DT 31023

68 comments on “DT 31023”

1. Tricky but quite doable with perseverance. I couldn’t see 1a for ages until I remembered the other meaning of “grass” and neither can I parse 20a unless it has something to do with “take silk” for barristers. I thought the rugby players’ subscription at 3d was clever and I also liked the protected Italians at 13a. However, my COTD is the very short and sweet swimming bears at 26a.

   Thank you, setter for a great workout. Thank you, Shabbo for the hints.

2. 5*/2*. Wrong envelope day from my point of view! This was most definitely a Toughie, with the SW corner particularly impenetrable for quite a while.

   There were some very good clues. However, I couldn’t parse 20a and overall I can’t say I enjoyed it much with some tortuous clueing and a couple of weird surfaces. Probably just a wavelength thing.

   Thanks anyway to the setter. I’m sure others will have enjoyed this. Thanks too to Shabbo.

   1. Agree RD def a toughie for me 🥹🙈

   2. Yes, definitely got lost on its way to the Toughie slot.

3. Phew! Beaten by this one as 2d unguessable for me so thanks Shabbo. The rest was tortuous but just doable. My favourite by a mile was 23a. A two coffee problem Watson! Thanks to the setter and Shabbo👍👍

4. Good morning. I found this quite testing, with only a random handful on the initial read. The SW corner was tackled first and then the rest fell into play. 18a, 14d and 19d were my favourites. Thank you Shabbo and setter.

5. As cryptic a backpager as I can recall for a long time, there’s plenty of meat on the bones to be picked off here.
   I didn’t help myself by trying to make babe magnet the answer to 14d, which held me up in the SW.
   Some clevery involved clueing, I’ve picked out 15a, 26a and 22d as my podium.
   Great stuff, thanks to our setter and Shabbo.

   1. Babe Magnet? Sir, I must remind you this is The Telegraph, NOT The Sun!

      1. In yesterday’s toughie at 20a, the answer was ‘nostril’. It was defined in the clue as ‘a hole where bogeys could be’, so babe magnet would hardly have been a lowering of standards!

   2. I also had babe magnet in my mind but thought ‘Nah, it’s the DT.’

      1. We have had some other rather dubious words in the past, remember!

         1. Absolutely!

            1. Just glad I wasn’t the only one who thought “babe magnet”!

6. Quite the work out, and a great deal tougher than yesterday’s ‘four star’ puzzle.

   I fell short after being defeated by 3d (unaware of said magazine), and 22d. Tough though it was, I found it very satisfying to tease out some of the parsing, though I needed Shabbo’s help with 22d – no wonder I didn’t get that one. The swimming bear at 26a was unbelievably clever and my clue of the day, or even week. ****/****

   [I arrived here with the intent of moaning about the word ‘small’ in 23a, as it seemed to indicate an ‘s’ that wasn’t there. However I see now it’s telling you to abbreviate the preceding word and (more importantly) improves the surface hugely! Top setting.]

7. A rather tricjy puzzle with relatively few low-hanging fruit, which I eventually finished with no little satisfaction. I couldn’t see 20a at first until I remwmbered that we now have a king, whereupon it became my COTD. The 11d anagram was another great clue and the 17d geographical Lego clue completes my posium. Thanks to Shabbo for the hints and to the unknown compiler

8. The coffee came to me as I am a big fan (one of the four C’s in my meet the bloggers profile)
   Thanks to the Mysteron and Shabbo.
   Congrats on your prostate charity work, but your prostate is closer to your backside than your ❤️

   1. I’m sure there was an advert for an instant coffee (probably in the 70s or 80s) that mentioned this particular bean

      1. My inner coffee nerd tells me that must have been quite posh for an instant. Instant is usually made from the cheaper Robusta variety. My espresso machine is exclusively for 2d beans from a local roastery. (Work hasn’t seen the light yet, so I am obliged to drink Kenco at work)

         1. And this dropped into my feed today; https://youtu.be/wQdGpYl1Xmw?si=GywESfTvmT5f-sGt

9. Many little grey cells lost in working through this one, but it was worth it. Great puzzle. Needed the hints to parse a couple of the answers – thanks Shabbo. All the best for your charity day today. Thanks to the setter as well.

10. This one took me far longer than yesterday’s normal one and the toughie put together, RD got it right about the envelopes!

