Wednesday, October 22, 2014 — DT 27501

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27501
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27501]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Big Dave
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 fully parsing the clue █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's Crossword Blog █ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by solutions from Big Dave's Crossword Blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's Crossword Blog █ - yet to be solved

Introduction

I am afraid that it was a very sad and traumatic day in Ottawa today. Although the puzzle was not an overly challenging one, it was difficult to maintain focus with the events transpiring around me.

I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.

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.

Primary indications (definitions) are marked with a solid underline in the clue; subsidiary indications (be they wordplay or other) are marked with a dashed underline in all-in-one (&lit.) clues, semi-all-in-one (semi-&lit.) clues and cryptic definitions. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//).

Across

1a   Spirits prior to Conservative // account limited by definition (5,5)

In Britain, a short^[5] is a drink of spirits served in a small measure^[5] [a container of standard capacity used for taking fixed amounts of a substance] or, as Collins English Dictionary puts it, a drink of spirits as opposed to a long drink such as beer^[10].

A Tory^[4] is a member or supporter of the Conservative Party in Great Britain [or Canada].

6a   Taken advantage of /by/ American and heartlessly evicted (4)

As a link word, by^[5] would seem to be used in the sense of a preposition indicating the means of achieving something.

9a   Looking embarrassed -- expensive-sounding /for/ a stag? (3,4)

The question mark indicates that a stag is an example of the solution. Other examples would be a doe or a fawn.

The red deer^[5] is a deer (Cervus elaphus) with a rich red-brown summer coat that turns dull brownish-grey in winter, the male having large branched antlers. It is native to North America, Eurasia, and North Africa.

10a   Large // policemen accepting note of indebtedness (7)

12a   Famous monument /of/ Rome -- dirt cheap (ruined) (3,2,8)

The Arc de Triomphe^[5] is a ceremonial arch standing at the top of the Champs-Élysées in Paris, commissioned by Napoleon to commemorate his victories in 1805-6. Inspired by the Arch of Constantine in Rome, it was completed in 1836.

In this clue (as well as two others elsewhere in the puzzle), the word "of" is a link (indicating constituent parts) between the definition and wordplay. The preposition of^[5] may be used to indicate the material or substance constituting something ⇒ (i) the house was built of bricks; or (ii) walls of stone.

14a   Got up before court date /to get/ material for carpenter (8)

15a   Hole /caused by/ credit taking in charge (6)

17a   Frogman with time // to entertain (6)

19a   Not very good -- // book covered in beer after amorous advance (8)

21a   Alliance /taking/ company line prior to Labour speech (13)

24a   One key diver recalled // a danger at sea (7)

The grebe^[5] is a diving waterbird with a long neck, lobed toes, and almost no tail, typically having bright breeding plumage used in display.

25a   Irritated angler secures quiet // hook (7)

Piano^[3,5] (abbreviation p^[5]), is a musical direction meaning either (as an adjective) soft or quiet or (as an adverb) softly or quietly.

Grapnel^[5] can mean either (1) a grappling hook or (2) a small anchor with several flukes.

26a   Lad sent back hospital // grub (4)

In Britain, nosh^[5] is an informal term for food ⇒ filling the freezer with all kinds of nosh whereas in North America it denotes a snack or small item of food ⇒ have plenty of noshes and nibbles conveniently placed.

27a   Habitual // attire even when running (10)

Down

1d   There's no good in rapid rise, // certainly in the USA (4)

The use of sure^[5] as an adverb is a chiefly North American practice. It can mean certainly (used for emphasis) ⇒ Texas sure was a great place to grow up or as an exclamation used to show assent ⇒ ‘Are you serious?’ ‘Sure.’.

2d   Gold trades /can be/ trying experiences (7)

Or^[5] is gold or yellow, as a heraldic tincture.

3d   New RAF charter transformed // combat in the field (6,7)

The Royal Air Force^[5] (abbreviation RAF) is the British air force, formed in 1918 by amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps (founded 1912) and the Royal Naval Air Service (founded 1914).

4d   Excited, // went to bed with love for one (6,2)

In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love^[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒ love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.

5d   Rights protecting expert // runner (5)

7d   Top moves in close // field event (4,3)

8d   Take hope from // a resident shuffling around hospital (10)

11d   Delay // disciplining a prisoner with tact (13)

13d   Pressure on way of talking about engineers /making/ forecast (10)

The Corps of Royal Engineers^[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers^[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.

16d   Rant /making one/ earn a hug, possibly? (8)

The link phrase "making one" is to be interpreted as 'producing (making) [for the] solver (one)'.

18d   Geographical features /of/ very narrow streets (7)

20d   Extreme letters supporting ban on working /for/ instant prosperity (7)

22d   The heart, for example, /of/ a music producer (5)

23d   I haven't got one -- have you? (4)

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