DT 30954 – Big Dave's Crossword Blog
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DT 30954

by Smylers  

Daily Telegraph Cryptic No 30954

Hints and tips by Smylers

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

Good morning. Today’s crossword felt like *** difficulty to me: I got only a few answers in my first pass and then it was slow-going to fill the rest. But it doesn’t contain any obscure answers and most of you lot are way better at anagrams than I am, so I’m guessing you’ll find it more straightforward than I did, and I’ve rated it ** accordingly. Thank you to the setter, I’m guessing X-Type, for the challenge.

Hints and explanations for each clue are below, with definitions underlined and the answers hidden inside the Click here! boxes — though only actually click if you want to see what’s inside. Do leave a comment sharing how you found the crossword, which clues you particularly liked, if any of my explanations aren’t helpful enough, or you can’t work out what a video or picture has to do with its clue. Please see the etiquette guide for how things are done round here.

Across

9a Scrounger in shelter by church (5)
LEECH: We start with a short word for ‘shelter’ followed by an abbreviation for ‘church’.

10a Adjacent to a pine border (9)
ALONGSIDE: Enter in order: the A from the clue; a word meaning ‘pine’, as in to be missing somebody; and another word for a border.

11a After arranging, I boost strings initially for these players (7)
OBOISTS: Arrange the letters of ‘I boost’ and add the intial letter of ‘strings’ to get some players elsewhere in the orchestra.

12a Rocks on slope caught by start of hurricane, making skidding sound? (7)
SCREECH: Enter in turn: a word for loose rocks found on a slope, such as a hill, that can be hazardous if trying to navigate past them; the letter on a cricket scoreboard that indicates a batter was out caught; and the first letter of ‘hurricane’.

13a American nerd‘s wife in river? Bravo! (5)
DWEEB: End with the letter that ‘bravo’ represents in the Nato alphabet. Before that we need to put the abbreviation for ‘wife’ into one of those 3-letter rivers that often crop up in crosswords. Chambers labels the answer as ‘especially US’, so Rabbit Dave can feel lucky we got an American indicator even though it wasn’t strictly required.

Packaging of brightly coloured sweets in various flavours whose name (cut off) matches the answer

14a Stop working with old Venetian painter’s medical advisor (9)
DIETITIAN: Start with a term which could mean ‘stop working’ when referring to a device that’s broken, or possibly in need of its battery charging. Follow with the Anglicized name of a painter from Venice. Note that the answer has two spellings and here we specifically need the one that matches the painter, which isn’t the one I’d usually use. (I’ve found Telegraph articles using each spelling, so either they don’t have a house style for this or some of their writers are ignoring it.)

A self-portrait by the artist

16a Students with final MA turning into extremists (15)
FUNDAMENTALISTS: Wait till you have enough crossing letters from the down answers, then write in a word that fits them and matches the definition. I’ve verified that it is indeed an anagram of ‘students final MA’, so that you don’t have to.

19a Struggling Devon side declined rapidly (9)
NOSEDIVED: Struggle with the letters of ‘Devon side’ until they spell out the answer.

21a Carried as far as Edward (5)
TOTED: This one caught me out for ages because I was thinking of the wrong short form of ‘Edward’; it’s a 3-letter name we need. Before that we need a preposition which can mean ‘as far as’, for instance when talking about the physical distance that some transport might go.

The characters from BBC TV's ‘Playschool’

23a Everything’s by pitch, perhaps involving the best players? (3-4)
ALL-STAR: We need a synonym for ‘everything’s’, including that final S. Put it by what pitch can be — the sticky stuff used by sailors.

25a Clothes grow old? Rubbish! (7)
GARBAGE: The first part of this is a word for some clothes as a mass noun; Chambers labels it as ‘literary’. End with a verb meaning ‘grow old’.

27a European chaps in temporary accommodation – some flats? (9)
TENEMENTS: We need the abbreviation for ‘European’ and another word for ‘chaps’, then to put both of them inside some accommodation used on a temporary basis, for instance if staying in a field. The answer is what some flats are, especially in a certain part of the UK.

an array of ballet flats (shoes), in various colours
Pic credit: © An-d, CC BY-SA 4.0

28a Fixes duty, we hear (5)
TACKS: If somebody said this answer out loud, we could hear a word for duty — the sort that needs paying to authorities.

Down

1d Woman is head of company across lake (4)
CLEO: The answer is a woman’s name. We form it by placing the abbreviation for the highest-ranking officer in a company across the letter that indicates a lake.

2d Earlier than second month, returned mineral (6)
BEFORE: Here we need the short form of the second month of the year, and we return it by writing it up the grid. End with the term for a mineral deposit.

3d Piece of wood on which men carry out checks? (10)
CHESSBOARD: This is a cryptic definition of the venue for a game that involves checks.

Clip-art of a man holding a clipboard and holding up a finger as though they need to make an important point
Pic credit: Hsaart

4d Went by in a former time, reportedly (6)
PASSED: If you heard somebody reporting a word meaning ‘in a former time’, it would sound like the answer.

5d Lou has nap cut short – it’s most awful! (8)
LOUSIEST: Begin with ‘Lou’ from the clue then add the term for an afternoon nap, which we cut short by omitting its final letter.

Lou from the ‘Neighbours’, the Australian soap opera

6d A fish in jelly (4)
AGAR: Start with the A from the clue. That was easy enough. Now we need a fish, 3 letters — but not ‘cod’. At this point it’s possibly simpler just to think of a 4-letter jelly beginning with A, then check that the remaining letters are indeed a fish — a ray in the Lepisosteidae family:

some fish of the relevant species, camouflaged against the green plants in the background with dark green spots on a paler green
Pic credit: © Raimond Spekking, CC BY-SA 4.0

7d Social etiquette requiring smart neckwear? (8)
NICETIES: Think of some items of neckwear, plural. They need to be smart, so prefix them with an adjective indicating they are respectable — then pronounce the whole differently to get the answer. My favourite clue of the day.

8d Think about keeping chains moving? It’s automated (10)
MECHANISED: Move the letters of ‘chains’ (but not by much) and keep them inside a word for ‘think’ that’s been turned about. Given the definition is a past-tense verb, you can probably guess the last 2 letters of the answer, and therefore the start of the ‘think’ word.

13d Some seen in court protect workers (10)
DEFENDANTS: This answer ends with some usual workers. Before that we need a word for ‘protect’. The clue feels a bit same-sidey to me, because it’s that meaning of ‘protect’ which gives its name to the people in court.

15d Not well, say again: poorly educated (10)
ILLITERATE: Begin with a word for ‘not well’. Follow that with a word which means ‘say again’, which is more often used with ‘re-’ at the start of it; I only learnt that it still has the ‘again’ meaning even without the ‘re-’ in a Zandio puzzle exactly a month ago — so I’m pleased it’s come up again before I had chance to forget that!

17d Snuggling up with young flier (8)
NESTLING: This is a double definition, where the first is a present participle and the second a noun; the latter is a term for young birds in general, not the young of a specific breed.

18d Almost begrudge actor Jeremy’s surroundings (8)
ENVIRONS: Think of another word for ‘begrudge’ and almost write it in by omitting its final letter. Follow with the surname of an actor called Jeremy — though none of these:

Headshots of 4 actors called Jeremy, none of whom are the one relevant to this clue

Today’s picture quiz is to name the actors called Jeremy in these photos. I’ve put them in alphabetical order.

20d Really like established periodical (6)
DIGEST: Start with slang term somebody in the 1960s could use to indicate they really like something, and follow with the abbreviation for ‘established’.

A McVitie's digestive biscuit with a couple of bites taken out of it, and the slogan ‘Golden-Baked to a secret recipe, since 1892’

22d Hurried through ground etc in dream-like state (6)
TRANCE: Grind ‘etc’ so that its letters are in a different order, then through that insert a verb meaning ‘hurried’.

24d Tito memoir includes this volume (4)
TOME: The phrase ‘Tito memoir’ literally includes the answer in consecutive letters.

26d Otherwise included in rising prices ledger (4)
ELSE: Two lurkers in a row to end with; this one is rising, so we need to find 4 consecutive letters from the last two words in the clue and write them up the grid to get the answer.

Quickie Pun

In today’s Quick Crossword the first 2 clues are italicized, indicating that their answers when read aloud together can be made to sound like another word or phrase; if you want to check, here are the answers and pun:

BANNED + SORE = BAND-SAW

cover of the book, featuring the title in a fancy font in black on a teal background, and silhouettes of two girls, some scales, flowers, and a spoonI’ve been reading A Spoonful of Murder by Robin Stevens, and thought I’d mention it here in case others are interested. It’s from a detective series our children have been reading, based around a 1930s English boarding school. Investigating the murders are two schoolgirls, Daisy and Hazel, and it struck me while reading it that I was enjoying it just as much as I do detective fiction written for adults; just because the protagonists are children doesn’t make it a less satisfying mystery.

It’s the 6th in the series, but it’d be fine to start with this one. I particularly liked it because the girls travel to Hazel’s family home in Hong Kong, where we encounter the cultural mix of Chinese and British values in clothing, food, politeness, and indeed having multiple wives — none of which I knew much about before, so found interesting to read about, along with trying to solve the puzzle of whodunnit.

If you like the lighter sort of detective novels, with more humour and less gruesomeness, then do give it go; don’t be put off by it supposedly being a children’s book.

64 comments on “DT 30954”

  1. I must be having an off day because I struggled with nearly every clue. None of it came easily and I really have no idea why because it was fairly clued. I have never heard of 13a and I don’t think all 3ds are made of wood. No favourites today, I was just happy to finish.

    Thank you, setter but I could not do your offering justice. Thank you, Smylers for the hints, which I will now read.

    1. Hi, Steve. Hope your day gets better from here.

      I think the question mark at the end of 3d covers pieces of wood just being an example of what the answer can be, not a definition of it.

    2. Same here Steve. I’m blaming in on jet lag… definitely not the gentle Mondays of old.

  2. I thought like Smylers a ** for difficulty although a fun rating of ***. A slightly slow start but once the 4 anagrams had fallen things unfolded well. 3d was my favourite clue and 8d my LOI.

    Thank you Smylers and our illustrious setter for Monday sport.

  3. An enjoyable and well-clued puzzle to start the week. Like NAS, my favourites were 3d and 8d, with the latter last in. Special mention too for 14a. Thanks very much to the setter and to Smylers.

  4. I felt exactly the same as Steve above and seemed to struggle to get over the line. What a ridiculous word 13a is, I was amazed when my Kindle told me it was correct. Sorry not very enjoyable today but thanks to all involved Maybe because I swapped my usual drink of unsweetened cranberry juice for orange juice for a change and was cross there were no bits in it! Terence will understand.

  5. I agree with you smylers on this feeling like a *** difficulty although there was nothing obscure or unfair. A great tussle to start off the week. Thank you to the setter and to smylers for the hints

  6. 5d last one in otherwise relatively straightforward but slightly harder than a typical Monday . Favourite 18d closely followed by 17d
    Thanks to all .

  7. A very enjoyable start to the (non-)work week of cruciverbalism – 1.5*/4.5*

    Candidates for favourite – 10a, 21a, 28a, 13d, and 18d – and the winner is 28a.

    Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.

  8. May give the book a read .I find some of the literature on offer to teenagers very enjoyable . I’ve read a complete series of books that my lad had bought.I can’t remember the titles, which might say something about them , or more about my failing memory ?

    1. I bought, and read, all Harry Potter books before I gave them to our grandkids 😊.

  9. Really enjoyed this fun Monday puzzle, held up only by a couple in the N – realised I’d been staring at the checkers in 4d while looking bemusedly at the clue for 2d, and also realised I’d foolishly miss-spelled 9a, and so could not get the clue at 2d to make sense. Once I’d got my brain back in order those two fell, too.

    Honours to 13a 16a and 18d (I do not immediately recognise any of the Jeremys that are pictured!). Many thanks to X-Type for the fun and Smylers for the excellent blog.

  10. Three quarters came together reasonably simply (apart from obscure 13a US word) but SE was another kettle of fish. Anyway overall I enjoyed the challenge. Couldn’t parse the “s” in 23a. Bunged in 27a. Thank you setter and Smylers.

