Tuesday, December 25, 2012 - DT 26993

Puzzle at a Glance

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26993
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26993]
Big Dave's Review Written By Scchua
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 Dec. 25 Diversions page in the Monday, December 24, 2012 edition of the National Post.

Introduction

Today, we get a typical - though fairly easy - offering from Jay that originally appeared in the UK in mid-October. Try as I might, I could not get the final clue on my own. It sort of feels like collapsing inches from the finish line in a race.

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   Make the most of saying one's right of course (8)

My initial thought here was OPTIMISE. I find that once one has the wrong idea implanted in one's brain, it is very difficult to get it out.

12a   Some said I put savings back, being daft (6)

Daft^[5] is an informal British expression meaning silly or foolish ⇒ don’t ask such daft questions. However, the word is apparently well enough travelled that it appears in The American Heritage Dictionary with no indication of its British roots.^[3]

14a   Backing tabloid, captures awards (8)

A dated meaning of the word garland^[5] is a prize or distinction.

15a   The old old chap? A farmer in times gone by (6)

Yeoman^[5], in historical terms, means (1) a man holding and cultivating a small landed estate; a freeholder or (2) a person qualified for certain duties and rights, such as to serve on juries and vote for the knight of the shire, by virtue of possessing free land of an annual value of 40 shillings.

20a   Programme chosen to include the Spanish steps (8)

El^[8] is the masculine, singular form of the Spanish definite article. Although "steps" is not capitalized, the clue may be a reference to the Spanish Steps^[7] (Italian: Scalinata della Trinità dei Monti), a set of steps in Rome, Italy, climbing a steep slope between the Piazza di Spagna at the base and Piazza Trinità dei Monti, dominated by the Trinità dei Monti church at the top. The Scalinata is the widest staircase in Europe.

23a   Little girl gets second testimonial to give out (10)

It would seem that, nine times out of ten, a "little girl" in Crosswordland will turn out to be named Di.

24a   Small container routed through west of Liverpool (4)

... although the same result could be obtained by routing through east of Liverpool. Liverpool^[5] is a city and seaport in NW England, situated at the east side of the mouth of the River Mersey.

25a   Prime Minister rejecting fish after a case of treatment (6)

Clement Attlee^[7] (1883 – 1967) was a British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1945 to 1951, and as the Leader of the Labour Party from 1935 to 1955.

26a   Illegal occupant, short and stocky, they're regularly chasing (8)

Diego Maradona^[7] (mentioned by Scchua in his review) is an Argentine football [soccer] coach as well as a manager and former player who has a short (5' 5"), stocky build. Many experts, football critics, former players, current players and football fans in general consider Maradona to be "the greatest football player of all time". He was joint FIFA Player of the 20th Century with Pelé^[7] — a retired Brazilian footballer who is regarded by many experts, players, and fans as "the best player of all time".

3d   Went quickly, getting bitten (6)

Nip^[5] is a chiefly (but, by no means, exclusively) British term meaning to move quickly or dart.

4d   Fires half of main agents protecting king (8)

R^[5] is the abbreviation for Regina (Queen) or Rex (King) and is used following the name a British monarch ⇒ Elizabeth R or George R.

5d   Fish batter covering last of chips is rubbish (10)

Codswallop^[3,4] is a chiefly British slang term meaning nonsense or rubbish.

6d   Legendarily careless cook's adder flan partly sent back (6)

Alfred^[7] (849 – 899), known as Alfred the Great, was king of Wessex 871 – 899. Alfred’s military resistance saved SW England from Viking occupation. A great reformer, he is credited with the foundation of the English navy and with a revival of learning.

In January 878, the Danes (Vikings) made a sudden attack on Chippenham, a royal stronghold in which Alfred had been staying over Christmas, killing most of those present, except for King Alfred and a small band who managed to flee. A popular legend tells how Alfred was given shelter by a peasant woman who, unaware of his identity, left him to watch some cakes she had left cooking on the fire. Preoccupied with the problems of his kingdom, Alfred accidentally let the cakes burn.^[7]

A flan^[3] is a tart with a filling of custard, fruit, or cheese. Presumably, an "adder flan" would be one with a wriggly filling.

8d   Guy perhaps having topless challenge eating fruit (6)

In Britain, guy^[5] is the name for a figure representing Guy Fawkes, burnt on a bonfire on Guy Fawkes Night, and often displayed by children begging for money for fireworks. Guy Fawkes^[5]
(1570–1606) was an English conspirator who was hanged for his part in the Gunpowder Plot (a conspiracy by a small group of Catholic extremists to blow up James I and his Parliament on 5 November 1605). The occasion is commemorated annually on Bonfire Night (November 5) with fireworks, bonfires, and the burning of a guy.

19d   Points of contention in numbers (6)

Number^[5] is a chiefly British term meaning a single issue of a magazine ⇒ the October number of ‘Travel’.

21d   Feature on head of this zoo losing specs for material (6)

"Specs" is what is known as a visual clue^[7] — the letters "oo" looking like a pair of spectacles.

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)

Merry Christmas — Falcon