Wednesday, August 13, 2014 — DT 27449

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27449
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, March 28, 2014
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27449]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Deep Threat
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 parsing the clue █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Big Dave's Crossword Blog █ - solved with aid of checking letters provided by solutions from Big Dave's Crossword Blog █ - reviewed by Falcon for Big Dave's Crossword Blog █ - yet to be solved

Introduction

I needed a bit of help from my electronic assistants today. I encountered a mental block when it came to the old people and the blossom — even though both terms are well known to me. I even thought of INCA so I was in the right part of the world. On the other hand, despite the reference to the British football song going totally over my head, I was still able to find the correct solution.

I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.

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.

Primary indications (definitions) are marked with a solid underline in the clue; subsidiary indications (be they wordplay or other) are marked with a dashed underline in all-in-one (& lit.) clues, semi-all-in-one (semi-& lit.) clues and cryptic definitions.

Across

1a   Bit of material in old paper probed by female copper (6)

The Financial Times (FT)^[7] is a British international business newspaper [that is printed on conspicuous salmon pink newsprint].

The symbol for the chemical element copper is Cu^[5] (from Latin cuprum).

Offcut^[5] is a British term for a piece of waste material that is left behind after cutting a larger piece ⇒ (i) a timber offcut; (ii) offcuts of carpet.

5a   Helpless person made lax when coming into fortune (4,4)

In addition to its chiefly North American political connotation, lame duck^[5] can mean an ineffectual or unsuccessful person or thing ⇒ most of her boyfriends have been lame ducks.

9a   March around end of town is featured in West End show song (2,3,5)

To place Deep Threat's comment in context, check the table above for the date when this puzzle was published in The Daily Telegraph.

The West End^[5] is the entertainment and shopping area of London to the west of the City.

The City^[5] is short for the City of London. Take note that the City of London^[5] is not the same thing as the city of London, but merely the part of London situated within the ancient boundaries and governed by the Lord Mayor and the Corporation^[5] [in Britain, a group of people elected to govern a city, town, or borough is called a Corporation].

Oliver!^[7] is a British musical, with music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the novel Oliver Twist by English writer Charles Dickens (1812–1870). It premièred in the West End in 1960, enjoying a long run, a successful Broadway production in 1963 and further tours and revivals. It was made into a musical film in 1968. Major London revivals played from 1977–80, 1994–98 and again from 2008–11.

"Ol' Man River"^[7] (music by Jerome Kern, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II) is a song in the 1927 Broadway musical Show Boat that contrasts the struggles and hardships of African Americans with the endless, uncaring flow of the Mississippi River; it is sung from the point of view of a black stevedore on a showboat, and is the most famous song from the show.

10a   Company doctor providing something for nit inspection? (4)

In Britain, the degree required to practice medicine is a Bachelor of Medicine^[7] (MB, from Latin Medicinae Baccalaureus), which is equivalent to a North American Doctor of Medicine (MD, from Latin Medicinae Doctor). The degree of Doctor of Medicine also exists in Britain, but it is an advanced degree pursued by those who wish to go into medical research. Physicians in Britain are still addressed as Dr. despite not having a doctoral degree.

11a   Ray and Maureen, getting on, smile (8)

Mo is a common diminutive for Maureen.

12a   Group's distance across the water? (6)

A league^[2] is a nautical measure equal to 3 international nautical miles (3.456 statute miles or 5.556 km).

13a   Old people blossom with first bit of activity (4)

May^[5] is another name for the hawthorn or its blossom.

The Maya^[10] are an American Indian people of Yucatan, Belize, and northern Guatemala, having an ancient culture once characterized by outstanding achievements in architecture, astronomy, chronology, painting, and pottery.

15a   Heather sitting by lake in bra and knickers? (8)

Ling^[5] is another name for the common heather (Calluna vulgaris), a purple-flowered Eurasian heath that grows abundantly on moorland and heathland.

Lake Erie^[5] is one of the five Great Lakes of North America, situated on the border between Canada and the US. It is linked to Lake Huron by the Detroit River and to Lake Ontario by the Welland Ship Canal and the Niagara River, which is its only natural outlet.