    1. 13A is rarely heard here in the US anymore, but was popular when I was in my teens in the ‘80s.

  11. A lovely start to the crosswording week that was spot on for a sunny Monday morning. I found plenty to enjoy during a fairly brisk solve, with 16a coming out on top of the pile.

    Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.

  12. A very pleasant, gentle stroll through Crosswordland to kick off the week’s proceedings.

    My FOI was the biggie across the middle and it fairly flowed from there.

    For some reason, I’ve always liked 25a as a word but not as much as 13a that is an outstanding one.

    I often ask people to name five unlinked words that begin with the first two letters of 13a as there ain’t many.

    My podium is 19a, 7d and 8d.

    MT to SAX.

    1*/4*

    2. dwarf
      dwell
      dwindle
      dwale
      dwalm
      dwile
      dwine
      and of course, dweeb

      All in the dictionary you love to hate!

      2. Thank you, Dwenf. *

        I only had the first three plus 13a.

        I met someone who was called Dwayne (it happens) ** and he threw in an extra syllable when he introduced himself, i.e Derwayne. To make a bad name sound worse is, quite frankly, genius.

        * Love the BRB reference
        ** I’ve taken a gamble that no Derwaynes are lurking or are family members. Here’s hoping….

  13. Good start to the week, a little tricky but fun.
    I could only think of one acting Jeremy at 18d and I’m glad it was the right ones I don’t recognise any of Smyler’s red herrings!
    **/***
    Thanks to X-Type and Smylers

  14. Perfectly pitched as a Monday puzzle – thanks to X-Type and Smylers.
    I’ve elevated 10a, 19a and 7d to my podium.

  15. Looks as though our blogger called this one correctly and it made for quite an enjoyable start to the non-working week. Top clues for me were 7&18d.

    Thanks to X-Type and to Smylers for the review.

  16. Thought this a little tougher than one might expect for Monday but it came along nicely . Favourite was 7 down. I went to a state secondary school that had aspirations. A Mrs. d’Clarke – Lewis gave us girls lessons on etiquette and how to prepare ourselves to attend the then queen’s garden party. To this day I feel cheated that the knowledge given then has never been required .
    Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.

    1. Ah, but if it had, you would have been up for it, Dyslex. MY very non-posh girls Grammar School in the East End of London organised ballroom dancing instructio for us in the Sixth Form, with boys from a local boys school. The sessions were led by a couple of professional dancers, him in a posh suit, his partner ina flouncy Strictly-style dress I’ve never used those skills but I did meet my husband ((he of the two left feet) there so the lessons had a positive impact.

  17. Aittle bit tricky, this Monday backpager but I put it down to a n unfriendly grid as much as anything. Once the long clues went in, rhings improved. My favourite clue was rhe cryptic definition at 3d, followed by the long anagram at 16a. I also liked the clue for the Americanism at 13a; it sounds no sillier than the English word nerd really. Thanks to Smylers for the hints and to the compiler.

  18. Pottered along quite nicely for a Monday, but the NE was last to fall, twigging which Venetian painter was the key.
    Thanks to Smylers and X-type, I am keen to have a go at Rookie Corner where Spartacus is entertaining us

  19. This seemed like an old style Monday puzzle, 1*/3.5*, a very enjoyable start to the week. Favourites include automated 8d, 18d surroundings and the simple but effective young flier at 17d
    Many thanks to Smylers and X-Type

  20. I found this a very fun and entertaining puzzle, although it took some time to get going the clues were well thought out and fair. 3d was my favourite.

    Many thanks to X-Type and to Smylers for the hints.

  21. Another pretty normal puzzle for this Monday this week, it seems to me. A couple of tricky clues, but overall not a problem.

    1.5*/4*

    Favourites 9a, 16a, 19a, 25a, 3d & 7d — with winner 25a

    Thanks to X-Type & Smylers

  22. 2*/4*. This was light and good fun to start the week with a special mention for 7d. It is a splendid word and it reminded me of a posh boss I had in the 80s who had a very plummy accent. I had secured his agreement to promote one of my team which involved a pay rise and new job title. The individual concerned was delighted with the salary increase but didn’t much like the new job title. When I relayed his reaction to my boss, his wonderful reaction was, “tell him it’s only a titular nicety”.

