Monday, November 2, 2015 — DT 27811

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27811
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27811]
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
Notes
The National Post has skipped DT 27809 and DT 27810 which were published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, May 23, 2015 and Monday, May 25, 2015.

Introduction

The baseball season is over — but the Diversions editor at the National Post appears not to have got the memo. Last week, he (or she) dilivered a fast ball down the middle of the plate but today it is back to a curve ball — skipping a pair of puzzles.

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 (//). Definitions presented in blue text are for terms that appear frequently.

Across

7a   A ploy to alter trailer /for/ valuable cargo (7)

Like Gazza's experience, this was my last one in.

8a   Sign of a healthy elder? (7)

An elder^[5] is any of numerous species of small tree or shrub with pithy stems, white flowers, and bluish-black or red berries.

10a   Ride party arranged boarded by quiet // short-term visitor (3-7)

"quiet" = P (show explanation )

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.

hide explanation

A day-tripper^[2,3,11] (or day tripper^[5,10]) is a person who makes a trip to somewhere and returns within one day. Oxford Dictionaries considers the term day tripper^[5] to be British despite it appearing in both of my usual American dictionaries.

"Day Tripper"^[7] is a song by the Beatles, released as a double A-side single with "We Can Work It Out". Both songs were recorded during the sessions for the Rubber Soul album. The single topped the UK Singles Chart and the song peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in January 1966.

Clue Versions

Two versions of this clue appeared in the UK. The version which was published in the print edition of The Daily Telegraph carried the numeration (3,7) while the version on the Telegraph Puzzles website had the numeration (10) — the latter being a spelling found in none of the several dictionaries that I regularly consult. Quite unexpectedly, the numeration in the National Post is different yet again, being (3-7). This would seem to suggest that the numeration was (3-7) at the time that the puzzle was distributed in syndication, later changed to (3,7) during production of the newspaper, and changed yet again to (10) when posted to the website.

11a   Archbishop once /in/ skirt (4)

Desmond Tutu^[5] is a South African clergyman. As General Secretary of the South African Council of Churches (1979–84) he became a leading voice in the struggle against apartheid. He was Archbishop of Cape Town 1986–96. Nobel Peace Prize (1984).

What did he say?

In his review, Gazza refers to a retired South African archbishop (whose forename is commonly used as rhyming slang for a lower-second degree).. The British undergraduate degree classification[7] system is a grading structure for undergraduate degrees (bachelor's degrees and integrated master's degrees) in the United Kingdom. Under this system, a degree may be awarded with or without honours, with the class of an honours degree usually based on a weighted average mark of the assessed work a candidate has completed. The degree classifications are: First-class honours (1st) Second-class honours, upper division (2:1) Second-class honours, lower division (2:2) Third-class honours (3rd) Ordinary degree (pass) Thus "a lower-second degree" would be known as a 'two-two'. Rhyming slang[5] is a type of slang that replaces words with rhyming words or phrases, typically with the rhyming element omitted. For example butcher’s, short for butcher’s hook, means ‘look’ in Cockney rhyming slang ('look' rhymes with 'butcher's hook'; after dropping the rhyming element 'hook', we are left with 'butcher's').. Similarly 'two-two' rhymes with 'Desmond Tutu' and dropping the rhyming element leads to a 'two-two' being known as a 'Desmond'.

12a   Film producer/'s/ healthy cheer (8)

Albert R. Broccoli^[7] (1909–1996), nicknamed "Cubby," was an American film producer who made more than 40 motion pictures throughout his career. Most of the films were made in the United Kingdom and often filmed at Pinewood Studios. Broccoli is most notable as the producer of many of the James Bond films.

Cheer^[5] is food and drink provided for a festive occasion ⇒ they had partaken heartily of the Christmas cheer.

What did he say?

In his review, Gazza characterizes the second definition as being potentially one of your recommended ‘five a day’. 5 A Day[7] is any of various national campaigns in countries such as the USA, the United Kingdom and Germany, to encourage the consumption of at least five portions of fruit and vegetables each day, following a recommendation by the World Health Organization that individuals consume "a minimum of 400g of fruit and vegetables per day (excluding potatoes and other starchy tubers).

14a   Throw off course // queen in foreign parliament (6)

"queen" = ER (show explanation )

The regnal ciphers (monograms) of British monarchs are initials formed from the Latin version of their first name followed by either Rex or Regina (Latin for king or queen, respectively). Thus, the regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth is ER^[5] — from the Latin Elizabetha Regina.

hide explanation

The Dáil^[5] (in full Dáil Éireann) is the lower house of Parliament in the Republic of Ireland, composed of 166 members (called Teachtai Dála). It was first established in 1919, when Irish republicans proclaimed an Irish state.

15a   Financial prudence shown by good people // a consoling factor (6,5)

"good" = G (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

19a   What organised rebel leader might say /getting/ ticket (6)

20a   Old boy with single note /that's/ outdated (8)

In Britain, an old boy^[5] (abbreviation OB^[2])  is:

1. a former male student of a school or college ⇒an old boy of Banbury County School; or
2. a former male member of a sports team or company ⇒ the White Hart Lane old boy squared the ball to present an easy chance from 12 yards.