Knickers^[5] is a British name for a woman’s or girl’s undergarment, covering the body from the waist or hips to the top of the thighs and having two holes for the legs [a rather convoluted way to say 'panties'].

In case you are curious about Deep Threat's comment "If you want a picture, see 9a in Wednesday’s Toughie!", have a gander to the right. This image is found in Gazza's review of Toughie No. 1159 published on Wednesday, March 26, 2014. The Toughie is a second — more difficult — cryptic crossword that appears in The Daily Telegraph from Tuesday through Friday.

18a   Russian author's escape to the West needing inner impulse (8)

In the wordplay, the setter may have intended the word "escape" to be either a noun or a verb.

As a noun, escape^[4] might denote a means or way of escape [for instance, a vent] or, as Deep Threat suggests, vent^[1] could be used in the sense of an emission, discharge or escape, especially of gas, smoke or a liquid.

As verbs, according to the definitions found in most dictionaries, escape is intransitive (gas escapes through an opening) and vent is transitive (one vents gas through an opening or gas is vented through an opening). However, The American Heritage Dictionary lists vent^[4] as an intransitive verb meaning to be released or discharged through an opening, while The Chambers Dictionary defines vent^[1] as an intransitive verb denoting to have or find an outlet. Under these definitions, it would seem that one could say that gas vents through an opening.

Ivan Turgenev^[5] (1818–1883) was a Russian novelist, dramatist, and short-story writer. His novels, such as Fathers and Sons (1862), examine individual lives to illuminate the social, political, and philosophical issues of his day.

19a   Dead good joke (4)

The abbreviation G^[10] for good likely relates to its use in grading school assignments or tests.

21a   Indian dish unfortunately knocked over by mum (6)

Masala^[5] is (1) a mixture of ground spices used in Indian cookery or (2) a dish flavoured with masala ⇒ chicken masala.

23a   Open University set of books dumped in sea -- great quantity (8)

In the UK, OU^[5] is the abbreviation for Open University^[5], a university that teaches mainly by broadcasting, correspondence, and summer schools, and is open to those without formal academic qualifications.

In Crosswordland, the word "books" — which today gets expanded to "set of books" — is often used to clue either the Old Testament (OT) or the New Testament (NT). As is the case here, the setter often does not specify whether the reference is to the former or the latter.

The main^[5] is an archaic or literary term for the open ocean.

25a   Writer's brother squashing the ego (4)

Bro^[5] is short for brother ⇒ his baby bro while Bro. is an abbreviation for Brother (used before a first name when referring in writing to a member of a religious order of men) ⇒ Bro. Felix. In a chiefly North American usage, bro means a male friend (often used as a form of address) ⇒ (i) they’d never choose a girl over their bros; (ii) not cool, bro. In this latter sense, bro is used much like the word mate^[5] in the UK.

In Britain, a biro^[5] is a kind of ballpoint pen. Although the name is a British trademark, it would seem to be used generically (in the same way that kleenex has become a generic term for facial tissue). It is named after László József Bíró (1899–1985), the Hungarian inventor of the ballpoint pen.

26a   Don boasted about words written in diary (3,2,2,3)

The solution to the clue is a phrase that English diarist Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) often used to complete his daily entries.

27a   Words of contempt never conveyed by Twitter? (8)

28a   Young singer to quiver, maiden passing out (6)

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.

Down

2d   A Liberal party led by strong Nick? (5)

The Liberal Party^[5] in Britain emerged in the 1860s from the old Whig Party and until the First World War was one of the two major parties in Britain. In 1988 the party regrouped with elements of the Social Democratic Party to form the Social and Liberal Democrats, now known as the Liberal Democrats; a small Liberal Party still exists. Although Lib.^[5] may be the more common abbreviation for the party, Chambers 21st Century Dictionary indicates that L^[2] may also be used.

Forte^[5] (abbreviation f^[5]) is a musical direction meaning (as an adjective) loud [or strong] or (as an adverb) loudly [or strongly].

Nick Faldo^[7] is an English professional golfer who now works mainly as an on-air golf analyst. His 40 professional wins include six major championships: three [British] Open Championships (1987, 1990, 1992) and three Masters (1989, 1990, 1996).

