Wednesday, April 12, 2017 — DT 28350

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28350
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, February 14, 2017
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28350]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Mr Kitty & Kitty
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 puzzle is a gentle — but nevertheless enjoyable — workout from a mystery setter.

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   People taking the plunge may have these when entering flat (5,5)

Scratching the Surface
In the surface reading, flat[5] is the British term for what would be called an apartment[5] in North America.

6a   Cricketer/'s/ undergarment (4)

In cricket, a slip^[5] is:

• a fielding position (often one of two or more in an arc) close behind the batsman on the off side^*, for catching balls edged^** by the batsman ⇒ (i) he was caught in the slips for 32; (ii) King is at first slip;
• a fielder at slip.

---

^* The off^[5]  (also called off side) is the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) towards which the batsman's feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball.  The other half of the field is known as either the leg^[5] (also called leg side) or on^[5] (also called on side) ⇒ he played a lucky stroke to leg.

 ^** Edge^[5] means to strike (the ball) with the edge of the bat [remember, a cricket bat is flat — unlike a baseball bat] ⇒ he edged a ball into his pad or to strike a ball delivered by (the bowler) with the edge of the bat ⇒  Haynes edged to slip.

What are they babbling on about?

Beginning with Comment #4 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, you will find a discussion relating to cricket — in particular, dealing with the names of some of the fielding positions. Square leg[5] is: a fielding position level with the batsman approximately halfway towards the boundary on the leg side;  a fielder at square leg. In cricket, the adjective silly[5] in the name of a fielding position denotes that the position is very close to the batsman [so-called because of the perceived danger of playing in such a position].The "silly" positions are silly point, silly mid off, and silly mid on. The illustration shows a short leg [a position that somehow has avoided being labelled "silly"] and a silly point (the player with the more erect stance on the far side of the pitch) standing close to the batsman on either side of the pitch. They are both wearing protective equipment (helmets and leg pads). The wicket keeper is 'standing up' to the stumps, and the square leg umpire is also visible in the foreground. The other two "silly" players (positioned out of the picture to the left) are seemingly a bit less silly. The silly mid off is positioned further away from the batsman on the same side of the pitch as the silly point while the silly mid on is positioned at a similar distance from the batsman on the same side of the pitch as the short leg.

9a   Tree // novelist knocked over (5)

Albert Camus^[5] (1913–1960) was a French novelist, playwright, and essayist, closely aligned with existentialism whose notable works include The Outsider (novel, 1942), The Plague (novel, 1947), and The Rebel (essay, 1951). He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957.

10a   A classical good-looker -- too much so, on reflection? (9)

In Greek mythology, Narcissus^[5] is a beautiful youth who rejected the nymph Echo and fell in love with his own reflection in a pool. He pined away and was changed into the flower that bears his name.

12a   Unusual // reason to eat off the floor? (7)

13a   Exotic Tokyo, // Japanese city (5)

Kyoto^[5] is an industrial city in central Japan, on the island of Honshu; population 1,389,595 (2007). Founded in the 8th century, it was the imperial capital from 794 until 1868.

15a   King who enters immediately /to display/ gift (4-3)

"king" = K (show explanation )

K^[5] is an abbreviation for king that is used especially in describing play in card games and recording moves in chess.

hide explanation

17a   Flipping article keeping nothing // private (7)

Scratching the Surface
In the surface reading, flipping[5] is an informal British term used for emphasis or to express mild annoyance ⇒ (i) are you out of your flipping mind?; (ii) it’s flipping cold today.

19a   Shake // beech, perhaps my ball oddly is stuck inside it (7)

21a   Discount // from the man getting in pecan nuts (7)

22a   One's caught in crowd /in/ lift (5)

Scratching the Surface
In the surface reading, lift[5] is the British term for elevator[5].

24a   Shy, retiring and quiet -- that is // difficult! (7)

Shy^[5] is a dated term meaning:

• (noun) an act of flinging or throwing something at a target.
• (verb) to fling or throw (something) at a target ⇒ he tore the spectacles off and shied them at her.

Bolshie^[5] (also bolshy) is an informal British term denoting (of a person or attitude) deliberately combative or uncooperative ⇒ I was a bolshie teenager, full of argument.

27a   Bring down // finished project (9)

28a   It could be in the score: // six-nil against the French (5)

"the French" = LA (show explanation )

In French, the feminine singular form of the definite article is la^[8].

hide explanation

29a   High-flier/'s/ clobber put down by European (4)

Clobber^[5] is an informal British term for clothing, personal belongings, or equipment ⇒ I found all his clobber in the locker.

Kit^[10] means clothing and other personal effects, especially those of a traveller or soldier ⇒ (i) safari kit; (ii) battle kit.

A kite^[10] is any of several species of diurnal bird of prey of the family Accipitridae (hawk family) typically having a long forked tail and long broad wings and usually preying on small mammals and insects.

30a   Rhino using ground /for/ feeding (10)

As an anagram indicator, ground is the past tense or past participle of the verb grind^[5]. An anagram indicator is a word that denotes movement or transformation. Grind denotes transformation, for example, in the sense of wheat being ground into flour.

Down

1d   Crash // party (4)

2d   Wasted Moselle on // fish (5,4)

Lemon sole^[5] is not a recipe for preparing fish but rather a common European flatfish of the plaice family. It is an important food fish.

Scratching the Surface
In the surface reading, Moselle[5] (also Mosel) is a light medium-dry white wine produced in the valley of the River Moselle*. * The Mosel[5] (also Moselle) is a river of western Europe, which rises in the Vosges mountains of northeastern France and flows 550 km (346 miles) north-east through Luxembourg and Germany to meet the Rhine at Koblenz.

3d   Rising river requires check in // vessel (5)

"check" = CH (show explanation )

In chess, ch.^[10] is the abbreviation for check.

hide explanation

The Tay^[5] is the longest river in Scotland, flowing 192 km (120 miles) eastwards through Loch Tay, entering the North Sea through the Firth of Tay.

4d   Weapon // to burn front of ship (7)

The longbow^[5] is a large bow drawn by hand and shooting a long feathered arrow. It was the chief weapon of English armies from the 14th century until the introduction of firearms.

5d   Hospital department supports alcohol // warning (7)

"hospital department" = ENT (show explanation )

Should you not have noticed, the ear, nose and throat (ENT^[2]) department is the most visited section, by far, in the Crosswordland Hospital.

hide explanation

Port^[5] (also port wine) is a strong, sweet dark red (occasionally brown or white) fortified wine, originally from Portugal, typically drunk as a dessert wine. The name is a shortened form of Oporto, a major port from which the wine is shipped.

7d   Large animal -- old // cowboy probably has one (5)

8d   Patronising at sea to ignore a // seal (6,4)

A piston ring^[5] is a ring on a piston sealing the gap between the piston and the cylinder wall.

11d   Douglas maybe missing start -- a little // annoying (7)

Kirk Douglas^[7] (born Issur Danielovitch) is an American actor, producer, director, and author. He is one of the last living people of the film industry's Golden Age. He has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Actor — Champion (1949), Bad and the Beautiful (1952), and Lust for Life (1956).

14d   What drawer opens to put arty stuff in? (10)

16d   Garment put on at // home (7)

18d   Softly open ripe bananas /for/ something to eat (9)

"softly" = 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

20d   Almost board ship, then turn /and/ stop (7)

21d   Elderly wife in vehicle, /creating/ tense political situation (4,3)

A cold war^[5] is a state of political hostility between countries characterized by threats, propaganda, and other measures short of open warfare. The Cold War was the state of hostility that existed between the Soviet bloc countries and the Western powers from 1945 to 1990.

23d   Still // fashionable: the Queen, top for tailoring (5)

"the 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

25d   In Bangladesh I've seen // places buzzing with activity (5)

Scratching the Surface
Bangladesh[5] is a country of South Asia, in the Ganges delta; population 161,000,000 (estimated 2015); official language, Bengali; capital, Dhaka.

26d   Sounded // good, having managed to come first (4)

"good" = G (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

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)
^[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
^[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon