Friday, May 17, 2019 — DT 28903

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28903
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, November 22, 2018
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28903 ]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Kath
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

The mystery setter of today's puzzle has dialled up the intensity level of our mental workout a notch or two.

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.

Click here for an explanation of conventions and symbols used in explaining the parsing of clues.

The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in explaining the parsing of clues.

Legend: The following symbols are used in reviews: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that the preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the word is present in the clue

The review of a clue takes the following general structure:

#a/d   Clue containing parsing markup (num^*)

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^* num = numeration

Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)

(Horizontal separator)

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Explanations pertaining to the definition (or second definition in a double definition) and solution.

Explanatory Box

An explanatory box provides additional information about the clue. In most cases this information will not necessarily help in solving the clue but provides information about the clue. In the case of the weekday syndicated Daily Telegraph puzzles, such information is often intended to help the North American solver appreciate how the clue may be perceived by a British solver. These boxes may also provide information on people, places, films, television program, works of art and literature, etc. mentioned in the clue. Although the titles of these boxes will usually be drawn from a standard list, I do occasionally throw in a title specifically suggested by the subject at hand. The standard titles include: Scratching the Surface - an explanation of the surface reading of the clue Delving Deeper - in-depth information pertaining to a subject mentioned in an explanation The Story Behind the Picture - for weekday puzzles, information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a discussion on Big Dave's Crossword Blog One box that may provide information that could prove helpful in solving the clue is the following: Here and There - for weekday puzzles, discusses words whose British meaning differs from their North American meaning

Note that there are many types of cryptic crossword clue and it is not my intention to exhaustively go through all of them here. I will only deal with clue types to the extent necessary to explain the conventions and symbols used on the blog. Furthermore, be aware that, in the world of cryptic crosswords, there seems to be an exception to every rule.

With one exception that I can think of, cryptic crossword clues provide two routes to the solution. These are commonly referred to as the definition and wordplay. While these terms serve well for most clues, there are some cases where the more formal terms of primary indication and subsidiary indication may be more appropriate.

Most cryptic crossword clues consist of a definition (primary indication) and wordplay (subsidiary indication). The definition may be:

• a "precise definition": a definition that is either taken directly from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion similar to one that would be found in a dictionary
• a "cryptic definition": a definition misleadingly phrased so as to misdirect the solver either with respect to the meaning of the definition as a whole or to an incorrect sense of a word used in the definition (for example, defining topiary as "clip art")
• a "whimsical definition": a definition "invented" by the setter often by extrapolating a non-existent meaning for a word from a similar word (for example, defining a bird as a "winger" [something possessing wings] or a river as a ''flower" [something that flows] or to extrapolate that, since disembowel means 'to remove the innards of ', that discontent must mean 'to remove the contents of')
• a "definition by example": the presence of one of these is often flagged with a question mark (for example, defining atoll as "coral?" where an atoll is but one form that coral may take).

The only type of clue that I can think of where there are not two ways of finding the solution are those in which the entire clue is a cryptic definition.

I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and other varieties of definition (such as cryptic definitions, whimsical definitions, definitions by example, etc.) by marking them with a dotted underline.

In clues in which both definition and wordplay are present, the two parts of the clue combine to provide an overall meaningful statement (the surface reading) which usually bears no relationship to the underlying cryptic reading of the clue. In some cases, an extra word or phrase will be inserted into the clue to create a meaningful link between the definition and wordplay. I define clues which contain such a link word or link phrase as having an explicit link and clues which contain no link word or link phrase as having an implicit link.

I mark the existence of an explicit link by enclosing the link word or link phrase between forward slashes (/link/) and mark the existence of an implicit link with double forward slashes (//) positioned between the definition and wordplay.

Examples

A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.

The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:

• 4d   Fellow left work // a failure (4)

Here the definition is "a failure" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as F (fellow; abbrev.) + L (left; abbrev.) + OP (work; abbrev. used in music) which gives us the solution F|L|OP. The double forward slashes (//) between the definition and wordplay indicate the existence of an "implicit link" between the two parts of the clue (that is, no extra words are inserted into the clue to form the link).

The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:

• 29a   Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)

Here the definition "female going to match" is cryptic (the setter is attempting to misdirect our thoughts to a sports event rather than a marriage ceremony) and thus is marked with a a dotted underline. The wordplay is {RIDES (travels) + (with) MA (mother)} contained in (in) BID (advance) giving us the solution B(RIDES|MA)ID. As in the first example, the double forward slashes indicate the presence of an implicit link.

