Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30863
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This puzzle was published on 1st March 2025
BD Rating –Difficulty ** – Enjoyment ***
Cephas returns to the Saturday Prize Puzzle slot after quite an absence – you can tell because the crossword is a pangram with quite a few anagrams
Please let us know what you thought
Across
4a Current fashion: tear round avoiding extremes (8)
MODERATE – MODE (current fashion) and an anagram (round) of TEAR
8a Pelt with rock, causing uproar (6)
FURORE – FUR (pelt) ORE (rock)a
9a Making one’s home and getting more comfortable (8)
SETTLING – Double definition
10a Good to leave scruffy dungarees, in the main? (8)
UNDERSEA – An anagram (scruffy) of DUNgAREES without the G (good to leave)
11a Not a free place to rest in hospital? (3,3)
PAYBED – A bed in an NHS hospital where you pay for your treatment
12a Seafood that could make you collapse (8)
ESCALLOP – An anagram (that could make you) of COLLAPSE
13a Area 51’s puncturing belief system (8)
RELIGION – L I (Roman numerals for 50 and one) ‘puncturing’ REGION (area)
16a Excessive amount about naughty chum (8)
OVERMUCH – OVER (about) and an anagram (naughty) of CHUM
19a Retired railway worker perhaps, one doing business abroad (8)
EXPORTER – EX (retired) PORTER (railway worker)
21a Cold inside lorry here? (6)
ARCTIC – The abbreviation for Cold inserted into an ARTIC lorry
23a At Saigon, travelling to find South American city (8)
SANTIAGO – An anagram (travelling) of AT SAIGON
24a In Derwentwater, skilfully take part in aquatic sport (5-3)
WATER-SKI – Hidden in derwentWATER SKI
25a Cheer out loud one way to serve coffee? (2,4)
AU LAIT – A homophone (out loud) of OLE (Spanish cheer)
26a Train set breaks, creating distress (8)
STRAITEN – An anagram (breaks) of TRAIN SET
Down
1d Polish like flowing water, perhaps (7)
BURNISH – BURN ISH – like a Scottish flowing stream
2d Dour Aztec reshaped coastal area (4,5)
COTE D’AZUR – An anagram (reshaped) of DOUR AZTEC
3d Container ship? (6)
VESSEL – Double definition
4d False impression of Frenchman before one’s arrest (15)
MISAPPRENSION – M (Monsieur, Frenchman) IS (one’s) APPREHENSION (arrest)
5d See friend finally trim tree (4,4)
DATE PALM – DATE (see romantically) PAL (friend) and the final letter of triM
6d Recover from series of shots (5)
RALLY – Another double definition
7d Fruit with taste the Spanish love (7)
TANGELO – TANG (taste) EL (Spanish definite article) O (love)
14d Beastly sounding sort of warfare? (9)
GUERRILLA – Sounds like a gorilla
15d Still holding cakes, oddly made of living plants (8)
QUICKSET – QUIET (still) ‘holding’ the odd letters of CaKeS
17d Lush beginning to drink in dodgy tavern (7)
VERDANT – D (the beginning to Drink) inserted into an anagram (dodgy) of TAVERN
18d Confined space with shooter bagging one bird (7)
PENGUIN – PEN (confined space) with GUN (shooter) ‘bagging’ I (Roman numeral for one)
20d Jack Tar seen under unfinished boat somewhere in India (6)
PUNJAB – J (jack in a suit of cards) AB (tar, sailor) seen under an unfinished PUNt (boat)
22d Article cheers Greek character (5)
THETA – THE (definite article) TA (cheers, thank you)