Sunday Telegraph Cryptic No 3360
A full review by Rahmat Ali
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This puzzle was published on 15th March 2026
BD Rating – Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ****
Greetings from Kolkata. Dada has given us a very lovely enjoyable solve this Sunday and now I present to you a full review of his puzzle. Hope to have your valuable feedback and comments.
Ramadan, the answer to the clue at 5d, is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. The BRB also defines Ramadan as the fast observed during this time. The annual observance of Ramadan is regarded as one of the Five Pillars of Islam and lasts 29 to 30 days, from one sighting of the crescent moon to the next, as Islamic months are based on the lunar calendar. I have always fasted during the month of Ramadan, starting at the age of seven, without ever missing a fast. During this Ramadan, I found myself plunged into deep thought. I wondered why Ramadan always seems to begin in the Middle East, so I searched the internet to find out which people on Earth sight the crescent or new moon, first. I discovered that people in the Middle East and North Africa are often among the first to sight the new moon. Hence, people in this region may appear to be the most privileged, as they begin fasting before Muslims in other parts of the world. However, I also reflected that night begins at different times across the globe, but starting in the Middle East. This led me to think about who experiences the first rays of the sun. I realised that no one on Earth can definitively claim to see the first sunrise before everyone else. In fact, there is no absolute first sunrise or first sunset, because the Earth is spherical and constantly rotating. At the age of eight, I learnt that Japan is called the ‘Land of the Rising Sun’. This time, I searched the internet to find out when this idea originated. I learnt that the term dates back to 607-608 AD, when Prince Shōtoku of Japan sent a letter to the Chinese emperor, referring to his country as Nihon or Nippon, meaning ‘the land where the sun rises’. I also learnt that while Japan is one of the earliest places to see the sunrise, places closer to the International Date Line, such as Kiribati and New Zealand, technically experience the first sunrise of the day. In fact, Millennium Island (also known as Caroline Island) in Kiribati often experiences the first sunrise on Earth due to its location near the International Date Line. The East Cape of New Zealand and the Chatham Islands are also among the first inhabited places to see the sun. However, the International Date Line is a human invention, an imaginary line running through the Pacific Ocean that marks where one day ends and the next begins. It was created for convenience, to help organise time globally. Therefore, I concluded that night begins from the Middle East, there is no single place on Earth where the day truly begins first. People who follow the lunar calendar, which is typically 354 days long, experience their religious festivals in all seasons over a cycle of about 34 years (equivalent to 33 solar years). In contrast, those who follow the solar calendar, with years of about 365 days, observe their festivals in the same season each year. Similarly, the length of a person’s shadow at a given time on a particular day of the year will be almost exactly the same on the corresponding day in the following year of the solar calendar.
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Across
1a Band kit (5)
STRIP: Double definition; the second referring to the identifying kit or outfit worn by the members of a sports team while playing that takes to the first referring to a long, narrow piece of cloth, paper, plastic or some other material, an example of which is a band i.e. a flat, thin strip or loop of material, used as a fastener for reinforcement or as decoration
4a Remain behind for search (5)
PROBE: BE (remain) as to remain or continue as before preceded by or coming after (behind) PRO (for) as the Latin root word for the preposition ‘for’ takes to the definition of a noun meaning a careful systematic search
10a Favouring one’s own spot, mine different (8)
NEPOTISM: The definition of a noun denoting favouritism shown to relatives or close friends of associates by those in power as by giving them jobs etc is arrived at when SPOT, MINE from the clue is subject to an anagram (different)
11a Mover of animals, dog behind shepherd’s back (6)
