National Post Cryptic Crossword Forum

Tuesday, January 31, 2012 - DT 26709

2012-01-31T13:49:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26709
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, November 14, 2011
Setter Rufus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26709]
Big Dave's Review Written By Libellule
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26708 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, November 12, 2011

Introduction

Today we have a typical offering from Rufus - the master of the cryptic definition. It is not too difficult a puzzle, but it did take a bit of surfing to decipher 8a. It is no wonder that I needed to resort to my electronic assistants, as the clue utilises a bit of new (to me) Cockney rhyming slang. Not only is the solution Cockney rhyming slang, but the term with which it rhymes is itself 'normal' British slang.

Roger Squires (aka Rufus), who created this puzzle, holds the Guinness record for being the most prolific crossword setter in the world. You can learn more about this fascinating individual from An Interview with Roger Squires at Crossword Unclued.

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.

8a Short of capital (7,4)

Boracic lint^[7] is Cockney rhyming slang for skint^[5], which itself is British slang meaning (of a person) having little or no money available • I’m a bit skint just now. Boracic lint was a type of medical dressing made from surgical lint that was soaked in a hot, saturated solution of boracic acid and glycerine and then left to dry. It has been in use since at least the 19th century, but is now less commonly used.

11a Lady love is after the money (4)

The pound^[5] (also pound sterling) is the basic monetary unit of the UK, equal to 100 pence. The proper symbol for the pound is £, but it seems that this is often written as L^[4].

12a About turn in Old Ireland (4)

Erin^[5] is an archaic or literary name for Ireland.

17a It’s something to build on (4)

Initially, I thought that there might be more to this clue and tried to figure out some way to incorporate an anagram of ITS into it. However, the clue is merely a cryptic definition.

26a Heat too much water? (4)

In Scottish and Northern English dialects, a burn^[5] is a small stream.

27a Late payments? (5,6)

In the UK, a death duty^[5] was a tax levied on property after the owner’s death (replaced officially in 1975 by capital transfer tax and in 1986 by inheritance tax).

28a Working in MPH, AA meet required speed (11)

The Automobile Association (The AA)^[7] is a British motoring association founded in 1905. Its counterparts in North America would be the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) and the American Automobile Association (AAA).

2d Insect audible in Asian country (4)

In the UK, apparently, Laos^[4] is pronounced so that it sounds like louse^[4]. I would say that the American pronunciations seem to provide a better match than the British ones. You can judge for yourself by listening to the sound samples at the referenced links.

3d Caught, suspended and reformed (7)

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation c^[5] indicates caught (by) • ME Waugh c Lara b Walsh 19.

5d The coalminer’s dog, Rex (7)

Rex^[4] (Latin for king, abbreviated as R^[5]) is part of the official title of a king, now used chiefly in documents, legal proceedings, and inscriptions on coins. It may be used following a name (e.g. Georgius Rex, or GR, for King George^[5]) or in the titles of lawsuits, e.g. Rex v. Jones: the Crown versus Jones^[5] (which would often be written simply as R. vs Jones).

10d Free newspaper? (11)

The Independent^[7] is a British national morning newspaper published in London. Nicknamed the Indy, it was launched in 1986 and is one of the youngest UK national daily newspapers. The daily edition was named National Newspaper of the Year at the 2004 British Press Awards.

20d Ghost in the ruins of Hampton (7)

Although there seems to be an almost endless list of places in the UK with Hampton^[7] in their names, I presume Hampton^[7] may refer to a suburban area, centred on an old village on the north bank of the River Thames, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in England.

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Monday, January 30, 2012 - DT 26707

2012-01-30T21:04:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26707
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, November 11, 2011
Setter Giovanni
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26707]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

I needed a bit of electronic help today - primarily due to being hampered by a long-running British soap opera with which I had no previous acquaintance.

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.

5a A roguish one about to become lawless (8)

To my eye, Gazza's hint would seem to fail to account for all the letters in the solution (but I may be reading it incorrectly). Roguish^[5] is used in the sense of playfully mischievous. "A roguish (something)" would be AN ARCH (something) with the article A becoming AN (thus accounting for the missing N). I do see that this is clarified in the course of some discussion in the comments section on Big Dave's site.

9a Oxford college’s rustic porch is vandalised (6,7)

Although I had never heard of the college, it is fairly obvious that the wordplay is an anagram and I was able to work out the correct solution. Corpus Christi College^[7] (corporate designation The President and Scholars of the College of Corpus Christi in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.

10a Disallow sin in botanical body (8)

The first word to come to mind was OVERTURN which fit the definition but did not work in any other capacity. It did, however, hobble progress for a bit in the northwest corner.

27a Emma is one English maiden stabling horse (6)

In cricket, a maiden, also known as a maiden over, (abbreviation M)^[5] is an over in which no runs are scored. An over^[5] is a division of play consisting of a sequence of six balls bowled by a bowler from one end of the pitch, after which another bowler takes over from the other end.

2d Get better engineers on top of roof? (7)

The Royal Engineers (RE)^[5] is the name of the field engineering and construction corps of the British army.

3d One for ventilating anger in middle of Carmarthen (5)

Carmarthen^[7] is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It lays claim to being the oldest town in Wales.

5d Walkers heading off may be country folk (7)

Even after getting the correct solution, the definition remained a complete mystery to me. The Archers^[7] is a long-running British soap opera broadcast on the BBC's main spoken-word channel, Radio 4. It was originally billed as "an everyday story of country folk", but is now described on its Radio 4 web site as "contemporary drama in a rural setting". With over 16,600 episodes, it is both the world's longest running radio soap and, since the axing of the American soap opera Guiding Light in September 2009, the world's longest running soap opera in any format.

13d Pumped for information, being exposed down below maybe?! (9)

Recognizing what a magnificent opportunity that this clue provided to Gazza for creative illustration, I turned with eager anticipation to Big Dave's site. Alas, the opportunity must indeed have been far too tempting as the illustration (much commented upon on Big Dave's blog) seems to have been removed. Is it time to reactivate the "Stop Censorship" campaign?

20d Weird upper-class grandma enthralling children at the outset (7)

In Britain, U^[5] is used informally as an adjective with respect to language or social behaviour meaning characteristic of or appropriate to the upper social classes (U manners). The term, an abbreviation of upper class, was coined in 1954 by Alan S. C. Ross, professor of linguistics, and popularized by its use in Nancy Mitford's Noblesse Oblige (1956).

24d Beast in river almost squashing duck (5)

In cricket, a duck^[5] is a batsman’s score of nought • he was out for a duck. In cryptic crossword puzzles, duck often indicates O as the letter "O" looks like the number "0".

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Saturday, January 28, 2012 - Exploration & Adventure

2012-01-28T09:55:00.000-05:00

Introduction

We meet a trio of explorers and adventurers in today's puzzle from Cox and Rathvon.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

8a {MERIWETHER LEWIS}* - anagram (wild) of WHERE LIMITS WERE

Route followed by the Lewis & Clark Expedition
Meriwether Lewis^[7] (August 18, 1774 – October 11, 1809) was an American explorer, soldier, and public administrator, best known for his role as the leader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition also known as the Corps of Discovery, with William Clark. Their mission was to explore the territory of the Louisiana Purchase, establish trade and sovereignty over the natives near the Missouri River, and claim the Pacific Northwest and Oregon territory for the United States before European nations. They also collected scientific data, and information on indigenous nations. President Thomas Jefferson appointed him Governor of Upper Louisiana in 1806.

10a S(TERN)UM - TERN (sea bird) contained in (in) SUM (addition)

11a FOR|MICA - FOR (†) + MICA (volcanic form of rock)

Formica^[7] is a brand of composite materials manufactured by the Formica Corporation. In common use, the term refers to the company's classic product, a heat-resistant, wipe-clean, plastic laminate of paper or fabric with melamine resin. When it was developed, the mineral mica was commonly used for electrical insulation. Because the new product acted as a substitute “for mica”, the inventors coined the name “Formica” This was in fact a preexisting word, the Latin for a genus of ant insects, but that meaning did not dilute its use as a trademark.

12a   {SKI PATROL}* - anagram (prepared) of SALT PORK I

14a   LAS|ED - LAS (the Spanish; i.e., Spanish word for 'the') + ED (editor)

15a   {MARTIN FROBISHER}* - anagram (straying) ON BRITISH FARMER

Frobisher's Route
Sir Martin Frobisher^[7] (c. 1535 or 1539 – 1594) was an English seaman who made three voyages to the New World to look for the Northwest Passage. Thinking he had found gold ore, he mined and carted hundreds of tons of it back to England where, after years of smelting, it was realized that it was merely worthless iron pyrite. As an English privateer/pirate, he collected riches from French ships. He was later knighted for his service in repelling the Spanish Armada in 1588.

18a   RO(AS)T - AS (while) contained in (dividing) ROT (baloney)

20a   _ASSIST__ANT_ - [b]ASSIST + [c]ANT with the first letters of each word deleted (without leads)

23a   LE(BAN)ON - BAN (curse) contained in (picked up by) LEON (author [Leon] Uris^[7])

Curse (in the sense of an invocation of harm or punishment) is an archaic meaning of ban^[5] • the land might be smitten by the ban which once fell upon the Canaanites.

24a ALL|IS|ON - ALL (everything) + IS (†) + ON (working)

Mose Allison^[7] is an American jazz blues pianist and singer.

25a {SIR FRANCIS DRAKE}* - anagram (at sea) of FAIR SKIN SCARRED

Circumnavigation route followed by Sir Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake^[7], Vice Admiral (1540 – 1596) was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the second circumnavigation of the world, from 1577 to 1580.

Down

1d   A|MUSES - A (†) + MUSES (guiding spirit's)

2d   CREE|PIER - CREE (first nation) + PIER (structure on a lake)

3d   R(WAND)A - RA (sun god) containing (holding) WAND (baton)

4d   STEM< - reversal (on the way back) of METS (N.L. [National League] team)

The New York Mets^[7] are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division.

5d   B(ED|FELL)OWS - {ED (Edward) + FELL (took a spill)} contained in (in) BOWS (boats' prows)

6d   A|WAITS - A (†) + WAITS (singer named Tom [Waits]^[7])

7d   I|SLANDER - I (†) + SLANDER (throw mud on)

Baffin Island^[7] in the Canadian territory of Nunavut is the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. It is the site of Frobisher Bay, the destination of Sir Martin Frobisher's three voyages of discovery to the New World.

9d LORE|LEI - LORE (folk tales) + (with) LEI (garland)

Lorelei^[7] is a rock in the Rhine River, a serious hazard for shipping and subject of many legends, poems, and songs. The name Lorelei or Loreley comes from a Germanic legend about a beautiful maiden named Lorelei who waited for her lover on a rock at the narrowest and shallowest point of the Rhine River. He never returned, so she jumped off the rock to her death. The legend is that her spirit remains at the rock, seeking revenge against her unfaithful lover. She sits on the rock, now named for her, combing her long hair and singing softly. Sailors are so enchanted by her beauty that they crash their ships into the rock or run aground in the shallow water.

13d REF|RAINING - REF (football official; referee) + (before) RAINING (showering)

15d M(URAL)IST - MIST (fog) containing (put ... around) URAL (mountain range)

The Ural Mountains^[7], or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the Ural River and northwestern Kazakhstan. Their eastern side is usually considered the natural boundary between Europe and Asia.

16d IN(TO)NER - INNER (secret) containing (about) TO (Toronto)

TO^[7] is a common Canadian nickname for Toronto. It may come from the initials Toronto, Ontario or from the first two letters of Toronto.

17d   HE|AT( SEA)L - HE (man) + {AT (†) + L ([Roman numeral for] fifty)} containing SEA (ocean)

19d   AU|BURN - AU ([symbol for the chemical element] gold) + BURN (torch)

21d   SO|LIDS - SO (very) + LIDS (tops)

22d   T|ENDER - T (time) + ENDER (stopper)

Here, I would say that nice is used in the sense of "requiring careful consideration" (a nice point) and tender in the sense of "requiring tact or careful handling" (the issue of conscription was a particularly tender one).

24d A|RID - A (†) + RID (free)

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Friday, January 27, 2012 - DT 26706

2012-01-27T14:44:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26706
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, November 10, 2011
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26706]
Big Dave's Review Written By Libellule
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

With a bit of perseverance, I managed to complete the puzzle with drawing on support from my electronic assistants. There are, however, a goodly number of British references and expressions to be found in it.

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.

1a Rural company with new driver in US car mostly (7)

I am sure that only neophyte solvers need a reminder that terms such as "new driver", "student", and "learner" are code-words for L – from the L-plate^[7] that must be displayed on vehicles driven by a learner driver^[5] (also known as a learner^[2]) in Britain.

5a A Northern party a bishop backed in principality (7)

The "bishop" here is not a chess piece but rather one of the ecclesiastical variety. Right Reverend (abbreviation RR)^[5] is a title given to a bishop, especially in the Anglican Church.

To elaborate on Libellule's hint, the wordplay is A (from the clue) + N (Northern) + DO (party) + a reversal (backed) of {A (from the clue) + RR (bishop)}.

11a A point, right, admitted by friend gets legal authority (10)

Mate^[5] is an informal British term (1) for a friend or companion • my best mate Steve or (2) used as a friendly form of address between men or boys • ‘See you then, mate.’

12a Pieces for all to see in list (4)

Here "for all to see" is a code phrase for U. Under the British system of film classification^[7] a U (for 'universal') rating indicates that a film is suitable "for all the family" (or at least for children over 4 years of age).

