Friday, November 3, 2017 — DT 28497

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28497
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, August 4, 2017
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28497]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Deep Threat
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

In Comment #1 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops describes this puzzle as "nice ... with a sting in the tail". That was certainly true for me. Although Deep Threat rates this puzzle as a mere 1.5 stars for difficulty, I found myself deeply mired in the southeast corner with three interlocking clues putting up fierce resistance. After an extended period staring blankly at the incompletely filled grid, I finally resorted to seeking help from my electronic assistants. Granted I only needed the most gentle of nudges to point me in the right direction.

The video in Deep Threat's introduction shows children singing Happy Birthday in Welsh — in honour of Jane, a regular contributor to the Comments section on Big Dave's blog who lives on Anglesey, an island off the northwest coast of Wales.

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 semi-all-in-one (semi-&lit.) clues. All-in-one (&lit.) clues and cryptic definitions are marked with a dotted underline. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//).

Across

1a   Sign of injury? // Dab lotions freely (10)

6a   Sword // keeper has knocked over (4)

An épée^[5] is a sharp-pointed duelling sword, used, with the end blunted, in fencing.

9a   Naughty lady, // only half educated, in state of anxiety (10)

10a   Small thin person // is quietly hiding behind wife (4)

"quietly" = 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

12a   Garment // beginning to smell, not completely dry (4)

A sari^[5] (also saree) is a garment consisting of a length of cotton or silk elaborately draped around the body, traditionally worn by women from South Asia.

13a   English bird returning, back briefly /in/ the city (9)

Worcester^[5] is a cathedral city in western England, on the River Severn, the administrative centre of Worcestershire. It was the scene in 1651, during the English Civil War, of a battle in which Oliver Cromwell defeated a Scottish army under Charles II. It has been a centre of porcelain manufacture since 1751. Worcester sauce^[5] (also Worcestershire sauce) is a pungent sauce containing soy sauce and vinegar, first made in Worcester.

15a   Not the only one that letter deals with? (8)

16a   Member in river? // I'm concerned! (4,2)

The Dee^[5,7] could be any of several rivers in Scotland, England, Ireland, and Australia among which the most notable are:

• a river in northeastern Scotland, which rises in the Grampian Mountains and flows eastwards past Balmoral Castle to the North Sea at Aberdeen;
• a river that rises in North Wales and flows past Chester and on into the Irish Sea.

18a   Agent gets nothing right /in/ official document (6)

20a   Like a man kept in order (8)

There had to be more to this than a simple cryptic definition. Apparently not.

23a   Celeb's art may be seen /in/ these ornamental pieces (9)

24a   Animal // that is getting cross -- head of beast must be held (4)

The ibex^[5] is a wild mountain goat with long, thick ridged horns and a beard, found in parts of central Asia and in Ethiopia. Incredibly, after providing that definition, Oxford Dictionaries proceeds to give an example of a species (Capra pyrenaica) found in the Pyrenees!

26a   Particular Bible translation I had, /being/ keen (4)

Authorized Version^[5] (abbreviation AV)^[5] is a chiefly British term for an English translation of the Bible made in 1611 at the order of James I and still widely used, though never formally ‘authorized’. It is also called the King James Bible — a name by which it is undoubtedly far better known in North America.

27a   Bring together // a number in the mathematics class? (2-8)

As a math major, I am ashamed to admit that I failed to get this one unaided.

28a   Responsibility /for/ tax (4)

29a   One not totally alert, // boss about to retire? (10)

Down

1d   Former President to show embarrassment, getting left out (4)

Deep Threat illustrates his review with a photo of Bush the Younger. A choice more fitting to the surface of this clue might be his randy old man who has recently been accused by several women of "copping a feel".

Actress Heather Lind said Bush had touched her form behind
while sitting in his wheelchair, with his wife next to him

George Bush^[5] is an American Republican statesman, 41st President of the US 1989–93; full name George Herbert Walker Bush.

George W. Bush^[5] is an American Republican statesman, 43rd President of the US 2001–09; full name George Walker Bush. He is the son of George Bush.

2d   What may have lost its flavour /for/ sailor? (3,4)

Salt^[3] is an informal term for a sailor, especially when old or experienced.

Does salt ever lose its flavour?

3d   A direction is given about // books crossword setters may use (12)

4d   Most of the water sport /is/ confusing (8)

5d   Institute entertains Her Majesty /in/ an enclosure (6)

"Her Majesty" = 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

7d   Artist, // one getting tied up? (7)

A painter^[5] is a rope attached to the bow of a boat for tying it to a quay.

8d   Niece working under specialist briefly // accumulated skill (10)

11d   Presumed quality of archdeacon, // never going wrong, having competence (12)

In the Anglican Church, Venerable^[5] (abbreviation Ven.^[5]) is a title given to an archdeacon ⇒ the Ven. William Davies.

14d   Twenty directors // that may be seen at Lord's (10)

Lord's Cricket Ground^[7], generally known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is widely referred to as the "home of cricket" and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum.

17d   Understand // what can fool people, right? (8)

19d   Man is put into part -- // player on stage? (7)

Behind the Video
Deep Threat illustrates his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog with a video clip of a performance by Les Dawson[7] (1931–1993), an English comedian, actor, writer, and presenter [host of a radio or television programme], who is best remembered for his deadpan style, curmudgeonly persona and jokes about his mother-in-law and wife.

21d   Adolescent // could be free agent, putting father off (7)

Fr^[5] is the abbreviation for Father (as a courtesy title of priests) ⇒ Fr Buckley.

22d   Draw back, /as/ soldiers getting cold, needing fuel (6)

"soldiers" = 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

25d   Defeated? No feat /or/ achievement (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)
^[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
^[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon