Wednesday, November 30, 2016 — DT 28201

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28201
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, August 24, 2016
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28201]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By KiwiColin
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

Today's offering from Jay is both gentle and entertaining. The review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog is written by one half of the usual New Zealand blogging duo.

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   Good cast will accept a // cut (6)

"good" = G (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

Cast^[3] (verb) is used in the sense of to shed or molt ⇒ the snake cast its skin.

5a   Raised // the sack, putting insect in (8)

9a   Will they keep the viewers in touch? (7,6)

10a   Authoritative book about poor dad /being/ compliant (8)

Here biddable^[5] (adjective) is not a bridge term but a word denoting meekly ready to accept and follow instructions ⇒ a biddable, sweet-natured child.

11a   Relocating North Yemen's capital /is/ causing problems (6)

Scratching the Surface

North Yemen[7] is a geographic term, used to designate the Yemen Arab Republic (1962–1990), its predecessor, the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (1918–1962), and their predecessors that exercised sovereignty over the territory that is now the north-western part of the state of Yemen in southern Arabia. Neither state ever designated itself as "North Yemen" and the term only came into general use when the Federation of South Arabia gained independence as the People's Republic of South Yemen in 1967 making such a distinction necessary. Prior to 1967, the North was known in short form simply as "Yemen." In 1970, South Yemen changed its name to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen thus eliminating any directional reference in either of the Yemens' official names but the existence of two Yemens preserved the North Yemen and South Yemen designations in popular parlance. Alternate forms were "Yemen (Sanaa)" for North Yemen and "Yemen (Aden)" for South Yemen after their respective capital cities. The merger of the two Yemens in 1990 ended the term's association with an independent state but "North Yemen" continues to be used to refer to the area of the former Yemen Arab Republic and its history and, anachronistically, to pre-1967 polities and events (e.g. the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen or the North Yemen Civil War).

12a   Obstruction mainly by European nations originally // acting as one unit (2,4)

14a   Business /needing/ to be more flexible about source of income (8)

16a   Trials coming after prisoner // disputes (8)

19a   Continue // to hold volunteers in check (6)

"volunteers" = TA (show explanation )

In the UK, Territorial Army^[5] (abbreviation TA^[5]) was, at one time, the name of a volunteer force founded in 1908 to provide a reserve of trained and disciplined military personnel for use in an emergency. Since 2013, this organization has been called the Army Reserve.

hide explanation

Continue is used in the sense of retain or not relinquish ⇒ Despite protests by feminists, the Roman Catholic Church is determined to continue its traditional practice of an exclusively male priesthood.

21a   Liaison /of/ blonde chasing footballers from the East (6)

The Football Association^[7], also known simply as the FA, is the governing body of football [soccer] in England. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the amateur and professional game in England.

23a   Church work must be duplicated // quickly (4,4)

"work" = OP (show explanation )

In music, an opus^[5] (plural opuses or opera) is a separate composition or set of compositions.

The abbreviation Op.^[5] (also op.), denoting opus, is used before a number given to each work of a particular composer, usually indicating the order of publication. The plural form of Op. is Opp..

Opus^[5] can also be used in a more general sense to mean an artistic work, especially one on a large scale ⇒ he was writing an opus on Mexico.

hide explanation

Chop-chop^[5] is a term coming from pidgin English meaning quickly or quick ⇒ 'Two pints, chop-chop,' Jimmy called.

25a   Turn game around and show backs /to be/ contentious (13)

Evita^[7] is a musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice. It concentrates on the life of Argentine political leader Eva Perón [known familiarly as Evita], the second wife of Argentine president Juan Perón. The story follows Evita's early life, rise to power, charity work, and eventual death.

26a   Teaches // Tom to wear polished suede (8)

27a   Men without millions are inclined // to sign up (6)

Down

2d   Lawsuit covering university // sale (7)

3d   United shown in high definition, /becoming/ polished (5)

4d   Disadvantages /of/ support during ties (9)

5d   Spreads // complete in case of banks (7)

6d   Done time? /That's/ clear (5)

7d   Brewing ale cost us /for/ this stew (9)

A cassoulet^[5] is a French stew made with meat (typically pork, goose, and duck) and beans.

8d   The quality /of/ Messi at heart -- hence lacking height (7)

Scratching the Surface
Lionel Messi[7] is an Argentine footballer [soccer player] who plays as a forward for Spanish club FC Barcelona and captains the Argentina national team. He is often considered the best player in the world today and rated by many in the sport as the greatest of all time

13d   Feeling lazy -- /it's/ the garlic being cooked (9)

15d   Punch // admitted by goalkeeper for a team (9)

17d   Rude // worker from France getting priority (7)

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) code for France is F^[5].

Here, rather than impromptu, offhand^[10] means without care, thought, or consideration; sometimes, brusque or ungracious ⇒ an offhand manner.

18d   Endorses // merchandise that's less than perfect (7)

20d   Promises phosphorus-free new // chemical compounds (7)

The symbol for the chemical element phosphorus is P^[5].

In chemistry, an isomer^[5] is each of two or more compounds with the same formula but a different arrangement of atoms in the molecule and different properties.

22d   Scope of authority /after/ turning clock back (5)

Remit^[5] (noun) is a British term denoting the task or area of activity officially assigned to an individual or organization ⇒ the committee was becoming caught up in issues that did not fall within its remit.

24d   Cool // youngster docked and left (5)

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