14a Chap on tour excitedly grabbing minute close to great historic building (7,5)

Hampton Court Palace^[7] is a royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, Greater London, once owned by King Henry VIII. It has not been inhabited by the British royal family since the 18th century, and today is open to the public, and a major tourist attraction. At first I thought that I might have the wrong palace as this description did not seem to match the location given by Libellule, but on further research I find that Hampton Court Palace sits opposite East Molesey^[7], across the River Thames ... and can be reached by Hampton Court Bridge.

22a Toughness shown by engineers, source of industry amid quiet (10)

The Royal Engineers (RE)^[5] is the name of the field engineering and construction corps of the British army.

25a Booze principally drunk here by river — drinkers’ domain? (4,5)

The River Ouse^[5] might refer to any of four English rivers. Although I seem to recall that the Brits often appear to favour the one in Yorkshire, today Libellule opts for the one in Northamptonshire.

(also Great Ouse) a river of eastern England, which rises in Northamptonshire and flows 257 km (160 miles) eastwards then northwards through East Anglia to the Wash near King’s Lynn.
a river of NE England, formed at the confluence of the Ure and Swale in North Yorkshire and flowing 92 km (57 miles) south-eastwards through York to the Humber estuary.
a river of SE England, which rises in the Weald of West Sussex and flows 48 km (30 miles) south-eastwards to the English Channel.
(also Little Ouse) a river of East Anglia, which forms a tributary of the Great Ouse.

26a Foreign language in clubs, say, son ignored (5)

The Inuit^[3] are a group of indigenous people inhabiting the Arctic from northern Alaska eastward to eastern Greenland, particularly those of Canada. The term Eskimo is generally considered offensive, although apparently not it the UK (judging by dictionary entries and general usage). Here is what the American Heritage Dictionary has to say on the subject:

Usage Note: The preferred term for the native peoples of the Canadian Arctic and Greenland is now Inuit, and the use of Eskimo in referring to these peoples is often considered offensive, especially in Canada. Inuit, the plural of the Inuit word inuk, "human being," is less exact in referring to the peoples of northern Alaska, who speak dialects of the closely related Inupiaq language, and it is inappropriate when used in reference to speakers of Yupik, the Eskimoan language branch of western Alaska and the Siberian Arctic. See Usage Note at Eskimo [which elaborates further on the subject].

27a Limit miles covered by old plane perhaps (7)

A plane^[5] (also plane tree) is a tall spreading tree of the northern hemisphere, with maple-like leaves and bark which peels in uneven patches [Genus Platanus, family Platanaceae].

4d Drink I’d found in park heading north (5)

In Britain, rec^[5] is an informal shortened version of recreation ground^[5], a piece of public land used for sports and games.

5d A jolly powerful cyclist? (9)

Jolly^[4] is British slang for a member of the Royal Marines (RM)^[5], a British armed service (part of the Royal Navy) founded in 1664, trained for service at sea, or on land under specific circumstances.

6d Fool caught out in mass of sand (4)

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation c^[5] indicates caught (by) • ME Waugh c Lara b Walsh 19.

20d Organised drink, we hear, in Chesterfield, maybe (6)

By capitalizing "Chesterfield", the setter intentionally misdirects us into thinking of a town in Derbyshire, north central England^[5] rather than an item of furniture.

23d Disinclined to move, artist abandoned unstable terrain (5)

RA^[5] is the abbreviation for Royal Academician, a member of the Royal Academy of the Arts^[5], an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain.

24d Perhaps Oxford society has bowling venue at back (4)

Plymouth Hoe^[7] (referred to locally as the Hoe)is a large south facing open public space in the English coastal city of Plymouth. The name derives from the Anglo-Saxon word Hoe, a sloping ridge shaped like an inverted foot and heel. Plymouth Hoe is perhaps best known for the probably apocryphal story that Sir Francis Drake played his famous game of [lawn] bowls here in 1588 while waiting for the tide to change before sailing out with the English fleet to engage with the Spanish Armada.

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Thursday, January 26, 2012 - DT 26705

2012-01-26T11:55:00.002-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26705
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, November 9, 2011
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26705]
Big Dave's Review Written By Pommers
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Although some of the solutions required a good deal of concentrated thought, I did manage to complete the puzzle without calling my electronic assistants into action.

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.

1a A drug dealer’s yacht, and a rope thrown out (10)

I could see that this is quite clearly an anagram, but is the definition "a drug dealer's yacht" with the wordplay being an anagram (out) of ROPE THROWN? Or is the definition "a drug dealer" with the wordplay being an anagram (thrown out) of {YACHT + (and) A ROPE}. The latter turns out to be correct - but we are not looking for the type of drug dealer that first came to mind! In the surface reading, the 's is used to form the possessive of "drug dealer"; however, in the cryptic reading, it is a contraction for 'is' and serves as a link word indicating equality between the definition and wordplay (i.e., definition is wordplay).

10a Gather there’s action starting in valley (5)

This is the first of a couple of Scottish geographical features seen in today's puzzle. A glen^[5] is a narrow valley, especially in Scotland or Ireland ...

15a Extend thoroughfare through mountain (7)

... and ben^[5] (especially in place names) is Scottish for a high mountain or mountain peak (such as Ben Nevis, a mountain in western Scotland that rises to 1,343 m (4,406 ft) making it is the highest mountain in the British Isles.).

22a Muse a long time — and return books (5)

By convention, "books" in a cryptic crossword clue is often a codeword for either the Old Testament (OT) or New Testament (NT).

27a Soldiers on a date, soldiers with time for change (9)

On first blush, I (like Pommers in his comment) questioned "on" being used in the sense of 'in' as a containment indicator (soldiers on a date). However, one meaning of on^[5] is in the possession of or being carried by (she only had a few pounds on her), thereby seemingly making it very well suited to this purpose. "On" is one of those words with so many shades of meaning that it can mean almost anything one chooses it to mean.

Note: in a comment at Big Dave's site, Gnomethang provides an alternative interpretation:
Soldiers ON a – in an across clue means MEN after A. Then add D for D(ate) as it is in order in the clue, then some more soldiers (MEN) then the T for change. This wouldn’t work in a down clue!.

28a Bird shot (5)

I initially questioned how shot could mean snipe since, when used as verbs, shot is past tense and snipe is present tense. However, as a noun, snipe^[2] can mean either (1) a sniping shot, i.e., a shot at someone from a hidden position or (2) a quick verbal attack or criticism (a shot). However, you won't find either of these meanings at Oxford Dictionaries^[5].

29a Raises the temperature in London and breaks fast (4)

The phrase "in London" indicates that we need a word that sounds like the way 'heats' (raises the temperature) would be pronounced in London (in particular, in East London which is home to the cockneys). A distinctive feature of the cockney^[5] accent is the dropping of the letter H from the beginning of words.

1d Ship making a right turn (4)

In Greek mythology, the Argo was the ship on which Jason and the Argonauts (not the Canadian football team^[7] or the former British football club that never played a match^[7]) sailed from Iolcos to retrieve the Golden Fleece. It was named after its builder, Argus. Surely, readers in Toronto had no difficulty with this clue.

16d Rock singer’s first suit (8)

While Pommer's very straight forward explanation of the clue is no doubt what the setter had in mind, I interpreted the clue in a rather more complex fashion. I saw it as an all-in-one where the entire clue is a cryptic definition of DIAMONDS - rock singer's first (favourite) suit (wouldn't diamonds naturally have to be Neil Diamond's favourite suit). As for the wordplay, I thought it to be DIAMOND (rock singer) + (has) S {first S(uit)}. Yes, I realize it seems a bit contrived (especially in hindsight), but hardly beyond the bounds of what I have seen some setters deliver.

20d Seamstresses boxing 1000 pins (7)

Yes, the clue calls for an abbreviation for a thousand - but one derived from Greek, not a Roman numeral.

21d Expensive hot drink and meal (4,3)

In Britain,according to the Collins English Dictionary, tea^[4] can refer to either (1) afternoon tea, a light meal eaten in mid-afternoon, usually consisting of tea and cakes, biscuits, or sandwiches or (2) high tea, an afternoon tea that also includes a light cooked dish. Chambers 21st Century Dictionary gives a similar definition for the former meaning but defines the latter as either a light cooked meal, usually less substantial than the midday meal, served early in the evening or the main evening meal^[2]. Thus it would seem that high tea is a more substantial meal than afternoon tea and is served later in the day (late afternoon to early evening as opposed to mid-afternoon).

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Wednesday, January 25, 2012 - DT 26704

2012-01-25T14:57:00.002-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26704
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26704]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Although Gazza awards this puzzle 3 stars for difficulty, I would say (based on my performance) that it would rank at the lower end of the 3 range.

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.

1a Casual tuna Niçoise salad with no end of mayonnaise (10)

Niçois (feminine Niçoise)^[5] means, as a noun, a native or inhabitant of the city of Nice (a city in France) and, as an adjective, relating to Nice or its inhabitants. A salade niçoise^[5] is a salad typically including tuna, black olives, hard-boiled eggs, and tomatoes.

6a ‘Wrack’ is Emerson, Lake and Palmer touching rock bottom (4)

Wrack^[5] is any of a number of coarse brown seaweeds which grow on the shoreline, frequently each kind forming a distinct band in relation to high- and low-water marks. Many have air bladders for buoyancy. [Genera Fucus, Ascophyllum, and Pelvetia, class Phaeophyceae]

10a Gold coin in circulation (5)

Bit is used here according to its British definition, not its North American meaning. In British usage (and, according to the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, an old use), bit^[2] (in compounds) means a coin, especially a small coin • threepenny bit. In North America, bit is used to mean an amount of 12½ cents (used only in multiples of two, two-bits, four bits, six bits - meaning a quarter, a half, and three-quarters of a dollar respectively).

11a Rail about peers turning out criminal (9)

Technically, a dado^[5] is the lower part of the wall of a room, below about waist height, when decorated differently from the upper part. However, dado^[5] is also used as a shortened version of dado rail^[5], a decorative waist-high moulding round the wall of a room, which also protects the wall from damage. A dado rail^[7], which is also called a chair rail (the name by which I know it), is traditionally part of a dado but is also sometimes applied to a wall without the full dado treatment.

12a Loud organ gets a little frightening (8)

In musical notation, the direction for loud is forte (f)^[5].

13a Always available for panto performance (2,3)

Panto^[5] is short for pantomime^[5], a British theatrical entertainment, mainly for children, which involves music, topical jokes, and slapstick comedy and is based on a fairy tale or nursery story, usually produced around Christmas.

15a Silly me sing badly? By gum, that’s got about (7)

Muggins^[5] is an informal British expression meaning a foolish and gullible person (often used humorously to refer to oneself) • muggins has volunteered to do the catering.

17a Transport service following in sudden movement (7)

The reference by Gazza to "one of our armed services" is, of course, to the Royal Air Force (RAF)^[5].

21a Commotion involving amateur sailors ordered about in hurricane (7)

I guess to the Brits tornado and hurricane are just two names for a violent storm (but then, they probably don't experience these weather events). North Americans would consider them to be quite different phenomena. This seems a bit like saying that a Lamborghini is a Porsche because they both happen to be cars.

The clue also includes a reference to another of the British armed services, the Royal Navy (RN)^[5].

29a ‘Repast’ is regularly ‘nosh’ (4)

In Britain, nosh^[5] is an informal term for food • filling the freezer with all kinds of nosh. Apparently in North American nosh can be used as a noun to mean a snack or small item of food, although I must say I am only familiar with the word as a verb (meaning to eat food enthusiastically or greedily).

30a The orchids flourish in a part of London (10)

Shoreditch^[7] is an area of London within the London Borough of Hackney in England. It is a built-up part of the inner city immediately to the north of the City of London, located 2.5 miles (4.0 km) east-northeast of Charing Cross. [Charing Cross^[7] is considered to be the centre of London and sections of the city are frequently described in terms of their location relative to this landmark (which actually no longer exists).]

Although I solved this clue, it was really achieved through a guess constrained by the checking letters.

3d Absolute lunatic losing head (5)

Nutter^[5] is British slang for a mad or eccentric person.

9d Carefree broadcasting under leadership of Digital European Bureau (8)

The Digital European Bureau seems to be the convenient invention of the setter.

14d Note that is about 40% of Mancunians consuming fortified wine (10)

A Mancunian^[5] is a native or inhabitant of Manchester. As an adjective, the term means relating to Manchester.

18d Pulse of unfinished Follett novel capturing era (9)

This is yet another case where I merely tried to place the left-over letters in the most likely pattern possible amongst the checking letters.

21d Appropriate time to wake up — right? (7)

Trouser^[5] is a British slang synonym for pocket, meaning to receive or take (something, especially money) for oneself.

23d Naïve beginner appearing in sketch is poor (5)

In British slang, skint^[5] is an adjective that would be used to describe a person having little or no money available • I’m a bit skint just now.

26d Could be goat starts to meander over the heath (4)

The goat moth^[5] is a large greyish moth, the caterpillar of which bores into wood and has a goat-like smell [Cossus cossus, family Cossidae].

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Tuesday, January 24, 2012 - DT 26703

2012-01-24T19:25:00.002-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26703
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, November 7, 2011
Setter Rufus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26703]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26702 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, November 5, 2011

Introduction

This puzzle may have been a touch more difficult than a typical offering from Rufus. I definitely required a bit of assistance from my electronic aids to complete it.

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.

1a Proverbially it implies madness (3,2,5)

Some sayings are just so well known that a speaker may not even have to finish them for the listener to know what is meant. Such is the case with today's proverb. A speaker might say merely "Out of sight, ...", assuming that the listener would automatically complete the thought with the implied completion "... out of mind". Of course, "out of mind" could also suggest madness (insanity).

