Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 31295 (Hints)
The Saturday Crossword Club
(hosted by crypticsue)
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A grey and gloomy start to Saturday morning here in East Kent – we are promised a bit of sun later and judging by the way my tortoise charge is already up and eating for England, I think the weather forecast might be right, as she is usually a pretty good judge of what is in store
Today’s Saturday Prize Puzzle isn’t at all grey and gloomy, but a most enjoyable solve with several clues that made me smile. When picking which clues to hint, I did notice that there are quite a few lurkers and anagrams, if that helps you solve the unhinted clues
Please ask for help if you are stuck on clues I haven’t hinted, but before doing so, please read the comments that appear before yours, so that you are not duplicating questions, and make sure you obey both THE INSTRUCTIONS IN RED at the end of the Hints and the blog’s Comment Etiquette – Big Dave’s Crossword Blog)
Most of the terms used in these hints are explained in the Glossary and examples are available by clicking on the entry under “See also”. Where the hint describes a construct as “usual” this means that more help can be found in The Usual Suspects, which gives a number of the elements commonly used in the wordplay. Another useful page is Wolves in Sheep’s Clothing, which features words with meanings that are not always immediately obvious.
A full review of this puzzle will be published after the closing date for submissions.
Across
1a Benny Malone beheaded condemned Queen (4,6)
An anagram (condemned) of BENNY mALONE (beheaded telling you to ignore the first letter of Malone) If only Benny Malone had been the executioner, this would have been a perfect all-in-one clue!
6a Chances postgrad rejected processed food (4)
An abbreviation for some betting odds (chances) and a reversed (rejected) abbreviated postgraduate qualification
10a Beer batch returned in fine containers? (9)
A reversal (returned) of a type of beer and a batch or quantity produced followed by IN (from the clue)
19a Part of group infiltrated by FBI agents (7)
A group ‘infiltrated’ by agents of the FBI
21a Help as mug picked up (7)
A homophone (picked up) of a gullible person (mug)
30a Cheers giant cycling around ancient city (3,3,4)
A phrase wishing someone good luck (cheers) – cycle the first letter of an adjective meaning high stature (giant) and then insert a city in Ancient Greece
Down
1d Boats in flotilla discover Greek ships last of all (4)
The last letters in words 3, 4, 5 and 6 in the clue
2d Bird run over crossing motorway in German metropolis (9)
A reversal (over) of a freshwater diving bird and RUN (from the clue) into which is inserted (crossing) the abbreviation for Motorway
5d Indicator of rum times? (7)
Part of a phrase indicating when sailors were permitted to have their first drink (rum) of the day, these days, often used as an excuse when people fancy an alcoholic drink
14d Mark from King’s Cross? (10)
Look very carefully and you should spot the ‘mark’ 
18d Reptile devouring collection of fowl that’s cold (9)
A type of reptile ‘devouring’ an anagram (collection) of FOWL
26d Exploit twist of fate (4)
An anagram (twist) of FATE
As this is a Prize crossword, please don’t put any ANSWERS, whether WHOLE, PARTIAL or INCORRECT, or any ALTERNATIVE CLUES in your comment. If in doubt, leave it out
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The Quick Crossword pun: HUGE + HACK + MAN = HUGH JACKMAN
I found today a little gentler than some recent prize puzzles, despite the fact that I was delayed by spelling 1a incorrectly! I counted three homophones, one of which caused a head scratch, and a good mix of anagrams and lurkers to get things underway.
Took me some time to parse 14d but otherwise everything was fairly clear.
The DT has published its Pub Guide today and it includes my local – The All Nations Inn situated just outside Ironbridge, brews on the premises, 20 customers in the bar and it’s nearly full, cheese and onion rolls (batches/cobs) that would feed a Chinese village, dog friendly and a large outdoor area.
Many thanks to today’s setter and Crypticissue for the hints
I couldn’t spell 1a. I couldn’t spell 9a either.
The All Nations Inn is now on my list of places to visit for lunch! Thanks Graham. 🍺
Me too – home brewed beer in Shropshire!
I thought today’s offering was an absolute classic. On my first pass I don’t think I entered a single answer but persistence prevailed, and I can report a very satisfying completion. The quality of the surfaces were first class and there was humour and numerous Baht drop moments combined with very little requirement for general knowledge, which is one of my bugbears in a cryptic crossword. I have two nominees for COTD 19A and 14D. I am awarding the prize to 14D which is such a masterpiece I can’t believe I haven’t come across it before.
Thanks to CS as ever for the hints amd to the setter for a great puzzle.
Thai Corner.
