Friday, January 12, 2018 — DT 28549

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28549
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, October 4, 2017
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28549]
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

If I remember correctly, it was the southeast quadrant where I encountered the stiffest resistance in this puzzle.

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   Run off one final check, // complying with the law (10)

Leg it^[5] is an informal British term meaning to run away^* ⇒ he legged it after someone shouted at him.

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^* Alternatively, the expression can also mean to travel by foot or walk ⇒ I am part of a team legging it around London.

In chess, check^[5] means to move a piece or pawn to a square where it attacks the opposing king ⇒ he moves his knight to check my king again. A king so attacked is said to be in check^[5].

In chess, mate^[5] (short for checkmate^[5]) is a position in which a player’s king is directly attacked by an opponent’s piece or pawn and has no possible move to escape the check. The attacking player thus wins the game.

6a   A few heard about Chaplin's first // dirty film (4)

Scratching the Surface
Charlie Chaplin[5] (1889–1977) was an English film actor and director. He directed and starred in many short silent comedies, mostly playing a bowler-hatted tramp, a character which was his trademark for more than twenty-five years. Notable films: The Kid (1921) and The Gold Rush (1925).

9a   Answer by sailor /offering/ forgiveness (10)

"sailor" = AB (show explanation )

In the Royal Navy, according to Oxford Dictionaries, able seaman^[5] (abbreviation AB^[5]), is a rank of sailor above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman. On the other hand, Collins English Dictionary tells us that an able seaman^[10] (also called able-bodied seaman) is an ordinary seaman, especially one in the merchant navy, who has been trained in certain skills.

hide explanation

10a   Piece /of/ slate worn by women (4)

Slate^[5] is an informal British term meaning to criticize severely ⇒ his work was slated by the critics.

A piece^[5] is a figure or token used to make moves in a board game ⇒ a chess piece.

A piece or not a piece? That is the question!

I guess Jay (the setter) is not a chess player — it would seem that a pawn is not considered to be a piece in chess. In chess, a piece[5] is a king, queen, bishop, knight, or rook, as opposed to a pawn ⇒ indicate which piece or pawn is taken. I am surprised that the chess players on Big Dave's Crossword Blog who get so incensed when a rook is called a castle have not weighed in on this point. But then, Oxford Dictionaries is hardly consistent, defining a pawn[5] to be a chess piece of the smallest size and value, ...

12a   Pull a face /seeing/ weapon carried by leader of rebels (4)

Gurn^[5] is a British term meaning to pull^* a grotesque face.

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^* Pull a face^[5] is another way of saying make a face.

Carry On Confusing

The wordplay here could go either way — which caused confusion to several visitors to Big Dave's Crossword Blog as evidenced by the discussion at Comment #15. Usually a phrase such as "weapon carried by leader of rebels" would mean GUN (weapon) contained in (carried by; like water in a bucket) R (leader of rebels). However, in this clue it denotes just the opposite; GUN (weapon) containing (carried by; coating) R (leader of rebels). After this evening's freezing rain, I expect that everything will be carrying a coating of ice.

13a   Chicken stuffed with digital application in grand // event (9)

While the abbreviation G for "grand" is deemed by the Brits to be an Americanism, it seems to be one that is well known to them — undoubtedly from American gangster films. It is frequently seen in British crossword puzzles and never seems to garner the abuse that usually greets the appearance of American terms (show more ).

Grand^[5] is an informal term for a thousand dollars or pounds ⇒ he gets thirty-five grand a year. While the term "grand" itself would seem to be commonly used in the UK, the informal abbreviation G^[5] meaning grand appears to be regarded as a North American usage ⇒ I was up nine Gs on the blackjack tables.

G is defined in various British dictionaries as follows:

• Oxford Dictionaries: (North American informal) abbreviation for grand, a thousand dollars)^[5].
• Chambers 21st Century Dictionary: (North American slang) abbreviation for a grand, 1000 dollars^[2].
• Collins English Dictionary: (mainly US slang) a symbol for grand (a thousand dollars or pounds)^[4,10].

hide explanation

15a   Relaxing by empty pool /must be/ agreeable (8)

16a   Pole on yacht keeping dry // posterior (6)

A boom^[5] is a pivoted spar to which the foot of a vessel's sail is attached, allowing the angle of the sail to be changed.

"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.

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18a   Misery mostly seen in island/'s/ northern blockhouses (6)

20a   Offload // one lad by pier after docking (8)

23a   Pat /is/ a person too eager to advance (4,5)

Double definition; the second being a cryptic definition.