Nick Clegg^[7] [mentioned by Deep Threat in his review] is British Liberal Democrat Leader and Deputy Prime Minister in the coalition government of which British Conservative Leader David Cameron is the Prime Minister.

3d   Group that's bound to work together (5,4)

4d   Country outing — nothing to be missed — essential (6)

5d   Demand for total affection coming from man mowing with partner? (4,2,4,2,3)

I did manage to figure out the correct solution based on the checking letters, but not before first dallying with LOVE ME, LOVE ME NOT — thinking that it might relate to the childhood daisy-petal-plucking game "she loves me, she loves me not". However, I had no idea what the "man mowing with partner" had to do with the solution until Mr. Google came to my rescue.

Love me, love my dog^[5] is a proverb meaning if you love someone, you must accept everything about them, even their faults.

"Ten Men Went to Mow" is a song sung by the fans of  Chelsea Football Club^[7], an English professional football [soccer] club based in Fulham, London. Founded in 1905, the club plays in the Premier League [the top tier of the English football league system].

"Ten Men Went to Mow" is a cumulative song (as is The Twelve Days of Christmas) in which each verse is the repetition of the previous verse with an additional element included. The first two verses of the song are:

One man went to mow,
Went to mow a meadow,
  [aside] Meadow!,
One man and his dog,
  [aside] Spot!,
Went to mow a meadow,

Two men went to mow,
Went to mow a meadow,
  [aside] Meadow!
Two men, one man and his dog,
  [aside] Spot!
Went to mow a meadow, 

This pattern continues until the finale:

 [everyone standing]
Ten men went to mow,
Went to mow a meadow,
  [aside] Meadow!
Ten men, nine men, eight men, seven men, six men,
five men, four men, three men, two men, one man and his dog,
  [aside] Spot!
Went to mow a meadow,

 [arms extended: \0/] Chelsea!
  [clap 3 times above head: \0/] Chelsea!
and repeat until you realise that everyone else
has sat down because it's now half time

6d   Damage on jewellery that gives a streaky appearance (8)

7d   Would a chap keep this country house? Yes! (5)

In his review, Deep Threat identifies this as an all-in-one clue — a clue in which the entire clue serves as both the definition and the wordplay. However, after a good deal of contemplation, I fail to see how the entire clue can be considered to be either definition or wordplay. I have concluded that the definition is "this country house" (signifying a particular style of country house) and that the wordplay indicates that the solution is hidden (keep) in woulD A CHAp.

The clue is phrased as a question to which the implicit answer is not merely "Yes" but "Yes, [this country house is kept in would a chap]". While not presenting a very elegant surface reading, this does make the cryptic analysis quite a bit clearer.

8d   University participating in public act of worship (9)

Uni^[5] is a [seemingly British] informal term for university ⇒ he planned to go to uni.

14d   Notice superior language conveying love and hero-worship (9)

In Britain, U^[5] is used informally as an adjective (in respect to language or social behaviour) meaning characteristic of or appropriate to the upper social classes ⇒ U manners. The term, an abbreviation of  upper class, was coined in 1954 by Alan S. C. Ross, professor of linguistics, and popularized by its use in Nancy Mitford's Noblesse Oblige (1956). In Crosswordland, it is frequently clued by words denoting upper class such as posh, superior or acceptable [implying acceptable to the upper crust].

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.

16d   Boat race crew? Didn't eat everything, we hear (9)

17d   Looking at wildlife? It could be exciting for Asian (2,6)

20d   Game followed by fight and murder (3,3)

Rugby union^[10] (abbreviation RU^[5]) is a form of rugby football played between teams of 15 players (in contrast to rugby league^[5], which is played in teams of thirteen).

22d   A fellow wanting castle ultimately for home (5)

24d   Model made of one type of wood (5)

n Britain, deal^[5] means (1) fir or pine wood as a building material or (2) a plank made of fir or pine wood [what we in North America would commonly refer to as lumber]. Apparently, this meaning of deal^[3,11] also exists (or once existed) in North America, but I would think that it is very rarely used now — especially by the general public. In Britain, lumber^[5] has a totally different meaning, being articles of furniture or other household items that are no longer useful and inconveniently take up storage space.

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