This happened yesterday, and I still shudder with embarrassment regarding the event. Those who read my ramblings will be aware that I help to maintain the local exercise park and because of that I am often presented with gifts of fruit, (and at one time a live fish), from other users to show their appreciation. This morning whilst I was doing my leg curls a regular visitor put a gift bag in front of my sweaty face and said thanks for what you do. As most of the gifts I have been given have been fruit and all I could see of the contents of the bag was bubble wrapping I assumed I was being given papaya which is often sold in bubble wrap due to its delicate nature. I expressed my gratitude for the gift and said I would look forward to consuming it with my breakfast, that morning. Only when I got home and unwrapped the package to find a bottle of wine did I realise how inappropriate my thank you was.
Not necessarily! 😂🙄
Graham a great response. My breakfast time is your 10.00 p.m. which is definitely wine o’clock.
The French do it all the time!
This was surprisingly straightforward for a SPP. There was nothing particularly obscure or needing a visit from The List police, so it was a fairly rapid solve. That notwithstanding, it was very nicely clued, with 1a almost my favourite but beaten by the eventual winner, 5d.
My thanks to our setter and Sue.
Is anyone posting a reminder about next Saturday in Birmingham?
Yes, I have a revised blog to post this afternoon
Thanks John.
An enjoyable Saturday offering, Lots to enjoy. 10A took some parsing. I liked 14D.
After a while away due to ill health, I have returned to the cryptic puzzle As always was, very enjoyable.
Good to see that you’re back in the fray, SL.
Keep on posting!
Welcome back, Sharon and I hope you are now hale and hearty. Please keep on posting! 👍
I made heavy weather of today’s offering but, on finishing, I can only put it down to me being dense as all was fair and square. 14d took me an age and the answer was staring me in the face all the time. I very much liked mum’s war paint at 12a, 29a and 8d, but cotd has to go to the lol 5d. Thanks to compiler (NYDK?) and CS.
An enjoyable, straightforward puzzle; my last one in was 14d. After 40 years of solving these puzzles I still get caught out by this type of clue.
Many thanks to the setter and to CS.
An afternoon of F1 qualifying and England v Argentina in the rugby later. Libations in the fridge until 4 o’clock Spanish time!
Kipper, my daughter’s cat sat beside me to give support as I did the steady solver. Yesterday had been 2 difficult puzzles. Did find the crossword hard and we knew Kipper was a very unhappy cat. Closed the cat flap last night as we thought he was being terrorised by neighbour cats. Seems we solved that puzzle as well as the crossword and he is back to his sweet self.
Last one in was 29 across because I misspelled 14 down and ended it with a Y. Hopefully that spelling mistake will be amended from now on. So much to enjoy and will submit.
Many thanks all round.
Does anyone know an approximate figure for how many entries there are for the prize cryptic ?
Poor Kipper, being terrorized, and glad to hear is he happier now. Our cat, Merlin, a very surly grey tabby, used to let several neighborhood cats into our kitchen through his cat flap, during the night hours. When we went downstairs in the morning and opened the kitchen door, it was not unusual to see three or four dashing back out the flap 😊. He also liked to bring in “presents” for us, occasionally a live bird that we had to usher out. He was rather displeased when we brought him with us to South Florida and decided a cat flap would not be provided as there was no telling what “presents” we might receive here. He did manage to tangle with a skunk on one of his outdoor forays, and came home absolutely reeking…
This had taken me a while and I still have 2 to go – I don’t fully understand 29a or 7d – good yet tricky puzzle – thanks as always crypticsue and setter
I hope I don’t get thrown out for this….
20a – Where abouts in the UK is Devon and Cornwall? Then a country minus that.
7a – a little known synonym of ‘goody goody’ leads the way.
Sorry, should have said 29a and 7d….must have been looking at the page from an odd angle!
Got it – appreciate the help
Gentle but a very enjoyable solve. 5d was my fav.
Thanks to the setter & to Sue.
Ps the tortoise ain’t wrong – after a chilly start to the morning at 7am on the 1st tee it’s warming up considerably with a hot afternoon in store.
I hope you haven’t improved your lie, it is a two-stroke penalty
Yes, 5d got my vote as well.
** / ****
Long time since I could comment on a Saturday. I found this relatively gentle and no less enjoyable for that!! COTD for me was the Idyllic place at 29a. Thanks to CS for the parsing of 10a and thanks to the setter, I suspect not an NYDK production.
A very enjoyable Saturday special which could well be a sprawlless NYPD Blue but I think not.
