DT 29383

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 29383

A full review by crypticsue

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This puzzle was published on 6^th June 2020

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

An enjoyable Saturday Prize puzzle with a Nina at the top (FIFTEEN) and bottom (SQUARED) of the grid, which describes a normal cryptic crossword grid. The reason for the Nina was explained when the setter, Messinae, posted a comment to let us know that this was his 225^th DT back page crossword.

Such a shame that, given the crossword was published on D-Day, the opportunity for a ‘message’ starting with the solutions to 1d, 2d and 3d didn’t go any further.

For the information of anyone who has joined the blog since lockdown (and as a reminder to others as it has been a long time since we had a Prize Puzzle Review), because the Saturday and Sunday cryptics are prize puzzles, only a few hints are given on the day of publication, and a full review, where all the solutions are shown and the explanations are in full rather than just hinted, is published after the closing date for competition entries.

Please leave a comment telling us what you thought.

Across

8a    Where 11 lives beside American racetrack? (7)
AINTREE – An 11a lives IN TREE and this should be placed after (beside in an Across clue) A (America)

10a    Barrel kept in bar, a domed building (7)
ROTUNDA – TUN (barrel) inserted (kept) in ROD (bar), the result followed by A (from the clue)

11a    Primate called wearing unfashionable article (5-4)
ORANG-UTAN – RANG (called) inserted into (wearing) OUT (unfashionable) AN (indefinite article)

12a    Spy‘s a decent chap (5)
AGENT – A (from the clue) GENT (decent chap)

13a    Move period of work (5)
SHIFT – Double definition – a verb meaning to move or a period of work, in a factory, for example

14a    Politician and artist in defamation case (7)
LIBERAL – RA (Royal Academician, artist) inserted into LIBEL (defamation case)

17a    Restraining madman is our job, tangling with menace is not (3,2,5,5)
MEN IN WHITE COATS – An anagram (tangling) of WITH MENACE IS NOT

19a    Somewhere in New Zealand daughter listened to radio, missing start (7)
DUNEDIN – D (daughter) and tUNED IN (listened to radio, missing the ‘start’ or first letter of tuned)

21a    Hissy fit as drink’s knocked back (5)
STROP – A reversal (knocked back in an Across clue) of PORTS (drink’s)

24a    Small figure among clique (5)
INSET – IN (among) SET (clique)

26a    Factory worker achieving speed of sound in back street (9)
MACHINIST – MACH I (the speed of sound), a reversal (back) of IN, ST (street)

27a    In the outskirts of Franklin take coffee and squash (7)
FLATTEN – LATTE (coffee) inserted into the outside letters of FrankliN

28a    Cyclist’s trick — excited cry to give false impression (7)
WHEELIE – WHEE (excited cry) LIE (to give false impression)

Down

1d    Notable female, a computer operator mostly (6)
FAMOUS – F (female) A (from the clue) and most of a MOUSe (computer operator)

2d    Rampaging so in vain attack (8)
INVASION – An anagram (rampaging) of SO IN VAIN

3d    Put the fear of God into criminal ring the FBI man arrests (10)
FRIGHTENED – An anagram (criminal) of RING THE inserted into (arrests) FED (FBI man)

4d    Interpret excuse for delay when one is lost? (9)
TRANSLATE – Lose the I (one) from TRAINS LATE (excuse for delay)

5d    High point as stake raised (4)
ETNA – Crosswordland’s Volcano of the Month is obtained by reversing (raised in a Down clue) ANTE (betting stake)

6d    Finish support heading off to foster care (6)
ENDEAR – END (finish) bEAR (bear or support without its ‘heading’)

7d    Sea creature behaving badly, one hears, left America (8)
NAUTILUS – A homophone (one hears) of NAUGHTY (behaving badly) followed by L (left) US (America)

9d    Grub found in peat soil (4)
EATS – Another word that’s been in quite a few crosswords lately – this time hidden (found) in pEAT Soil

15d    Bid slacker to work — one perhaps reluctant to do so? (10)
BACKSLIDER – An anagram (to work) of BID SLACKER

16d    Old man eating chicken — sign that could portend prodigious events (9)
PHENOMENA – PA (father, old man) ‘eating’ HEN (chicken) and OMEN – I had to smile when typing the blog as the Word spell check facility thought there ought to be a hyphen between man and chicken!!

17d    Causes offence with independent doctor probing lower regions (8)
MIDRIFFS – Even the name of this area of the body implies it is in the middle rather than lower regions? MIFFS (causes offence) into which is inserted (probing) I (independent) and DR (doctor)

18d    Being frailer, I fired weapon (3,5)
AIR RIFLE – An anagram (fired) of FRAILER I

20d    New question about supermarket exchange (6)
NASDAQ – N (new) and Q (question) go ‘about’ ASDA (supermarket)

22d    Concentrated and played successful snooker shot (6)
POTTED – Double definition – Summarised simply or played a successful snooker shot

23d    Boat company in Cornwall etc. (4)
SCOW – CO (company) in SW (Cornwall etc being in the South West of England)

25d    Express disapproval over posh archbishop (4)
TUTU – TUT (express disapproval) goes over U (upper-class, posh)