The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:

• 18d   Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)

Here the definition is "staggering" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as N ([chess symbol for] knight) contained in (caught in) an anagram (misplaced) of BIG BLOW producing the solution WOBBLI(N)G. Finally, forward slashes mark the link word (/is/).

I also use distinctive underlining to mark &lit.^[7] and semi-&lit. clues. Note that the reviewers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog generally prefer to refer to these clue types by the less pretentious names of all-in-one or semi-all-in-one clues respectively.

In an &lit. clue^[7] (or all-in-one clue) the entire clue provides not only the definition (when read one way), but under a different interpretation also serves as the wordplay.

In future, I will mark such clues with a combined solid and dashed underline. Although this is a departure from past practice, it would seem to make more sense than using a dotted underline as I have in the past). Henceforth, the dotted underline will be reserved for cryptic definitions.

In a semi-&lit. clue (or semi-all-in-one clue), either:

• the entire clue acts as the definition while a portion of the clue provides the wordplay; or
• the entire clue acts as the wordplay while a portion of the clue provides the definition.

For these clues, I will mark the definition with a solid underline and the wordplay with a  dashed underline. This means that a portion of the clue may have a solid underline, a portion of the clue may have a dashed underline and a portion of the clue may have a combined solid and dashed underline.

One final clue type is what I characterize as a cryptic definition comprised of a precise definition combined with cryptic elaboration. For example, in DT 28560 (setter unknown) the following clue appears:

•  26d   Heroic exploit, whichever way you look at it (4)

As the entire clue is a cryptic definition, it is marked with a dotted underline. The 'precise definition' is "heroic exploit" and is indicated by a solid underline.

Given the numeration, the precise definition could give rise to at least two solutions, DEED or FEAT. However, the 'cryptic elaboration' ("whichever way you look at it") indicates that the solution is a palindrome thereby immediately eliminating one of the two obvious choices.

Note that the part of the clue that I have called 'cryptic elaboration' does not provide a second independent route to the solution (as the wordplay would do in most other types of clue). Rather it merely provides a piece of additional information (elaboration) related to the 'precise definition'.

Again, this approach is a departure from past practice, but like the other changes mentioned previously is intended to remove inconsistencies in the way that I have been applying parsing markup to clues. The markup rules that I have been using until now evolved bit-by-bit over a long period of time resulting in some degree of internal inconsistency.

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Across

1a   Energy Ringo barely whipped up /for/ Beatles tune (7,5)

"energy" = E [symbol used in physics] (show reference )

In physics, E^[5] is a symbol used to represent energy in mathematical formulae ⇒ E = mc².

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"Eleanor Rigby"^[7] is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, released on their 1966 album Revolver and as a single with "Yellow Submarine"^*. It was written primarily by Paul McCartney, and credited to Lennon–McCartney.

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^* The songs "Eleanor Rigby" and "Yellow Submarine" were released as a double A-side^[7] single meaning that both sides of the record were labeled the A-side. This format was pioneered by the Beatles with their 1965 release of of "We Can Work It Out" and "Day Tripper",

Scratching the Surface
Ringo Starr[5] is an English rock and pop drummer; born Richard Starkey. He replaced Pete Best in the Beatles in 1962. After the band split up in 1970, he pursued a solo career as a musician, singer, and actor.}

9a   Retrieved // blanket laying in grass (9)

10a   Generous // starter lacking in taste (5)

Scratching the Surface
Starter[5] is another name* for an appetizer or the first course of a meal. * although British dictionaries consider this term to be British[5] (or chiefly or mainly British[4,10,14]), this usage of the word would seem to have become well established in North America[3,12]

11a   A pair of learners joining university on // appeal (6)

"learner" = L [driver under instruction] (show more )

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 jurisdictions (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.

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12a   Star // screened by broadcaster is knowledgeable (8)

This extremely well-disguised lurker was my last clue solved.

13a   Intrepid // choir touring round Spain (6)

"Spain" = E [IVR code] (show explanation )

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) code for Spain is E^*[5] (in the photo, seen on the left hand side of the licence plate below the European Union symbol).

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^* from Spanish España

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15a   Crossing street, observe reversing // car (8)

A dragster^[5] is a car built or modified to take part in drag races^*.

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^* A drag race^[5] is a race between two cars over a short distance, usually a quarter of a mile, as a test of acceleration.

18a   Plant // beginning to sag, promptly prod ground (8)

As an anagram indicator, ground is used as the past tense or past participle of the verb grind^[5]. An anagram indicator is typically a word that denotes movement or transformation. Grind denotes transformation, for example, in the sense of grain being ground into flour.

