Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 28598 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Thursday, November 30, 2017 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28530] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
pommers | |
BD Rating
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| Difficulty - ★★ | Enjoyment - ★★★ |
Falcon's Experience
┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐
███████████████████████████████████
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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
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Introduction
Today we are offered another puzzle that is not overly difficult and one with relatively few Briticisms. However, there are a few references in the comments that may be unfamiliar to North American readers. For instance, at Comment #7, Senf comments for the second day in a row that the puzzle wascompleted at a gallopto which Square Leg* responds
Thats 2 gallops on the trot. On the trot[5] is an informal British expression denoting in succession ⇒
they lost seven matches on the trot.
* In cricket, square leg[5]
is a fielding position (or a player at that
position) level with the batsman approximately halfway towards the
boundary on the leg side (show explanation ).
The boundary[10] is the marked limit of the playing area.
In cricket, the leg[5] (also called leg side) is another name for the on[5] (also known as on side), the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman’s feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball ⇒
The other half of the field is known as the off[5] (also called off side).
hide explanation
The boundary[10] is the marked limit of the playing area.
In cricket, the leg[5] (also called leg side) is another name for the on[5] (also known as on side), the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman’s feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball ⇒
he played a lucky stroke to leg.
The other half of the field is known as the off[5] (also called off side).
hide explanation
At Comment #8, Mick-the-Miller laments
"We're doomed. Doomed!" is a catchphrase from the sitcom Dad's Army[7] (show explanation ) that was broadcast on BBC television from 1968 to 1977.
Dad's Army[7] is a BBC television sitcom about the British Home Guard during the Second World War that was broadcast on the BBC from 1968 to 1977.
The Home Guard consisted of local volunteers otherwise ineligible for military service, either because of age or by being in professions exempt from conscription. Dad's Army deals almost exclusively with men over military age (hence the nickname "Dad's Army").
The series has influenced British popular culture, with the series' catchphrases and characters being well known. One of these was Private Frazer, a dour Scottish undertaker, whose catchphrase was "We're doomed. Doomed!".
hide explanation
Another disaster last night for West Ham – we’re doomed I tell you – doomed!. West Ham United Football Club[7] (referred to in another comment as WHU) is a professional football [soccer] club based in Stratford, East London, England. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football.
"We're doomed. Doomed!" is a catchphrase from the sitcom Dad's Army[7] (show explanation ) that was broadcast on BBC television from 1968 to 1977.
Dad's Army[7] is a BBC television sitcom about the British Home Guard during the Second World War that was broadcast on the BBC from 1968 to 1977.
The Home Guard consisted of local volunteers otherwise ineligible for military service, either because of age or by being in professions exempt from conscription. Dad's Army deals almost exclusively with men over military age (hence the nickname "Dad's Army").
The series has influenced British popular culture, with the series' catchphrases and characters being well known. One of these was Private Frazer, a dour Scottish undertaker, whose catchphrase was "We're doomed. Doomed!".
hide explanation
At Comment #22, Merusa recommends
Be sure to read Matt today!. Matt is the pen name of British cartoonist Matthew Pritchett[7] whose work appears in The Daily Telegraph.
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.
Click here for an explanation of conventions and symbols used in explaining the parsing of clues.
The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in explaining the parsing of clues.
| Legend: The following symbols are used in reviews:
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The review of a clue takes the following general structure:
#a/d Clue containing parsing markup (num*)
* num = numeration
Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)
(Horizontal separator)
Explanatory Box
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| An explanatory box provides additional information about the clue. In most cases this information will not necessarily help in solving the clue but provides information about the clue. In the case of the weekday syndicated Daily Telegraph puzzles, such information is often intended to help the North American solver appreciate how the clue may be perceived by a British solver. These boxes may also provide information on people, places, films, television programmes, works of art and literature, etc. mentioned in the clue. Although the titles of these boxes will usually be drawn from a standard list, I do occasionally throw in a title specifically suggested by the subject at hand. The standard titles include:
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Note that there are many types of cryptic crossword clue and it is not my intention to exhaustively go through all of them here. I will only deal with clue types to the extent necessary to explain the conventions and symbols used on the blog. Furthermore, be aware that, in the world of cryptic crosswords, there seems to be an exception to every rule.
With one exception that I can think of, cryptic crossword clues provide two routes to the solution. These are commonly referred to as the definition and wordplay. While these terms serve well for most clues, there are some cases where the more formal terms of primary indication and subsidiary indication may be more appropriate.
Most cryptic crossword clues consist of a definition (primary indication) and wordplay (subsidiary indication). The definition may be a "precise definition" (a definition that is either taken straight from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion) or it may be a "cryptic definition" (a definition misleadingly phrased so as to misdirect the solver either with respect to the meaning of the definition as a whole or to an incorrect sense of a word used in the definition).
The only type of clue that I can think of where there are not two ways of finding the solution are those in which the entire clue is a cryptic definition.
I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and cryptic definitions by marking them with a dotted underline.In clues in which both definition and wordplay are present, the two parts of the clue combine to provide an overall meaningful statement (the surface reading) which usually bears no relationship to the underlying cryptic reading of the clue. In some cases, an extra word or phrase will be inserted into the clue to create a meaningful link between the definition and wordplay. I define clues which contain such a link word or link phrase as having an explicit link and clues which contain no link word or link phrase as having an implicit link.
I mark the existence of an explicit link by enclosing the link word or link phrase between forward slashes (/link/) and mark the existence of an implicit link with double forward slashes (//) positioned between the definition and wordplay.
ExamplesI also use distinctive underlining to mark &lit.[7] and semi-&lit. clues. Note that the reviewers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog generally prefer to refer to these clue types by the less pretentious names of all-in-one or semi-all-in-one clues respectively.
A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.
The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:
Here the definition is "a failure" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as F (fellow; abbrev.) + L (left; abbrev.) + OP (work; abbrev. used in music) which gives us the solution F|L|OP. The double forward slashes (//) between the definition and wordplay indicate the existence of an "implicit link" between the two parts of the clue (that is, no extra words are inserted into the clue to form the link).
- 4d Fellow left work // a failure (4)
The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:
Here the definition "female going to match" is cryptic (the setter is attempting to misdirect our thoughts to a sports event rather than a marriage ceremony) and thus is marked with a a dotted underline. The wordplay is {RIDES (travels) + (with) MA (mother)} contained in (in) BID (advance) giving us the solution B(RIDES|MA)ID. As in the first example, the double forward slashes indicate the presence of an implicit link.
- 29a Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)
The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:
Here the definition is "staggering" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as N ([chess symbol for] knight) contained in (caught in) an anagram (misplaced) of BIG BLOW producing the solution WOBBLI(N)G. Finally, forward slashes mark the link word (/is/).
- 18d Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)
In an &lit. clue[7] (or all-in-one clue) the entire clue provides not only the definition (when read one way), but under a different interpretation also serves as the wordplay.
In future, I will mark such clues with a combined solid and dashed underline. Although this is a departure from past practice, it would seem to make more sense than using a dotted underline as I have in the past). Henceforth, the dotted underline will be reserved for cryptic definitions.In a semi-&lit. clue (or semi-all-in-one clue), either:
- the entire clue acts as the definition while a portion of the clue provides the wordplay; or
- the entire clue acts as the wordplay while a portion of the clue provides the definition.
For these clues, I will mark the definition with a solid underline and the wordplay with a dashed underline. This means that a portion of the clue may have a solid underline, a portion of the clue may have a dashed underline and a portion of the clue may have a combined solid and dashed underline.One final clue type is what I characterize as a cryptic definition comprised of a precise definition combined with cryptic elaboration. For example, in DT 28560 (setter unknown) the following clue appears:
- 26d Heroic exploit, whichever way you look at it (4)
Given the numeration, the precise definition could give rise to at least two solutions, DEED or FEAT. However, the 'cryptic elaboration' ("whichever way you look at it") indicates that the solution is a palindrome thereby immediately eliminating one of the two obvious choices.
Note that the part of the clue that I have called 'cryptic elaboration' does not provide a second independent route to the solution (as the wordplay would do in most other types of clue). Rather it merely provides a piece of additional information (elaboration) related to the 'precise definition'.
Again, this approach is a departure from past practice, but like the other changes mentioned previously is intended to remove inconsistencies in the way that I have been applying parsing markup to clues. The markup rules that I have been using until now evolved bit-by-bit over a long period of time resulting in some degree of internal inconsistency.
hide explanation
Across
1a Loyalty, // say, found in union (10)
6a Eccentric succeeded /in/ betting (4)
"succeeded" = S (show explanation )
The abbreviation s[5] stands for succeeded, in the sense of to have taken over a throne, office, or other position from ⇒
hide explanation
The abbreviation s[5] stands for succeeded, in the sense of to have taken over a throne, office, or other position from ⇒
he succeeded Hawke as Prime Minister. It might be seen, for instance, it charts of royal lineages.
hide explanation
Atlantic Way headed the betting at 2-1.
The word odds is also synonymous to betting in the following phrases:
- (informal) the betting is[5] meaning it is likely ⇒
the betting is that the company will slash the dividend
- (informal British) what's the betting?[5] used to express a belief that something is likely ⇒
what's the betting he's up to no good?
9a Follow graduate /in/ teaching (5)
10a Best meal cooked around island // worthy of praise (9)
12a List of those who could turn out for parties? (9,4)
14a Service care is shoddy // -- the end for many? (8)
Mass[5] is the celebration of the Christian Eucharist, especially in the Roman Catholic Church.
15a Keep quiet about Conservative going after gear /that's/ tawdry (6)
"Conservative" = C (show explanation )
The abbreviation for Conservative may be either C.[10] or Con.[10].
The Conservative Party[5] is a a major British political party that emerged from the old Tory Party* under Sir Robert Peel in the 1830s and 1840s. Since the Second World War, it has been in power 1951–64, 1970-74, and 1979–97. It governed in a coalition with the Liberal Democrats from 2010 until the general election of May 2015, in which it was returned with a majority.
* Historically, a Tory[10] was a member of the English political party that opposed the exclusion of James, Duke of York from the royal succession (1679–80). Tory remained the label for subsequent major conservative interests until they gave birth to the Conservative Party in the 1830s.
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The abbreviation for Conservative may be either C.[10] or Con.[10].
The Conservative Party[5] is a a major British political party that emerged from the old Tory Party* under Sir Robert Peel in the 1830s and 1840s. Since the Second World War, it has been in power 1951–64, 1970-74, and 1979–97. It governed in a coalition with the Liberal Democrats from 2010 until the general election of May 2015, in which it was returned with a majority.
* Historically, a Tory[10] was a member of the English political party that opposed the exclusion of James, Duke of York from the royal succession (1679–80). Tory remained the label for subsequent major conservative interests until they gave birth to the Conservative Party in the 1830s.
hide explanation
the lava lamp is a bizarre example of sixties kitschor an adjective ⇒
she offers kitsch interpretations of classic British dress, including a range of tartan mini-kilts. The parsing shown above (as given by pommers in his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog) has the definition as an adjective. One the other hand, if one were to consider the definition to be a noun, the clue would parse as:
- Keep quiet about Conservative going after gear // that's tawdry (6)
17a Dwell // on pretentious air (6)
Side[5] is an informal British term for a boastful or pretentious manner or attitude ⇒
there was absolutely no side to him.
19a I cut girl misbehaving // regarding ceremony (8)
21a One covers the ground to get the lead and take the gold? (5,8)
24a Northern land in front of Germany? // It's almost a disaster! (4,5)
25a Swimmer /in/ river, then bus avoiding cold (5)
The roach[5] is an edible Eurasian freshwater fish of the carp family, popular with anglers. It can hybridize with related fishes, notably rudd and bream.
26a Bumpkin left out // wooden frame (4)
27a Sight least prepared /is/ most deplorable (10)
Down
1d Helper // paid extra in part (4)
2d Member not so // intoxicated (7)
Legless[5] is an informal British expression meaning extremely drunk ⇒
he was legless after his booze-up at a nightclub.
3d Serious measures used by group /in/ night-time broadcast? (9,4)
In television broadcasting, the term graveyard slot[10] denotes the hours from late night until early morning when the number of people watching television is at its lowest.
4d Opening /of/ a fresh flower in Yorkshire (8)
Flower is used in the whimsical cryptic crossword sense of something that flows — in other words, a river.
The River Ure[7] is a stream in North Yorkshire, England, approximately 74 miles (119 km) long from its source to the point where it changes name to the River Ouse.
5d Provide food // bound by intricate restrictions (5)
7d Call promises of repayment // questionable (7)
8d Disturbance after a past engagement? (5,5)
11d Showing diversity, // it's taken up sect with posh artist in Scottish island (13)
"posh" = U (show explanation )
In Britain, U[5] is used informally as an adjective (in respect to language or social behaviour) meaning characteristic of or appropriate to the upper social classes ⇒
The term, an abbreviation of upper class, was coined in 1954 by Alan S. C. Ross, professor of linguistics, and popularized by its use in Nancy Mitford's Noblesse Oblige (1956).