DROVER: The definition of a person whose occupation is the driving of sheep or cattle, especially to and from market is reached from ROVER (dog) as a generic name for a pet dog appearing after or preceded by (behind) the back or the terminal letter (back) of [SHEPHER]D (shepherd’s)
12a Quite delightful (6)
PRETTY: Double definition; the second being an adjective denoting attracting, pleasing or delightful that takes to the first an adverb meaning quite, very, fairly or moderately
13a Winger on the turn, drained, moved with the ball (8)
DRIBBLED: BIRD (winger) as a creature with feathers and wings, usually able to fly, an example of which is a winger i.e. a creature having wings coming from the other end or in a turning mode (on the turn) as a reversal in the across clue followed by BLED (drained) as a verb in the past tense meaning lost blood from the body as a result of injury or illness, an example of which is drained i.e. caused or allowed liquid to run off or out of something takes to the definition of a verb in the past tense meaning moved with the ball by repeatedly kicking, bouncing or hitting it, as in football, basketball, hockey etc
14a Wet items on ground (7)
MOISTEN: The definition of a verb meaning to make something slightly wet is obtained from an anagram (ground) of ITEMS ON
16a Chicken feed, sweet (6)
TRIFLE: Double nounal definition; the second being a British sweet dish made of layers of cake, fruit, jelly, custard and cream that takes to the first referring to a jot or a small amount or something of little importance or value, an example of which is a chicken feed, a slang term for a trifling amount of money
17a Amphitheatres where charity at stake originally, looking back (6)
STADIA: The definition of the plural of a large structure for open-air sports or entertainments, similar to amphitheatres i.e. buildings, usually open circular or oval, in which tiers of seats for spectators rise from a central open arena, for the presentation of dramatic or sporting events as in those of ancient Greece and Rome is reached from a combo of AID (charity) as a financial or material help given to a country or area in need, an example of which is charity i.e. the voluntary giving of help, typically in the form of money, to those in need, AT from the clue and the original or initial letter (originally) of S[TAKE], all coming from the other end (looking back) as reversals in the across clue
19a Country roads seen after turning around for example (7)
SENEGAL: The definition of the westernmost country in West Africa, situated along the Atlantic Ocean coast is reached from LANES (roads) as the plural of a narrow road which can be used by vehicles, especially in the country in a turning mode (after turning) as a reversal in the across clue and placed about (around) EG (for example) as the abbreviation for the Latin phrase exempli gratia meaning ‘for example’
21a Bed into which female snuggles in new semi, most cosy (8)
COMFIEST: COT (bed) as a small bed with high barred sides for a baby or very young child having inside (into which) F (female) as the genealogical abbreviation for female inserted (snuggles) in an anagram (new) of SEMI leads to the definition of an adjective in the superlative degree meaning most cosy, comfortable or easeful
22a Island a success in heart of nation (6)
TAHITI: The definition of the largest island in French Polynesia, the South Pacific archipelago is arrived at from a combo of A from the clue and HIT (success) as a great success, especially a film, pop record or song placed inside (in) the central or middle letters (heart) of [NA]TI[ON]
23a Indian leader with leader from Hungary embraced by soldier (6)
GANDHI: The definition of an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist and political thinker who employed non-violent resistance to lead the successful campaign for India’s independence from British rule is reached from a combo of AND (with) as a conjunction used to connect grammatically coordinate words, phrases or clauses denoting with, as well as or in addition to the leading or initial letter (leader) from H[UNGARY] hugged or covered by (embraced by) GI (soldier) as the abbreviation for ‘government issue’ or ‘general issue’ used to refer to a World War II soldier and now as a regular soldier in the US army
24a Get stamp showing well-known monument, say (8)
LANDMARK: A charade of LAND (get) as to get, score or gain, as in ‘to land a deal’ is ‘to get a deal’ and MARK (stamp) as to stamp, brand or label takes to the definition of a prominent identifying feature of a landscape or a building or other place of outstanding historical, aesthetic or cultural importance, an example of which is a famous or well-known monument