19a   Supplies // bombed aboard ship (6)

"aboard ship" = 'contained in SS' (show explanation )

In Crosswordland, you will find that a ship is almost invariably a steamship, the abbreviation for which is SS^[5]. Thus phrases such as "aboard ship" or "on board ship" (or sometimes merely "aboard" or "on board") are Crosswordland code for 'contained in SS'.

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21a   A Parisian complained after leader's dismissed // eccentric (8)

"a Parisian" = UN (show more )

In French, the masculine singular form of the indefinite article is un^[8].

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Here and There

Whereas North Americans merely whine, it would seem that Brits both whine and whinge. Whinge[5] is an informal British term that means: (verb) to complain persistently and in a peevish or irritating way ⇒ stop whingeing and get on with it!  (noun) an act of complaining persistently and peevishly ⇒ she let off steam by having a good whinge This would seem to connote a stronger level of complaint than a whine[5] which is defined as: (verb) to complain in a feeble or petulant way ⇒ (i) she began to whine about how hard she had been forced to work; (ii) My legs ache,’ he whined (noun) a feeble or petulant complaint ⇒ a constant whine about the quality of public services

You Be The Judge
Are eccentric and unhinged synonymous? Eccentric[5] (said of a person or their behaviour) denotes unconventional and slightly strange ⇒ he noted her eccentric appearance. Unhinged[5] means mentally unbalanced or deranged ⇒ the violent acts of unhinged minds.

23a   In charge, keen to shorten // period of hostile conditions (3,3)

"in charge" = IC (show explanation )

The abbreviation i/c^[2,5] can be short for either:

• (especially in military contexts) in charge (of) ⇒ the Quartermaster General is i/c rations
• in command (of) ⇒ 2 i/c = second in command.

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26a   Fly keeping close to trail // from light source (5)

The solution is an adjective, thus the word "from" must be part of the definition.

27a   Graphic // clip to air must be edited (9)

28a   Relation to help youngster turn kipper? (7,5)

Kip^[5] is an informal British term meaning:

• (noun) a sleep or nap ⇒ (i) I might have a little kip; (ii)  he was trying to get some kip
• (verb) to sleep ⇒ he can kip on her sofa

Consequently, a kipper would be someone who is sleeping or napping.

Down

1d   Badger /and/ bear roaming north of wood (7)

Earbash^[5] is an informal British term meaning to talk to (someone) at length, often in a reproachful manner ⇒ (i) MPs were earbashed daily on the campaign trail; (ii) she gave up on earbashing the driver about the faults of another driver.

2d   Perform brilliantly /with/ times over speed of light stuffing fish (5)

In physics, the symbol c^[5] is used to represent the speed of light in a vacuum ⇒ E = mc².

3d   Upset home's full of pests? // Don't worry (5,4)

4d   Unusual /using/ Egyptian god with religious teaching (4)

In Egyptian mythology, Ra^[5] (alternative spelling Re) is the sun god, the supreme Egyptian deity, worshipped as the creator of all life and typically portrayed with a falcon’s head bearing the solar disc. From earliest times he was associated with the pharaoh.

In the UK, religious education^[10] (abbreviation RE^[5]) is a subject taught in schools which educates about the different religions of the world.

5d   Labour // at home, do housework really discontentedly (8)

The setter uses "discontentedly" to indicate that the inner letters of "R[EALL]Y" are to be removed. This cryptic device is based on the whimsical logic that if disembowel means to remove one's innards, then it only stands to reason that discontent must mean to remove one's contents.

Industry^[5] is used in the sense of hard work ⇒ the kitchen became a hive of industry.

What did she say?

In her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Kath describes the "housework" as not polish or hoover, another one. In the UK, hoover[5] (a genericized form of the trade name Hoover) means: (noun) a vacuum cleaner (from any manufacturer) (verb) to clean (something) with a vacuum cleaner ⇒ he was hoovering the stairs The Hoover Company[7] started out as an American floor care manufacturer based in North Canton, Ohio. It also established a major base in the United Kingdom and for most of the early-and-mid-20th century, it dominated the electric vacuum cleaner industry, to the point where the "hoover" brand name became synonymous with vacuum cleaners and vacuuming in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

6d   Burn // mark on animal (5)

A blaze^[5] is a broad white stripe running the length of a horse's face.