I biffed 5d as I haven’t heard of this splendid expression. 29a isn’t the easiest to parse but it was gettable.
My picks are 30a, 2d and, of course, 14d.
Many thanks to the non-native New Yorker and she of the Kent crypt.
2*/4*
Tom, we live by that rule! 5d is mentioned at least once a week and the rule invoked nightly.
I’m amazed I’ve never heard it as it’s brilliant.
A slow solve and needed help with the parsing of 10a but much enjoyed.
For me – and I stress me! – I thought 5d and 14d were 2 brilliantly clever clues.
My thanks to setter and CS
A gentle prize puzzle for me. I was looking forward to a cooler day to get some gardening jobs done but it wasn’t to be.
Top picks for me were 29a, 2d, 5d, 7d and 18d.
16d felt to me that it had been already clued that way quite recently.
Thanks to CrypticSue and the setter.
Very enjoyable with sufficient pauses for thought as reminders that this is a SPP – 2*/4.5*
I have no idea if Benny Malone is a real or fictional person as 1a ‘leapt’ off my laptop screen while I was waiting for my printer to cooperate and I saw no need to e-search him.
Candidates for favourite – 17a, 29a, 4d, 5d, 7d, 14d, and 20d – and the winner is 5d!
Thanks to whomsoever and CS.
An American professional football player
Thanks Sue – I did wonder if it was the full name of the character in Crossroads.
That was Benny Hawkins.
… or a Falkland Islander in nation dress … apologies to any Falklanders out there. The “troops” used to refer to the indigenous population as Bennys. I’ve no idea why!😊
Incidentally, gave up yesterday but returned this morn with a fresh brain and coffee. Sorted. Cotd 14d … once yiu see it!
He wasn’t a player of note. So, it’s just a coincidence.
An excellent, entertaining puzzle. 14d my favourite!
Many thanks to the setter and to CS for the hints.
For me and I stressI hope I am in time to advise everyone not to enter the prize competition. I am told there was an administrative error last weekend that prevented me winning the crayons and colouring book. Mathias Döpfner has sent me his personal assurance that this dreadful mistake will be rectified this weekend and consequently I shall win both today, and tomorrow. I cannot stress strongly enough how important it is for everyone else to comply and not enter. Thank you for your understanding at this difficult time.
Additionally, I would like to thank my agent, my family, the setter, and PC Security (clearly not on one of her Secret Service missions this week)
My main mission this week and most of next, is to ensure that Tim the aging tortoise keeps going until our neighbours return from scorching hot France on Thursday
He will probably outlive us all
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriet_(tortoise)
All the longest living ones seem to undergo a name-change due to mis-gendering, maybe Tim is a Timothea
She’s definitely a she! Misnamed when our neighbour was quite a young lad. In view of the longevity of tortoises he is now wondering who to leave her to in his will – I said she’d have to come with a trust fund to cover the vet’s bills and a never ending supply of lettuces. Luckily her favourite dandelion flowers are free
Too late, Terence! I’ve sent mine in and, this time, it went by the fourth dimension so it will appear completely different to all other submissions. It is bound to be noticed and chosen as the winner. I fully expect The Mythical to arrive soon.
A lovely Saturday puzzle that I don’t think is by NYDK but I’m wrong more than likely. As I always seem to spell the second part of 1a incorrectly, I consulted Mr. G. and, sure enough, I would have got it wrong. I thought 9a was a beautiful clue as was 19a with its infiltrating FBI agents. However, my COTD is, what to me was a superb clue, is the indicator at 5d.
Thank you, setter for letting me have yet another shot at The Mythical. Thank you, CeeSoo for the hints and I do like your weather forecasting tortoise.
The harvest is well under way here in The Marches, including the wheat, which is earlier than usual because of the weather. It’s likely the yield will be low this year again because of the weather. Still, it means lots of exercise for Hudson as I refresh his training.
He hasn’t forgotten a thing! 😊
A great puzzle today. I have an answer for 14d which means mark but cannot see where Kings Cross comes into it so I probably have it wrong. Still cold and overcast here and it’s our village fete this afternoon. I love the Thai Corner revelations, the language sounds a nightmare to learn! Thanks to the setter and as always to CS who seems to be on tortoise duty again – they are amazing escape artists and can move pretty speedily.
King’s Cross
Nope! Can see the cross but not the king. I await the full review but thanks for trying.🤔
You are looking in the wrong places
(Sorry if this sends me to the naughty step…..but I could go some cake….)
As Sue explained in the hint look very closely at the clue to see the ‘mark’
OMG!!! Just got there! Having a jolly time at the fete must have made me see things more clearly. Thanks everyone for the nudges. You either see it or you don’t.
