Monday, November 27, 2017 — DT 28513 (Published Saturday, November 25, 2017)

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28513
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wedmesday, August 23, 2017
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28513]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By 2Kiwis
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
This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the Saturday, November 25, 2017 edition of the National Post.

Introduction

Sometimes the most obvious of clues defies decryption. Such was the case with today's puzzle. I developed a complete and utter mental block concerning 2d.

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   Can I go out to play, with son /being/ 12? (10)

The numeral "12" is a cross reference indicator directing the solver to insert the solution to clue 12a in its place to complete the clue. The directional indicator is customarily omitted in situations such as this where only a single clue starts in the light^* that is being referenced.

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^* light-coloured cell in the grid

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Here, catching^[5] is used as an adjective meaning (of a disease) infectious ⇒ chicken pox is catching until scabs form on all the blisters.

6a   Make a deep impression /in/ Bletchley (4)

Scratching the Surface

Bletchley Park[7], in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, was the central site of the United Kingdom's Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS), which during the Second World War regularly penetrated the secret communications of the Axis Powers – most importantly the German Enigma and Lorenz ciphers. The most prominent of the code-breakers who worked there was Alan Turing whom we encountered in a puzzle this Friday past.

10a   Pull Italian - // namely ... (2,3)

"Italian" = IT, in reference to the country or the vermouth (show explanation )

This cluing might be explained in a couple of ways:

• It.^[10] is an abbreviation for Italian or Italy.


• Italian^[10] is another name for Italian vermouth. It^[5] is an informal, dated British term for Italian vermouth ⇒ he poured a gin and it.

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To wit^[3] is an idiom meaning that is to say or namely.

Delving Into the Past
The expression to wit is perhaps the last remaining vestige in common use of the archaic verb wit[3,5] meaning (when transitive) to be or become aware of (or, in other words, learn) and (when intransitive) to know ⇒ I addressed a few words to the lady you wot of. The past participle of this verb is wist, the present participle witting, and the first and third person singular present tense is wot.

11a   ... street performer /showing/ anger in achievement in front of the Queen (4-5)

"the Queen" = ER, the regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth (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.

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12a   Managing to grasp // difficulty at home with source of gas (8)

What did they say?
In their review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, the 2Kiwis describe catch as A word for a difficulty or fish hook. While catch[2] can mean the total amount of fish caught, I can find no evidence of it meaning fish hook. Perhaps this is a New Zealand usage.

13a   Sartorial feature /of/ primate in two lines (5)

15a   Ham /is/ finished and cat is upset (7)

17a   Crime /resulting from/ end of lost cause (7)

19a   Group/'s/ place for sleeping beside lake (7)

What did they say?
In their review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, the 2Kiwis describe a cot as a small bed. In the UK, cots are even smaller than they are here. In Britain, a small bed with high barred sides for a baby or very young child is called a cot[5] rather than a crib[5] as it is known in North America.

21a   Supplier /seeing/ Queen before King? (7)

A queen^[5] is an adult female cat that has not been spayed.

"king" = R (show explanation )

In the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms^*, Rex^[5] (abbreviation R^[5]) [Latin for king] denotes the reigning king, used following a name (e.g. Georgius Rex, King George — often shortened to GR) or in the titles of lawsuits (e.g. Rex v. Jones, the Crown versus Jones — often shortened to R. v. Jones).

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^* A Commonwealth realm^[7] is a sovereign state that is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and shares the same person, currently Elizabeth II, as its head of state and reigning constitutional monarch, but retains a crown legally distinct from the other realms. There are currently sixteen Commonwealth realms, the largest being Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom with the remainder being smaller Caribbean and Pacific island nations.

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A Visit to the Pedant's Corner

On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, there is a metaphorical nook known as the Pedant's Corner — a spot where I would likely feel right at home. Being the pedant that I am, perhaps I may be forgiven for commenting on the reference in the 2Kiwis' review to R as the single letter regnal cypher. While the letter R is an integral element of a regnal cypher, can it be a regnal cypher in its own right? It would seem, at least according to one dictionary, that it cannot. A cipher[5] (also cypher) is a monogram[5] or motif of two or more interwoven letters, typically a person's initials, used to identify a personal possession or as a logo.