25a Idle rejection of piece from Sartre, nihilistic (5)
INERT: The definition of an adjective denoting idle, inactive or inoperative is reached from part of or hidden inside (piece from) [SAR]TRE, NI[HILISTIC] returning from the other end (rejection) as a reversal in the across clue
26a Odd bits forgotten in opus sadly, my song (5)
PSALM: The oddly-placed letters (odd bits) removed, ignored or not taken into consideration (forgotten) in [O]P[U]S [S]A[D]L[Y,] M[Y] takes to the definition of a devotional or sacred song or hymn in Christian and Jewish worship
Down
2d More surprisingly in support of article, mathematical statement (7)
THEOREM: An anagram (surprisingly) of MORE placed in the down clue after (in support of) THE (article) as the definite article in the English language that guides to the definition of a mathematical statement whose truth can be proved on the basis of a given set of axioms or assumptions
3d I’ll take the food, but it’s unclear whether or not I care! (1,4,4,2,1,2)
I DON’T MIND IF I DO: A cryptic definition of a polite or humorous way of accepting an offer by someone, reinforcing the sense of acquiescence and willingness, an example of which is accepting an offering of food that’s suggesting some sort of indifference is arrived at from the ambiguity or unclearness whether about whether one minds or cares
5d Fast sheep, and a cuckoo (7)
RAMADAN: The definition of a fast, held from sunrise to sunset, that is carried out during the period of the same name i.e. Ramadan, the ninth month of the year in the Islamic calendar is reached from RAM (sheep) as an uncastrated male sheep followed by an anagram (cuckoo) of AND A
6d Awful lot of money covering sport (9)
BADMINTON: A charade of BAD (awful) as an adjective meaning awful, dreadful or of poor quality or low standard, MINT (lot of money) as a vast sum of money and ON (covering) as a preposition denoting touching, fixed to, covering etc guides to the definition of a sport played by volleying a shuttlecock back and forth over a high narrow net by means of a light, long-handled racket
7d Substantial groom (4)
TIDY: Double definition; the second being a verb meaning to groom or to make neat and trim that takes to the first an informal term for an adjective meaning substantial or considerable
8d Sad bigmouth, not miserable sceptic (8,6)
DOUBTING THOMAS: An anagram (miserable) of SAD BIGMOUTH, NOT guides to the definition of a sceptic or someone who habitually doubts accepted belief or insists on proof before they will believe anything
9d Uncover most of red meat (6)
REVEAL: The definition of a verb denoting to uncover, unveil, disclose or bring out is obtained from most of the letters (most) of RE[D] followed by VEAL (meat) as the flesh of a young calf, used as food
15d Serious player, and great I suspect (9)
TRAGEDIAN: The definition of an actor who excels in performing serious and dramatic roles, whether in stage plays, films or television shows is reached from an anagram (suspect) of AND GREAT I
18d Bug in jar, not spreadable (6)
TROJAN: The definition of a bug, that is a type of computer virus or malicious software, better known as Trojan horse, is arrived at from an anagram (spreadable) of JAR, NOT
19d Colonist, bill payer? (7)
SETTLER: Double nounal definition; the second cryptically referring to a bill or account payer or someone who pays a bill that leads to the first pointing out to someone who settles in a new land, especially as part of establishing a colony or when the settling is tied to founding or inhabiting a colony
20d Line ending novel I alter, exactly as read (7)
LITERAL: L (line) as the abbreviation for line coming after or preceded by (ending) an anagram (novel) of I ALTER takes to the definition of adjective meaning according to the letter, following word for word or exactly as read
22d Minute, little time during year (4)
TINY: The definition of an adjective denoting very small or minute is fetched from a charade of T (little time) as time denoted by a single letter, IN (during) as a preposition meaning during or in the period of or during the act or process of and Y (year) as the abbreviation for year
There were several clues that I liked in this puzzle such as 4a, 11a, 13a, 19a, 24a, 3d, 5d, 6d, 8d, 18d and 19d; the best of the lot being the resounding 5d. 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. Have a pleasant day.
3*/2* …
liked 8D “Sad bigmouth, not miserable sceptic (8,6)”