Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26399 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, November 16, 2010 | |
Setter Unknown | |
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26399] | |
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza | |
Big Dave's Rating | |
| Difficulty - ** | Enjoyment - ** |
Falcon's Performance ┌────┬────┬────┬────┐ ████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┘ | |
Introduction
When I finished the puzzle without cracking open my Tool Chest, I suspected that the rating from Big Dave's team would likely be two stars. It was perhaps slightly more difficult on this side of the Atlantic, given the British geography involved. Most of the other Briticisms were familiar to me from appearances in previous puzzles.
Today's Glossary
Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle. Entries appearing for the first time since January 1, 2011 are shown in red text.
Appearing in Clues:
The meanings listed in this section may reflect how the word is used in the surface reading of the clue. Of course, that meaning may be contributing to the misdirection that the setter is attempting to create.
sequential art - an art form using a train of images deployed in sequence
Appearing in Solutions:
apartment - noun
- British a flat, typically one that is well appointed or used for holidays: self-catering holiday apartments
- North American any flat: the family lived in a rented apartment
brass - noun 4 British informal money: they wanted to spend their newly acquired brass
don1 - noun 1 British a university teacher, especially a senior member of a college at Oxford or Cambridge
E2 - abbreviation 1 Earl
William Hogarth (1697 – 1764) - English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic and editorial cartoonist who has been credited with pioneering western sequential art.
MB - abbreviation Bachelor of Medicine [from Latin Medicinae Baccalaureus], the professional degree held by medical practitioners in Britain [equivalent to a North American MD (Medical Doctor, from Latin Medicinae Doctor]
RN - abbreviation (in the UK) Royal Navy
Sandwich - a historic town and civil parish on the River Stour in the Non-metropolitan district of Dover, within the ceremonial county of Kent, south-east England
John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, PC, FRS (1718 – 1792) - British statesman who held various military and political offices, including Postmaster General, First Lord of the Admiralty and Secretary of State for the Northern Department, but is perhaps best known for the claim that he invented the modern concept of the sandwich.
spot cash - noun colloquial money that is paid there and then
Commentary on Today's Puzzle
This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.
1a What to eat in historic town (Earl's)? (10)
What a clumsy surface reading hast this clue! Presumably it is intended to be a semi &lit., although I am at a loss to see how the "(Earl's )" part factors into the definition. Perhaps it is the name of a pub in the historic town in question. Or, maybe it is just a reference to the gentleman who gave his name to this culinary creation (SANDWICHES). The wordplay is SANDWICH (historic town) + E (Earl) + S ('s).
21a To our sailors, trouble is a violent windstorm (7)
Remember that this puzzle was created for a British audience, so replace the phrase "to our sailors" with "to British sailors".
1d Tender doctor turned up in case (6)
The "case" in question being one that might be tried before a judge.
2d Head will, it's said, settle comfortly (6)
The definition is "settle comfortly" with the solution being NESTLE. As for the wordplay, this is a homophone clue where NESTLE sounds like NESS (head[land]) + 'LL (contraction for "will", as in I'll).
16d Notice Conservative has thrown money down (4,4)
The definition is "money down" as one might hear in a television commercial "Buy it with no money down, and low monthly payments". The solution is SPOT CASH with the wordplay being SPOT (notice) + C (Conservative) + an anagram (thrown) of HAS.
17d Film celebrities touring Warwickshire (4,4)
The definition is "film" and the one we are seeking is STAR WARS. The wordplay is STARS (celebrities) containing (touring) WAR (Warwickshire). To understand "touring" as a containment indicator, think of it as meaning "going around". While (for the surface reading) "touring Warwickshire" would actually mean to travel within Warwickshire, the substituted phrase "going around Warwickshire" could - in addition to this meaning - alternatively mean "surrounding Warwickshire" or even "avoiding Warwickshire". Isn't it wonderful that English is such a precise language!!!
Signing off for today - Falcon
Greets, Falcon.
ReplyDeleteSorry I haven't visited in a while, been very busy.
The whole past week the puzzles have been excellent.
This one was fairly hard going, about 3*. Needed some help to get 10a, 4d (a fine clue though), 27a.
Filled in 15d without quite knowing why. New meaning for "pet". I suppose the "'s" means "has"? This throws me every time, it just seems redundant. I wonder how much it's actually used in that sense on that side of the pond. :)
Very interesting learning a little more about 3d. :)
Some clues I liked: 23a, 5d, 14a, and fav 18a.
I still don't get 12a... I don't see how "will" means "decision".
Sorry to say, I am finding the red text on the green background very hard to read.
Cheers
- Pete
Hi Pete,
ReplyDeleteWelcome back.
Re 15d: Yes, the "'s" does mean 'has' in the cryptic reading (although it means 'is' in the surface reading). As for your observation "I wonder how much it's actually used ...", I would respond that it is likely used more (even here) than we realize. For instance, how about a sentence like "Kovalev's put up big numbers as trade deadline nears".
Re: "will" and "decision"
Consider these shades of meaning for the two words:
will - noun 1 [1st entry] the faculty by which a person decides on and initiates action: she has an iron will
decision - noun [3rd entry] the ability or tendency to make decisions quickly; decisiveness: she was a woman of decision
or, possibly even better:
will - noun 1 [4th entry] the thing that one desires or ordains: Jane tells St. John that she could marry him if she only knew it was God's will
decision - noun [1st entry] a conclusion or resolution reached after consideration: I'll make the decision on my own
Re: "red text on green background"
Thanks for your feedback on that point. Perhaps that was not such a good idea, after all.
Falcon
Hi, Falcon:
ReplyDeleteGood example with "'s" meaning has... you're right, that's very common. But it's a case of "has" being auxiliary to a past participle, where the Brits (as in the clue) use it as "has some object". This usage sounds odd to my Canadian ears. :)
Also good examples with "will" and "decision". It still seems a bit of a stretch. :) I have to admit though, that there was enough information to solve the clue easily. Guess that's the main thing.
Cheers, and have a great long weekend.
- Pete
Hi Pete,
ReplyDeleteRe: "the Brits ... use it as 'has some object'"
I don't believe that to be the case. In the surface reading, the "'s" indicates the possessive. In the cryptic reading, one must break the clue down into a series of components, and examine each component independently. Thus in this case, the components are [sailor], ['s], [pique], and [concerning] which, following the appropriate substitutions, become the charade SALT (sailor) + (has) PET (pique) + RE (concerning). In this case, the "'s" (has) serves as an explicit charade indicator, while the second charade indicator is implicit.
The substitution of "has" for "'s" is done independently of the surrounding words. I am sure that the construct "has some object" does not exist in real life, British or otherwise.
Falcon