It is also a chiefly British affectionate form of address to a boy or man ⇒ ‘Look here, old boy,’ he said.

In music, te^[5] (or, in North America, ti) is:

1. the seventh note of a major scale in the tonic sol-fa system of solmization; or
2. the note B is the fixed-doh system of solmization.

22a   Reportedly money /is/ generated (4)

23a   Terrible torpor in leaderless TUC /showing/ decay (10)

Scratching the Surface
The Trades Union Congress[7] (TUC) is a national trade union centre, a federation of trade unions in England and Wales, representing the majority of trade unions.

25a   Real // dope, one taken in by French article (7)

Gen^[5] is an informal British term for information ⇒ you’ve got more gen on him than we have.

"French article" = UNE (show explanation )

In French, the feminine singular form of the indefinite article is une^[8].

hide explanation

26a   In secure drill, Greek character /shows/ source of notes (7)

PE^[5] is the abbreviation for physical education (or Phys Ed, as it was known in my school days). 

Pi^[5] is the sixteenth letter of the Greek alphabet (Π, π).

I hadn't realized that the musical instrument could be spelled bagpipe as well as bagpipes.

How Do You Spell That?

My dictionaries provide the following spellings for the instrument: The Chambers Dictionary: bagpipes (also bagpipe)[1] Chambers 21st Century Dictionary: bagpipes[2] (as modifier bagpipe[4,10]) Collins English Dictionary: bagpipes[4,10] Oxford Dictionaries: bagpipe[5] (also bagpipes) American Heritage Dictionary: bagpipe[3] (often bagpipes) Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary: bagpipe[11] (often bagpipes)

I had opted for PANPIPE and justified it based on pan^[1] meaning to obtain [a meaning one likely would not find if not in possession of a copy of The Chambers Dictionary]. However, panpipe would appear to be a North American spelling judging by the dictionary entries.

How Do You Spell That?

Similar to bagpipes, there seem to be a variety of possible spellings for the instrument associated with the Greek god of flocks and herds: The Chambers Dictionary: Pan-pipes or Pan's pipes[1] Chambers 21st Century Dictionary: panpipes[2], Pan pipes, or Pan's pipes Collins English Dictionary: panpipes[4,10] (also Pan pipes[10]) Oxford Dictionaries: pan pipes[5] (as modifier pan pipe) American Heritage Dictionary: panpipe[3] (often panpipes) Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary: panpipe[11] (often panpipes)

Down

1d   Gruesome // Scot taken with a lot of drink (7)

In Crosswordland, Mac is a common name for a Scotsman — surpassed in popularity only by Ian.

2d   Small group /getting/ place on programme (4)

3d   A pride, maybe, harboured by firm /in/ risk-taking venue (6)

In theology, the seven deadly sins^[10] are the sins of pride, covetousness, lust, envy, gluttony, anger, and sloth.

4d   A hundred men on both sides of free // territorial strip (8)

"men" = OR (show explanation )

In the British armed forces, the term other ranks^[5] (abbreviation OR^[5]) refers to all those who are not commissioned officers.

hide explanation

5d   Lost chair I restored // belonging to the past (10)

6d   Self-indulgent bout, // say, with trio playing piano (3-4)

"piano" = P (show explanation )

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.

hide explanation

Clue Versions
Two versions of this clue appeared in the UK. The version which was published in the print edition of The Daily Telegraph carried the numeration (3-4) while the version on the Telegraph Puzzles website had the numeration (3,4). As one would expected, the numeration in the National Post matches that found in the print edition of The Daily Telegraph .

How Do You Spell That?

My dictionaries provide the following spellings for the solution with only The Chambers Dictionary spelling the word with a hyphen: The Chambers Dictionary: noun ego-trip[1] Chambers 21st Century Dictionary: noun ego trip[2] Collins English Dictionary: noun ego trip; verb ego-trip[4,10] Oxford Dictionaries: noun ego trip[5] American Heritage Dictionary: noun ego trip[3] Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary: noun ego trip; verb ego-trip[11]

9d   Executives in early stage of year /in/ launch site? (11)

The term "spring board" suggests that this company elects directors quarterly.

13d   Of no more use // like actors in an encore? (7-3)

Clapped-out^[5] is an informal British term meaning worn out from age or heavy use and unable to work or operate ⇒ a clapped-out old van.

16d   Lodge reviewed note about head of catering // having clean hands (8)

As an anagram indicator, I would guess that review^[5] is used either in the sense of to read through or go over in order to correct or to look at again (presumably, from a different perspective — thereby observing something new or arriving at a different result).

17d   Fruit mostly satisfied // connoisseur (7)

18d   Bad-tempered, // indisciplined sport discontented plenty (7)

Stroppy^[5] is an informal British term meaning bad-tempered and argumentative ⇒ Patricia was getting stroppy.

21d   During burlesque, a keen /one takes/ peep (6)

The split link phrase "during ... one takes" indicates that one can take a synonym for "peep" out of "burleSQUE A Keen".

24d   Record // end of track event? (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