    Many thanks to X-Type and to Smylers.

  23. A lovely start to the week. I was away for the weekend so need to catch up on the weekend’s cryptics.
    Top picks for me were 7d, 20d and 3d.

    Thanks to Smylers (I’ve no idea who any of your Jeremys are) and X-type.

  24. I seem to be alone in finding this an easy puzzle. I am a beginner but managed to complete it in my record time (I’m not telling you what that is!).

    2. I’m also a relative beginner but found this the easiest in a while. No idea why.

      1. Often beginners want crosswords that are straightforward and experienced solvers want them to be more challenging — so if X-Type has managed to achieve both within a single crossword, that is indeed most impressive!

  25. With reference to the previous blog, I am also still a relative beginner. It took me a little while to get into this but once I did the checkers helped enormously. Don’t think I had heard of 13a but worked it out with checkers and the construction in the clue. COTD 7d for the construction. **/*** Thanks to X-Type and Smylers. Having regard to the mention/advert of the detective book, I have just had a detective/thriller published: “Fired” (by John Fuller). It is based on my recent, former career as a Partner in a firm of fire investigators. It can be purchased on Amazon and if anyone buys it I will sign it for you when I meet you – as I hope to do when a social is next arranged.

        1. I’ve ordered it as well, John. It looks interesting and, what’s more, it comes from your own experiences.

          1. Thanks Steve, there is a fair bit of me in there – intentionally and probably also some unintentional subtleties – but of course the best reads are always those based on experience. Hope you enjoy it and look forward to meeting you sometime.

  26. Thank you to those who have commented, and thanks in advance for those who are yet to do so.

    Those other acting Jeremys are: Jeremy Allen White (Shameless, The Bear); Jeremy Piven (Mr Selfridge, Entourage); Jeremy Strong (Lincoln, Succession); Jeremy Swift (Foyle’s War, Downton Abbey).

    With surnames like those, I can’t see most of those featuring in wordplay components in future crosswords …

  28. Strangely, considering some of the comments from far more experienced solvers, I found this very straightforward. My only problem was the jelly at 4d, I just did not know the fish and guessed wrongly, otherwise a complete solve without any reference.
    Thank you to Smylers and the setter.

    1. You’ve changed your alias from Flyboy so this needed moderation. Both aliases will work from now on.

  29. 13a is a word I’ve seen in crosswords but never heard here in Blighty, obviously I’m not going to start using it. As far the crossword goes I thought this was an excellent offering and just right for a Monday. Favourite was 3d. Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.

  30. Good evening

    Perfect stuff for a Monday. Strangely, it took me absolutely ages to get started, and then the solutions would only reveal themselves one quadrant at a time, finishing with the SE.

    I’m going to nominate my last to fall, 15d, as my COTD, seeing as it kept me guessing to the very end! I had the first three letters sorted for ages, but the rest just wouldn’t come! And an hon mensh for 13a.

    Many thanks to X-type and to Smylers.

  31. This was a nice puzzle for a Monday. Not too easy but not too hard , just chewy enough . I spent far too long thinking about Lou in 5d , only to find it was just ‘Lou’ my last in and actually such a straightforward clue 🙄Thanks to X-Type and Smylers.

  32. Like some other less experienced solvers found I could complete unaided though I needed the hints for some of the parsing. Thanks to Smylers for the hints and X- Type for the enjoyable puzzle – liked the mix of clue types, even the anagrams!

    1. Hello, Tyro. Welcome to the blog, and thank you for commenting. Well done on an unaided completion!

  34. Very much enjoyed the puzzle. A brisk solve despite a couple of scoops of Norfolk Wherry & a glass of Malbec with a fine meal in a foodie pub in Snettersham following a great game of golf at Kings Lynn. We’re staying at a wonderful house (belonging to my mate’s sister) close to Felbrigg Hall in Cromer & the weather looks set for the next 3 days. 3d my fav.
    Thanks to X-Type & to Smylers

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