Tuesday, May 14, 2019 — DT 28900

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28900
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, November 19, 2018
Setter Mister Ron (Chris Lancaster)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28900]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Miffypops
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

As Miffypops informs us in his intro, this is likely the final Chris Lancaster puzzle in the "Monday" slot, as his puzzles will henceforth appear occasionally in the "Tuesday" slot. However, this change will not greatly affect us as puzzles can show up on any day of the week in the National Post.

Naturally, I failed to recognize that the puzzle is a pangram — a puzzle in which every letter of the alphabet appears at least once in the solutions to the clues.

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

7a   Turned round // to talk (8)

Post Mortem
I tried to make the first part of the clue be a charade with "round" (a type of song, as Row, row, row your boat ...) cluing VERSE. Of course, I was then at a loss to explain how "turned" might be cluing CON.

9a   A cross heading off trouble? (6)

Here the entire clue is not only a (somewhat cryptic) definition but also the wordplay.

A mule^[5] is the offspring of [or cross between] a donkey and a horse (strictly, a male donkey and a female horse), typically sterile and used as a beast of burden.

10a   Frenchman /in/ short trousers? (4)

The Story Behind the Picture
Miffypops illustrates his review with a photo of Big Dave and Jean-Luc Cheval who is a regular contributor to the Comments section of Big Dave's Crossword Blog. Jean-Luc is the proprietor of a restaurant in Hyères on the French Riviera.

11a   Club after crack // athlete (4-6)

12a   By crossing nobleman, Charlie forfeited // reward (6)

A count^[5] is a foreign [from a British perspective] nobleman whose rank corresponds to that of a British earl.

Charlie^[5] is a code word representing the letter C, used in radio communication.

14a   Living well // at home with constant sweetheart (2,6)

In mathematics, C^[5] (or c) is a symbol used to represent either the third fixed constant to appear in an algebraic expression, or a known constant.

The idiom in clover^[3] means living a carefree life of ease, comfort, or prosperity.

15a   Hold back // Greek character during row (6)

Eta^[5] is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet (Η, η).

17a   Hat wife discarded, and old // jacket (6)

Bowler^[5] (also bowler hat) is the British name for a man’s hard felt hat with a round dome-shaped crown. The North American name for this item of apparel is derby^[5] — said to arise from American demand for a hat of the type worn at the Epsom Derby^*.

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^* a prestigious British horse race — not to mention a major event on the British social calendar

"wife" = W [genealogy] (show explanation )

The abbreviation for 'wife' is w^[1,2,12] or w.^[3,4,10,11] [although no context is provided, it may come from the field of genealogy].

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A bolero^[5] is a woman's short open jacket.

What did he say?

In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops describes the hat as one once worn by businessmen in the city. The term "the city" (usually capitalized The City[5] ) is short for the City of London[5] (a borough of — and not to be confused with — the city of London) (show explanation ). The name is commonly used as a metonym for the United Kingdom's trading and financial services industries which are largely based there, similar to the use of the terms Wall Street and Bay Street to refer to the financial institutions located in New York and Toronto respectively. The City of London[7] is a city and ceremonial county within London. It constituted most of London from its settlement by the Romans in the 1st century AD to the Middle Ages, but the conurbation has since grown far beyond the City's borders. The City is now only a tiny part of the metropolis of London, though it remains a notable part of central London. It is one of two districts of London to hold city status, the other being the adjacent City of Westminster. It is widely referred to simply as the City (often written as just "City" and differentiated from the phrase "the city of London" by capitalising "City") and is also colloquially known as the Square Mile, as it is 1.12 sq mi (2.90 km2), in area. Both of these terms are also often used as metonyms for the United Kingdom's trading and financial services industries, which continue a notable history of being largely based in the City. This is analogous to the use of the terms Wall Street and Bay Street to refer to the financial institutions located in New York and Toronto respectively. hide

20a   Case /of/ Greek wine sent back by foremost of customers (8)

Retsina^[5] is a Greek white or rosé wine flavoured with resin.

22a   Prior // in favour of me and king (6)

"king" = R [abbreviation for Rex] (show explanation )

In the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms^*, Rex^[5] (abbreviation R^[5]) [Latin for king] denotes the reigning king, used following a name (e.g. Georgius Rex, King George — often shortened to GR) or in the titles of lawsuits (e.g. Rex v. Jones, the Crown versus Jones — often shortened to R. v. Jones).

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^* A Commonwealth realm^[7] is a sovereign state that is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and shares the same person, currently Elizabeth II, as its head of state and reigning constitutional monarch, but retains a crown legally distinct from the other realms. There are currently sixteen Commonwealth realms, the largest being Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom with the remainder being smaller Caribbean and Pacific island nations.

