Monday, July 23, 2012 - DT 26860

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26860
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26860]
Big Dave's Review Written By Crypticsue
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 Saturday, July 21, 2012 edition of the National Post.

Introduction

The puzzle was a bit more of a challenge to me than it was to Crypticsue — and, perhaps not surprisingly, a bit more enjoyable for me also. This, no doubt, reflects the fact that she has considerable more experience than I do with these puzzles.

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   Seaside treat best to eat cold (4-3)

Choc-ice^[5] is a British term for a small bar of ice cream with a thin coating of chocolate.

5a   Strange dog is running round Oxford University (7)

Chambers 21st Century Dictionary^[2] and Collins English Dictionary^[10] both list OU as the definition for either the Open University or Oxford University. Ironically, Oxford Dictionaries^[5] includes only the former.

11a   Cameron drinking ice tea mixed with a bit of elderberry for a spell of calm (9)

David Cameron^[7] is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. I have to raise my hand in response to Crypticsue's query, "Anyone else spend time trying to fit ‘Dave’ into this one?!". This based on previous mentions on Big Dave's blog to "Call me Dave" in reference to the Prime Minister. Wikipedia says that "Cameron is reported to be known to friends and family as "Dave", though he invariably uses "David'" in public. Critics often refer to him as "Call me Dave", implying populism in the same way as "Call me Tony" was used in 1997." During the 13 year period that Labour was in power in the UK (starting in 1997 with the government of Prime Minister Tony Blair), senior civil servants were encouraged to call ministers by their first names. This practice was apparently terminated shortly before the 2010 general election in which the Conservatives took power. [read more]

12a   Blackadder finally trapped by silly plan (5)

Blackadder^[7] is a British sitcom that appeared on the BBC intermittently from 1983 to 1989 (with occasional subsequent specials). It starred British comic actor Rowan Atkinson — well-known for his portrayal of Mr. Bean.

17a   Soldier on manoeuvres peers around at all times (9)

In her hint, Crypticsue alludes to Mary, a regular contributor to the comments section of Big Dave's blog. Mary is well-known for "coining" new words — her most famous being 'perservate'.

26a   Maiden wriggling toes in water (7)

In cricket, a maiden^[5], 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.

27a   Happy with a smaller amount in sack (7)

One meaning for blessed is characterized by happiness or good fortune • a blessed time.

28a         One who’s chosen no wealth: ultimate in abstinence (7)

Mine^[3] is used in the sense of an abundant supply or source of something valuable • This guidebook is a mine of information.

1d   Climber and sycophant will be seen by the Queen (7)

It would appear that the word creep may have a broader meaning on the other side of the Atlantic. The American Heritage Dictionary defines creep as meaning an annoyingly unpleasant or repulsive person^[3] , whereas Collins English Dictionary has it as a person considered to be obnoxious or servile^[4] (the latter corresponding to the usage in the clue).

By tradition, British monarchs use initials formed from the Latin version of their first name followed by either Rex or Regina (Latin for king or queen, respectively). Thus Queen Elizabeth's initials are ER^[5] — from the Latin Elizabetha Regina.

2d   Herb for e.g. an omelette? In part (7)

Given that "e.g." means "for example", the "for" in the clue would seem to be rather redundant from a grammatical perspective. However, the clue would not work otherwise.

3d   Cost after top of ivy’s hacked off (5)

To hack someone off is slang (presumably British) meaning to annoy or infuriate someone • it really hacks me off when they whine about what a poor job we’re doing.

7d   Paper folding in spring almost a first for Murdoch (7)

The definition is "paper folding" for which the solution is ORIGAMI. The wordplay which produces this is {A (from the clue) + M (first [letter] for Murdoch)} contained in (in) ORIGI {ORIGIN (spring) with the last letter deleted (almost)}. The setter has inverted the sentence structure, so that the clue reads, in essence, 'in ORIGI, [put] AM'.

The surface reading refers to the demise of the British tabloid newspaper News of the World^[7] in July 2011 (spring almost — missed it by three weeks) due to the phone hacking scandal. The paper was owned by Australian American media mogul Rupert Murdoch^[7].

8d   Pacify pet in French (7)

Crypticsue says "pet [is used] in the sense of delightful". However, I was not able to find this meaning in my collection of British dictionaries. I interpreted pet^[5] to have been used as an affectionate form of address • don’t cry, pet, it’s all right. Although Oxford Dictionaries characterises this as a British usage, I would have to say that the Brits in no way exercise exclusive jurisdiction over this term.

En^[8] is a French preposition meaning in.

16d   Left in church, my gran’s upset reverend (9)

The Church of England (abbreviation 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.

17d   Saw dog held by lead (7)

In Britain, a lead^[5] is a strap or cord for restraining and guiding a dog or other domestic animal • the dog is our constant walking companion and is always kept on a lead. In the cryptic reading of the clue, lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb^[5].

21d   Desperate fellow put in stake at a steady pace (7)

Desperate Dan^[7] is a wild west character in the British comic The Dandy. He first appeared in its first issue, dated 4 December 1937. He is apparently the world's strongest man, able to lift a cow with one hand. Even his beard is so tough he has to shave with a blowtorch. And he likes to eat cow pies! [The humour here may be unintentional as cow pies^[5] are known as cowpats^[5] in Britain].

23d   Fear King’s inside slaughtered (5)

Rex (Latin for king, abbreviation R)^[5] denotes the reigning king (used following the name of a monarch or in the titles of lawsuits, e.g. Rex v. Jones: the Crown versus Jones) [also see comment for 1d].

24d   Dialect I’d picked up in the Isle of Man (5)

The Isle of Man (abbreviation IOM)^[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. 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.

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)

Signing off for today – Falcon