Thursday, December 15, 2011 - DT 26664

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26664
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, September 22, 2011
Setter Ray T
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26664]
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

Today we are treated to the usual enjoyable puzzle from Ray T - complete with his trademark reference to the rock band Queen and some slightly naughty 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.

9a   Topless, move rhythmically on pole, maybe (9)

In his hint, Big Dave attributes the PERCH portion of the solution to "a pole for a bird to roost on". There may also be an alternative explanation (which I see that a visitor to Big Dave's site has also suggested). Both pole and perch are old names for a unit of length (as well as a unit of area) also known as a rod. However, such an explanation would not have afforded the opportunity to use the lovely (or provacative) illustration of a bird on a pole [in Britain, bird^[5] is slang for a young woman or a man’s girlfriend].

10a   Square described by Pythagoras? (5)

One must interpret describe^[2] in a geometrical sense, namely to move in the shape or pattern of something • skaters describing circles on the ice. The word describe is often used as a hidden word indicator in cryptic crossword puzzles. Therefore, in the same way as the mark left by the skaters' blades outlines a circular area on the surface of the ice, the outer portions of the word Pythagoras outline the word agora contained within it.

2d   Winds up from opposite directions around ship (5)

In Britain, wind someone up^[5] is an informal expression meaning to tease or irritate someone (she’s only winding me up). Similarly, nark^[5] is another informal British term meaning to cause annoyance to (women like her nark me).

4d   Rifles secure, having been cocked (4)

One meaning of cock^[2] is to stick up. This presumably is the rationale behind its use as a reversal indicator in a down clue.

7d   He drives Morris’s first old Traveller, not posh! (8)

Morris was a make of automobile manufactured by the Morris Motor Company^[7], a British car manufacturing company. Used in its general sense, a traveller could be a tourist. However, by writing the word with a capital, the setter introduces an element of misdirection for British readers who would interpret Traveller^[5] to be a Gypsy or other nomadic person. In Britain, U^[5] is an adjective used informally to mean

(when applied to language or social behaviour) characteristic of or appropriate to the upper social classes (U manners) - or, in other words, posh.

18d   One’s thrown to get a day off! (6)

In Britain, a sickie^[5] is a day taken as sick leave when one is not actually ill (she took a sickie only last week and enjoyed a morning in bed). Apparently, it is often used in the idiomatic expression throw a sickie.

25d   Strong draught beer with good head (4)

Some visitors to Big Dave's site point out that Gales was a brand name for ale produced by Gales Brewery (George Gale & Co. Ltd)^[7], an old brewery situated in Horndean, near Portsmouth in Hampshire, England. It made the nutty HSB (Horndean Special Bitter) and the newer Gales Bitter.

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