Friday, October 17, 2014 — DT 27498

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27498
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Saturday, May 24, 2014
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27498 – Hints] Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27498 – Review]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Big Dave (Hints) gnomethang (Review)
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
Notes
As this was a Saturday "Prize Puzzle" in Britain, there are two entries related to it on Big Dave's Crossword Blog — the first, posted on the date of publication, contains hints for selected clues while the second is a full review issued following the entry deadline for the contest. The vast majority of reader comments will generally be found attached to the "hints" posting with a minimal number — if any — accompanying the full review.

Introduction

It was not an overly taxing workout today — although it did take me a rather long time to see the solution to 4a which was my last one in.

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. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//).

Across

1a   Trophy's displayed over Los Angeles // Dome (6)

In cricket, an over^[5] (abbreviation O^[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.

4a   Appropriate // type of modern art (8)

Abstract^[5] (usually abstract something from) can be a verb meaning to extract or remove (something) ⇒ applications to abstract more water from streams. In this clue, the term seems to be used euphemistically to indicate that someone has stolen something ⇒ his pockets contained all he had been able to abstract from the flat.

10a   French artist /delivers/ shock before time (5)

Édouard Manet^[5] (1832–1883) was a French painter. He adopted a realist approach which greatly influenced the impressionists, using pure colour to give a direct unsentimental effect. Notable works: Déjeuner sur l’herbe (1863), Olympia (1865), and A Bar at the Folies-Bergère (1882).

11a   Peacekeeping organisation p-put forward // without resistance (9)

UNO^[5] is the abbreviation for United Nations Organization.

12a   Shocked // in the style of jolly editor (7)

In cooking, à la^[5] denotes (with respect to a dish) cooked or prepared in a specified way ⇒ fish cooked à la meunière. The term is also used informally to mean in the style or manner of ⇒ afternoon talk shows à la Oprah.

Jolly^[10] is British slang for a member of the Royal Marines (RM)^[5] , a British armed service (part of the Royal Navy) founded in 1664, trained for service at sea, or on land under specific circumstances.

13a   Exit stamp // describing desperate effort (2-2-3)

14a   Go off with intellectual faculty, // organised in groups (14)

I think that gnomethang's comment glosses over the full explanation of this clue. Faculty^[5] is used in the sense of an inherent mental or physical power ⇒ (i) her critical faculties; (ii) the faculty of sight. Thus the phrase "with intellectual faculty" translates to 'mentally'.

17a   Dan waited there pathetically // doomed not to make progress (4,2,3,5)

21a   Thin material // in newspaper article is unknown (7)

In mathematics (algebra, in particular), an unknown^[10] is a variable, or the quantity it represents, the value of which is to be discovered by solving an equation ⇒ 3y = 4x + 5 is an equation in two unknowns. [Unknowns are typically represented symbolically by the letters x, y and z.]

23a   Moves like a kangaroo // born on Oz (7)

Purists would argue that the construction used in the wordplay does not work in an across clue. According to them, in order for B to be placed on A, A must already have been written. Thus "B on A" would signify the sequence AB (not BA, as it must be in this clue). If it were a down clue, then "B on A" could denote 'B on top of A", leading to the sequence BA. However, in practice, one often sees "B on A" being used in across clues to signify either the sequence BA or the sequence AB.

24a   Active old reprobate/'s / indulgent lifestyle on the continent (5,4)

As an anagram indicator, reprobate^[10] is presumably used as an adjective meaning corrupt [see synonyms].

Dolce vita^[5] (usually la dolce vita) means a life of heedless pleasure and luxury ⇒ he was young, beautiful, and living la dolce vita. From Italian, literally 'sweet life'.

25a   Bishop after protest // to get out of army (5)

B^[5] is an abbreviation for bishop that is used in recording moves in chess.

Demo^[5] is a chiefly British term for a public meeting or march protesting against something or expressing views on a political issue ⇒ a peace demo.

Demob^[3] is a chiefly British term meaning to demobilize (armed forces).

26a   Put forward, // could make a mention (8)

27a   One who loves /making/ fuss about king (6)

Rex^[5] (abbreviation R^[5]) [Latin for king] denotes the reigning king, used following a name (e.g. Georgius Rex, King George) or in the titles of lawsuits (e.g. Rex v. Jones, the Crown versus Jones — often shortened to R. v. Jones).

Down

1d   Special troop // with positive attitude collecting old Military Medal (8)

As can-do^[5] is an adjective, it would have to be clued by the phrase "with positive attitude".

In the UK and Commonwealth countries, the Military Medal^[5] (abbreviation MM) is a decoration for distinguished active service on land, instituted in 1916 (originally for enlisted soldiers).

2d   Under tree, place monkey's swallowed // fruit (9)

Pl.^[5] (also pl.) is the abbreviation for Place (in street addresses) ⇒ 3 Palmerston Pl., Edinburgh.

3d   Religious martyr, // rigged trial snared me (7)

Hugh Latimer^[5] (circa 1485–1555) was an English Protestant prelate and martyr. One of Henry VIII’s chief advisers when the king broke with the papacy, under Mary I he was condemned for heresy and burnt at the stake at Oxford with Nicholas Ridley.

5d   Hippy perhaps // sporting a denim bathrobe (5,2,3,4)

6d   Bit of a blow -- ten around /for/ dessert (7)

7d   Middle Eastern president // like Saddam -- not half (5)

The Assads^[7] are an Alawite family which has held political power in Syria since 1970. The family has produced two presidents:

• Hafez al-Assad, President of Syria 1970–2000
• Bashar al-Assad, current President of Syria

Saddam Hussein^[5] (1937–2006) was Iraqi President, Prime Minister, and head of the armed forces 1979–2003; full name Saddam bin Hussein at-Takriti. During his presidency, Iraq fought a war with Iran (1980-8) and invaded Kuwait (1990), from which Iraqi forces were expelled in the Gulf War of 1991. He also ordered punitive attacks on Kurdish rebels in the north of Iraq and on the Marsh Arabs in the south. He was overthrown in 2003 following the invasion and occupation of Iraq by US-led forces. He was later tried for crimes against humanity and executed.

8d   Spruces up // items of clothing worn by princess, affectionately remembered (6)

Diana, Princess of Wales^[5] (1961–1997) was the former wife of Prince Charles; title before marriage Lady Diana Frances Spencer. The daughter of the 8th Earl Spencer, she married Prince Charles in 1981; the couple were divorced in 1996. She became a popular figure through her charity work and glamorous media appearances, and her death in a car crash in Paris gave rise to intense national mourning.

9d   Holder of extreme views // to provide money for disruption of animal test (14)

15d   Detective officer initially entering the sea at Nice /is/ poor timekeeper (9)

Tec^[5] is a dated informal term for a detective. Given its absence from American dictionaries, it may be a chiefly British term.

The O is not an abbreviation for "officer" but rather is clued by "officer initially".

La mer^[8] is French for the sea. 

Nice^[5] is a resort city on the French Riviera, near the border with Italy; population 348,721 (2007).

16d   Part of goal /is/ to thwart lawyers (8)

18d   Dropping long stretch of time /in/ underground cell (7)

19d   Rolled up with Miliband, // damaged (7)

Ed Miliband^[7] is a British Labour Party politician who is currently the Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition.

20d   Like poor actor /in/ court study (6)

22d   Supernatural being -- // endless precious metal produced by 'em (5)

In Jewish legend, golem^[5] is a clay figure brought to life by magic.

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