24a   Leave // be, having no end of business (4)

26a   Instrument /of/ joy -- booze oddly absent (4)

27a   Porter // seeing soldiers glance back with hesitation after party (10)

"soldiers" = OR (show explanation )

In the British armed forces, the term other ranks^[5] (abbreviation OR^[5]) refers to all those who are not commissioned officers.

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Porter^[5] is a British term for an employee in charge of the entrance of a hotel, block of flats [apartments], college, or other large building ⇒ a night porter.

28a   Cost of upkeep will be inclusive of // veggie food (4)

Tofu^[5] is a soft white substance made from mashed soya beans, used chiefly in Asian and vegetarian cooking.

29a   Setter upset about bolshie // image, that's cool (6,4)

Bolshie^[5] (also bolshy) is a dated, informal British term for a Bolshevik^* or socialist.

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^* Historically, a Bolshevik^[5] was a member of the majority faction of the Russian Social Democratic Party, which seized power in the October Revolution of 1917.

Street cred (short for street credibility^[5]) denotes acceptability among fashionable young urban people ⇒ the Liverpudlian is to use his street credibility to try to get the anti-vandalism message across to schoolchildren.

Down

1d   Burden /of/ son to hold onto love (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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2d   Get user rebooted /with/ such a handy expression (7)

A cryptic definition of a way of expressing oneself using one's hand(s).

3d   Manoeuvre scuttles NATO // spotters (6,6)

4d   China welcomes view with no leader /being/ equal (8)

The definition here could be either "equal" ⇒ The two teams, with matching records after the regular season, met to decide which one would advance to the playoffs. or "being equal" ⇒ The two teams — their records matching after the regular season — met to decide which one would advance to the playoffs..

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Ming^[5] (mass noun, usually as modifier) is Chinese porcelain made during the Ming dynasty^*, characterized by elaborate designs and vivid colours ⇒ a priceless Ming vase.^* }

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^* The Ming^[5] dynasty ruled China 1368–1644.

5d   Soldiers /needing/ time on track going north (6)

7d   Carriage /giving/ church a laugh? (7)

No doubt most of us — like the 2Kiwis — think of a chariot^[10] as a two-wheeled horse-drawn vehicle used in ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, etc, in war, races, and processions.

Chariot

However, chariot^[5,7,10] is also the name of a light, four-wheeled, horse-drawn ceremonial carriage having a coach box and back seats only, popular in the early 19th century.

8d   Those in charge /of/ soldiers wearing sort of name tag (10)

11d   Dirty // teeth wobble loose biting end of drill (5,3,4)

14d   Rewards of victory, plus drink? // Misery! (10)

Misery^[5] (noun) is an informal British term for a person who is constantly miserable or discontented ⇒ have we really been such a bunch of miseries to work with?.

17d   So here's a strange // sort of fish (3,5)

19d   Launch // unfinished biography on posh chap (4-3)

Toff^[5] is a derogatory, informal British term for a rich or upper-class person.

21d   Mate's superior /and/ singular cure (7)

A mate^[3,4,11] (short for first mate^[3,4,11]) is an officer second in command to the captain of a merchant ship.

A skipper^[5] is the captain of a ship or boat, especially a small trading or fishing vessel ⇒ the skipper and one other man were convicted of smuggling.

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Kipper^[5] (usually seen as a past participle used as an adjective kippered) is a verb meaning to cure (a herring or other fish) by splitting it open and salting and drying it in the open air or in smoke.

22d   Place for coach/'s/ rudimentary craft (6)

A glance at US dictionaries might well convince one that dugout is a baseball term, I was about to comment that while one would find the manager there (when not confronting the umpire or engaging in a conference on the mound), a couple of the coaches would actually be on the field behind first and third bases when their team is batting.

However, it seems that the term dugout is not exclusive to baseball. It exists in at least one other sport — association football [soccer] where Wikipedia informs us that a technical area^[7] is an area which a manager, other coaching personnel, and substitutes are allowed to occupy during a match. The technical area includes the dugout, bench and a marked zone adjacent to the pitch.

There be Chameleons Hiding in the Clue

Some words in a cryptic crossword clue are like chameleons — they take on a different aspect according to the context. This thought was prompted by an exchange between Banksie and Senf at Comment #5 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog. For instance, take the 's in clue 22a. In the surface reading, it is interpreted as a possessive. However, in the cryptic reading, it is interpreted as a contraction of the word "is" and serves as a link word showing equivalency between the two parts of the double definition.

25d   Network // routine with no name (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