In Crosswordland, the letter U is frequently clued by words denoting "characteristic of the upper class" (such as posh or superior) or "appropriate to the upper class" (such as acceptable).
hide explanation
In Britain, U[5] is used informally as an adjective (in respect to language or social behaviour) meaning characteristic of or appropriate to the upper social classes ⇒
U manners.
The term, an abbreviation of upper class, was coined in 1954 by Alan S. C. Ross, professor of linguistics, and popularized by its use in Nancy Mitford's Noblesse Oblige (1956).
In Crosswordland, the letter U is frequently clued by words denoting "characteristic of the upper class" (such as posh or superior) or "appropriate to the upper class" (such as acceptable).
hide explanation
"artist" = RA (show explanation )
A Royal Academician (abbreviation RA[10]) is a member of the Royal Academy of Arts[5] (also Royal Academy; abbreviation also RA[10]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain.
hide explanation
A Royal Academician (abbreviation RA[10]) is a member of the Royal Academy of Arts[5] (also Royal Academy; abbreviation also RA[10]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain.
hide explanation
Mull[5] is a large island of the Inner Hebrides separated from the coast of Scotland near Oban by the Sound of Mull.
13d Ten mayors surprisingly holding millions /to make/ clever investment? (5,5)
Smart money[5] is used in the sense of money bet or invested by people with expert knowledge ⇒
the smart money in entertainment is invested in copyright.
I have marked this as a cryptic definition as I believe the clue to contain a play on the words "clever" and "smart".
16d One swimming off boat, maybe, gets on without introduction /and/ alters course (8)
18d Disappointment // with TV returned (7)
Back[5] is used in a sense denoting so as to as to return to an earlier or normal position or condition ⇒ (i)
he drove to Glasgow and back in a day; (ii)
things were back to normal.
20d Frankfurter, perhaps, adding energy /is/ suitable (7)
A Frankfurter[10] is an inhabitant or native of the city of Frankfurt, Germany.
"energy" = E (show explanation )
Shattering a Long-held Belief
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On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, pommers comments in his reviewA Berliner[5] is a doughnut with jam filling and vanilla icing. "Ich bin ein Berliner"[7] ("I am a Berliner") is a quotation from a June 26, 1963, speech by U.S. President John F. Kennedy in West Berlin.Berliner would have done just as well, as JFK once famously said ‘I am a sausage’.to which H responds at Comment #6I think you’ll find that in JFK’s famous speech, he was calling himself a doughnut. There is a widespread perception that Kennedy made an embarrassing mistake by saying Ich bin ein Berliner. By not leaving out the indefinite article "ein," he supposedly changed the meaning of the sentence from the intended "I am a citizen of Berlin" to "I am a Berliner" (a Berliner being a type of German pastry, similar to a jelly doughnut). However, according to Wikipedia that is an "urban legend"[7] — albeit one perpetuated by such well-known institutions as The New York Times, BBC, The Guardian, MSNBC, CNN, and Time magazine as well as several novels and "nonfiction" works. It seems that "fake news" predates Donald Trump. According to some grammar texts, the indefinite article can be omitted in German when speaking of an individual's profession or origin but is in any case used when speaking in a figurative sense (as Kennedy was doing). |
22d Cabaret singer familiarly /seen in/ correct hotel (5)
Hotel[5] is a code word representing the letter H, used in radio communication.
What did he say?
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In Comment #13 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Jaylegs refers to Edith Piaf asPiaf was born Édith Giovanna Gassion. In 1935, she was discovered by nightclub owner Louis Leplée who persuaded her to sing despite her extreme nervousness, which, combined with her height of only 142 centimetres (4 ft 8 in), inspired him to give her the nickname that would stay with her for the rest of her life and serve as her stage name, La Môme Piaf (Paris slang meaning "The Waif Sparrow" or "The Little Sparrow").The Little Sparrow. |
23d Little // ingenuity, we're told (4)
Key to Reference Sources:Signing off for today — Falcon
[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)
[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)
*** or even *** 1/2 in difficultly for me as I took a long time on the bottom half. I needed the hints to parse 13A and 25A. 3D eluded me for some time as I tried to find a four letter word for “shift”. **** for enjoyment.
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