    Good luck over the pond with 10a, it reminds me of when we had just given up smoking and whilst sitting in a crowded bar in South Carolina, I turned to Mrs TC and said ” Jeez, I could just murder a fag”. We felt the need to leave shortly after that.

    My two of the day were Peter Sellers and the lippy, I keep forgetting they’re not QCs anymore.

    Many thanks to our setter today, can’t wait to see who it is.

11. Electronic assistance needed for the 3d/12a pair today, otherwise a steady solve with some difficult wordplay – 20a springs to mind.
    4*/4*
    Thanks to shabbo and setter for the mental workout.
    My COTD is 26a.

12. A tough but eminently pleasing puzzle. My favourite was 14d, as a fan of that London studio’s output and the troubled Mr S. Thanks very much to the setter and to Shabbo for the hints and the photo of arguably Watford’s greatest ever number 1. I’m less keen on 19d, whose latest book I’ve just finished and found engaging and well-written but somewhat self-aggrandising.

13. Just a thought, does 4d need an apostrophe S after criminal?

    1. Online puzzle gives us ‘criminal’s’.

       1. Yep, I know, my point was does it really need it, I reckon just criminal is enough.

14. Tricky but very satisfying – many thanks to our setter and the hardworking Shabbo.
    I liked 1a, 3d, 14d and 22d with my favourite being the very amusing 23a.

15. Quite a brain mangling somewhat reminiscent of a Giovanni Friday back pager with the penny slow to drop on the parsing of two or three ‘has to be’ answers- 3.5*/4*

    Candidates for favourite – 15a, 23a, 2d, 8d, and 22d – and the winner is 2d.

    Thanks to whomsoever and Shabbo.

    1. This reminded me of Giovanni also. He was fond of using ‘very small’ as in 23a.

    2. That’s a good call, both of you. I do miss The Don’s regular puzzles, despite the regular howls of outrage that would ensue from one of the commentariat at the frequency with which GK of a religious bent was required!

16. Took a while for the penny to drop where the 1a trouble was concerned, thank goodness for the old nursery rhyme that popped into my head. Once that was sorted and I’d slotted in the magazine subscription, I was off and away with a fair amount of checkers to help. I did have to check on the Caribbean crook as it wasn’t a phrase I’m familiar with but no other problems to report. Masses of ticks from which I selected 1,10&13a plus 3&14d for specific mention. My money’s on this being a Mr Smooth production, 1a seemed to be so typical of him.

    Many thanks to our setter, Silvanus (?) and to Shabbo for the review – hope your charity event goes well.

17. This was a fine challenge that I relished.

    There are plenty of techniques on display but I can’t decide if it’s Mr Smooth or Zandio. There are a few ‘alternate letter’ jobbies which the former is a huge fan of. So, my money’s on him.

    I’ve never heard of the country magazine which reminds me of Hugh Grant from the Horse & Hounds in Notting Hill. How good was Rhys Ifans in that film!?

    My hotly-contested podium is 1a, 23a and 26a.

    MT to the setter and Shabbs.

    3*/4*

18. Well, that was a tussle. Can’t claim an unaided finish today, as needed the hints on a couple and whilst I got 26a from the checkers, I couldn’t parse it at all. That said there were many excellent clues, but I’ll award cotd to 4d but 36a, 3d and 13a ran it close. Thanks to compiler and Shabbo.

19. Thanks to the Setter and Shabbo for the hints. Never heard of 18a. Definitely the hardest puzzle for us this week. Doable with perseverance. COTD 14d. Peter Sellers was one of the great comedians.

20. Thanks to the Setter and Shabbo for the hints. Never heard of 18a. Definitely the hardest puzzle for us this week. Doable with perseverance. COTD 14d. Peter Sellers was one of the great comedians.
    Gary and Val

    1. We heard you the first time! 😁

21. Difficult, difficult, lemon difficult.
    The desire to finish just about won over the desire to give it up as a bad lot. Struggles all over the grid but at least some semblance of satisfaction in completing it. Couldn’t get into the style of it today – just found it way too convoluted and smile free.
    Not for me I’m afraid.

22. Lovely puzzle, started off quite challenging but after tuning-in to the setter’s style (lots of insertions & deletions) it went quite smoothly, though I shared Shabbo’s parsing problems with 20a and 2d. Great surface reads.

