Wednesday, June 1, 2016 — DT 28022

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28022
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, January 28, 2016
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28022]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Shropshirelad
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

After yesterday's relatively stiff workout, we get somewhat of a respite today giving the grey matter a bit of a chance to recover. However, from a scan of the comments on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, I see that not everyone found this one easy.

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

1a   One that's organised stamp store? (10)

In this semi-&lit.^[7]* (or, as some prefer to call it, semi-all-in-one) clue, the entire clue acts as the definition while only the portion with the dashed underline provides the wordplay.

^* In a true &lit.^[7] clue (sometimes called an all-in-one clue) the entire clue (when read one way) is the definition, but under a different interpretation takes on the role of wordplay.

6a   Check // flower feature (4)

9a   Period at work /in/ loose dress (5)

10a   Model // sportsman with run seconds away (9)

In Britain, a blue^[5]* is a person who has represented Cambridge University (a Cambridge blue) or Oxford University (an Oxford blue) at a particular sport in a match between the two universities ⇒ a flyweight boxing blue.

^* This usage almost certainly arises from the colours associated with these universities — and hence the colour of the uniforms worn by their athletes. Cambridge blue^[5] is a pale blue colour, while Oxford blue^[5] is a dark blue, typically with a purple tinge.

12a   Chef among retinue of rogue /making/ Chinese speciality (7,6)

Since cookies are known as biscuits in the UK, I wonder if Chinese restaurants there might serve fortune biscuits.

Fortune cookie^[5] is a North American term for a small biscuit containing a slip of paper with a prediction or motto written on it, served in Chinese restaurants.

14a   Huge // damage found in a product of mine (8)

15a   Cancel // engineers, leading to ding-dong (6)

"engineers" = RE (show explanation )

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.

hide explanation

17a   Posh artist taken with return of star /and/ planet (6)

"posh" = U (show explanation )

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, the letter U 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). 

hide explanation

"artists" = RA (show explanation )

A Royal Academician (abbreviation RA^[5]) is a member of the Royal Academy of Arts^[5] (also Royal Academy; abbreviation also RA^[5]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain. 

hide explanation

19a   Collapse /of/ the Spanish occupying mount, dejected (8)

"the Spanish" = EL (show explanation )

In Spanish, the masculine singular form of the definite article is el^[8].

hide explanation

21a   Facing misfortune together // like eight during competition? (2,3,4,4)

I'm on the fence as to whether to call this a double definition — thus the dotted underline marking the questionable part of the clue.

An eight^[5] is an eight-oared rowing boat or its crew.

24a   Bishop among pair in Rome by altar, say, /and/ cross (9)

"bishop" = RR (show explanation )

Right Reverend^[5] (abbreviation RR^[2]) is a title given to a bishop, especially in the Anglican Church ⇒ the Right Reverend David Jenkins, Bishop of Durham.

hide explanation

In ancient times, a "pair in Rome" would have been expressed in Roman numerals.

25a   Air awkward leading question /for/ Baghdad citizen? (5)

On a test sheet, the leading question is Q1, followed by Q2, Q3, etc.

Baghdad^[5] is the capital of Iraq, on the River Tigris; population 6,194,800 (est. 2009). A thriving city under the Abbasid caliphs in the 8th and 9th centuries, it was taken by the Ottoman sultan Suleiman in 1534 and remained under Ottoman rule until the First World War. In 1920 it became the capital of the newly created state of Iraq.

26a   Characters in revamped 'Dynasty' // go round in circles (4)

In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Shropshirelad describes this clue as "Our first lurker of the day" — "lurker" being a term commonly used on Big Dave's site for a hidden word clue.

Scratching the Surface

Dynasty[5] is an American prime time television soap opera that aired on ABC from 1981 to 1989. The series revolved around the Carringtons, a wealthy family residing in Denver, Colorado. The series which was ABC's competitor to CBS's prime time series Dallas starred John Forsythe as oil magnate Blake Carrington, Linda Evans as his new wife Krystle and later Joan Collins as his former wife Alexis. Ratings for the show's first season were unimpressive, but a revamp* for the second season that included the arrival of Collins as scheming Alexis saw ratings enter the top 20. By the fall of 1982, it was a top 10 show, and by the spring of 1985, it was the #1 show in the United States. * Do you not find it rather appropriate that the addition of Alexis Carrington should be described as "revamping" the show?

27a   City's teams with training // done methodically (10)

Down

1d   Press // being offensive (4)

2d   Capable // runner, fellow in period of calm almost (7)

"fellow" = F (show explanation )

F^[2] is the abbreviation for Fellow (of a society, etc). For instance, it is found in professional designations such as FRAIC (Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada).

hide explanation

3d   Dean terms tutu out of order /for/ particular kind of learner (6,7)

4d   Underwater mariner, perhaps, // not fully evolved (8)

An "underwater mariner" (a person who spends their time on submarines) might (perhaps) be whimsically described as a SUB HUMAN (submarine person).

5d   Avoid // overture, eschewing publicity (5)

7d   Catch when touring river // a few drops (7)

Tickle^[5] means to catch (a trout) by lightly rubbing it so that it moves backwards into the hand ⇒ the skill of a poacher tickling a trout. Collins English Dictionary defines tickle^[10] as to catch (a fish, especially a trout) by grasping it with the hands and gently moving the fingers into its gills.

However, in his review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Shropshirelad provides a different explanation.

8d   Anthem lord composed /in/ place of origin (10)

11d    Cite no imports for review -- as evidence of this? (13)

I would day that this is another example of a semi-&lit. clue. The entire clue acts as the definition and the portion with the dashed underline is the wordplay.

13d   Examine // container carried aboard Sweden pleasure trip (10)

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) code for Sweden is S^[5].

16d   Forceful // old soldier defending macho types (8)

Based on entries in British dictionaries, Brits consider vet^[2,5,10] to be an informal North American term for a veteran. On their side of the pond, vet^[2,5,10] is a chiefly British term for a veterinary surgeon.

18d   Turned out // I should get into a dry wine (7)

"dry" = TT (show explanation )

Teetotal^[5] (abbreviation TT^[5]) means choosing or characterized by abstinence from alcohol ⇒ a teetotal lifestyle.

A teetotaller^[5] (US teetotaler; abbreviation TT^[5]) is a person who never drinks alcohol.

The term teetotal is an emphatic extension of total, apparently first used by Richard Turner, a worker from Preston [England], in a speech (1833) urging total abstinence from all alcohol, rather than mere abstinence from spirits, as advocated by some early temperance reformers.

hide explanation

20d   Like a newspaper's evening edition // weather? (7)

Contrary to Shropshirelad's characterization of this clue, I don't believe it can be a double definition as the numeration for the first part of the clue has to be (3,4) and not (7) as given. Therefore, I would say that the first part of the clue is wordplay rather than a second definition.

Weather^[5] is used as a verb in the sense of:

1. (of a ship) come safely through (a storm) ⇒ the sturdy boat had weathered the storm well; or
2. withstand (a difficulty or danger) ⇒ this year has tested industry’s ability to weather recession.

22d   French priest overlooking yard /in/ devotional site (5)

Abbé^[5] is the French term for an abbot or other cleric.

23d   Element // of jazz in club (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