9a Sweet kid (4)

In Britain, one meaning of sweet^[5] is a pudding or dessert. A fool^[5] (chiefly a British term) is a cold dessert made of puréed fruit mixed or served with cream or custard.

10a Hold up close to Cork (10)

The capitalization of "Cork" is a bit of misdirection by the setter who would like to mislead us into thinking of the city in Ireland.

15a Opposed to profits at outset (7)

The wordplay is GAINS (profits) with AT (from the clue) outside of it (outset). The wording in Big Dave's hint amounts to the same thing, but is perhaps less clear.

17a This way for a place as a head (4)

In Britain, an each-way^[5] bet is one divided into two equal wagers, one backing a horse or other competitor to win and the other backing it to finish in the first three. Place^[5] is a betting term. In Britain, it means any of the first three or sometimes four positions in a race (used especially of the second, third, or fourth positions). In North America, on the other hand, place refers specifically to the second position (or to a finish no worse than second) and show refers to third place (or a finish no worse than third). Thus (in North America) a bet on a horse to place pays off if the horse finishes in the top two, while a bet on a horse to show would pay off if the horse finished in the top three. Thus, a bet on a horse to place at a British track would be equivalent to a bet for it to show in North America.

29a China’s sovereign race (5,5)

The Royal Crown Derby Porcelain Company^[7] is a porcelain manufacturer, based in Derby, England. The company, particularly known for its high-quality bone china, has produced tableware and ornamental items since approximately 1750. I presume that the name is commonly shortened to Crown Derby.

4d Earring found on the railway (7)

A sleeper^[5] is a ring or post worn in a pierced ear to keep the hole from closing. Although the Oxford Dictionary of English characterises this term as British^[5] and the Collins English Dictionary as chiefly British^[4], for some reason the term did not sound particularly foreign to me - so the term may possibly be used in Canada.

5d A horse for Lady Jane (4)

Lady Jane Grey^[7] (1536/1537 – 1554), also known as The Nine Days' Queen, was de facto monarch of England from 10 July until 19 July 1553. She was the great-grandaughter of Henry VII by his younger daughter Mary, and a first-cousin-once-removed of King Edward VI.

In February 1553, at age 15, Edward VI fell ill. When his sickness was discovered to be terminal, he and his Council drew up a "Devise for the Succession", attempting to prevent the country being returned to Catholicism. Edward named his cousin Lady Jane Grey as his heir and excluded his half sisters, Mary and Elizabeth. However, this was disputed following Edward's death and Jane was queen for only nine days before Edward's half-sister, Mary, was proclaimed Queen (and Lady Jane was imprisoned in the Tower of London).

She was convicted of high treason in November 1553, though her life was initially spared. Wyatt's rebellionin January and February 1554 against Queen Mary's plans of a Spanish match led to her execution at the age of 16 or 17, and that of her husband.

6d Proceeds to give thanks to college (7)

Takings^[5] would appear to be the British equivalent to what would be called earnings in North America, the amount of money earned by a business from the sale of goods or services • the big test for the shop’s new look is whether it’ll boost takings. In Britain, apparently, a worker or investor may have earnings^[5] but a company has takings. When you think about it, does it not seem to reflect a very socialistic mindset!

In Britain, ta ^[5] is an informal way to say thank you.

7d Gent’s upset about tonight’s riot in the city (10)

Bufo (to whom reference is made by Big Dave in his hint) is one of the bloggers who contribute to Big Dave's site. His produces reviews of the Toughie (another - typically more difficult - cryptic crossword puzzle that appears in the Daily Telegraph) on roughly a once per week basis.

14d Brush a fur coat (5)

A sable^[2] is an artist's paintbrush made of sable fur [that I found only in Chambers].

15d This may cause a number to take up weapons (5)

In cryptic crosswords, expressions such as "a number" (or, as I have more often seen, "a large number" or "a great many") indicate a Roman numeral (usually a large one). The particular Roman numeral is not specified, so the solver must select the appropriate one from all of those available. See also 25d.

19d Top-quality work produced by Form 1C (7)

In Britain, a form^[5] is a class or year in a school, usually given a specifying number. Thus the fifth form would be the linguistic counterpart to the fifth grade in North America and Form 1C would be like saying Grade 1C.

25d Large number seen in a doctor’s rounds (4)

We are looking for a doctor in the military, a Medical Officer (MO)^[5]. Similar to what we saw in 15d, "large number" refers to a large Roman numeral.

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Monday, January 23, 2012 - DT 26701

2012-01-23T16:46:00.002-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26701
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, November 4, 2011
Setter Giovanni
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26701]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

This puzzle - like a hockey game - seemed to have three distinct periods. The first was played rather slowly, I sped quickly through the second, and the third was quite a grueling test. However, I did manage to complete the puzzle. My electronic assistants saw lots of ice time in the third period after sitting out the first two.

The puzzle is also full of cricket references - but at least it didn't take as long to complete it as it does to play a cricket match.

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.

11a Showman in big building with ‘orrible smell (6)

In British slang, hum - used as a verb - means to smell unpleasant (when the wind drops this stuff really hums)^[5] and - as a noun - an unpleasant smell^[2].

20a Beautiful member who may be standing in front of the pavilion (4,3)

In cricket, a fine leg^[5] is (1) a fielding position behind the batsman on the leg side, between long leg and square leg or (2) a fielder playing this position. The leg side^[5] (also called just leg) is the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman's feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball. A pavilion^[5] is a building at a cricket ground or other sports ground, used for changing and taking refreshments.

A long leg^[5] is (1) a fielding position far behind the batsman on the leg side or (2) a fielder playing this position. A square leg^[5] is (1) a fielding position level with the batsman approximately halfway towards the boundary on the leg side or (2) a fielder playing this position.

29a Clever chronicle appended by 100 special notes (9)

Initially I thought that the solution must be SALACIOUS but eventually twigged to the fact that the setter had made a wiser choice (after all, the setter is Giovanni - not Ray T).

30a Element found in prison, characters kept inside cell (6)

Nick^[5] is British slang for a prison (he’ll end up in the nick for the rest of his life) or police station (he was being fingerprinted in the nick).

3d Old lover presented with endless nonsense runs (6)

In cricket, an extra^[5] is a run scored other than from a hit with the bat, credited to the batting side rather than to a batsman.

4d Army races round and round in military display (6)

In the UK, the Territorial Army (TA)^[5] is a volunteer force locally organized to provide a reserve of trained and disciplined manpower for use in an emergency. The Tourist Trophy (TT)^[5] is a motorcycle-racing competition held annually on roads in the Isle of Man since 1907.

6d Covering of grass around open country (9)

Heath^[5] is chiefly a British term and refers to an area of open uncultivated land, typically on acid sandy soil, with characteristic vegetation of heather, gorse, and coarse grasses.

15d The Lady of the Lake? (9)

Once you get below the surface, this clue has no connection with the poem by Sir Walter Scott or anything at all to do with Arthurian legends, not with the ballet Swan Lake by Pyotr Tchaikovsky. Rather it has to do with a lake situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

16d Rare maid — fantastic, right sort of smasher! (3-6)

In Britain, a ram-raider^[5] is a person who executes a robbery by ramming a shop window with a vehicle and looting its contents. A new word for me - but one that I was able to decipher from the wordplay.

18d Animal is one with leg chopped off above foot (3)

In cricket, as we saw in 20a, the leg side^[5] (also called just leg) is the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman's feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball. Another term for this side of the field is the on side (or just on^[5]). Thus "one with leg chopped off" becomes "ONE with ON chopped off" or simply "E" (ONE).

22d Island — one that’s cold, a beast! (7)

Gazza calls this a "semi all-in-one". It is if you consider the entire clue to constitute the definition. However, if you thought that the definition was simply "island", I think you would still be on solid ground.

24d Take place in dance clutching Eastern female (6)

The first dance to come to mind was a reel - which made for a strangely appropriate (or, perhaps, inappropriate) answer!

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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Saturday, January 21, 2012 - Saturday Morning Cartoons

2012-01-21T10:44:00.000-05:00

Introduction

Today's puzzle from Cox and Rathvon features an American film about a dim-witted Canadian mountie who enjoyed more success (however inadvertent) in his professional pursuits than in his love life. While the original animated television series was a success, the 1999 live action movie was a box office disaster (grossing less than $10 million dollars against a production budget of $70 million).

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

1a   BUT|TRESS - BUT (save) + TRESS (lock)

5a   WIT|H-IT - WIT (humourist) + HIT (slammed)

9a   SAL(I|VAT)E - {I (indigo) + VAT (tub)} contained in (in) SALE (auction)

10a   SCAR|A|B - SCAR (leave a mark) + (on) A (†) + B (bishop)

Alternatively, I think the following parsing would be equally valid:
SCAR|A|B - SCAR (leave a mark on) + A (†) + B (bishop)

11a   R(A|DA)R - {A (†) + DA (pop)} contained in (aboard) RR (train [abbreviation railroad])

12a   REM(A)INDER - A ([very tiny!] bit of A(pplesauce)} contained in (eaten by) REMINDER ([memory] jogger)

14a   {DUDLEY DO-RIGHT}* - anagram (horses around) of EIGHT RUDDY OLD

Dudley Do-Right^[7] is a 1999 romantic comedy film starring Brendan Fraser as the title character. The film is based on the cartoon character Dudley Do-Right^[7], the eponymous hero of a segment on The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show^[7] which parodied early 20th century melodrama and silent film (by using only a piano as a musical background) in the form of the Northern genre. Dudley Do-Right is a dim-witted but great Canadian Mountie who is always trying to catch his nemesis Snidely Whiplash, more often succeeding by pure luck than anything else. He romantically pursued Nell Fenwick, the daughter of Inspector Fenwick, the head of the Mountie station. However, a running gag throughout the series was Nell's interest in his horse (called Horse), to the point that she scarcely noticed Dudley's interest.

18a {BRENDAN FRASER}* - anagram (oddly) of RAN EDS FERN BAR

Brendan Fraser^[7] is a Canadian-American film and stage actor who played the title role in the 1999 film Dudley Do-Right.

22a   CAT|A|TONIC - CAT (dude) + (with) A (†) + TONIC (sparkling drink)

24a   SP|RIG - SP (Spanish) + RIG (truck)

26a   MUN(I)CH - MUNCH (Norwegian painter [Edvard Munch^[7]]) containing (capturing) I ([Roman numeral] one)

27a   DI|PLO(MA)T - MA (mother) contained in (involved in) {DI ([Roman numeral] 501) + PLOT (scheme)}

This clue may be a reference to section 501(c) of the United States Internal Revenue Code^[7] which provides that 28 types of nonprofit organizations are exempt from some federal income taxes.

28a   S(P)EEDY - P {stern of (shi)P} contained in (in) SEEDY (rundown)

29a   LA(I|D O)PEN - {LA (Los Angeles) + PEN (writer)} containing (keeping) I DO ([wedding] vow)

Down
1d   BEST|RIDE - BEST (top; as either a verb or noun) + (and) RIDE (go on horseback)

2d   TI(L)ED - L (left) contained in (inside) TIED (even)

3d   REV|ERIE - REV (race) + (at) ERIE (one of the Great Lakes)

4d   S(I)TAR - STAR (celebrity) containing (taking) I (interest)

6d   I(T)CHING - I CHING (means of devining) containing (about) T (time)

I Ching^[5] is an ancient Chinese manual of divination based on eight symbolic trigrams and sixty-four hexagrams, interpreted in terms of the principles of yin and yang. It was included as one of the ‘five classics’ of Confucianism. The English name is Book of Changes^[5].

7d HERO(DOT)US - DOT (period) contained in (covered by) {HERO (champion) + US (American)}

Herodotus was a 5th century bc Greek historian. He was the first historian to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent, and arrange them in a well-constructed and vivid narrative. His History tells of the Persian Wars of the early 5th century bc.

8d   T|A|BARD - T (a sort of shirt [T-shirt]) + A (†) + BARD (poet)

13d   MORON~ - sounds like (heard) MORE (further) ON (about)

15d   D(EBUT<)ANTE - EBUT {reversal (from the rear) of TUBE (subway)} contained in (grabbed by) DANTE ([Italian] poet [Dante Alighieri])

16d   D(ID) IN - DIN (noise) containing (receiving) ID (identification)

17d   F(RIGHT)EN - FEN (morass) containing (ensnaring) RIGHT (conservative)

19d   ENTICED* - anagram (tossing) of TEN DICE

20d   RU(ST)LED - RULED (having lines) containing (about) ST (saint)

21d   S|CAMPS - S (small) + CAMPS (bivouacs)

23d   CHIN|A - CHIN (pull up) + (next to) A (†)

25d   _REM|AP_ - hidden in (includes) theoREM APparently

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Friday, January 20, 2012 - DT26700

2012-01-20T16:10:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26700
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, November 3, 2011
Setter Ray T
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26700]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Although it took a while to get started (I don't believe I solved a single across clue on the first read through), progress picked up on the down clues. I did need a bit of assistance on a few clues to finish, but I can't see that there was anything particularly out of the ordinary about any of these clues (11a, 13a, 1d, and 14d).

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.

1a Chippendale perhaps giving an embrace with kit off! (12)

Thomas Chippendale^[5] (1718–79) was an English furniture-maker and designer. He produced furniture in a neoclassical vein, with elements of the French rococo, chinoiserie, and Gothic revival styles, and his book of furniture designs The Gentleman and Cabinetmaker’s Director (1754) was highly influential.

