DT 31066

64 comments on “DT 31066”

1. That was a tough one but it is Friday. There were a couple I didn’t understand 0ne of them being 22d. I just don’t see where chrysanthemum comes into it so I will need the hints. The one that raised a smile and is my COTD is the worldwide travellers at 9d.

   It took me a while to get the pun because I had “cache” as the second word for a time.

   Thank you, setter for a proper Friday challenge. Thank you. Mr. K for the hints and pusskits.

   I understand 22d now.

   1. Welcome back to your proper place on the blog. You’ve been missed.

   2. Yes welcome back. I didn’t understand 22d either and I have never heard to the duck at 10ac

      1. I seem to have the wrong version, as the length of the clues doesn’t match the spaces – e.g 10 down has 12 not 10. I downloaded the online version. Has anyone else had this problem?

         1. What’s the puzzle number at the top of the puzzle?

   3. Welcome back Steve. I hope that you received an accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment.

   4. Welcome back .. been wondering why you weren’t in your usual spot.
      Good Friday fare.
      22d was fine with the two check letters.
      I’m still sparing with 17d though which was my last (bung) in.
      I liked the composer at 3d, thought the anagram was well hidden .. after Jagger etc had been ruled out!

   5. So good to see you back, Steve. I do hope that your test results prove to be satisfactory and that Hudson gets no more opportunities to convince your friends that he’s wasting away!

2. Good morning. I got quite a few on the first pass, but as mentioned by Steve above, there were a few that took some time to get, and a few that I am still trying to parse. Enjoyed the following 12a,17a, 21a, 4d, 7d, and 9d, with 9d taking honours as COTD. Thank you for the review and the setter.

3. Tricky, but enjoyable! 10A took some solving, but got there eventually!

4. Like Steve C, the parsing of 22d eluded me, so when I looked at the hints, I felt a right alias. That said, I thought this was a fair Friday challenge requiring some crumpet scratching in places. I stared at 7a for an age until the obvious hit me, and I liked 9d and 15a. However I’m going to award podium places to 3d, 23a and 20d. Thanks to compiler and Mr K.

5. A very enjoyable Friday puzzle.
   I liked the coat from Amazon at 12a, the cruel sister at 17a and the mobile charger at 5d.
   My CoD is 3d. Hands up if you saw rock singer and immediately tried to work Lorelei into the answer. Clever use of “rock” as an anagram indicator.
   Thank you setter and Mr K.

   1. I’m guilty of singing on the rock!

      1. And me!

6. Like Steve, I struggled with the parsing of quote a few clues. Some, I parsed after I’d got the answer but I shall have to look at the hints for the others. I did like the 7d anagram, the reference to a favourite TV programme an Shakespeare in the 9d Lego clue and the lego clue with royal connections at 1d. Thanks to the compiler and to Mr K for the hints, which i shallmake use of a lot today.

7. Some ‘creative’ indication of anagrams that led to a ‘bung in’ for 7d, what else could it be, and the investigation of Lorelei and Sirens for 3d until the PDM saved me. No problems with the 10a retiring duck – each element carefully written down in order before the reversal of everything. A most enjoyable Friday challenge which is possibly the work of the, cue for a song, Smooth Operator. ***/*****

   Candidates for favourite – 7a, 10a, 3d, 9d, and 16d – and the winner is 10a.

   A shiny new King Charles Toonie on Silvanus, so thanks to him, or whomsoever if it is not he, and thanks to Mr K.

8. I enjoyed this, even the chewy bits! I got the duck from the checkers but it took me a while to parse it. Didn’t spot 7d was an anagram so although I got the answer early on I didn’t write it in until I had some checkers.
   Top picks for me were 9d, 23a and 3d.
   Thanks to Mr K and the setter.

9. Tricky but reasonably straightforward, barring a few which slowed me considerably in the SE where I hesitated to enter my unparsed (correct) answer to 17d and at 23a wanted to instert an s into the a/the sore. Cracking puzzle of course, with honours to 12a, 22d & 17a.

   Many thanks to Silvanus and Mr K

10. So good that Steve has joined us again. Went to book club today only to find it was cancelled and that felt rather like today’s offering. Several of my answers had to be cancelled en route to finally filling the grid. All OK apart from 16 d . Last one in and feeling a tad exhausted I bunged in referees because they might change players ! Favourite was 13 across because I wasn’t expecting it. Many thanks to Mr. K who had quite a job on his hands and our setter.

