Wednesday, June 10, 2009 (DT 25847)

This puzzle was originally published Monday, February 9, 2009 in The Daily Telegraph

Introduction

The Brits seemed to think that this puzzle was very easy, although I found it slightly more challenging than the two previous ones. Those I had completed - or came close to completing - totally unaided. On today's puzzle, I seemed to get stuck after solving about a half dozen clues - and had to pull out the tool chest at that point. I must say that once I had found the solutions to two or three additional clues, the remainder of the puzzle - for the most part - seemed to fall into place very quickly.

Today's Glossary

Some possibly unfamiliar abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions used in today's puzzle

Battle of Hastings - decisive battle in the Norman Conquest of England between armies led by William the Conqueror and Harold Godwinson

extra - (cricket) a run scored by a means other than a batsman hitting the ball; it is possible to score an extra on a "no ball" (see defn. below)

no ball - (cricket) a ball bowled in a manner that is not allowed by the rules

Today's Links

If you just need the solution to a clue or two to get you started, AnswerBank might serve the purpose. I found only a single question on AnswerBank discussing today's puzzle. It is (together with the clue that it covers):

• AnswerBank [DT 25847]-a: 2d

A review of today's puzzle, providing hints, solutions and/or explanations for most - if not all - clues, can be found at Big Dave's Telegraph Crossword Blog [DT 25847].

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

A lot of cryptic definitions today - and some of them, I must say, were rather poor indeed, especially:

18ac He finds criminals working for the police (9)

This clue leaves me thinking that surely I missed a nuance in the wordplay - but judging from the discussion on the British blogs, I didn't.

The most challenging clue for me (in large part due to my lack of familiarity with the finer points - or even the rougher points, for that matter - of cricket) may well have been:

6ac An extra modest sort of dance? (2, 4)

It seems that this clue was so obvious to those across the pond that it barely merited a mention on the British blogs. Once I had determined that the clue related to cricket, with some sleuthing I was able to find out that an "extra" is a run scored by a means other than a batsman hitting the ball, and that it is possible to score an extra on a "no ball".

I must confess that it then took me a good while to see the rest of the wordplay - "a modest sort of dance" is "no ball" in the same way that "a Mini is no Rolls-Royce".

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"CD" Cryptic Definition; "DD" Double Definition
	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted

Across

1ac H(A|ST)E

4ac G-STRINGS - CD

8ac UNGAINLY* - {IN AN UGLY}*

9ac SABOTAGE* - {A BASE GOT}*

11ac EXPRESS - DD

13ac TEST PILOT - CD

15ac ON THE BRIGHT SIDE - CD

18ac DETECTIVE - CD

21ac DIP|LO|MA

22ac HASTINGS* - CD containing anagram {AS THINGS}*

24ac PLAYMATE - CD

25ac KEEP| A|T IT

26ac RITES - CD

Down

1d HOUSE-PROUD

2d SIGN|POST

3d EMINENCE - DD

4d GUYS - DD

5d RE|COUP

6d NO BALL

7d SA(F)E

10d AS|SIGNED

12d S(TAR)LING

14d THE PLANETS - CD

16d TAXPAYER - CD

17d IGNORANT - CD

19d TIS*|SUE - SIT*

20d CRIME|A

22d HULK - CD

23d S(PA)T

Signing off for today - Falcon