If it’s any consolation, Manders, It took a long time for me to see it as well.
Me too.
Needed help for King’s Cross…..doh!
Otherwise a steady solve for me.
No special favourites as there were too many to like.
Thanks to the setter and to CS.
Good luck to Steve and Terence for the Mythical…….
A lovely puzzle especially liked the fabulous 5d and 14d. Both huge penny drop moments that made me laugh. Thanks to the setter and to CS for blogging duties.
Thoroughly enjoyed this, it was great fun and very clever. I thought 6a nicely misleading, 8d nicely crafted, 20 was very sly but 5d was my favourite, obviously! I had an exciting evening last night at our cinema showing – I met a visitor from across the pond who is a lurker and who had sussed me out!! I’d show you a photograph if he agrees. We had a lovely chat about all you odd characters!! I wonder if he has finished today’s PP? Congratulations to the Clever Setter and thanks to CeeSue. Watch that tortoise – in my experience they can scoot out of sight in seconds. But they will enjoy any left over cookies from the Naughty Step.
2*/4*. This was good fun although the pedant in me wonders if “Cross” in 14d might qualify as surface padding. Why not just “King’s mark”?
With plenty of ticks, 5d was my favourite.
Many thanks to the setter and to CS.
Hi RD
‘King’s Cross is where Mark lives’ I think is a better surface than ‘Mark from King’s’.
Maybe the setter graduated from King’s College Cambridge
Of course it is a better surface, but my point is that “Cross” could be considered as padding. You are not allowed to treat something like “King’s Cross” as a single entity for a lurker so I think there is a case that the same should apply here.
Interesting. I don’t agree but interesting.
As reported, a slightly easier SPP than of late which ticked plenty of boxes. 14d was my last in which I filled as soon as I had all the checkers and then saw the clever parsing. Together with the cheers at 30a and the reptile at 18d you have my podium. The 5d in our house is 6 o’clock.
Many thanks to the setter and crypticsue
2*/4*
As straightforward as they come for a change but that didn’t detract from the enjoyment and no obscurities to boot. Favourite was 29. Thanks to the setter and CS.
Great puzzle start to finish. 5D reminds me it’s time for a drink. VMT Setter & Sue.
Pleasantly doable with a few iffies including 10a which surely is not necessarily containers and 5d which is rather broad. 2d took quite some unravelling. Thank you to whomever for setting and to CS for hinting as usual.
1*/ 4* A very enjoyable and unusually straightforward Saturday puzzle for me.
Favourites today are the cold 18d, growth at 20d and the excellent rum times at 5d
Many thanks to Sue + Setter
Dear all, I’ve been following this blog for 20 years or more, but this is the first time that I have commented. I remember Big Dave himself being featured in a Readers’ Digest monthly publication several years ago and I had been viewing the blog many years before then. I love the camaraderie and humour on this site. I also love the DT cryptic crosswords. They’re the only crosswords that I do, but not necessarily complete! I have learned so much about solving cryptic crosswords from your wonderful website. Therefore, I thank all of the people on this site, who explain the clues and give the answers for the weekday crossword and hints for the prize puzzles, and the commenters. My immense thanks go to all the setters too. I’m sorry for coming to this party late, but I solved the crossword yesterday, which doesn’t usually happen, and I was so astounded that I couldn’t do anything for the rest of the day. I found this crossword very enjoyable. I got stuck in the bottom right hand corner for a while; far longer than I should have. I enjoyed 14d, as I thought that was very clever and I saw the answer before I understood the clue. My COTD, though, is 17a because I saw the answer and I was trying to work out the clue and I couldn’t for an hour or so. When I did eventually understand the clue, I laughed at how I could have missed that and then I metaphorically started banging my head against a brick wall. My thanks again to all the reviewers and commenters on this page and the setters.
Welcome to the blog
It is lovely to read your enthusiasm for both the blog and the DT cryptic crossword, and thank you for the thanks
Welcome, KL and I echo CS’s thanks for your enthusiasm. Now you have delurked, please do continue to comment. 😊
What a wonderful post, Kentish Lad (not Lad of Kent) and congratulations on delurking.
You write so well. So, I and, I’m sure, many others look forward to your future posts.
I second that! 👍
A day late on this. Worth the wait. Thanks setter for a smashing puzzle enjoyed in the sun and with Nick Lowe 🎸
Hope I’m not giving anything away when I state 5d is presently most apposite!
Dear Crypticsue, Steve and Tom, thank you for your warm welcome and kind comments, which I appreciate very much