11. A very good Friday puzzle – thanks to the setter and Mr K.
    Ticks from me for 7a, 12a, 17a and 17d.

12. This Friday was trickier than last week IMHO. Went in top to bottom more-or-less, with the bottom being the most troublesome.

    2.5*/3.5*

    Favourites 7a, 13a, 17a, 1d, 7d & 9d —with co-winner(s) 7a & 7d

    Thanks to setter & Mr K.

13. An excellent finish to the week from Sade.

    The giveaways that it was crafted by him were the r_e_k_r_u_l in 17a (though others use this technique, of course) and the middle letter of an enormous word (he’s the only one who does this on a fairly regular basis).

    I loved boxing trophy and rock singer and Harry gets the thumbs-up from me as an AI. I welcome AIs that aren’t the old classics as long as they’re not totally ridiculous which this isn’t.

    I’ve never heard of the duck but managed to work it out due to the excellent construction of the clue

    My podium is 10a, 7d and 9d.

    MT to S & K.

    3*/4*

14. I found this much more difficult than others seem to have – but got there unaided in the end. I would definitely award an extra star to the difficulty level. All in all a thorough work out for the noodle. Thanks to the setter and MrK

15. Very enjoyable, particularly the anagrams. I did not know the duck but otherwise all proceeded smoothly. Too many excellent clues to pick one favourite.

    Many thanks to the setter and to Mr K for the hints.

    Great to see Steve back in his spot, hopefully feeling better.

16. I found that much trickier than other puzzles this week, but then it is Friday with its usual combination of a challenging crossword and a mild hangover. Nevertheless, very enjoyable with favourites including the composer at 3d and the travellers at 9d. I wouldn’t have got the duck had I not spent so many lunchtimes in St James’s Park. Thanks very much to the setter and to Mr K.

17. Despite the absence of any Scottish football teams, this bears all the hallmarks of having been set by our smooth operator. I did get tangled up with lorelei and sirens when tackling 3d, having paid scant attention to the painfully obvious indicator but this was mostly a masterclass into following exactly what the wording of the clues instructed you to do – what an enviable talent our setter possesses.
    Biggest ticks went to 7,10&12a plus 1,9&17d with the very amusing 12a sitting on the top step. Speaking of amusing clues, who’d have imagined the simple but effective 30a anagram in the Quickie!

    Many thanks to our smooth Silvanus and to Mr K for the review – particularly enjoyed the sight of the musical feline ringing the changes.

18. The duck constructed from its tail at 10a was clever as was the reverse lurking furniture at 17a.
    For its surface and use of the AI though, 3d is my COTD.
    I guess I have been doing cryptics for so long now that whenever I see two words which go together well like rock singer, I assume they don’t and mentally insert a pause between the two, then reread the clue. This usually helps to see through the smoke and mirrors of the compiler’s wordplay.
    Very enjoyable, my thanks to our setter and Mr K.

19. Thanks to the Setter and Mr K. Never heard of 10a. Agree with previous comments about 22d. COTD 9d which was also first one in. Good to see you back Steve in your rightful place.

20. Not keen on 16 d but did enjoy today’s puzzle , which was relatively easy for a Friday . Favourites were 3 and 9.Put corn in for 22 , silly me, but it’s a much better answer, in my opinion even though it’s wrong .My favourite corm plant is the begonia and they are still in full bloom in my garden . Thanks to all .

21. Corm ? Predictive text again .re my earlier response .It should make sense now .

22. I did clock in over an hour ago to give you my three penn’orth but it has again mysteriously gone into the ether. Great guzzle, thanks to Setter & Mr K.

23. Good challenge as expected on a Friday with a new duck name to add to my list. The played card clue is also – for me – an unusual phrase for ‘immediate’. Thank you compiler and Mr K

24. I too had this pegged as a Smooth production. A surprisingly brisk completion but it took 2 stabs at the duck, which was last in, to receive the all ok. I know it’s cropped up before but had it in my head it was a C rather than a G – soon corrected in the parse. 7,12,18&23a + 1,3,7&9d my picks of the usual fine assortment of clues. 3d the standout fav.
    Thanks to Silvanus & to Mr K

25. Beaten by the duck. Having never heard of it, I didn’t have the energy to scroll through c500+ combinations until something plausible appeared,
    9d wide boys prob top of the heap.
    Thanks to all.

    I know it’s been a few days but did anyone else go to the Grand Sumo at RAH? What a fantastic spectacle to be there in person.

    1. No one else seems to have had difficulty with 20a but the only homophone I can think of has more to do with hotel rooms 🤔

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

       2. I don’t get 20a either!!!

       3. Maybe sequel to a meal perhaps?

          1. That’s the only interpretation that I could come up with but it’s a bit weak.

             1. Hmm, this one past me by.

                A suite is a series, sequence, set or chain which all have more than one part whereas as a sequel is an individual thing.

                But, looking online, sequel is a synonym which I don’t get.

                Maybe the setter or someone else can give us an example.

                1. According to your least favourite dictionary (!), “suite” can mean a train of followers or attendants and therefore, possibly by extension, Chambers also gives “sequel” as a definition of it, i.e. something that follows. I can’t really offer a better explanation than that, but Chambers Crossword Dictionary (the small red book) does show “suite” as a synonym of “sequel” and vice versa.

                   1. Grrrrr! That pesky Chumpers.

                      Thank you and thank you for an enjoyable challenge.

                      Re corn, I love it when you choose a monster word when something smaller would suffice. Being a Maths man, I love having to count twice: once to 13 then to 7.

26. I don’t get 20d. I put in something with one letter different which it said on the internet was a name for some little figures – which I had never heard of. Other than that I managed to complete it with some double-checking which was pleasing. I thought one or two were a bit iffy but my favourite was 3d. Thanks to all involved once again.

27. Considering it’s a Friday puzzle (therefore much harder IMHO) I actually enjoyed today’s offering especially 7a and 9d. The top half went in quickly but I needed the hints for the last word of 18a and spent too much time trying to parse 17d (kept thinking about boxing trophies?!). I’m sure we have had 5d earlier this year? But not complaining, as I got it easily and it confirmed the surrounding clues. Many thanks to Silvanus and Mr Kay. Loved the pics at 10a and 7d. Wishing everyone a nice weekend and hopefully, some dry, sunny weather!

    Steve, good to see you back at the top where you deserve to be. Hope your test results and treatment go well.

28. Excellent Friday workout, with 1D a side-splitter! VMT Setter and Mr K.

29. Many thanks to Mr K for his excellent Hints and Tips as per usual, and to all those commenting and solving.

    May I wish everyone a good weekend and, for those in the UK, please don’t forget to put your clocks back one hour!

    1. Clock change also applies to Telegraph solvers in most of Europe and elsewhere… 😉

       1. Yes, thank you, but it doesn’t include Canada – I believe they change their clocks the following weekend. So I didn’t want Senf and our other Canadian regulars feeling slightly miffed if I suggested it was everyone!

          1. You’re right, Senf can be a bit touchy. 🙂 (I think between us we’ve placated everyone now. Thanks for a great puzzle.)

30. Thank you, everyone for your good wishes and welcome back. I have my echocardiogram next Friday.

    1. Good luck fire that.

       1. For

          1. 👍

    2. Frida frid Fri fr f

       1. Are you twatted, John?

    3. Hope all goes well, mate.

    4. I hope all goes well, mate.

31. A couple of bung ins for 14d and 20a.

    No idea how sequel/suite(?) are connected, or am I being thick.

    Also, I cannot find a stem/family connect. Am I being doubly thick.

    10a duck is new to me.

    Not as beastly as a normal Friday though, so all good.

    Thanks to all.

32. 15a caused a bit of sucking through the teeth before entry, 14d’s family wasn’t the first synonym to spring to mind but it couldn’t be anything else and I still don’t understand 16d. Apart from those minor issues I really enjoyed this. I knew the duck, took me two or three goes to parse it though. Favourite was 3d as it took an age to realise the obvious. Thanks to Silvanus and Mr. K.

    1. Religious Education + former.
       Just broke a rule & tacked an Osmosis Toughie – way above my pay grade & still one shy after a substantial part of the evening gone.

33. 3* / 4* A good Friday puzzle, I struggled with a few definitions but did know the duck.
    Favourites include the aforementioned duck at 10a, composer at 3d and immediately at 18a
    Thanks to Silvanus and Mr K

34. 3*/3* ….
    liked 7A “Something reflective of musical I heard (4-3)”

    1. Yes, I thought that was very clever.

       1. 😊

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