In Britain, a kit^[5] is the clothing used for an activity such as a sport and get one's kit off^[5] is an informal expression meaning to take off all one’s clothes.

26a Headless panic creating own goal (5)

In soccer, an own goal^[5] is a goal scored when a player inadvertently strikes or deflects the ball into their own team’s goal. The term is also used figuratively in Britain to refer to an act that unintentionally harms one’s own interests • government scores own goal by assisting organized crime in London.

1d Company chief managed rocker (7)

Eddie Cochran (1938 – 1960) was an American rock and roll pioneer who died in a traffic accident while touring Britain when the speeding taxi in which he was a passenger blew a tire, lost control, and crashed into a lamp post.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Thurdsday, January 19, 2012 - DT 26699

2012-01-19T17:29:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26699
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26699]
Big Dave's Review Written By Pommers
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★ / ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes This puzzle is a pangram - a puzzle in which every letter of the alphabet appears at least once.

Introduction

I started off at a torrid pace today, immediately writing in solutions for several clues one after another. Nevertheless, I did eventually come to several clues which required a bit of cogitation. However, I was able to crack them without opening my tool chest today. I do have to confess that I failed to notice that the puzzle is a pangram.

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.

14a Propose a posh but dramatic scene (7)

In Britain, table^[5] means to present formally for discussion or consideration at a meeting (more than 200 amendments to the bill have already been tabled), whereas in the US it means to postpone consideration of (I’d like the issue to be tabled for the next few months). In Canada, I think we tend to follow the British usage, but I'm sure that the American usage has also crept in - thus making the meaning of the word quite ambiguous. Seemingly, it can indicate that something is either under active consideration or on the back burner.

In Britain, U^[5] is used informally as an adjective with respect to language or social behaviour meaning characteristic of or appropriate to the upper social classes (U manners). The term, an abbreviation of upper class, was coined in 1954 by Alan S. C. Ross, professor of linguistics, and popularized by its use in Nancy Mitford's Noblesse Oblige (1956). In cryptic crossword puzzles, it is often clued by adjectives (such as "posh") which carry an upper class aura.

21a In Scotland know why broadcast comes before a republic (5)

In Scottish and Northern English dialects, ken^[5] is a verb meaning (1) know • d’ye ken anyone who can boast of that? or (2) recognize or identify • that’s him—d’ye ken him?

27a Trainer’s ground? Yes! (7)

As Pommers quite rightly indicates, this is a rather difficult clue to explain.

It seems clear that the word "ground" does double duty, serving as definition (TERRAIN) and as anagram indicator. In the latter role, "ground" is the past tense of grind, with the rationale behind the anagram being that if the fodder word (TRAINER) were to be put through a grinder (in the sense of a food grinder, not a grindstone), the letters might come out rearranged to spell the solution word (TERRAIN).

Beyond this, things become much less clear. If we try to parse it as a standard cryptic clue, we start with the anagram, but "Yes!" hardly appears to qualify as a definition for 'terrain'.

Pommers suggests that it may be an all-in-one clue and after some considerable thought I tend to agree with him, although it may be a semi-all-in-one rather than a true all-in-one. The difference between these types is that in a true all-in-one the entire clue serves as both definition and wordplay, whereas in a semi-all-in-one the entire clue serves as a definition but only a portion of the clue makes up the wordplay.

We do have a part of the clue being an anagram (trainer's ground). Possibly, the clue is also a reference to a type of outdoor exercise known as terrain training, in which terrain is literally the "trainer's ground". In this interpretation, the word "Yes!" would be lending emphasis and convey the idea of "Emphatically yes!" or "Yes - in more ways than one!" (meaning that TERRAIN is not only the solution to an anagram but is also defined by "trainer's ground").

Postscript: It seems that I could have saved myself a lot of effort had I read the comments at Big Dave's site before composing my blog. As Jezza notes, "the etymology for the answer to 27a is ‘ground for training horses’" or as the Oxford Dictionary of English states in its entry for terrain^[5] "Origin: early 18th century (denoting part of the training ground in a riding school)".

6d Jack stole criminal’s barge (6)

We sometimes encounter Jack in the role of a sailor, but today he is found in a deck of cards - not on the deck of a ship.

15d Dog left in support with sentry (10)

Blackguard^[5] is a dated term for a man who behaves in a dishonourable or contemptible way.

16d Sabotage ruined men’s pants (9)

I may have to join Pommers in the dunce's corner (although it appears that, in the UK, the expression is "dunce's step"), as I went through the exact same sequence of incorrect anagram attempts as he did. Perhaps I may escape punishment, given that the actual solution relies on a Briticism (although I must admit that I have encountered it previously on more than one occasion). In Britain, pants is an informal expression meaning rubbish or nonsense • he thought we were going to be absolute pants.

To the Brit's, by the way, the surface reading would refer to men's underwear - not trousers.

25d Look — a fellow with brains! (4)

In Britain, the phrase use your loaf^[5] means to use your common sense, with loaf meaning head (or brains). The expression likely comes from loaf of bread, rhyming slang for 'head'.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Wednesday, January 18, 2012 - DT 26698

2012-01-18T19:17:00.000-05:00

STOP CENSORSHIP

Many websites around the world have shut down today to protest SOPA and PIPA - draft legislation under consideration by the United States Congress that would have a devastating impact on the Internet as we know it. Here is an excerpt from an editorial in today's National Post.

SOPA and PIPA directly target the very aspects of the Internet that make it powerful and worthwhile - the ability to share and link to information that can by published by anyone, anywhere. That would be reason enough to oppose the legislation. But there's more to the story.

The debate over SOPA and PIPA draws a clear line between new media and old - and between entrepreneurship and reliance on government intervention. On the one side are the opponents of the bill - organizations and companies that are products of the self-starting Internet age, such as Google, Yahoo, Facebook, Twitter, Mozilla, Wikipedia, Wordpress and the like. On the other side are the dinosaurs advocating for the bill, including the motion picture and recording industries, which have been slow to adapt to the realities of the Internet, and would rather lean on government to provide them protection, than come up with innovative new business models that would be attractive to modern consumers.

You can read the entire editorial here. If you would like to find out more about the issue and learn how you can support the movement, just click on the link in the black box above.

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26698
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26698]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

It was a fairly gentle solve today - until I ran into a new-to-me British term for a cheap alcoholic drink. A note of warning - you'll have to wait until tomorrow to follow the Wikipedia links in today's review.

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.

5a Aim to lodge a protest (6)

How fitting that this clue should appear today - when supporters of free speech around the world are protesting the actions of American lawmakers!

10a Clergyman from another country, one high up in government (7,8)

The photo illustrating this clue on Big Dave's site is of British Foreign Secretary William Hague.

11a Arousing intense feeling in English grounds (7)

I needed a gentle nudge from a word finder application here. If not for the final letter, EROTICA would have fit and I became obsessed that the solution must be some new-to-me variant of that word!

20a Cheap alcoholic drink embarrassed elderly woman (3,5)

Red biddy^[5] is a dated, informal British term for a mixture of cheap wine and methylated spirits.

1d Cricket side’s opener, unsuitable (3-3)

Here "side" refers not to a team but to a side of the cricket field itself. In cricket, the off^[5] (also off side) is the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch ) towards which the batsman's feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball. The other side of the field is known either as the leg^[5] (also leg side) or on (also on side).

7d Go in wanting chips, not fish (5)

I have to admit that I didn't understand the wordplay here - even though I'm sure I have seen a very similar clue before. It seems that "Chips" was a traditional nickname for a carpenter (scroll down to find the entry), especially aboard sailing vessels. Thus, in this clue, the definition is "go in", "wanting" is a link word between the definition and wordplay, and the wordplay is ~~CARP~~ENTER (chips) without (not) CARP (fish) giving us ENTER.

8d Try fish the American way (8)

Here "way" is used in the sense of roadway.

16d Method of selection, unusual on isle abroad (3,3,3)

The Isle of Man^[5] is an island in the Irish Sea which is a British Crown dependency having home rule, with its own legislature (the Tynwald) and judicial system; population 82,000 (est. 2009); capital, Douglas. The island was part of the Norse kingdom of the Hebrides in the Middle Ages, passing into Scottish hands in 1266 for a time, until the English gained control in the early 15th century. Its ancient language, Manx, is still occasionally used for ceremonial purposes.

17d Country doctor, one in remarkably cool area (8)

In Britain, the degree required to practice medicine is a Bachelor of Medicine^[7] (MB, from Latin Medicinae Baccalaureus), which is equivalent to a North American Doctor of Medicine (MD, from Latin Medicinae Doctor). The degree of Doctor of Medicine also exists in Britain, but it is an advanced degree pursued by those who wish to go into medical research. Physicians in Britain are still addressed as Dr. despite not having a doctoral degree.

24d Newspaper carrying excellent feature (5)

The Financial Times (FT)^[7] is a British international business newspaper that is conspicuously published on pink newsprint.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Tuesday, January 17, 2012 - DT 26697

2012-01-17T13:40:00.002-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26697
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, October 31, 2011
Setter Rufus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26697]
Big Dave's Review Written By Libellule
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26696 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, October 29, 2011

Introduction

This puzzle gave me a few more problems than usual - certainly more than I would have expected based on Libellule's assessment of it.

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.

1a Substitute for Peter McLean (11)

With regard to Peter McLean, Libellule asks "Who's he?" Although, in all likelihood, it is purely a made-up name, it could be either of two Aussies, one a member of the McLean rugby clan^[7] and the other an Australian rules footballer^[7].

18a It plays without music (8)

Errors at 14d and 18d hampered me on this clue. The latter error was discovered early on, but the former was only found after I had called my electronic assistants into action.

19a He gives notice, having to work when others are playing (6)

I stumbled all around the right area but couldn't quite get on the right path here, thinking of occupations such as referee, umpire, conductor, etc.

26a Enter into an American business contract with ancient city (5)

Incorporation^[7] is the process of forming a new corporation (a corporation being a legal entity that is effectively recognised as a person under the law). The practices concerning the naming of corporations vary around the world. In the United States, most (but not all) corporations are identified by the term "incorporated" (often shortened to Inc.) added after the business name, such as "Texas Instruments, Incorporated", or by putting the word "corporation" (often shortened to Corp.) in the name of the company, as in "Netscape Communications Corporation". In the United Kingdom, with the exception of an unlimited company or corporation which requires no designation as part of its legal company name, the titles Ltd. (limited company) or plc (public limited company) are used for corporations. Incorporated Canadian companies can generally use either Limited (Ltd.), Incorporated (Inc.) or Corporation (Corp.) in their name, however this may vary province to province. A veritable alphabet soup of abbreviations is used in other jurisdictions around the world.

Thus the setter uses the phrase "American business contract" to mean a shortened form (contraction) of the name of an American business, which would be 'Inc.'.

1d Disturbance in court, perhaps (7)

Although the anagram was blatantly obvious and there seemed to be only one way to arrange the letters, the solution is hardly a word with which I am familiar. It may well be a word that is used more commonly in Britain than it is on this side of the Atlantic. The Oxford Dictionary of English defines ruction^[5] as an informal term for a disturbance or quarrel (she acted as if there’d been no earlier ruction) and in the plural (ructions) as a British expression meaning angry reactions, protests, or complaints (if Mrs Salt catches her there’ll be ructions).

4d Tender put up for capital statue (4)

The statue of Eros^[7] atop the Shaftesbury Monument Memorial Fountain in Piccadilly Circus is a well-known landmark in London, England. While the statue is generally believed to depict Eros, it was actually intended by the sculptor to be an image of his twin brother, Anteros.

6d U.S. sweetheart gets whistles (5)

The setter uses the phrase "U.S. sweetheart" to indicate to his target British audience that the solution is an expression used in the U.S. but not in Britain.

8d Abandoned ship (8)

I'm sure that the setter created this clue with the hope that we would see "abandoned" as a verb so that the clue would appear to refer to the evacuation of a sinking ship (how timely). However, I saw "abandoned" immediately as an adjective and thus the clue did not appear cryptic at all (until I thought about it a bit).

14 Girl showing caution (8)

The only girl's name that immediately came to mind was PATIENCE which seemed to be stretching the definition ("caution") to - or beyond - the limit. I discovered the error after finding myself totally stymied on 18a.

16d Dishonest dealer (4-5)

This is another cryptic definition - in the same vein as 8d - in which the misdirection relies on us thinking of "dealer" as referring to a businessman rather than a card player.

18d She’s quite happy to show her bloomers! (7)

My first entry here was GARDNER (which is not even spelled correctly - or perhaps I was thinking of Ava!). However, I managed a quick recovery from that stupid error (what the Brits would call a 'bloomer'^[5]). In Britain, a bloomer^[5] may also be a large loaf [of bread] with diagonal slashes on a rounded top. Of course, here bloomers^[5] refers - depending on how you read the clue - to either women's old-fashioned underwear^[5] or to flowering plants^[5].

20d Many in good time plainly seen (7)

Obviously, I did not see this 'clearly' at all. Having recognized that there seemed to be only two words that could possibly fit (CLEARLY and CHEERLY), I was totally focused on the second L being the large Roman numeral indicated in the clue ("many"). This left me being able to make no sense of the wordplay. As I was to learn from Libellule, I should have set my sights higher - CL (150) rather than L (50).

25 Part of the church in a pseudo-Gothic style (4)

While I believe that it is rare to find the solution at the beginning or end of the fodder in a hidden word clue, I am unaware of there being any rule to forbid it. Being somewhat more pedantic than Libellule, I would say that the solution to the clue is actually found in the phrase "a pseudo-Gothic style".

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Monday, January 16, 2012 - DT 26695

2012-01-16T15:08:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26695
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, October 28, 2011
Setter Giovanni
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26695]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26694 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Thursday, October 27, 2011

Introduction

For some reason, the National Post has skipped a Ray T puzzle that was highly rated by Big Dave. However, this offering from Giovanni also received high marks from Gazza. Aside from a minor stumble in the northwest quadrant, the puzzle did not give me too much trouble.

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.

5a Head of State got rid of expert (7)

I got myself into a temporary pickle on this clue by having entered an incorrect solution at 2d.

7a An attempt to bring shame (5)

Apparently British (although it does not sound foreign to my ear), bash^[5]^[9] is a noun meaning an attempt • have a bash at this quiz.

9a Whiskery beast was outside front of local before game (6)

Rugby union (RU)^[5] is a form of rugby played in teams of fifteen, in contrast to rugby league^[5], which is played in teams of thirteen. The latter game was originated by a group of northern English clubs which separated from rugby union in 1895. Besides having somewhat different rules, the game differed from rugby union in always allowing professionalism.

10a Around spring grass is growing (8)

In the UK, grass^[5] is used informally as a noun to mean a police informer and as a verb meaning to inform the police of someone’s criminal activities or plans (someone had grassed on the thieves). This expression may derive from rhyming slang (grasshopper = copper).

11a Summer ending in debauchery after tea and wine (10)

In Britain, tea may informally be called char^[5] (or cha or chai).

19a Person lived with is monotonous and dull, with little energy (8)

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, mat^[5] is the US spelling of matt (or matte)^[5], an adjective used to describe a surface or colour which is dull and flat or without a shine • prints are available on matt or glossy paper • a matt black. I am familiar with this word being spelled matte.

2d ‘Countdown’ may be followed by this criticism that’s turned sour (5-3)

I entered BOOST-OFF and couldn't seem to get past it. BOOS did match "this criticism" and OFF is, of course, "turned sour". However, there is no accounting for the T. I did eventually realize my error when 5a finally fell into place.

Countdown^[7] (mentioned by Gazza in his hint) is a British game show involving word and number puzzles which is broadcast on Channel 4. With over 5,000 episodes having been broadcast since its debut on 2 November 1982, it is one of the longest-running game shows in the world, along with the original French version, Des chiffres et des lettres, which has been running on French television continuously since 1965.

3d Courageously showing leg, see (6)

A see^[5] is the place in which a cathedral church stands, identified as the seat of authority of a bishop or archbishop. The Diocese of Ely^[5] is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury, headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in the city of Ely.

5d Cut evident when son’s been give whip (5)

As Gazza also noted, 'give' should presumably be 'given'.

6d Detachment from event of 24 February 1981 (13)

I didn't recognize the date, but the definition and checking letters were enough to give me the solution. I guessed that we might be looking a some instance of military disengagement. However, 24 February, 1981 is the date on which the engagement of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer was announced to the world.

12d Star rector played instruments in theatre (10)

The "theatre" here is one in which surgery would be performed in a hospital.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Saturday, January 14, 2012 - A Fishy Puzzle

2012-01-14T10:44:00.000-05:00

Introduction

Today's puzzle from Cox and Rathvon should appeal to the anglers in the crowd - although one creature is not a fish and at least one other is not a game fish.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

1a HER|RING - RING (doughnut) following (comes after) HER (the lady)

Note: In the cryptic reading, the 's is a contraction for is and serves as a link word between the wordplay and the definition. The definition ("kippers, perhaps") indicates that the solution is an example of the definition.

5a HAL|I|BUT - HAL (Prince Henry) + (and) I (†) + BUT (save; as in "all, save two, were destroyed in the fire")

Prince Henry (nicknamed Hal) - a character in William Shakespeare's plays Henry IV, Part 1^[7] and Henry IV, Part 2^[7] - is later to become King Henry V of England.

9a   AN|TIC - AN (one) + TIC (involuntary motion)

10a   ASP|HALTED - ASP (snake) + HALTED (came to a stop)

11a   {STRIPED BASS}* - anagram (strange) of SPIDERS BATS

12a   SUN~ - sounds like (on the radio) SON (boy)

13a   THIS|BE - BE (live) following (east of; to the right of, in an across clue) THIS (†)

Pyramus and Thisbe^[7], a story of ill-fated lovers from Roman mythology, served as the inspiration for William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

15a LOBSTERS* - anagram (rum) of BOLSTERS

Rum^[5] is a dated British term meaning odd or peculiar.

18a   PICKER|EL - PICKER (one choosing) + EL (the Spanish; i.e., Spanish word for "the")

19a   _EX|HALE_ - hidden in (suppressed by) AlEX HALEy

22a   OR|B_ - OR (†) + B (head of bull; i.e., first letter of Bull)

23a   YELL|OW| PERCH - YELL (shout) + (and) OW (cry [in pain]) + (then) PERCH (settle)

25a   POTENTIAL* - anagram of (arrangement of) LIPTON TEA

26a   EVIAN< - reversal (turned) of NAIVE (green)

Perrier^[7] and Evian^[7] are French brands of bottled mineral water.

27a   SARDINE* - anagram (cooked) of A DINERS

28a   W(ALLEY)E - WE (the two of us) containing (on both sides of) ALLEY (passageway)

Down

1d   HE|ADS|ET - HE (the man) + ADS (spots; advertisements) + ET (alien; from the 1982 American science fiction film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial^[7])

2d   ROTOR - I thought that this might be a double definition; "something that's turned" & "something that turns"

The first definition here would refer to the process of machining the surface of a brake rotor (to remove unevenness caused by use) which is known as 'turning'.

However, MG (see comments) has suggested another interpretation, in which the definition would be "something that turns" with the wordplay being:

ROT (something that's turned; i.e., rotting or rotten matter^[9]) + OR (†)

3d   IN|CA(PA)BLE - PA (pop) contained in (entering) {IN (into) + CABLE (TV service)}

4d   G|LANDS - G (good; a mark on a school assignment or test) + LANDS (areas)

5d   HEP|TAG|ON - HEP (Beatnik's cool; expression meaning "cool" that might be used by a Beatnik) + TAG (label) + ON (†)

6d   L(O)ADS - LADS (youngsters) containing (carrying) O (love; a score of zero in tennis)

7d   BATH(SHE)BA - SHE (†) contained in (is found in; the 's being a contraction of is) {BATH (tub) + (with) BA (bachelor [Bachelor of Arts])}

8d   TI|DINGS - TI ([musical] note) + (on) DINGS (minor damages)

14d   IN|CUBA|TOR - IN (†) + CUBA (Caribbean island) + TOR (hill)

16d   {SEX APPEAL}* - anagram (sadly) of APPLE AXES

"It"^[9] is a 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]).

17d   _ME|ALTIME_ - hidden in (displaying) soME ALTIMEters

18d   PROM(PT)S - PT (point) contained in (amid) PROMS (dances)

20d   ENHANCE* - anagram (unusual) of HENCE AN

21d   G(O S)LOW - GLOW (beam) containing (taking in) OS (rings; Os)

23d   _YANNI_ - hidden in (lodged in) HYANNIsport

Yanni^[7], born Yiannis Hrysomallis is a Greek self-taught pianist, keyboardist, and composer who has spent most of his life in the United States. His music is frequently described as "new age"^[7], though he prefers the term "contemporary instrumental".

24d RAISE~ - sounds like (for audit) RAZE (tear down)

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Friday, January 13, 2012 - DT 26693

2012-01-13T23:59:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26693
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26693]
Big Dave's Review Written By Falcon
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Posted: Saturday, January 14, 2012

Introduction

Fortuitously, as this was a puzzle that I had reviewed for Big Dave's Crossword Blog when it originally appeared in the UK, it did not take too long to solve it on the second go-round. However, on Friday we were experiencing a fairly major blizzard in Ottawa (following a couple of days of freezing rain) and I spent most of the day clearing snow from my driveway. As a result, I did not find time to write the blog until today.

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.

1a Flag message understood by party (5,5)

Jolly^[5] is an informal British term for a party or celebration • these events were jollies • some regard it as a bit of a jolly.

15a Copper, bent, is thirsty (7)

In the surface reading, "copper" is almost certainly slang for a police officer and "bent^[5]" is an informal British expression meaning dishonest or corrupt • a bent cop. Perhaps we are to interpret "thirsty" in a figurative sense as greedy (thirsty for money, willing to take a bribe). However, the cryptic reading is quite different.

24a Praises almost grown-up friends sacking leader (8)

Mate^[5] is an informal British term for a friend or companion • my best mate Steve.

28a Hotels accommodate ducks with a tremendous fuss (3-2)

In cricket, a duck^[5] is a batsman’s score of nought • he was out for a duck. In cryptic crossword puzzles, duck often indicates O as the letter "O" looks like the number "0". Hotel^[5] is a code word representing the letter H, used in radio communication.

30a Start do late — cunning or pretentiously creative? (4-6)

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, arty-crafty^[5] (interested or involved in making decorative artistic objects, especially ones perceived as quaint or homespun) is chiefly a North American expression. The British dictionaries all seem to believe that arty-crafty is the principal variant with artsy-craftsy being a secondary variant. From my experience, I would say that it is the reverse - in fact, I do not recall ever having never heard the arty-crafty variant - and American dictionaries would seem to support my observation.

2d Peeress offers to protect last of tiger beetles (9)

Ladybird^[5] is the British name for a ladybug. Although ladybug is the name used for these insects (which are beetles and not true bugs) throughout much of North American, the name ladybird is used in some parts of Canada and the US (as well as in the UK, Ireland, Australia, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand, India, and Malta), according to Wikipedia^[7] . Presumably, Texas must be one of the spots using the term ladybird, thus accounting for how Lady Bird Johnson^[7] got her name. The tiger beetles are a large group of beetles known for their aggressive predatory habits and running speed. The fastest species of tiger beetle can run at a speed of 9 km/h (5.6 mph), which, relative to its body length, is the equivalent of a human running at 480 miles per hour (770 km/h).

16d Uncompromising bad luck? Not quite (8)

'Hard lines^[5]' (a variant of 'hard luck') is an informal British way of to expressing sympathy or commiserations. The characterization of this as "a British nautical expression (4,5) meaning bad luck" was based on a passage from Watching My Language: Adventures in the Word Trade by William Safire in which the author says (essentially as an aside), "Hard lines was a British nautical expression meaning 'bad luck' ...". As I recall, this statement generated a fair bit of discussion on Big Dave's blog.

21d Soft and soggy sort of cephalopod guy eviscerated (7)

Squidgy^[5] is an informal, chiefly British term used to describe something that is soft, spongy, and moist • a squidgy cream cake.

25d A house in the outskirts of Bognor to loathe (5)

I presume that the reference is to Bognor Regis^[7], a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun district of West Sussex, on the south coast of England.

26d Eccentric city supporting South Africa (4)

The International Vehicle Registration code for South Africa is ZA^[5], based on the Dutch spelling of the country's name, Zuid Afrika.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Thursday, January 12, 2012 - DT 26692

2012-01-12T15:00:00.004-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26692
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26692]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

I needed a hand with one or two clues today - and, in hindsight, they do not even appear to rank among the more difficult clues in 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.

7a Bank policy results in second job (8)

This was my last one in, although I can see no apparent reason why that should be the case. It is certainly not a difficult clue. Strangely, the list of words matching the checking letters which was generated by my WordFinder program did not include the solution. However, when I took another look at the grid, the solution suddenly seem to jump right off the page.

15a Keep terriers in check (6)

I had a question mark beside this clue regarding the association between "terriers" and TA. In the UK, Terrier^[5] is an informal name for a member of the Territorial Army (TA)^[5], a volunteer force locally organized to provide a reserve of trained and disciplined manpower for use in an emergency.

17a Quickly secure photograph at college (4,2)

In Britain, up^[5] may mean at or to a university, especially Oxford or Cambridge • they were up at Cambridge about the same time.

20a Baffle scoundrel with dog (8)

A hound^[5] is an informal, dated term for a despicable or contemptible man.

24a Drive second towards flag (4)

I must admit that I overlooked the motoring theme in this clue. I had thought that there might somehow be a cricket connection, although "drive" would seem to refer to a ball that has been hit by a batsman and "spin" to one delivered by a bowler.

25a Outlaw group’s Italian (6)

In the UK, "it^[5]" is an informal, dated term for Italian vermouth • he poured a gin and it [a cocktail containing gin and Italian vermouth].

1d Senior nurse nursing home finds menacing (8)

In a British hospital, a sister^[5] (often Sister) is a senior female nurse, typically in charge of a ward. Gazza gives us a picture of a Sister guaranteed to raise one's heart rate.

This is a variation on a clue that I first encountered in DT 26016 (published in The Daily Telegraph on August 25, 2009 and which appeared in the National Post on December 15, 2009). Here is what I wrote then:

9d Nursing home's senior nurse left (8)

A couple of Briticisms in this clue did me in. In Britain, a senior female nurse is a Sister. While I knew that "home" is IN (as "at home"), I didn't recognize "nursing" as a container indicator. Furthermore, I was working on the mistaken notion that "left" was an instruction to delete some letters. All the British dictionaries provide a definition for nurse along the lines of "to hold carefully or protectively", a sense of the word that I did not find in American dictionaries. My best effort attempt at a solution was MINISTER, on the basis that nurses minister to the needs of their patients (although in North America, one might be more apt to use this word in relation to a member of the clergy than to a nurse). Of course, I learned from Gazza's review that the right solution ironically is SINISTER.

As you can see, apparently I am learning.