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Scratching the Surface
A prior[5] is the male head of a house or group of houses of certain religious orders, in particular: the man next in rank below an abbot the head of a house of friars

23a   Incontrovertible evidence of bad habit /shown by/ one on a shoot? (7,3)

What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops tells us we need the term for one on a shoot (not a beater). A beater[5] is a person employed to raise [cause to fly into the air] game birds for shooting by striking at the ground cover.

24a   Cast // of 'Jaws' he directed (4)

Cast^[3] (verb) is used in the sense of to shed or molt ⇒ the snake cast its skin.

Scratching the Surface

Jaws[7] is a 1975 American thriller film directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley's 1974 novel of the same name. In the film, a giant man-eating great white shark attacks beachgoers on Amity Island, a fictional New England summer resort town, prompting police chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) to hunt it with the help of a marine biologist (Richard Dreyfuss) and a professional shark hunter (Robert Shaw).

25a   Female lookalike, mostly // unconventional (6)

26a   Fairness: // English characteristic (8)

Down

1d   Furniture made of this // revolted conductor (8)

The definition is a cryptic expression of "material from which furniture is made".

Rosewood^[5] is close-grained tropical timber with a distinctive fragrance, used particularly for making furniture and musical instruments.

Opportunity Missed?
Wouldn't "Instruments made of this revolted conductor" made a lovely clue?

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Sir Henry Wood^[7] (1869–1944) was an English conductor best known for his association with London's annual series of promenade concerts, known as the Proms. He conducted them for nearly half a century, introducing hundreds of new works to British audiences. After his death, the concerts were officially renamed in his honour as the "Henry Wood Promenade Concerts", although they continued to be generally referred to as "the Proms".

Delving Deeper

The term prom[5] (or Prom) is short for promenade concert[5], a British term for a concert of classical music at which a part of the audience stands in an area without seating, for which tickets are sold at a reduced price. The most famous series of such concerts is the annual BBC Promenade Concerts (known as the Proms), instituted by Sir Henry Wood in 1895. Prom[5], in the sense of a formal dance, is a North American expression.

2d   Almost finished on new // stove (4)

To my mind, an oven can either be part of a stove or a stand-alone appliance (such as a microwave or convection oven) and not a synonym for stove. However, this is not the first time that I have seen the words used this way in British puzzles.

3d   Lively, // loud, and dangerous (6)

"loud" = F [music notation] (show explanation )

Forte^[5] (abbreviation f^[5]) is a musical direction meaning (as an adjective) loud or (as an adverb) loudly.

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4d   The old man in Arizona church, brought in to work /for/ soup (8)

Gazpacho^[5] is a cold Spanish soup made from tomatoes, peppers, and other salad vegetables.

5d   One with lots to offer? (10)

6d   Strict // member of the clergy turned up in diocese (6)

A see^[10] is the diocese (show more ) of a bishop, or the place within it where his cathedral (show more ) or procathedral (show more ) is situated.

A diocese^[5] is a district under the pastoral care of a bishop in the Christian Church — or, more precisely, episcopal churches.

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A cathedral^[5] is the principal church of a diocese, with which the bishop is officially associated.

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A pro-cathedral^[5] (or procathedral^[10]) is a church used as a substitute for a cathedral.

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8d   Striking // quote about beast climbing (6)

13d   Fool, leading gathering, // splitting hairs (3-7)

Nit^[5,10] (short for nitwit)  is an informal British term for a foolish person ⇒ you stupid nit!.

What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops tells us that the second part of the charade is a word meaning gathering as one might with gooseberries to make a fool. Fool[5] is a chiefly British name for a cold dessert made of pureed fruit [often gooseberries] mixed or served with cream or custard ⇒ raspberry fool with cream.

16d   Perhaps fiance/'s/ current engagement finally was over (8)

18d   Work before on dry area -- // light work (8)

"dry" = TT (show explanation )

Teetotal^[5] (abbreviation TT^[5]) means choosing or characterized by abstinence from alcohol ⇒ a teetotal lifestyle.

A teetotaller^[5] (US teetotaler; abbreviation TT^[5]) is a person who never drinks alcohol.

The term teetotal is an emphatic extension of total, apparently first used by Richard Turner, a worker from Preston [England], in a speech (1833) urging total abstinence from all alcohol, rather than mere abstinence from spirits, as advocated by some early temperance reformers.

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19d   Accent /of/ born scallywag (6)

"born" = B (show explanation )

The abbreviation for born is b.^[5] (used to indicate a date of birth) ⇒ George Lloyd (b.1913).

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21d   Respect // a mass grave outside (6)

"mass" = M (show explanation )

In physics, m^[5] is a symbol used to represent mass in mathematical formulae.

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What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops instructs us to use a word meaning serious or grave like the straits Mark Knopfler found himself in. Mark Knopfler[7] is a British musiciam who was the lead guitarist, lead singer, and songwriter for the rock band Dire Straits, which he co-founded with his younger brother, David Knopfler, in 1977. The group disbanded is 1995.

22d   With pleasure, organise // charity event? (3,3)

24d   Fish // alone (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)
^[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