22a   This might call you // about empty space for reversing (5)

24a   Paints // defeat mainly in scary liquid (8)

27a   Opt for changes, rejecting fuel // investments (9)

28a   Type of fruit // fool containing raisins originally (5)

In their review, the 2Kiwis state "Fool here is a verb". However, the clue works equally well if fool is a noun.

29a   Admire efforts to ring // bank (4)

30a   Foothold /established by/ game of cards with boss (10)

Down

1d   Energy after reduction /is/ precious (4)

"energy" = E (show explanation )

In physics, E^[5] is a symbol used to represent energy in mathematical formulae.

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Precious^[2] is used in a derogatory sense meaning (said of speech or manner) affected or over-precise.

Cute^[3] is used in the sense of obviously contrived to charm; in other words, precious: ⇒ [He] mugs so ferociously he kills the humor—it's an insufferably cute performance (David Ansen).

2d   Retail outlet in the rag trade? (9)

I obviously developed a blind spot here. I did give myself a severe kick when my electronic assistants turned up only one word matching the checking letters.

3d   Trip regularly taken by African organisation /is/ a lark (5)

The African National Congress^[5] (abbreviation ANC) is a South African political party and black nationalist organization. Having been banned by the South African government 1960–90, the ANC was victorious in the country’s first democratic elections in 1994 and its leader Nelson Mandela became the country’s President.

4d   Deliver // short film during international (7)

Scratching the Surface
While the surface reading is rather meaningless to a North American, it would likely not be so to someone in the UK. International[5] (noun) is a British term for a game or contest between teams representing different countries in a sport ⇒ the Murrayfield rugby international.

5d   Respectable, /and/ not lying! (7)

I have marked the second definition as cryptic because the context deliberately misdirects one to the 'wrong' meaning of "lying" (which the setter flags with an exclamation mark).

7d   Nip out of bed // to perform a mathematical task (3,2)

8d   Uncompromising types /may be/ unlucky crossing river (10)

Hard lines^[5] (or hard luck) is an informal British expression used to express sympathy or commiserations.

9d   How do you do without love, and with tendency /to be/ determined? (4-4)

"love" = O (show explanation )

In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love^[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒ love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.

Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).

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14d   Feel Telegraph, perhaps, /should get/ a bit of a rocket (10)

The Daily Telegraph^[7] is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper, founded in 1855 as The Daily Telegraph and Courier, which is published in London and distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally [... and the newspaper in which this puzzle initially appeared].

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A rocket^[2] is a type of firework.

Touchpaper^[5] is a seemingly British^* term for a strip of paper impregnated with nitre, for setting light to fireworks or explosive substances.

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^* term not found in my US dictionaries

16d   RAF's requirement /in/ demeanour and skill? (8)

The Royal Air Force^[5] (abbreviation RAF) is the British air force, formed in 1918 by amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps (founded 1912) and the Royal Naval Air Service (founded 1914).

18d   Scrupulous about supporting university // criticism (9)

20d   Online seller // always covers back (1-6)

21d   In Italy, Charles heads commercial // crowd coming along for the ride (7)

Carlo^[7] is a masculine given name, an Italian form of Charles.

23d   Saving, or secretly hoarding // plant (5)

Gorse^[5] is a yellow-flowered shrub of the pea family, the leaves of which are modified to form spines, native to western Europe and North Africa.

25d   Stay in temporary accommodation, /getting/ deposit (5)

Lodge^[5] (verb) means to leave (money or a valuable item in a place or with someone) for safekeeping ⇒ the money is lodged in a bank.

26d   Looking embarrassed about a // book? (4)

Read^[5] is an informal term for a book considered in terms of its readability ⇒ her new novel is a thoroughly entertaining read.

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