3d Page one, suggestive of plagiarism (6)

Again, not a difficult clue - but one that I could not seem to find without a gentle push from my electronic assistants.

2d Skinny person’s tiny daughter (4)

Definitions of weed (in the sense seen here) vary somewhat from one dictionary to another, with Chambers 21st Century Dictionary listing it as "Derogatory a skinny, feeble or ineffectual man"^[2], Collins English Dictionary having it as "Informal a thin or unprepossessing person"^[4], and the Oxford Dictionary of English stating "British informal a contemptibly feeble person"^[5]. As for American dictionaries, the Random House Unabridged Dictionary gives it as "a thin, ungainly person or animal"^[9] and the American Heritage Dictionary does not include this sense of the word^[3].

6d Iron Lady’s felt hat? (6)

Fe^[5] is the symbol for the chemical element iron. Dora Bryan^[7] (who appears in Gazza's hint) is an English actress appearing on stage, film and television. The nickname "Iron Lady" was given to former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher^[7] on the basis of her strict conservative policies, hard line against trade unions and tough rhetoric in opposition to the Soviet Union.

13d Hear angry talk, then cues for actors (10)

Catchword (in the sense used here) appears in only two of my commonly consulted dictionaries. The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition lists it as "an actor's cue" and the Collins English Dictionary has it as "Theatre an actor's cue to speak or enter"^[4] .

21d Nothing different — always moving in a single direction (3-3)

Failing to notice the charade that is pointed out by Gazza, I split the clue at the dash - thinking that the two parts were merely meant to be different definitions of the solution. After all, if one is allowed to do "nothing different", then one must do things "one way".

22d Disturbing experience in river in old Kentish town (6)

Deal^[7] is a town in Kent England, on the English Channel eight miles north-east of Dover.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Wednesday, January 11, 2012 - Dt 26691

2012-01-11T15:17:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26691
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, October 24, 2011
Setter Rufus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26691]
Big Dave's Review Written By Libellule
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26690 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, October 22, 2011

Introduction

I thought this puzzle was a pretty typical Rufus creation. Although it took a while to find a starting point, and progress bogged down noticeably about half way through it, I eventually reached the point of having two clues left to solve. At that point, I needed a bit of assistance from my electronic aids. It took a while to track down the English university appearing at 13d. As for 11a, it is a classic Rufus cryptic definition containing a clever element of misdirection. It definitely made me smile when the penny finally dropped.

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.

1a Demonstrates hostility to private accommodation (8)

In Britain, barrack^[5] means to jeer loudly at (someone performing or speaking in public) in order to express disapproval or to distract them • opponents barracked him when he addressed the opening parliamentary session.

6 God willing, it’s all right to admit artist and composer (6)

DV^[2]^[4]^[5] or D.V.^[3]^[9] is the abbreviation for Deo volente (Latin for God willing) in British and American dictionaries respectively. RA^[5] is the abbreviation for Royal Academician, a member of the Royal Academy of the Arts^[5], an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain. Antonín Dvořák^[7] (1841 – 1904) was a Czech composer of late Romantic music, who employed the idioms of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia.

11 Restoration of features in theatre (8)

A cryptic definition of an elective medical procedure that takes place in an operating theatre.

23 Symbol of Christ in unusual guise and form (5,3)

The definition is "symbol of Christ" with the solution being AGNUS DEI, where Agnus Dei^[5] is a figure of a lamb bearing a cross or flag, as an emblem of Christ. I would say that the wordplay is "unusual guise and form" with "in" serving as a linkword between the definition and wordplay. My guess is that we are expected to interpret the wordplay as being equivalent to "unusual form of GUISE AND". Otherwise, the word "form" would appear to be superfluous.

24 Outstanding, but lost (6)

Libellule, in his hint, refers to an anecdote from the life of British poet John Donne. While working as private secretary to Sir Thomas Egerton, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, he destroyed his chances of career advancement when he secretly married Anne More, daughter of Sir George More. Anne's enraged father had Donne thrown into Fleet Prison for several weeks, and Egerton dismissed him from his post. Donne's marriage was a happy one, despite constant financial worries. With typical wry wit, Donne described his life with Anne as "John Donne, Anne Donne, Undone" [read more].

13 Carpets university residences, say? (9)

In Britain, carpet^[5] is an informal term meaning to reprimand severely • the Chancellor of the Exchequer carpeted the bank bosses. Keelhaul^[5] literally means to punish (someone) by dragging them through the water under the keel of a ship, either across the width or from bow to stern. However, it can also be used in a figurative sense meaning to punish or reprimand (someone) severely. [Note that, despite appearances, Libellule's parenthetical explanation refers to the solution to the clue (KEELHAULS) and not to the word "carpets" found at the beginning of the sentence.] Keele University^[7], located near Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, England is the largest single-site campus university in the UK. A campus university^[7] is a British term for a university situated on one site, with student accommodation, teaching and research facilities, and leisure activities all together. Campus universities are contrasted to collegiate universities^[7], based on a number of colleges (such as Oxford, Durham, London or Cambridge Universities) or a university consisting of a number of sites, or even individual buildings, spread throughout a town (such as Edinburgh University).

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Tuesday, January 10, 2012 - DT 26689

2012-01-10T17:58:00.001-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26689
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, October 21, 2011
Setter Giovanni
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26689]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Giovanni serves up a rather gentle offering today, allowing my electronic assistants to take the day off.

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.

1a Football team depressed about very best wingers being missing (6)

Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club^[7] (commonly referred to as Wolves) is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football.

12a Expand time for event to accommodate the Italian (6)

In Italian, il^[8] means "the".

15a Scientist’s going around western communities established quite recently (3,5)

Sir Isaac Newton^[7] (1642 – 1727) was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived." In Britain, a new town^[4] is a town that has been planned as a complete unit and built with government sponsorship, especially to accommodate overspill population.

19a Christian Scientist in a whirl (4)

Mary Baker Eddy^[7] (1821 – 1910) was the founder of Christian Science (1879), a Protestant American system of religious thought and practice adopted by the Church of Christ, Scientist, and others. Apparently Mary Baker Cake Mixes (mentioned by Gazza) were not unique to the UK, as indicated by this Texas newspaper advertisement from 1960.

27a Dismissal of some French companion when Irishman’s brought in (8)

Des^[8] is the French word for "some". As usual, companion indicates Companion of Honour (abbreviation CH), a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour^[7], an order of the Commonwealth realms^[7] founded by King George V in June 1917 as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion. Despatch^[4] is a less common spelling of dispatch.

2d Like event at rink that’s postponed (2,3)

Gazza's mention of Torvill and Dean^[7] is a reference to Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean, British ice dancers and former British-, European-, Olympic- and World champions. At the 1984 Winter Olympics the pair became the highest scoring figure skaters of all time (for a single programme) receiving twelve perfect 6.0s and six 5.9's which included artistic impression scores of 6.0 from every judge.

3d Forcefulness of macho types in very English part of the Establishment (9)

The Church of England (CE)^[5] is the English branch of the Western Christian Church, which combines Catholic and Protestant traditions, rejects the Pope’s authority, and has the monarch as its titular head. The English Church was part of the Catholic Church until the Reformation of the 16th century; after Henry VIII failed to obtain a divorce from Catherine of Aragon he repudiated papal supremacy, bringing the Church under the control of the Crown.

4d Beetle brings endless alarm to sailor (6)

In the Royal Navy, able seaman (abbreviation AB)^[5]. is a rank of sailor above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman.

6d Dismissed from uni with less of an odour, we hear? (4,4)

Uni^[5] is an informal term for university • he planned to go to uni [in my experience, not an expression that one would expect to hear in North America].

7d Part of body has nasty smell, not totally healthy (5)

Pong^[5] (used by Gazza in his hint) is British slang for a strong, unpleasant smell.

14d Unoriginal girl said to be after money (5-4)

In Britain, ready^[4] can be used informally as a noun meaning ready money (cash). I have observed that the Brits often turn adjectives into nouns by dropping the noun from a phrase consisting of a noun modified by an adjective. Thus, in this case, ready money becomes merely ready. Another example is Indian restaurant becoming simply Indian.

16d Defeat in game at the end of bowler’s short spell? (9)

In cricket, an over^[5] is a division of play consisting of a sequence of six balls bowled by a bowler from one end of the pitch, after which another bowler takes over from the other end. Gazza's observation that overmatch is a "mainly American" expression is supported by both Chambers^[2] and Collins^[4] (which characterize the term as chiefly US) as well as Oxford^[5] (which says that it is chiefly North American).

20d Approval shown by number clutching King James Bible (6)

Chiefly a British term, the Authorized Version (abbreviation AV)^[5] is an English translation of the Bible (also called King James Bible) made in 1611 at the order of James I and still widely used, though never formally ‘authorized’.

22d A theologian in an elevated position to be convincing (3,2)

Doctor of Divinity^[7] (D.D. or DD, Divinitatis Doctor in Latin) is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects. In the United Kingdom, Doctor of Divinity has traditionally been the highest doctorate granted by universities, usually conferred upon a religious scholar of standing and distinction. In the United States the Doctor of Divinity is usually awarded as an honorary degree.

24d Brushes not initially provided for apartments (5)

The word apartment^[5] has a somewhat different meaning in the UK than it does in North America. What we think of as an apartment, the Brits would call a flat. In Britain, only a certain specific type of flat would be called an apartment - typically one that is well appointed or used for holidays (thus, seemingly, an upscale flat). In the plural, the term apartments refers to a set of private rooms in a very large house.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Monday, January 9, 2011 - DT 26688

2012-01-09T21:40:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26688
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, October 20, 2011
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26688]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

I needed help from my electronic friends on a couple of clues today - on 16d because I had never heard of the British comedienne appearing there and on 13a, apparently, from being just too thick to get it. Although I got the correct solutions to 28a and 24d, I needed to do some research into 50-year old movies and British exhibition halls to fully understand the wordplay.

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.

5a What a lazy setter may resort to (6)

My opinion of this clue improved once I discovered that, in Britain, a doghouse^[5] is called a kennel^[5] (thus the illustration chosen by Big Dave). In North America, a dog might be housed in a kennel but this would be a far more elaborate structure than a simple doghouse.

8a A half of Pernod and vermouth provided drink (8)

In the UK, "it^[5]" is an informal, dated term for Italian vermouth • he poured a gin and it [a cocktail containing gin and Italian vermouth].

11a Found a woozy bliss following electric shock treatment (9)

Electric shock treatment (EST^[2]) would seem to be another name for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)^[7].

17a & 19a Peruse missing article by premier in tabloid (3,3)

In Britain, a tabloid newspaper is known as a red top^[5] (from the red background on which the titles of certain British newspapers are printed).

28a George Raft’s Colombo a match for petty quarrels (5)

In the 1959 American comedy Some Like It Hot^[7], George Raft plays Chicago gangster "Spats" Colombo.

3d Small white wine cocktail in San Tropez starts a fashion (9)

Kir^[5] is a drink made from dry white wine and cassis.

4d Misinformation about red fruit (6)

Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara^[7] was an iconic "red" of the 1960s.

5d Abandon anorak and go for jumper (8)

Why is "abandon^[4]" an anagram indicator? I would have to guess that this role may be based on its meaning to surrender (oneself) to emotion without restraint. Thus, if the letters forming {ANORAK + GO} are unrestrained, they might rearrange themselves into KANGAROO.

16d Wag is somewhat akin to comedian? (8)

Josephine "Jo" Brand^[7] is a British comedienne (whom I managed to discover online). Had I not stopped my search at that point, I would have eventually also found British comedian Russell Brand^[7]. Judging by Big Dave's remarks, it would seem that I didn't miss much by overlooking the latter.

21d Something very difficult in 12? (3)

In Britain, one may describe something which is unpleasant or difficult as being a pig of a (something)^[5], for instance "it's a pig of a job".

24d Sailor depressed by Birmingham’s centre gets delicious drink (6)

The National Exhibition Centre (NEC), located in Birmingham, England, is the largest exhibition centre in the UK as well as being the busiest and seventh-largest exhibition centre in Europe.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Saturday, January 7, 2012 - Birds of Prey

2012-01-07T10:36:00.001-05:00

Introduction

I feel right at home in this flock of raptors that have flown in along with today's puzzle from Cox and Rathvon.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

1a   GO (BUS)T - GOT (understood) containing (about) BUS (large vehicle)

4a   S(TAP)LING - SLING (supportive band) containing (around) TAP (faucet)

9a   OR|LEANS - OR (on the other hand) + LEANS (slopes)

Orléans is a city in north-central France, about 130 kilometres (81 mi) southwest of Paris. In 1429, the city was liberated from the Plantagenets by Joan of Arc earning her the title "la pucelle d'Orléans" (the maid of Orléans).

11a AR(MEN)IA - MEN (players) contained in (breaking into) ARIA (song)

Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. A former republic of the Soviet Union, it is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia to the north, the de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the south.

American Kestrel

12a   {AMERICAN KESTREL}* - anagram (mistakenly) of NICK RARE MALTESE

13a   G(ALL|I)UM - {ALL (everything) + I (†)} contained in (found in) GUM (muck)

15a   P(AG)AN - PAN (nature deity [in Greek mythology]) containing (given) AG ([chemical symbol for] silver)

18a   P|LEAD - P (bit [i.e., first letter] of Pencil) + LEAD (graphite)

20a   HANOVER - HOVER (linger) containing (around) AN (one)

Queen Victoria was a member of the House of Hanover.

Northern Goshawk

23a {NORTHERN GOSHAWK}* - anagram (flying) of THRONG SAW HONKER

26a TAG|A|MET - TAG (label) + A (one) + MET (encountered)

Tagamet™ is a trade name used by GlaxoSmithKline for cimetidine, a histamine H₂-receptor antagonist that inhibits the production of acid in the stomach. It is largely used in the treatment of heartburn and peptic ulcers.

27a RUB|ICON - RUB (polish) + ICON (symbol)

The Rubicon is a shallow river in northeastern Italy, about 80 kilometres long, running from the Apennine Mountains to the Adriatic Sea through the southern Emilia-Romagna region, between the towns of Rimini and Cesena. The idiom "Crossing the Rubicon" means to pass a point of no return, and refers to Julius Caesar's army's crossing of the river in 49 BC, which was considered an act of insurrection.

28a R(ALLY)ING - ALLY (friend) contained in (in) RING (band)

29a TEENS|Y - TEENS (span between twelve and twenty) + Y (years)

Note: In the cryptic reading, the 's is a contraction for is and serves as a link word between the definition (minute [tiny]) and the wordplay (span between twelve and twenty years).

Down

1d G(LOB)AL - LOB (toss) contained in (in) GAL (gallon)

Bald Eagle

2d B(ALD*) EAGLE - BEAGLE (dog) containing (circling) an anagram (confused) of LAD

3d SP(AN)IEL - SPIEL (long story) containing (about) AN (one)

Note: Once again, in the cryptic reading, the 's is a contraction for is and serves as a link word between the wordplay (long story about one) and the definition (dog).

5d   T|HANK - HANK ([common nickname for] Henry) with T (time) preceding it (at the front)

6d   P(UMPS) UP - PUP (youngster) containing (about) UMPS (baseball figures)

7d   _INNER - [D]INNER (meal) with the first letter deleted (after the opening)

8d   {GOAL LINE}* - anagram (bats) of LIE ALONG

10d   S|LAVISH - S (second) + LAVISH (shower)

Note: Yet again, in the cryptic reading, the 's is a contraction for is and serves as a link word between the definition (menial) and the wordplay (second shower).

14d MAN(A)GER - MANGER (rustic eating place) containing (accommodating) A (†)

Gyrfalcon

16d   GYRFALCON* - anagram (oddly) of CORNY FLAG

17d   SPI(N)STER* - N ([chess notation for] knight) contained in (surrounded by) an anagram (playing) of PRIESTS

19d   DA(HOME)Y - DAY (period of time) containing (keeping) HOME (house)

Prior to 1975, the west African country now known as the Republic of Benin was called Dahomey.

21d   VI(SIB)LE - SIB (family member) contained in (occupying) VILE (base)

22d   SK(INN)Y - INN (lodge) contained in (in) SKY (ethereal region)

24d   REGAL< - reversal (brought back) of LAGER (brew)

25d   RA(T O)N - RAN (hurried) containing (outside) TO (†)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Friday, January 6, 2012 - DT 26687

2012-01-06T11:31:00.001-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26687
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26687]
Big Dave's Review Written By Pommers
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Pommers, in his comments on this puzzle, says that he "thought it a bit trickier than [Jay's] recent offerings". For me, that didn't seem to be the case - but that may have been due to a relatively small number of Briticisms (especially, unknown Briticisms) in 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.

1a Bags left in bags (6)

In Britain, bags^[5] is a dated name for loose-fitting trousers • a pair of flannel bags. The "dated" nature of the term appears to be reinforced by Brian's comment at Big Dave's site "I’m far too young to know what these are .".

11a Head of crime family needs essential drug-runner (6)

I wasn't familiar with the name of this particular animal being used as a slang term for a drug-runner - nor, does it seem, were any of my three favourite online British dictionaries. However, The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition has the following entry:

donkey /dong' ki/ n (pl don'keys) an ass; a stupid person; a person used by drug dealers to carry drugs being smuggled through customs (sl). [Still regarded as slang in 1823; perh a double dimin of dun, from its colour; or from Duncan]

I really have little or no idea what the parenthetical portion of the definition means.

12a Bitter setback in South Africa’s levels of society (6)

In cryptic crosswords, you will often see South Africa abbreviated ZA^[5] (its International Vehicle Registration symbol) which comes from the Dutch spelling of its name, Zuid Afrika. However, Jay finds English to be more appropriate today.

14a Carrier carrying item of underwear — it’s a farce! (8)

In Britain, an undershirt is is known as a vest^[4] (and what North Americans think of as a vest would be called a waistcoat).

17d Dish that’s unusual and something of a bore (7)

Rarebit^[5] (also called Welsh rabbit) is a dish of melted and seasoned cheese on toast, sometimes with other ingredients.

Regarding the afterthought appended to Pommers' hint "I’ll not mention the ‘virgins in Cardiff’ bit!", there seems to be a British riddle that goes "Q: What is a Welsh rarebit? A: A Cardiff virgin." I would guess that this is a play on British slang in which a bit^[5] is a girl or young woman. Thus the riddle implies that it would be rare to find a virgin in Cardiff!

24d A second letter is read out in church (5)

While I had interpreted the wordplay in the same way that Gazza (and others) did, I much prefer Pommers' explanation. He should have stuck to his guns rather than deferring to the others. The former interpretation would give A-BEE, whereas the latter (Pommers' interpretation) would produce AB-BEE, which sounds like a better match for ABBEY to my ear.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Thursday, Janurary 5, 2012 - DT 26686

2012-01-05T23:59:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26686
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26686]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

My performance would tend to support Gazza's rating of two stars for difficulty. However, a goodly number of those leaving comments at Big Dave's site expressed the opinion that the puzzle was much harder than this. By the way, should you happen to read through the comments, you will find (at comment #18) Derek saying "Chicken & chips tonight on my Jim Jones as my son is down in the Midi and my daughter &co. are in Spain." I interpret "on my Jim Jones" to be Cockney rhyming slang for "on my own" or "being alone", although any references that I found on-line used "Jack Jones" rather than "Jim Jones".

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.

10a Prize in harbour recalled happily after vacation (6)

I thought that the setter might have 'invented' a new meaning (a ploy one often encounters in cryptic crosswords) for vacation^[5], but it seems that this word really can mean the action of leaving something one previously occupied • his marriage was the reason for the vacation of his fellowship. [I suppose, if a priest were to marry, one might say it was the reason for the vacation of his vocation.] The American Heritage Dictionary characterises this usage as archaic^[3].

11a Companion with primate by Latin place of worship (6)

A Companion of Honour (abbreviation CH)^[5], is a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour^[7], an order of the Commonwealth realms^[7] (the United Kingdom together with the other members of the Commonwealth of Nations which have Queen Elizabeth II as their head of state). It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion. Even the Oxford Dictionary of English appears to overlook the fact that this is an award of the Commonwealth realms and not of the United Kingdom.

13a Noisy bird restrained by family before start of drinks? There’s wishful thinking (5,6,4)

Cloud cuckoo land^[5] is a state of absurdly over-optimistic fantasy • anyone who believes that the Bill will be effective is living in cloud cuckoo land. The term comes from the translation of Greek Nephelokokkugia, the name of the city built by the birds in Aristophanes' comedy Birds, from nephelē 'cloud' + kokkux 'cuckoo'. While this term is to be found in all my usual British dictionaries, I did not find it in either of the two American dictionaries that I consulted (American Heritage Dictionary and Random House Unabridged Dictionary). Note that the numeration (5,6,4) appearing in the National Post matches that used by the Oxford Dictionary of English. Judging by the entry at Big Dave's Blog, the numeration in the UK was (5-6-4) which corresponds to the spelling in The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition and the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary^[5] as well as Collins English Dictionary^[4].

15a Authority in school prepared listening device (7)

I was misled (by the "in") into thinking that this must be a containment type clue. Once I get an idea into my head, it is sometimes virtually impossible to get it out. As this transpired before visiting Big Dave's site, I can't even excuse my failure to solve this relatively easy clue by claiming to have been distracted by Gazza's illustration! (What a lovely headset!)

20a A ballet or rally arranged to include hot musical venue (5,6,4)

The Royal Albert Hall^[7] is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England.

23a Describe clearly at home petty officer consumed by drink (8)

According to several dictionaries, pint^[5] is an informal British expression meaning a pint of beer • we’ll probably go for a pint on the way home. Although it may be British in origin, it is also a much-used term in Canada.

25a Cloth not new put round English breakfast dish (6)

While I have eaten this breakfast dish, I normally eat other types of cereal which may explain why the solution to the clue did not readily come to mind.

26a Light opening to exhibition held by artist (6)

Francis Bacon^[7] (1909 – 1992) was an Irish-born British figurative painter known for his bold, austere, graphic and emotionally raw imagery.

1d Service shown by prince having deadly consequences (6)

Prince Hal is the name by which the future King Henry V of England goes by in William Shakespeare's plays Henry IV, Part 1^[7] and Henry IV, Part 2^[7]. In all likelihood, "prince" is not a reference to American theatre director Hal Prince.

6d Stiff group of students supported by a lecturer (6)

In the UK, a form^[5] is a class or year in a school, usually given a specifying number • the fifth form [the North American counterpart would be grade • the fifth grade]. By the way, I did confirm that L, as an abbreviation for lecturer, is found in The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition.

14d Short rest in card game (3)

Nap^[5] is a card game resembling whist in which players declare the number of tricks they expect to take, up to five.

18d Like a blue part of floor (not half) in refurbished chalet (8)

In Britain, a blue^[5] is a person who has represented Cambridge University (a Cambridge blue) or Oxford University (an Oxford blue) at a particular sport in a match between the two universities • a flyweight boxing blue.

19d One on board facing sign of shame? Avoid expressing an opinion (7)

As you may recall from yesterday's puzzle, in the Royal Navy, able seaman (abbreviation AB)^[5]. is a rank of sailor above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman. Thus the first part of the wordplay is not (as was my first thought) 'A (one) + (on) B (board)' but 'AB (one on board; i.e., able seaman)'.

21d Record account in group that’s aiming to recover animal (6)

The Automobile Association^[7] (The AA) is a British motoring association founded in 1905. Its counterparts in North America would be the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) and the American Automobile Association (AAA). One of the services that it provides to motorists is the recovery (towing) of vehicles in the event of a breakdown.

22d Idle lines penned during game in retreat (6)

Lollop^[4] is a British term with the seemingly somewhat contradictory meanings of (1) to walk or run with a clumsy or relaxed bouncing movement or (2) a less common word for lounge (as a verb).

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Wednesday, January 4, 2012 - DT 26685

2012-01-04T21:28:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26685
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, October 17, 2011
Setter Rufus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26685]
Big Dave's Review Written By Libellule
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26684 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, October 15, 2011

Introduction

I had difficulty with the northeast corner today, and needed substantial assistance from my electronic helpers in that area of 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.

10a Salesman’s untruthful answers (7)

In the surface reading, the 's is used to form the possessive form of salesman. However, in the cryptic reading, it is interpreted as is with the wordplay being REP (salesman) + LIES (is untruthful).

13a Salary increased to get out of debt (3,2)

Note that, in his review, Libellule speaks of a "a rise in your salary". In Britain, an increase in pay is known as a rise^[5], whereas, in North America, it is called a raise^[5].

17a Pardon sailor’s love affair (7)

In the Royal Navy, able seaman (abbreviation AB)^[5]. is a rank of sailor above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman.

26a Toiletry any local chemist may supply initially (4)

In the UK, a pharmacist - or, for that matter, a pharmacy - is known as a chemist^[5].

31a Master pleaded for change of ship (6,7)

A paddle steamer^[5] is a boat powered by steam and propelled by paddle wheels. In North America, such a vessel would most likely be called a paddle-wheeler.

2d Clamp down on work force (7)

Initially, I had entered REPRESS here. Not only could I not justify the wordplay - it made 1a very difficult to solve.

6d Man in jug? (4)

British Toby Jug

American Whiskey Jug

Characterised by the Oxford Dictionary of English as being chiefly a British term, a Toby jug^[5] is a beer jug or mug in the form of a stout old man wearing a three-cornered hat. Note that a jug^[5] in Britain would be a small pitcher^[5] rather than a US style jug with a narrow mouth and stopper or cap (like those traditionally used to hold whiskey). In Canada, we use the word jug to describe containers of either type.

16d They are used for cheating and lying (5)

The Oxford Dictionary of English characterises the word crib^[5], meaning a child’s bed, as being chiefly a North American term - the usual British name being cot^[5].

27d Common complaint of many of advanced years (4)

Here we encounter a cryptic crossword convention where the word "many" is used to indicated a large (but not specified) Roman numeral. It can be any of L (fifty), C (one hundred), D (five hundred) or M (one thousand). Other expressions, such as the phrase "a large number", may also be used in this way.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Tuesday, January 3, 2012 - DT 26683

2012-01-03T11:43:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26683
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, October 14, 2011
Setter Giovanni
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26683]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog

Introduction

Judging by my performance, I would have to say that today's puzzle is on the gentle side of three stars.

In case anyone is interested, I have finally gotten around to posting blogs on the puzzles for Friday, December 23 and Monday, December 26. It would seem that a little event called Christmas rather interfered with my schedule!

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.

9a Number classically participating in excursion (6)

I did get the correct solution - but without understanding why. The only possible explanation that I could come up with is that, in the Iliad, Homer writes of Nestor leading a flotilla of ninety ships to the siege of Troy. However, the answer is hiding right before our eyes, with the Roman numeral for ninety forming part of the word eXCursion.

10a PM has no hesitation going round pub — it adds a bit of spice (8)

The PM of interest is David Cameron^[7], the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the British Conservative Party.

11a Like many a church notice across, say, Ireland? (6)

For my first attempt, I took the right approach but ended up at the wrong destination. I put SPIED (noticed, failing to notice the improper tense) around R (republic, of which Ireland is an example) to get SPIRED (like many a church). Luckily, an obvious down clue quickly set me straight.

18a Soldiers getting punished to become improved (7)

The Royal Engineers (RE)^[5] is the name of the field engineering and construction corps of the British army.

20a Jane providing song for us to hear (4)

Jane Eyre^[7] is a novel by English writer Charlotte Brontë which was published in 1847.

25a Shrub is hidden behind seaside building (6)

Like Gazza, I had never heard of the shrub referred to in this clue. Pieris^[5] is an evergreen shrub of the heather family, typically having pink or red young leaves and loose clusters of waxy white bell-shaped flowers. It is native to North America and Asia (genus Pieris, family Ericaceae). I must say that I am hard-pressed to see how a pier can be described as a building^[5] (a structure with a roof and walls) - a structure, yes, but a building?

26a Somehow detain this writer coming in — there’s a medical disorder (8)

As a cryptic crossword convention, the creator of the puzzle will often use terms such as setter, compiler, author, or (in this case) "this writer" to refer to himself or herself. To solve the clue, one must substitute a first person pronoun for the term (I or me). As "somehow detain" clearly indicates an anagram (somehow) of DETAIN, it is quite evident (based on the numeration) that "this writer" must be ME which is contained in (coming in) the anagram.

1d Job given to character to provide a means of communication (8)

Some people may have difficulty reading the caption on the postcard which Gazza uses to illustrate his hint. The card shows a large woman presenting a baby to a new mother as she lies in bed. The large woman comments "It's so different from yours. Did his father have nice curly hair like this?", to which the new mother replies "I don't know Ma'am, he had his hat on!"

2d Heather, initially very good, is not very well (6)

Ling^[5] is another name for the common heather of Eurasia.

5d Sit outside in fine weather — ashen but changing? (8)

Scrote^[5] (used by Gazza in the comment appended to his hint) is an informal British expression meaning a contemptible person (and, yes, as I expected, it does come from scrotum).

By the way, just think what a North American compiler might be able to do with the phrase "ashen butt"! [The term butt^[5] (meaning buttocks) being chiefly a North American expression].

13d Come to end of line in attempt to expose infidelity (9)

The wordplay is "come to end of line in attempt" and the definition is "infidelity". The phrase "to expose" serves as a link between the wordplay and the definition. The overall sense of the clue is that if one follows the instructions in the wordplay, a synonym of the definition will be exposed or unveiled. The parsing of the wordplay is {REACH (come) + (to) E (end of linE)} contained in (in) TRY (attempt). It is not uncommon to see the word "to" used as a charade indicator, where it is used in the sense of 'pressed against' as in expressions such as "shoulder to the wheel", "nose to the grindstone", "nose to the window", or "cheek to cheek". Compare the use of the link phrase "to expose" in this clue to the use of the word "to" in 21d.

15d Group of soldier laid up — rest could be this (8)

Like Gazza, I thought that the clue should have started "Group of soldiers ...". The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME; pronounced phonetically as "Reemee")^[7] is a corps of the British Army that has responsibility for the maintenance, servicing and inspection of almost every electrical and mechanical piece of equipment within the British Army from battle tanks and helicopters to dental tools and cooking equipment/utensils. These soldiers are not be confused with those in 18a. The Corps of Royal Engineers^[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the Sappers, is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces. In Ottawa, we have a prime example of the work of this corps. It was Lt. Colonel John By of the Royal Engineers who supervised the construction of the Rideau Canal in the early 1800s.

16d Who rears unexpectedly? I’d better not, in battle (8)

I think one is expected to read this clue as if it were spoken by the horse.

17d One topless garment associated with popular music somewhere in America (8)

Ska^[5] is a style of fast popular music having a strong offbeat and originating in Jamaica in the 1960s, a forerunner of reggae. It is popular both in Jamaica and in crossword puzzles.

21d Primitive life form to be gobbled up by a bird once (6)

Here the definition is "primitive life form" and the wordplay is "be gobbled up by a bird once". I would say that the word "to" serves the function of a link word between the definition and the wordplay. However, in this role, it does not seem to perform nearly as well as the phrase "to expose" in 13d.

22d Little son, someone really small, a bit of a pain (6)

Titch^[5] is an informal British term for a small person • the titch of the class.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Monday, January 2, 2012 - DT 26682

2012-01-01T00:01:00.000-05:00

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26682
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, October 13, 2011
Setter Ray T
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26682]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ★★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog
Notes This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the National Post edition of Friday, December 30, 2011

Introduction

With today's puzzle, there is no mistaking the setter - who is clearly at his mischievous best. Clues such as 1d and 26a are classic Ray T fare, and 18d with its reference to Queen only serves to confirm it. I completed the lower half unaided, but struggled with the upper half. Fearful that I was suffering a bout of mental torpidity, I had to pull out my Tool Chest with ten clues remaining to be solved - all of them in the upper portion of the puzzle. Primarily, I used tools which generate lists of words matching the checking letters. In most cases, they provided a set of no more than ten to twenty possibilities from which the correct solution often seemed to leap right off the screen. I felt somewhat less inadequate when I saw that Big Dave had awarded this puzzle four stars for difficulty.

My Mistake

In my initial posting, I failed to notice that this is the puzzle for Monday, January 2, 2012 and not the one for Friday, December 30, 2011 - both of which appear in the Friday, December 30, 2011 edition of the National Post.

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.

7a Very open admitting start of affair’s steamy (8)

I tried very hard to force fit words like spacious and salacious in here.

11a Favoured soft leg drive shot, taking single (10)

This is one of the few clues in the top half that I was able to solve before dipping into my Tool Chest. As we saw only yesterday, the musical notation p (piano)^[5] means soft or softly.

14a He may chase English goer (8)

It is a revelation to me, but chase^[5] can be a verb meaning to engrave (metal, or a design on metal). It is usually seen in the form of an adjective chased • a miniature container with a delicately chased floral design.

15a Offensive smell from head of sea carp (6)

A tench^[5] is a European freshwater fish of the carp family, popular with anglers (Tinca tinca, family Cyprinidae).

26a She barely participates in game (8)

Erica Roe^[7], who so amply illustrates this clue in Big Dave's review, is also known as the Twickenham Streaker. She is remembered for a topless run across the pitch of Twickenham Stadium during an England vs. Australia rugby union match on 2 January 1982. It has been described by the BBC as "perhaps the most famous of all streaks". Roe, who later claimed to have been inspired by alcohol, ran onto the field during half time, exposing her 40-inch bosom. Roe and the friend who joined her streak were corralled by police officers on the field, one of whom covered Roe's chest with his helmet while leading her off the field.

2d Exercise with cheat on steroids? (4)

In Britain, do^[5] is an informal term for swindle • a thousand pounds for one set of photos—Jacqui had been done. The sense of the wordplay is "PE (exercise) with DO (cheat) on [it]". Since this is a down clue, putting DO on top of PE implies that DO precedes PE.

4d Skive and endlessly lounge in crib (8)

Skive^[5] is an informal British expression meaning to avoid work or a duty by staying away or leaving early or, in other words, to shirk • I skived off school.

8d Harry Lime in shady case, grinning (6)

Harry Lime is a character (played by Orson Welles) in The Third Man, a 1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed with a screenplay written by novelist Graham Greene.

24d Transport from Paddington, perhaps (4)

Paddington Bear^[7] , a polite immigrant bear from Deepest, Darkest Peru, with his old hat, battered suitcase, duffle coat and love of marmalade sandwiches, has become a classic character from English children's literature. In the first story, Paddington is found at Paddington railway station in London by the Brown family, sitting on his suitcase (bearing the label "WANTED ON VOYAGE") with a note attached to his coat which reads, "Please look after this bear. Thank you." Author Michael Bond has said that his memories of newsreels showing trainloads of child evacuees leaving London during the war, with labels around their necks and their possessions in small suitcases, prompted him to do the same for Paddington.

References:
^[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)

Signing off for today - Falcon

Saturday, December 31, 2011 - Mystery Theme

2011-12-31T10:25:00.002-05:00

Introduction

From time to time, the theme of the puzzle is a mystery - and today this is literally - or literarily - the case. In today's puzzle from Cox and Rathvon, in which the theme is spelled out in 3d, we are introduced to a six-pack of famous fictional detectives.

I just realized that I blogged the wrong puzzle yesterday, having failed to notice that the National Post had published both the Friday, December 30, 2011 and the Monday, January 2, 2012 puzzles yesterday. Well, at least Monday is taken care of - now back to Friday!

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

1a {NERO WOLFE}* - anagram (cultivated) of ONE FLOWER

Nero Wolfe is a fictional detective, created in 1934 by the American mystery writer Rex Stout.

6a MA|SON - MA (mother) + (and) SON (child)

Perry Mason is a fictional character, a defense attorney who was the main character in works of detective fiction authored by Erle Stanley Gardner.

9a   A(LIMO)NY - LIMO (limousine) contained in (included in) ANY (some)

10a   RECLAIM* - anagram (plastic) of MIRACLE

11a   A|U|GUSTE D|UP|IN - A (†) + U (university) + GUSTED (blown) + UP (†) + (by) IN (popular)

Le Chevalier C. Auguste Dupin is a fictional detective created by Edgar Allan Poe. Dupin made his first appearance in Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" (1841), widely considered the first detective fiction story. He reappears in "The Mystery of Marie Rogêt" (1842) and "The Purloined Letter" (1844).

14a   WE|ARIES - WE (you and I) + ARIES (sign [of the zodiac])

15a   CA(BINE)T - BINE (twining plant) contained in (in) CAT (beatnik)

17a   M(IT)OSES - IT (the thing) contained in (held by) MOSES (Hebrew phophet)

Note: the setters have employed an inverted sentence structure in the clue.

19a RI(CARD)O - CARD (comedian) contained in (in) RIO (Brazilian resort)

Ricardo Montalbán (1920 – 2009) was a Mexican radio, television, theatre and film actor.

20a {SIMON TEMPLAR}* - anagram (confused) of SIMPLE MATRON

Simon Templar is a British fictional character known as The Saint featured in a long-running series of books by Leslie Charteris. Although The Saint functions as an ordinary detective in some stories, others depict ingenious plots to get even with vanity publishers and other ripoff artists, greedy bosses who exploit their workers, con men, etc.

24a   EARRING* - anagram (shifted) of NEAR RIG

25a   THE|ORE|M_ - THE () + ORE (valuable rock) + M {magazine's first; i.e., the first [letter] of M(agazine)}

26a   _SPA|DE_ - hidden in (carried by) VeSPA DEtained

Sam Spade, a fictional character who is the protagonist of Dashiell Hammett's 1930 novel The Maltese Falcon, is widely cited as the crystallizing figure in the development of the hard-boiled private detective genre.

27a LE(W AR)CHER - LECHER (libertine) containing (holding) WAR (big fight)

Lew Archer, a fictional character created by Ross Macdonald, is a private detective working in Southern California.

Down
1d (NO|AH}~ - sounds like (vocally) {KNOW (recognize) + A (†)}

The biblical story of Noah is contained in chapters 6–9 of the book of Genesis, where he saves his family (his wife, three sons, and their wives) and representatives of all animals from the flood by constructing an ark. Note: the question mark in the clue indicates that the setters have exercised a degree of cryptic license with respect to the definition (zookeeper).

2d   _RAIN - [T]RAIN (coach) minus the first letter (after the first)

3d   WHODUNITS* - anagram (developed) of WITH SOUND

4d   LA(YOU)TS - LATS (muscles) containing (around) YOU (†)

5d   ER(RAT)IC - ERIC (Norse explorer) containing (catching) RAT (†)

Erik Thorvaldsson (950 – c. 1003), known as Erik the Red, is remembered in medieval and Icelandic saga sources as having founded the first Nordic settlement in Greenland. Note: The setters have chosen to use an anglicized version of his name.

6d   M(ACE)D - MD (doctor) containing (acquires) ACE (hole in one; a golf term)

7d   SHAR(PEN)ERS - SHARERS (unselfish people) containing (keeping) PEN (quill)

8d   NO(MINA*)TION - NOTION (idea) containing (about) an anagram (changing) of AMIN

Idi Amin Dada (c. 1925 – 2003) was a military leader and President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979.

12d {TWO-MASTERS}* - anagram (sailing) of MOST WATERS

13d SAN(TA MARI)A - TAMARI (soy sauce) contained in (in) SANA (Aden's capital)

La Santa María de la Inmaculada Concepción (Spanish for The Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception), was the largest of the three ships used by Christopher Columbus in his first voyage.

16d BUCCANEER~ - sounds like (said) "BUCK AN EAR" ("Dollar for each cob of corn")

18d {STEN|GEL}< - reversal (returning) of {LEG (flight segment) + NETS (brings home)}

Casey Stengel (1890 – 1975) was an American Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. Although his baseball career spanned a number of teams and cities, he is primarily associated with clubs in New York City. He is the only man to have worn four of New York's major league clubs' uniforms - as a player for the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants and as a manager for the Dodgers, Yankees and Mets. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1966.

19d   {ROPE TOW}* - anagram (lost) of POWER TO

21d   NO(I)SE - I (†) contained in (found in) NOSE (honker)

22d   ARCH - double definition; "clever" & "curve"

23d   O|MAR - O ([looks like] wheel) + MAR (damage)

Omar Bradley (1893 – 1981) was a senior U.S. Army field commander in North Africa and Europe during World War II, and a General of the Army in the United States Army.

Happy New Year to everyone - Falcon