Wednesday, January 22, 2014 — DT 27300

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27300
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, October 4, 2013
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27300]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Gazza
BD Rating
Difficulty - ★★ / ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★
Falcon's Experience ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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 █ - solved but without fully understanding the wordplay or definition █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's blog █ - yet to be solved

Introduction

Today's puzzle was started before I went to gym and finished when I returned. The physical exertion must have been good for the grey matter as clue's which seemed impossible before the workout fell into place following 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. The underlined portion of the clue is the definition.

Across

1a   Spot a piece that's unusual in bishop's office (10)

Although a word I don't recall seeing before, the solution was easily derived through back formation from known words with a similar root.

6a   Sour-tempered person  that may be seen at the seaside (4)

9a   A new plumbing device seen around Indian city (5)

Patna^[5] is a city in NE India, on the Ganges, capital of the state of Bihar; population 1,814,000 (est. 2009). An important city in ancient times, it had become deserted by the 7th century but was refounded in 1541 by the Moguls and became a viceregal capital. Former name Pataliputra.

10a   Domestic animal is eaten by jungle beast by river -- prime bit of food? (9)

I interpreted "prime" to an indication that the food in question is eaten at the beginning of a meal. In his review, Gazza wonders if the word might have been intended to suggest "food designed to prepare the digestive system for what was to come".

12a   Logical reasoning required to shift great mountain (13)

14a   Ornamental items, underwear? Aim to be seen in such! (8)

In Britain, the term pants^[5] refers to either underpants^[5] [an undergarment, especially for men or boys] or knickers^[5] [a woman's or girls undergarment]. The outer garment that North Americans would call pants is known in the UK as trousers.

15a   Aboard ship there's still a cut-down version of ball game (6)

Rugby sevens^[7], also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is now recognised as an Olympic sport and will make its debut in the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Rugby league sevens^[7] (or simply sevens) is a seven-a-side derivative of rugby league football, which is usually a thirteen-a-side sport. The game is substantially the same as full rugby league, with some rule changes and shorter games. 

17a   Revolutionary university and established church bound together by contract (6)

The Church of England^[10] (abbreviation CE^[10]) is the reformed established state Church in England, Catholic in order and basic doctrine, with the Sovereign as its temporal head.

19a   Former sweetheart's love starts to look decidedly feeble and weak (3,5)

In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love^[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒ love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.

21a   Envisage accompanying chum to fantastic cinema (7,6)

Picture palace^[5] is a dated British name for a cinema [movie theatre].

24a   Description of reliable man not left wanting round of applause (5-4)

25a   Live as wife in a sort of depression (5)

26a   Furore -- no time to go down passively (4)

27a   Mistake is admitted by old rocker threatened with violence (10)

Ted^[2] is short for Teddy boy^[5], a slang term originally applied to a young man belonging to a subculture in 1950s Britain characterized by a style of dress based on Edwardian fashion (typically with drainpipe trousers, bootlace tie, and hair slicked up in a quiff) and a liking for rock-and-roll music.The name comes from from Teddy, pet form of the given name Edward (with reference to Edward VII's reign). Judging by the entry in the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, it would appear that the term Teddy boy^[2] is now applied to any unruly or rowdy adolescent male. 

Down

1d   See with unusual perception the end of history (4)

2d   Where proverbial annoying mobile user is  well organised! (2,5)

According to Oxford Dictionaries Online [the only reference I was able to find], in train^[5] means (of arrangements) in progress ⇒ an investigation is in train. Does that mean well organised? — well enough organised, I suppose, to get off the drawing board.

3d   A c-cougher can't get loose -- it means coughing up is postponed! (6,7)

4d   Chum having fun has quiet wager before end of game (8)

Piano^[3,5] (abbreviation p^[5]), is a musical direction meaning either (as an adjective) soft or quiet or (as an adverb) softly or quietly.

5d   Shot finally getting to a flagpole (3-2)

I initially expended a modicum of effort trying to rationalise TIP-IN. I eventually realised that I should be on the golf course, not the basketball court.

7d   Breathe with hesitation mounting tall part of building (7)

8d   Brasenose's fantastic women -- noble types (10)

Brasenose College^[7] (in full: The King's Hall and College of Brasenose, abbreviated BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.

11d   In play watch a done-for Macbeth (5,2,6)

Macbeth^[7] is a play written by English poet and playwright William Shakespeare (1564–1616). In the play, MacBeth is a general in the army of King Duncan; originally Thane of Glamis, then Thane of Cawdor [a village in the Highlands of Scotland, near Inverness], and later King of Scotland.

Historically, in Scotland, a thane^[7] was a man, often the chief of a clan, who held land from a Scottish king and ranked with an earl’s son ⇒ the Thane of Cawdor

MacBeth^[5,10] (circa 1005–1057) was king of Scotland 1040–57. He came to the throne after killing his cousin Duncan I in battle, and was himself defeated and killed by Duncan's son Malcolm III. Shakespeare’s tragedy Macbeth considerably embroiders the historical events.

13d   Star sapper in battle? Engineers can make use of such (5,5)

The usual role of "sapper is to clue RE — but not today.

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.

16d   Duck sitting on bank maybe concealing a shrub (8)

In cricket, a duck^[5] is a batsman’s score of nought [zero] ⇒ he was out for a duck. This is similar to the North American expression goose egg^[5] meaning a zero score in a game. In British puzzles, duck is used to indicate the letter "O" based on the resemblance of the digit "0" to this letter.

Oleander^[5] (Nerium oleander) is a poisonous evergreen Old World shrub grown in warm countries for its clusters of white, pink, or red flowers.

18d   Figure formed by various characters in dance full of energy (7)

20d   Exams? Everything's crammed in the night before! (1,6)

In the UK (with the exception of Scotland), A level^[5] (advanced level^[5]) is a qualification in a specific subject typically taken by school students aged 16-18, at a level above GCSE^[5] (General Certificate of Secondary Education). British students would naturally refer to their A Level Exams as A Levels — just as students of my day in Nova Scotia referred to our Provincial Examinations as Provincials.

22d   Cheer from employee finally out of office (5)

In addition to meaning recently deceased, late^[3,4,11] can mean having recently occupied a position or place ⇒ the company's late president gave the address. I don't believe that I have ever seen it used in that sense — or, if I have, I likely misinterpreted the intended meaning. I am sure if I were to see that usage, I would think of a voice from beyond the grave. However, all the dictionaries appear to list the word late with that meaning.

23d   Gap in wood almost making one cheerful (4)

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)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon