Tuesday, September 9, 2014 — DT 27470

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27470
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, April 22, 2014
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27470]
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 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

There are at least a couple of references in this puzzle that are more North American than British. However, that minor advantage was more than offset by the French resort with which I was totally unfamiliar.

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   Leak stopped by retired lawyer in adventure (8)

In the US, a district attorney^[5] (abbreviation DA) is a public official who acts as prosecutor for the state in a particular district.

5a   Leap a risky proposition, we hear (6)

9a   Complain freely with volume down? (5,3)

10a   Rick beginning to recuperate in country (6)

Rick^[2] is a verb meaning to sprain or wrench (one's neck, back, etc) or a noun denoting a sprain or wrench. Oxford Dictionaries Online characterises the verb — but not the noun — as British^[5]. However, the word rick^[3,11] does not appear with this meaning (either as a verb or a noun) in either of my regularly consulted US dictionaries (The American Heritage Dictionary and the Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary).

12a   Festivity containing posh cooked meat in country (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 "characteristic of the upper class" (such as posh or superior) or "appropriate to the upper class" (such as acceptable).

13a   Source of light in loft or chamber (5)

While the clue may refer to the word in its historical sense, torch^[5] also happens to be the British term for a flashlight^[5].

14a   Satirical work lacking any money? That's not new (4)

Skint^[5] is an informal British term denoting (of a person) having little or no money available ⇒ I’m a bit skint just now.

16a   Gentleman taken aback by German dish (7)

You may have noticed that most of the Germans whom you encounter in Crosswordland seem to be named Otto.

Risotto^[5] is an Italian dish of rice cooked in stock with ingredients such as vegetables and meat or seafood.

19a   Slate a revolutionary style (7)

Slate^[5] is an informal British term meaning to criticize severely ⇒ his work was slated by the critics.

Che Guevara^[7] (1928–1967) was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and military theorist. A major figure of the Cuban Revolution, his stylized visage has become a ubiquitous countercultural symbol of rebellion and global insignia within popular culture.

21a   Something carrying current and old message (4)

As Gazza indicates in his review, wire^[5] is a chiefly North American term for a telegram or cablegram.

Ordinary seaman (abbreviation OS)^[5] is the lowest rank of sailor in the Royal Navy, below able seaman.

24a   Tea provided by sailor in mess (5)

Cha (or chai) are alternative spellings for char^[5], an informal British name for tea.

25a   A gull hid after flying around large municipal building (9)

A guildhall^[5] is a building used as the meeting place of a guild or corporation. It is also a British term for a town hall. In Britain, the term corporation^[5] may refer to a group of people elected to govern a city, town, or borough ⇒ the City of London Corporation.

 The Guildhall^[5] is the hall of the Corporation of the City of London, used for ceremonial occasions.

The City of London^[7] (not to be confused with the city of London)  is a city and ceremonial county within London. It constituted most of London from its settlement by the Romans in the 1st century AD to the Middle Ages, but the conurbation has since grown far beyond the City's borders. The City is now only a tiny part of the metropolis of London, though it remains a notable part of central London. It is one of two districts of London to hold city status, the other being the adjacent City of Westminster.

It is widely referred to simply as the City (often written as just "City" and differentiated from the phrase "the city of London" by capitalising "City").

27a   One cadging food in pub (6)

28a   Lofty figure from Scottish mountain defending a European (8)

Just as Germans in Crosswordland often turn out to be Ottos, Europeans are frequently Poles.

Ben^[5] is a Scottish word (found especially in place names) meaning a high mountain or mountain peak ⇒ Ben Nevis. Ben Nevis^[5] is a mountain in western Scotland. Rising to 1,343 m (4,406 ft), it is the highest mountain in the British Isles.

29a   Turn over books penned by judge (6)

In Crosswordland, the word "books" is often used to clue either the Old Testament (OT) or the New Testament (NT). As is the case today, the clue frequently does not specify whether the reference is to the former or the latter.

30a   A top duet being played is current (2-2-4)

Down

1d   Points on token to get flag (6)

2d   Cat in cargo unloaded around bend (6)

Cougar^[5] is a North American name for the puma^[5], a large American wild cat (Felis concolor) with a plain tawny to greyish coat, found from Canada to Patagonia which is also known in North America as panther or mountain lion.

3d   Father connected ultimately with military outfit? (5)

The Corps of Royal Engineers^[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers^[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.

4d   Notes found on Scot featuring in paper being bold (7)

We saw earlier in the puzzle that Germans in Crosswordland are often named Otto. By the same token, Scots are commonly named Ian.

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

6d   Peer is apt to order early bit of food (9)

The nobility in Britain or Ireland (whose members are known as peers^[5]) comprises the ranks of duke, marquess, earl, viscount, and baron.

7d   Drinking venue flanking independent hotel in French resort (8)

I^[1] is the abbreviation for independent, perhaps in the context of a politician with no party affiliation.

César Ritz^[7] (1850–1918) was a Swiss hotelier and founder of several hotels, most famously the Hôtel Ritz, in Paris and The Ritz Hotel in London. His nickname was "king of hoteliers, and hotelier to kings," and it is from his name and that of his hotels that the term ritzy derives.

Biarritz^[7] is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées Atlantiques department in southwestern France. It is a luxurious seaside town and is popular with tourists and surfers.

8d   Formal fare produced by a French church in Spanish city (8)

In French, the masculine singular form of the indefinite article is un^[8].

León^[5] is a city in northern Spain; population 135,119 (2008). It is the capital of the province and former kingdom of León, now part of Castilla-León region.

11d   Noise of hen in animal enclosure (4)

To some, apparently, LAYER (hen) sounds like (noise of) LAIR (animal enclosure).

There is a great deal of speculation on Big Dave's blog as to which British dialect this homophone might apply. Some suggest the upper class (including her Majesty), others think it might be Sloane Rangers, while still others say Geordies.

Geordie^[5] is an informal British term for a person from Tyneside^[5], an industrial conurbation on the banks of the River Tyne, in northeastern England, stretching from Newcastle upon Tyne to the coast.

A Sloane Ranger^[5] (also called Sloane) is an informal term [clearly British] for a fashionable upper-class young woman, especially one living in London ⇒ she speaks more like an Essex girl than a Sloane. The term was coined in the 1970s by combining Sloane Square and Lone Ranger (the name of a fictitious cowboy hero). 

Sloane Square^[7] is a small hard-landscaped square on the boundaries of the fashionable London districts of Knightsbridge, Belgravia and Chelsea, located 2.1 miles (3.4 km) southwest of Charing Cross [considered to be the centre of London], in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

The square lies at the east end of the trendy Kings Road and at the south end of the more conventionally smart Sloane Street linking to Knightsbridge. In the early 1980s, it lent its name to the "Sloane Rangers", the young underemployed, often snooty and ostentatiously well-off members of the upper classes.

15d   Thrills needed on sharp sudden impulse (4-5)

17d   Source of room with keys? (5,3)

I must say that I am no more enamoured with this clue than was Gazza.

18d   Due to meet objective like a bull? (2,6)

Bull^[5] is a British term for a bullseye ⇒ aim for the bull!.

The oche [mentioned by Gazza in his review] (pronounced ockey; also spelled hockey) is the line behind which darts players stand when throwing.

20d   Advantage shown in financial document when uncovered (4)

21d   Review immediately heard and promoted (5-2)

Right might be encountered in the sense of "immediately" in a statement such as ⇒ ironically the arsonist lived right across the street from the fire station

While rare in North America, the process of promotion and relegation^[7] is common in sports leagues throughout most of the rest of the world. This a process whereby teams are transferred between two divisions based on their performance for the completed season. The best-ranked teams in the lower division are promoted to the division above, and the worst-ranked teams in the higher division are relegated to the division below. In some leagues, play-offs or qualifying rounds are also used to determine rankings. This process can continue through several levels, with teams being exchanged between levels 1 and 2, levels 2 and 3, levels 3 and 4, and so on.

A team finishing at the top of its division one season would be up (play in a higher division) the following season.

22d   Greek island associated with a savoury snack (6)

Samos^[5] is a Greek island in the Aegean, situated close to the coast of western Turkey.

In Indian cookery, a samosa^[5] is a triangular savoury pastry fried in ghee or oil, containing spiced vegetables or meat.

23d   Record-holder's a bit of a jumper (6)

In Britain, a jumper^[5] is a knitted garment typically with long sleeves, worn over the upper body (in North American terms, a sweater). What we call a jumper, the Brits would call a pinafore^[5] (a collarless sleeveless dress worn over a blouse or [British] jumper [i.e., North American sweater]). Thus if a British lass wore a pinafore over her jumper and a North American gal wore a jumper over her sweater, they would be dressed identically.

26d   Dog in wild? Yes! (5)

The entire clue is the definition (and is thus underlined). The portion with the dashed underline is the wordplay.

A dingo^[5] (Canis dingo) is a wild or half-domesticated dog with a sandy-coloured coat, found in Australia.

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