    3d raised a smile, as I have a huge pile of these publications piled next to me, and did in my teens play the game for a little while. Honours to 12a, 8d & 19d – I’ve had his Satanic Verses on the bookshelf for about 35 years, and one day will try to get beyond the first dozen or so pages!

    Many thanks to the setter (Twm? Silvanus with the smooth surfaces?) and to Shabbo

23. Definitely on the tricky side, especially for people on the continent.

24. A tale of four quarters with the SW being as difficult as the other three put together. Didn’t tick any particular clues today but still an enjoyable solve as the first for a few days that I’ve had time to even look at!

    Thanks to the setter and Shabbo

25. Thanks Shabbo def a 4 Star for me, indeed reminds me of a Thursday morning when Ray T was the regular setter! is he still setting?
    Too many difficult ones for me to name!
    Could not have done this without lots of help🥹
    Rufus used to be my favourite setter of all and he regularly did the Monday crossword 👍🏻👍🏻

    1. Mr T is definitely still setting, Mary. Usually every other Thursday back-pager and some Sunday Toughies.

       1. So do you think this is one of his today Jane ?

          1. No, Mary, I think he may well be on duty next Thutrsday.

26. I drew an absolute blank on the first pass. Gradually the east yielded then even more gradually, the rest.
    22d was my final sticking point. There’s always an internal struggle: Crossword Solver (leaving some work to pick the answer and parse it), Danword, unsatisfying but always right or, as today, Mrs GD who made short work of it. (This all being too early for a friendly hint from Shabbo).
    1a & 8d get my approval for being lovely, chewable words.
    Many thanks Shabbo and the setter for justifying the second brew of the day.

    1. My approach to tricky clues is:
       0. add checkers where possible
       1. leave it for a bit to marinade in my brain
       2. take a punt on part or all of it, and use the “check answer” function
       3. this blog
       4. start revealing letters (or go to Danword if it’s a prize one)

27. On this off week from RayT, this puzzle, just like yesterday’s didn’t float my boat … again.
    Parsing, decrypting the clueing to solve just wasn’t for me.
    …and 8d … never heard the word and frankly can’t think I would ever use it.

    4*/2*

    Favourites 9a, 12a, 3d & 25d

    Thanks to setter & Shabbo

28. As a relative newbie to cryptics compared to others on this blog I found it tough and frequently had to resort to getting my online puzzle to reveal a letter (sometimes two) and when I was confident with my answer get it to double check the grid for mistakes!

    Thank you to Shabbo for excellent dissections of the clues. There were many where the parse wasn’t clear without the analysis.

    Some jumped out at me like 9A, 26A 27A and 28A. Took ages to figure out in 7D where ATOM should be placed as I already had its first letter as A from 6A. Wasted time by thinking 5D was OBJECT.

    I wonder if the RU in 27A should have come from Rugby Union rather than RUgby?

29. I found this a struggle to finish but could appreciate the cleverness of the clues once I’d finally parsed them. I got 3d wrong as I ended it with title but was left wondering where country fitted in.

    Top picks for me were 27a, 23a, 12a and 22d.

    Thanks to Shabbo and the setter.

30. Definitely a Thursday guzzle. 2d was my last in but mainly because I had confidently entered nett for the curtain material/ no frills ie extras. Oh so wrong. So Shabbo I needed you for that and the coffee although I do of course know those beans but the pfennig didn’t drop. 23a was brilliant – Mr. Setter you are so clever, you definitely have a sideways mind. 14d was silver and 13a bronze. I just loved this one, a relief after a check up at the dentist, shopping at Waitrose, gutter fixed by my lovely builder who refuses to marry me even though I ask him every time, and No Badgers to be seen says the expert – and it is still only 3.20. I’m off for a nap. Huge thanks to Messrs Setter and dear Shabbo.
    Much Ado this evening, looking forward to it.

31. Didn’t float my boat, and certainly wasn’t the pleasant experience I was hoping would accompany my breakfast. Today was my poorest effort ever, not helped that I wasn’t old enough to watch movies in 1955, have never heard of the word for a Caribbean crook, and many weak synonyms IMHO. Did laugh at 26a as I am repeatedly told in Spelling Bee that it is “not in the word list”. Thanks to setter and Shabbo. Fingers crossed for a RayT next Thursday.

32. Can’t believe I actually finished this since a first run through yielded but one solution however, by fair means or foul, I got there in the end. I needed much bunging in but was reassured when checking hints afterwards and realising there were what IMHO were questionable clues/solutions. Anyway thank you setter (wonder who?) and Shabbo.

33. Setter here, many thanks to Shabbo for his Hints and Tips and to all those solving and commenting.

    I’ve said before on several occasions that I like to include a chewier puzzle from time to time, and I think this was one of those, but it certainly wasn’t an “escaped Toughie”, either from my perspective or the editor’s.

    As some may know, next Monday marks the centenary of the birth of the person named in the clue for 14d, so it is quite fortuitous timing. It’s probably politically incorrect these days to post the “boom-boody-boom” song he recorded (you’ll know the one I mean), but I think the following clip might suffice instead to mark his anniversary.

    See you all again soon.

    1. Thank you for a great puzzle, silvanus. I loved it so perhaps I’m getting on your wavelength?

34. 4*/4* …
    liked 8D “Female visits Russia, mostly keen to mobilise dissidents (10)”

35. Way beyond me today. Managed two clues before leaving well alone.

36. Had a huge battle with this today and enjoyed it but needed the hints for 22d and sadly, 28a (as “reely”, it’s an easy one). COTD 2d for its construction: I eventually solved it after rigidly following the Lego. ****/*** Thanks to Silvanus and Shabbo. Off on holiday tomorrow for a week in Cornwall and suspect I won’t have time for the crozzie but hopefully commenting again soon.

37. About as tough as they get for a back pager. Needed the hints to parse 20a, 26a, 7d, 14d and 19d, too many bung ins for me. I’ve never subscribed to the 3d magazine but I’m sure I’ve read one or two in the past probably in a dentists waiting room, they don’t have magazines in them any more. Favourite was 22d there were other contenders. Thanks to Silvanus and Shabbo.

38. Good evening. Thank you to setters, clue-ers and commenters alike. Crosswords are keeping me sane during enforced immobility after a knee op. A question if I may: where does “small” come in in 23a? I kept thinking my answer couldn’t be correct as I couldn’t fit in a second s. I know I shall feel daft when you point it out to me…

    1. 23a I think it just means a small version of very ie v put into insolent, I could be wrong though!

    2. I’ve replied to you but further down.

       The interloper is indeed correct.

39. 3.5*/4* Excellent Silvanus Thursday challenge, needed to check a few parsings so thanks to Shabbo

40. Didn’t get any clues on first pass so thought it beyond me but gradually got about half way before looking at the blog and ended up quite enjoying it though no clear favourites. Didn’t help myself by putting “babe magnet” at 14d even though, as others have commented,it seemed incongruous. Thanks Silvanus for the challenge and Shabbo for the hints

41. This was a tricky challenge but I enjoyed it. I was aided by the digital version telling me when I had the wrong answer, without that I doubt I would have finished. I needed help with parsing of 5, I had 2d as my favourite.

    Many thanks to Silvanus and to Shabbo for the hints

42. Nonsense, Mrs Vicar. It’s a very fair question or should that be….a v fair question as v is a ‘small’ version of very.

    I hope you get back on your feet soon.

    Meanwhile, enjoy the daily delights these residents of Olympus magic up to keep our minds razor sharp, entertaining us at the same time.

43. I had an inkling that this was a Smooth production but wouldn’t have wagered coin or folding. Add me to those who failed to fully parse 20a – I hadn’t appreciated (well never really thought about it) that QCs are now KCs so the top brief bit passed me by. Ticks aplenty but any clue referencing Alexander Mackendrick’s masterpiece will get my vote as pick of the bunch.
    Thanks to Silvanus & to Shabbo – hope, like us at Thorpeness, the participants in the charity day at WGCGC managed to stay largely dry

44. Glad to see that I wasn’t the only one to find this one in places challenging. I got held up on a few clues and struggled with the parsing of 20a and 22d. I’ve dipped in and out of this to finish this evening , and glad to have got it over the line even though I feel quite tired. Thanks to Silvanus (I’d suspected ) and Shabbo

45. Got nowhere with this for a while – only 7 clues solved last night. But picked it up again this morning and got them all done. Very satisfying! 10A was the last to go. Favourite was 26A.

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