Tuesday, February 4, 2014 — DT 27309

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27309
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27309]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Deep Threat
BD Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Experience ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ Legend: █ - solved without assistance █ - incorrect prior to use of puzzle solving tools █ - solved with assistance from puzzle solving tools █ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by puzzle solving tools █ - solved but without being able to fully parse the clue █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog █ - yet to be solved

Introduction

I thought that this puzzle was a bit more difficult than most of those that we have seen recently — although Deep Threat does not seem to share that view. About halfway through, I found myself in a state of "gridlock" — which I think is a very appropriate term to describe my situation. Solving any clue would have given me the checking letters needed to solve one or more other clues — but I was unable to solve any clue, thus preventing me from making any headway whatsoever. However, after solving a handful of clues with a bit of help from my electronic assistants, the remainder of the puzzle fell nicely into place.

Notes on Today's Puzzle

This commentary is intended to serve as a supplement to the review of this puzzle found at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above. The underlined portion of the clue is the definition.

Across

7a   Plague produced by store in state of disgrace (3,5)

9a   Learner driver breaking a rule formulated appeal (6)

The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate^[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various countries (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.

10a   Crack  biscuit in game (4)

The British use the term biscuit^[3,4,11] to refer to a range of food items that include those that are called either cookies or a crackers in North America. What we know as a biscuit^[5] in North America is similar to a British scone. Thus a cookie such as a ginger snap would be a biscuit to the Brits.

Snap^[4] is a British card game [although one that I can personally attest is also played in Canada] in which the word snap is called when two cards of equal value are turned up on the separate piles dealt by each player.

11a   Annoying mob's here to riot (10)

12a   Real man Gareth accepting no good wristband? (6)

Gareth Bale^[7] is a Welsh footballer who plays for Real Madrid and the Wales national team as a winger. Real Madrid Club de Fútbol^[7] (Royal Madrid Football Club), commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football [soccer] club based in Madrid, Spain.

The NG element of the wordplay could be a charade of N (no) + G (good; a result achieved at school on an assignment or test) or it could be an abbreviation for the term no good in its own right. The American Heritage Dictionary, Collins English Dictionary, and the Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary all list NG^[3,4,11] and/or some of its variants N.G., ng, or n.g. as standing for no good.

14a   A name curtailed in performance making one speechless (8)

A turn^[3] is a brief theatrical act or stage appearance.

15a   Scot in Selkirk guards worthless material (6)

Tinsel^[3] can mean something sparkling or showy but basically valueless.

17a   Slight quarrel about a right to get list of duties (6)

Without a prod from my electronic assistants, it never occurred to me to think of duty in the sense in which it is used here.

20a   Authentic Scottish community on radio (8)

Stirling^[5] is a city and administrative region in central Scotland, on the River Forth; population 32,000 (est. 2009).

22a   Stewed food with student festivities in the open? (6)

In Britain, rag^[5] (usually used as a modifier) refers to a programme of stunts, parades, and other entertainments organized by students to raise money for charity ⇒ rag week.

23a   Musicians' gathering blocks discordant noises (3,7)

24a   Poetess bringing out line for course of action (4)

Sylvia Plath^[5] (1932–1963) was an American poet, wife of English poet Ted Hughes (1930–1998). Her work is notable for its treatment of extreme and painful states of mind. In 1963 she committed suicide. Notable works: Ariel (poems, 1965) and The Bell Jar (novel, 1963).

The story of the tragic romance between Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes is told in the 2003 British film Sylvia^[7] in which the pair are played by Gwyneth Paltrow and Daniel Craig. The film begins with their meeting at Cambridge in 1956 and ends with Sylvia Plath's suicide in 1963.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1932, Plath developed a precocious talent as a writer, publishing her first poem when she was only eight years old. That same year, tragedy introduced itself into her life as Plath was forced to confront the unexpected death of her father. In 1950, she began studying at Smith College on a literary scholarship, and while she was an outstanding student, she also began suffering from bouts of extreme depression. Following her junior year, she attempted suicide for the first time. Plath survived, and, in 1955, she was granted a Fulbright Scholarship to study in England at the University of Cambridge. While in Great Britain, Plath met Ted Hughes, a respected author, who would later become the British Poet Laureate. The two fell in love and married in 1956. Marriage, family and a growing reputation as an important poet nonetheless failed to bring Plath happiness. She became increasingly fascinated with death, a highly visible theme in her later poetry and her sole novel, The Bell Jar. After Hughes left her for another woman, her depression went into a tailspin from which she never recovered. She killed herself at age 30.

And this account barely scratches the surface of the tragedy and controversy that surrounded her in life — and in death.

25a   Bully  a rival of the Greeks (6)

In Greek mythology, Hector^[5] was a Trojan warrior, son of Priam and Hecuba and husband of Andromache. He was killed by Achilles, who dragged his body behind his chariot three times round the walls of Troy.

For the benefit of those reading Deep Threat's review, Hector the Dog was the title character in Hector's House^[7],  a children's television series using hand puppets that appeared on British television in the 1960s. The program was actually a French production (La Maison de Toutou) revoiced for a British audience.

26a   Cooking pies, I do start to caramelise at intervals (8)

Down

1d   Gloomy players near Belfast? (8)

Down^[5] is one of the Six Counties of Northern Ireland, since 1973 an administrative district; chief town, Downpatrick.

Belfast^[5,7] is the capital, largest city and chief port of Northern Ireland; population 260,700 (est. 2009). Most of Belfast is in County Antrim, but parts of East and South Belfast are in County Down.

For the wordplay, one really needs to consider the solution as an entire phrase, with "Down cast" signifying [an ensemble of stage] players [from somewhere] near Belfast.

2d   Shot in play -- and getting caught with it? (4)

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation c^[5] denotes caught (by).

3d   See through  gang fight in New York (6)

... and in many other locations around the world.

In the US, Canada, and New Zealand, a rumble^[5,10] is a street fight between gangs or large groups ⇒a rumble between two gangs of street thugs.

Rumble^[5] is an informal British term meaning to discover (an illicit activity or its perpetrator) ⇒ it wouldn’t need a genius to rumble my little game.

4d   Clan I've upset associated with a Spanish city (8)

Valencia^[5] is a port in eastern Spain, on the Mediterranean coast; population 807,200 (2008).

5d   Place for hiding with hook almost visible providing narrow escape (5,5)

A hinge^[2] is the movable hook or joint by which a door is fastened to a door-frame or a lid is fastened to a box, etc and also on which they turn when opened or closed.

It took me a while to reconcile a hook being a hinge. However, there are types of hinges that consist of a hook (or pin) mounted on the supporting structure and a ring attached to the door or gate which fits over the hook to support the door or gate and allow it to swing back and forth.

6d   Jolt from significant remorse (6)

8d   Extended car that's electronic, say (6)

In Britain, a station wagon^[5] is known as an estate car^[5] (which is often shortened to just estate^[5]).

13d   Kelly, perhaps, fronting appeal surrounded by hopeful kindness (10)

I went slightly off-track thinking that "kelly, perhaps" might be a reference to kelly green^[10] — and the first five letters of the solution are an anagram of GREEN. However, it seems that this term is North American in origin, rather than Irish.

Gene Kelly^[5] (1912–1996) was an American dancer and choreographer. He performed in and choreographed many film musicals, including An American in Paris (1951) and Singin' in the Rain (1952).


"It"^[2] is an old slang term for sex appeal. The expression, although having appeared in the writing of Rudyard Kipling as early as 1904, appears to have come into widespread use as a result of the 1927 film It^[7] starring Clara Bow (who became known as the 'It girl'^[7]).

16d   Young woman enthralled by hearing organ with unknown agent (8)

In mathematics (algebra, in particular), an unknown^[10] is a variable, or the quantity it represents, the value of which is to be discovered by solving an equation ⇒ 3y = 4x + 5 is an equation in two unknowns. [Unknowns are typically represented symbolically by the letters x, y and z.]

18d   Fellow with excess of butter, maybe, but no mass water source? (8)

European agricultural policy^[7] is designed to maintain production levels for certain farm products at a high level compared with demand in the free market. This leads to the European Union purchasing millions of tonnes of surplus output every year at the stated guaranteed market price, and storing this produce in large quantities (leading to what critics have called 'butter mountains' and 'milk lakes'), before selling the produce wholesale to developing nations.

In physics, m^[5] is the symbol for mass ⇒ E = mc².

19d   Fire uppity American in service, fool close to unemployable (6)

In the UK, nit^[5] is an informal term for a foolish person ⇒ you stupid nit!.

21d   Time needed by French composer making journey (6)

Maurice Ravel^[5] (1875–1937) was a French composer whose works are somewhat impressionistic in style, employing colourful orchestration and unresolved dissonances. Notable works: the ballets Daphnis and Chloë (1912) and Boléro (1928) and the orchestral work La Valse (1920).

22d   Organised police force in rank (6)

The Criminal Investigation Department (seemingly better known by its abbreviation CID^[2] — in which respect it is not unlike the RCMP and FBI) is the detective branch of the British police force.

24d   Tramp left to break in to school (4)

I didn't think of a school of whales; instead I wondered if "pod" might be a British term for a a portable [classroom].

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon