d is an absolute peach!
Love tuesdays puzzle. Always splendid surfaces. This one was over too quickly but it was lots of fun while it lasted. Thank you setter for the lashings of humour and to Huntsman for the review whos music i shall now listen to.
Many thanks to the setter and to Huntsman.
The three I selected were 1a, 2d, and 8d.
I wasn’t very 21d with this as some previous commentators are. Perhaps that’s just me today. Cotd for me is 24a. Thanks to AP and Huntsman.
1*/4*. Light, smooth and great fun!
Many thanks to AP and to Hintsman.
A very good start to today with 8d my favourite. There were a couple where I needed to check the parsing.
Many thanks to the setter and to Huntsman for the hints.
* / ****
Super smooth as always and a delight to solve. Had to check the variant spelling of 7d but otherwise plain sailing. Favourites were 19a for all the silver in church, 21d for the besotted German on X and of course the 16d smelly wee!
Many thanks to AP and Huntsman
Nice one today. COTD 24a. Re the hint for 1A – Sellers and Loren would not get away with that sort of thing nowadays.
Interestingly, there is an article in today’s DT about the repair of an old book owned/written by Bob Monkhouse eons ago being excluded from the Repair Shop TV programme because of a ‘sexist’ joke from the 1960s.
1* / 3.5* A gentle and very enjoyable solve with plenty of humour.
Favourites today include 21d besotted, 34a flower and Constable’s painting at 18d
Thanks to compiler and Huntsman
A Typical Tuesday puzzle for the most part this week.
2*/3.5*
Favourites 1a, 11a, 13a, 24a, 30a & 21d — with 21d the winner
Smiles for 22a, 5d, 14d & 26d
Thanks to AP & Huntsman
I found this a little tricky unlike the rest of you. Went round the grid several times before completing the spelling of 7d threw me off a bit.
Spent ages trying to think of a river beginning with P for 24a which was a bit of a doh moment once solved.
Top clues today 21d and 30a
What kind of life do all you people lead that you can spend the morning guzzling? Is the maid doing the chores? I envy you all. I don’t get a moment until I sit down to lunch and here I am at 1.30ish at no. 24. Anyway, does it matter? Like Hintsman I got stuck in the north east as I was looking for a writer at first and then couldn’t believe that the leader could be spelled that way. Brilliant guzzle, many thanks to AP and the man on the first tee. I think the Djokovic clue at 12a pleased me most. Now I just need my washing to dry before it rains. Please.
Daisy, we used to solve over breakfast, but found it made us so late in getting moving that we switched to saving the puzzles for lunchtime. We both prefer our new routine, although I confess I have slipped into doing more of the DT puzzles at breakfast instead (1% club and Panagram). It could just be that we just need something to take our minds off the dispiriting daily news broadcasts over here.
I don’t usually find time until the evening – often quite late. Only just finished!
Definitely on the professor’s wavelength today resulting in a relatively speedy finish. 1a was probably my favourite.
Thanks to AP and Huntsman for the musical interludes some of which was new to me…
Mild, but a great deal of fun throughout. Silky smooth surfaces all over, and it’s hard to pick out a favourite from so many goodies, but I think I’ll go with the church silver.
Thanks to our setter and to Huntsman, whose music choices will entertain me as I hunker down from the rain).
Today’s Dada Toughie is pretty accessible and very good fun, too, even if it is one of those rare puzzles that I have found more straightforward than Crypticsue!
and me…..
I found this to be far less chewy than yesterday with a relatively quick fill. 2d had me going in circles as I saw the answer from the checkers, but opted for a different biblical book which, less the first letter, gave me what I thought was an anagram of the first 6 letters, but then realised it also gave me an extra R. Needless to say I couldn’t parse it that way. Huntsman showed me the error of my ways. Otherwise all very smooth cluing
MT AP & Huntsman
1*/3*
Nicely gentle today , again welcome to restore some confidence. Thanks to the setter and to Huntsman.
With old guys football this morning I didn’t start until some time this afternoon. Feeling stiff although offset by the fact I scored a goal, the thrill never leaves you!
I found this a similar standard to yesterday’s although I did manage to finish it without reference to the hints. That said, I found the NE quadrant a bit tricky and those were my final entries. I thought the cluing on 6a a bit of a stretch since the word ‘cut’ seemed to be fulfilling a double function, as an instruction and as the definition. A small point.
COTD for me, the cat’s piddle at 16d.
Thank you to the setter and to Huntsman for the hints.
An enjoyable puzzle but failed to finish. I had to turn to the hints as couldn’t get 6a and 7d. I have never seen the latter spelt that way. Not having solved 6a meant I had no starter letter for 8d so I thought that 8d was an anagram! A sad finish to what had been a good solve! Many thanks to the setter AP and Huntsman.
2D an absolute masterpiece in a lovely puzzle. VMT to the Prof & to Huntsman.
Got most of the puzzle done before going to The Arts Soc. for a lecture on Stanley Spencer. Definitely not one of my favourite artists and yes I have been to the gallery at Cookham . We do lunch for 50 to 60 people after every lecture so it is a long day. Back to the puzzle and Mr. Plumb does not disappoint. The only bear trap was 8 down and it meant going to Huntsman for help. Favourite was 2 down . As for 7 down one spelling is as good as another for me. Thanks and gratitude all round.
Golly, all we get at our Arts Society is a glass of wine!
A few head scratchers but enjoyable with Mark Knobfler’s Shangrila 🎸
Love that song!
A most enjoyable puzzle. The SW corner went in quickly and everything else fell nicely into place as I picked it up throughout the day. 16d has to be my clue of the day! Enjoyed the Christy Moore amongst the hints, haven’t listened to him for a good while. I may tee up his greatest hits for my commute in the morning. Thanks to the setter and Huntsman.
if you use Spotify Nicky here’s my playlist.
Have seen him many times, from the early days playing the National Club in Kilburn & he never disappoints
Thanks for sharing! Never seen him live – I bet that’s a great atmosphere.
That was a treat indeed, very enjoyable from start to finish. Suspected the DT got its Monday and Tuesday mixed up, but as this almost definitely an AP, I guess I just got lucky today (having struggled yesterday). Almost hint free, but totally missed the definition at 6a, and the spelling at 7d was new to me. Otherwise, all my own work, so a happy camper today. Thanks to AP and Huntsman.
I don’t know that happened to my comment but it’s not there. I agree with others re 7d, I think the setter painted himself into a corner lovely crossword, a joy to solve. Favourite was 8d, a phrase I use often. Thanks to AP and Huntsman.
Only needed a little help to finish the puzzle but, as always, reading the hints afterwards highlights the subtleties that have completely passed me by. So thank you for the hints and also for the puzzle, where I particularly like the besotted German 21d.
Very enjoyable solve with clearly understandable clues.
More delightful Tuesday pain-free fun. Tomorrow will doubtless be a rude awakening after two days of sitters. Was unaware of alternative spelling for 7d but suppose its just phonetic anyway. Thank you MrP and Hintsman (I couldn’t fit polyanthus into 24a!).
1d is surely the last letter of crossing with rim and forbidding the whole thing?
That’s how I parsed it too.
Of course it is Peter – which I well knew. Thanks for pointing out.
Now corrected.
2*/3* …
liked 19A “Too much silver found in church residence (7)”