7d   One leaving // triplets to misbehave (8)

8d   One of three men in tub trapping behind in the // vessel (6)

"Rub-A-Dub-Dub"^[7] is an English language nursery rhyme first published at the end of the 18th century in volume two of Hook's Christmas Box under the title "Dub a dub dub" rather than "Rub a dub dub".

This rhyme exists in many variations. Among those current today is:

Rub-a-dub-dub,

Three men in a tub,

And who do you think they be?

The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker,

And all of them out to sea.

X-Rated Roots

The earliest versions of this rhyme[7] published differ significantly in their wording. Dating back to the 14th century, the original rhyme makes reference to maids in a "tub" – a fairground attraction similar to a modern peep show. The rhyme is of a type calling out otherwise respectable people for disrespectable actions, in this case, ogling naked ladies – the maids. The nonsense "Rub-a-dub-dub" develops a phonetic association of social disapprobation, analogous to "tsk-tsk," albeit of a more lascivious variety. The nursery rhyme is a form of teaching such associations in folklore: for individuals raised with such social codes, the phrase "Rub-a-dub-dub" alone could stand in for gossip or innuendo without communicating all of the details. One early recorded version in Christmas Box, published in London in 1798, has wording similar to that in Mother Goose's Quarto or Melodies Complete, published in Boston, Massachusetts around 1825. The latter ran: Hey! rub-a-dub, ho! rub-a-dub, three maids in a tub, And who do you think were there? The butcher, the baker, the candlestick-maker, And all of them gone to the fair. In the original version as it appeared both in England and in the USA (Boston) the song was talking about three maids instead of three men. Later research, according to The Oxford Dictionary of Nursery Rhymes (1951), suggests that the lyrics are illustrating a scene of three respectable townsfolk "watching a dubious sideshow at a local fair".

14d   Heard road over the hill possesses hard, // strong foundation (8)

"hard" = H (show explanation )

H^[2,5] is an abbreviation for hard, as used in describing grades of pencil lead ⇒ a 2H pencil.

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16d   Explain // what traverse means (3,6)

17d   Mounting desire to be in photo troubled // centre of attraction (8)

A honeypot^[5] is a a place to which many people are attracted ⇒ the tourist honeypot of St Ives.

18d   Defeat after second // game (6)

20d   Poet/'s/ bashful, hiding fashion magazine (7)

Elle^[7] is a worldwide lifestyle magazine of French origin that focuses on fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. The title means "she" or "her," in French.

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Percy Bysshe Shelley^[5] (1792–1822) was an English poet. He was a leading figure of the romantic movement with radical political views. Notable works include Queen Mab (political poems, 1813), Prometheus Unbound (lyrical drama, 1820), The Defence of Poetry (essay, 1821), and Adonais (1821), an elegy on the death of Keats.

22d   Scandinavian // knight on steed in the East End (5)

"knight" = N [chess notation] (show explanation )

A knight^[5] is a chess piece, typically with its top shaped like a horse’s head, that moves by jumping to the opposite corner of a rectangle two squares by three. Each player starts the game with two knights.

N^[5] is the abbreviation for knight used in recording moves in chess [representing the pronunciation of kn-, since the initial letter k- represents 'king'].

As an aside, it is interesting to note that the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary defines: 

• K^[2] as an abbreviation used in chess for knight. 
• K^[2] is a symbol used in chess to represent a king. 
• N^[2] is a symbol used in chess to represent a knight.

The dictionary fails to specify how one differentiates an abbreviation from a symbol.

On the other hand, both The Chambers Dictionary and the Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary list K or K.^[1,11] as an abbreviation for knight without specifying the specific context in which this abbreviation is used. However, the context may well be in an honours list rather than in a game of chess. In the UK, for instance, KBE^[5] stands for Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

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Cockneys^[5,10], the natives of that part of East London known as the East End^[5], speak a dialect (also known as cockney) that is characterised by dropping the aitch (H) from the beginning of words as well as the use of rhyming slang (show explanation ).

Rhyming slang^[5] is a type of slang that replaces words with rhyming words or phrases, typically with the rhyming element omitted. For example, butcher’s, short for butcher’s hook, means ‘look’ in cockney rhyming slang.

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24d   Farm kid regularly abandoned work /for/ friend (5)

Amigo^[8] is the masculine form of the Spanish word meaning 'friend'.

25d   Dodge // swimmer's head on river (4)

The Cam^[10] is a river in eastern England, in Cambridgeshire, flowing through Cambridge to the Great Ouse (river). Length: about 64 km (40 miles).

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)
^[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
^[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)
^[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon