Wednesday, March 7, 2018 — DT 28587

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28587
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, November 17, 2017
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28587]
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

Most solvers seem to have found today's puzzle exceptionally gentle by Giovanni's standards.

By the way, in the intro to Deep Threat's review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, the acting troupe whom he mentions having seen on the BBC is the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC).

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 parsing and explaining the clues.

The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in parsing and explaining the clues.

Legend: The following symbols may appear in reviews: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the preceding word is present in the clue

The review of a clue takes the following general structure:

#a/d   Clue containing parsing markup (num^*)

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^* num = numeration

Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)

(Horizontal separator)

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Explanations pertaining to the definition (or second definition in a double definition) and solution.

Explanatory Box

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 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: Scratching the Surface - an explanation of the surface reading of the clue Delving Deeper - in-depth information pertaining to a subject mentioned in an explanation Behind the Picture - information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - an explanation of a discussion on Big Dave's Crossword Blog One box that may provide information that could prove helpful in solving the clue is the following: Here and There - discusses words whose British meaning differs from their North American meaning

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.

Examples

A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.

The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:

• 4d   Fellow left work // a failure (4)

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).

The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:

• 29a   Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)

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.

The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:

• 18d   Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)

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/).

I 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.

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)

As the entire clue is a cryptic definition, it is marked with a dotted underline. The 'precise definition' is "heroic exploit" and is indicated by a solid underline.

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.

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Across

7a   Were nine players coming back /to present/ cutting-edge piece? (5,3)

A tenon^[5] saw is a small fine-toothed saw with a strong back, used esp for cutting tenons.

9a   See any number going to cathedral location // wanting company? (6)

"look | see" = LO (show explanation )

Lo^[5] is an archaic exclamation used to draw attention to an interesting or amazing event ⇒ and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them.

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"any number" = N (show explanation )

The letter n^[10] is used (especially in mathematics) as a symbol to represent an indefinite number (of) ⇒ there are n objects in a box.

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The Diocese of Ely^[7] is a Church of England diocese in the (ecclesiastical) Province of Canterbury, headed by the Bishop of Ely, who sits at Ely Cathedral in the city of Ely.

A See or not a See

It had been some time since I solved the puzzle when I sat down to compose the review. The first thing to catch my eye were the words "see" in the clue and "ELY" in the solution. As the former is often used to clue the latter, it took me a moment to get on the right track. A see[10] is the diocese* of a bishop, or the place within it where his cathedral** or procathedral*** is situated. * A diocese[5] is a district under the pastoral care of a bishop in the Christian Church — or, more precisely, episcopal churches. ** A cathedral[5] is the principal church of a diocese, with which the bishop is officially associated. *** A pro-cathedral[5] (or procathedral[10])  is a church used as a substitute for a cathedral.

10a   St Francis's friend first to taste // wine (6)

Saint Clare of Assisi^[7] (1194–1253), born Chiara Offreduccio and sometimes spelled Clair, Claire, etc., is an Italian saint and one of the first followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. She founded the Order of Poor Ladies, a monastic religious order for women in the Franciscan tradition, and wrote their Rule of Life, the first set of monastic guidelines known to have been written by a woman. Following her death, the order she founded was renamed in her honor as the Order of Saint Clare, commonly referred to today as the Poor Clares.

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Claret^[5] is a red wine from Bordeaux, or wine of a similar character made elsewhere.

11a   Ghosts /in/ quiet county enthralling old maiden (8)

"quiet" = 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.

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Hants^[5] is the abbreviation for Hampshire^[5], a county on the coast of southern England.

"maiden"  = M (show explanation )

In cricket, a maiden^[5], also known as a maiden over and denoted on cricket scorecards by the abbreviation m.^[10], is an over^* in which no runs are scored.

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^* An over^[5] is a division of play consisting of a sequence of six balls bowled by a bowler from one end of the pitch, after which another bowler takes over from the other end.

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12a   Sort of manoeuvre /requiring/ time -- Ruth struggling with tin-opener (5-5,4)

Here and There
Tin opener[5] (also spelled tin-opener[10]) is the more commonly used name in Britain for a can opener[5] (also spelled can-opener[10]).

15a   Wine /that's/ nastier putting some characters off (4)

Asti^[7] (formerly known as Asti Spumante) is a sparkling white Italian wine that is produced throughout southeastern Piedmont but is particularly focused around the towns of Asti and Alba. Since 1993 the wine has been classified as a Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) and as of 2004 was Italy's largest producing appellation.

17a   Stony woman /from/ province given birthday honour? (5)

"province" = NI (show explanation )

Northern Ireland^[5] (abbreviation NI^[5]) is a province of the United Kingdom occupying the northeast part of Ireland; population 1,775,000 (est. 2008); capital, Belfast.

According to Oxford Dictionaries, Northern Ireland^[5] is the only major division of the United Kingdom to hold the status of province, with England^[5], Scotland^[5] and Wales^*[5] being countries.

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^* Oxford Dictionaries did not always describe Wales as a country. However, they changed this after I pointed out in a previous blog that England and Scotland were described as countries while Wales was shown as a principality. Do I really hold such power?

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Queen's Birthday Honours (or, during the reign of a male monarch, King's Birthday Honours) denotes, in some Commonwealth realms, the marking of the reigning monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are presented by the monarch or a viceregal representative. Honours have been awarded on the sovereign's birthday since at least 1860, during the reign of Queen Victoria.

One honour that might be granted on such an occasion is the bestowal of an OBE^[5] which is the abbreviation for Officer of the Order of the British Empire (show explanation ).

The Order of the British Empire^[5] is an order of knighthood applicable to the United Kingdom and certain Commonwealth realms which was instituted in 1917 and is divided into five classes, each with military and civilian divisions. The classes are: Knight or Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE), Knight or Dame Commander (KBE/DBE), Commander (CBE), Officer (OBE), and Member (MBE). The two highest classes entail the awarding of a knighthood.

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In Greek mythology, Niobe^[5] is the daughter of Tantalus. Apollo and Artemis, enraged because Niobe boasted herself superior to their mother Leto, killed her children and turned her into a stone.

19a   Holiday /providing/ 'adult entertainment' -- keep son away! (4)

Here and There

The British use the word holiday(s) where North Americans might say vacation[5]. Holiday[5,10] (often holidays) is a chiefly British term for a period in which a break is taken from work or studies for rest, travel, or recreation ⇒ (i) I spent my summer holidays on a farm; (ii) Fred was on holiday in Spain. According to British dictionaries, the usual US and Canadian term for such a break is vacation. However, I am accustomed to hearing the two terms used almost interchangeably in this sense — in much the same manner that we use fall and autumn interchangeably. This may not be the case in all parts of Canada, but I grew up in the Maritimes and have lived in Eastern Ontario for most of my life, both areas where British influence is particularly strong. In Britain, the word vacation[5] has a very specific meaning, a fixed holiday period between terms in universities and law courts ⇒ the Easter vacation. In North America, such a period might be called a break[7].

20a   Like close pals // unintelligent in respect of wrongdoing? (5,2,7)

As Deep Threat points out in his review, the clue doesn't quite work if one attempts to parse the latter part as a charade. It may — or may not — work somewhat better if one treats this portion of the clue as a cryptic definition that is a literal interpretation of the solution.

(As) thick as thieves^[5] is an informal expression meaning (of two or more people) very close or friendly ⇒ he and Auntie Lou were thick as thieves.

23a   Peacock // to make spasmodic sounds blocking entrance to rockery (8)

Peacock^[5] is used in the sense of an ostentatious or vain person ⇒ these young men have always considered themselves the peacocks of Europe.

25a   Move slowly /in/ fringes of wood within valley (6)

A dale^[5] is a valley, especially in northern England.

27a   Tree trunk in which is found dry // container (6)

"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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28a   Phoney 'diamond' /produced by/ plant (8)

Down

1d   Business arrangement /is/ perfect, but one loses out (4)

2d   Gruff // ace grabbed by hack maybe (6)

Hack^[5] can mean a horse in any of several senses:

• a horse for ordinary riding
• a good-quality lightweight riding horse, especially one used in the show ring
• a horse let out for hire
• an inferior or worn-out horse

3d   Hands going up /for/ mutually acceptable 1 Down (4)

The numeral and directional indicator "1 Down" is a cross reference indicator directing the solver to insert the solution to clue 1d in its place to complete the clue. In a departure from common practice, the directional indicator has been included even though 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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The definition is slightly cryptic if one interprets "accept" in the sense of 'receive'. Thus, in this "mutually acceptable" arrangement, each party receives something from the other party.

4d   Flexible // article wedged into short block at base (6)

Plinth^[5] may denote:

• a heavy base supporting a statue or vase .
• (Architecture) the lower square slab at the base of a column
• (Architecture) the base course of a building, or projecting base of a wall

5d   Rustic not losing heart, but tricky // to teach (8)

6d   Attlee elected, source of embarrassment /for/ his rival's wife (10)

Clement Attlee^[5], 1st Earl Attlee (1883–1967) was a British Labour statesman, Prime Minister 1945–51.

Sir Winston Churchill^[5] (1874–1965) was a British Conservative statesman, Prime Minister 1940-5 and 1951-5.

Clementine Ogilvy Spencer-Churchill, Baroness Spencer-Churchill^[7] (1885–1977) was the wife of Sir Winston Churchill and a life peer in her own right.

Political Rivals

Sir Winston Churchill[7] was appointed to the position of Prime Minister when his predecessor, Neville Chamberlain, resigned in 1940. He lost the 1945 election[7] to Clement Attlee, whose Labour party achieved a landslide victory winning 393 of 640 seats (a majority of 146 seats). In the 1950 election[7], in which Churchill and Attlee again faced off against each other, Labour's majority was drastically reduced to a mere five seats. Attlee called a snap election in 1951[7], in the hope of achieving a more workable majority. The gamble failed: Attlee's Labour Party narrowly lost to Churchill's Conservative Party, despite winning considerably more votes (achieving the largest Labour vote in electoral history).

Behind the Video
The video shows an April 23, 1960 performance by American singer Bobby Darin on British TV. Would those lyrics pass muster in today's politically correct environment?

8d   Attack // puts one out (3,4)

13d   This person in Euston, say, follows the chap // shilly-shallying (10)

"this person" = I (show explanation )

It is a common cryptic crossword convention for the creator of the puzzle to use terms such as (the or this) compiler, (the or this) setter, (this) author, (this) writer, or this person to refer to himself or herself. To solve such a clue, one must generally substitute a first person pronoun (I or me) for whichever of these terms has been used in the clue.

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Euston railway station^[7] or London Euston is a central London railway terminus on Euston Road^* in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest railway station in the UK. It sits directly above the Euston^[7] London Underground [subway] station.

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^* Euston Road^[7] is an important thoroughfare in central London, England. It was originally the central section of the New Road from Paddington to Islington, opened in 1756, London's first bypass, through the fields to the north of London, now generally regarded as being in central London.

Chap^[3,4,11] is an informal British^[5] or chiefly British^[3] term for a man or boy (show more ) — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada.

Chap^[3,4,11] is a shortened form of chapman^[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar^[a,b].

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^[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler^[14] which, in most senses, is a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
^[b] The current meaning of chap^[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.

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14d   Jeremy/'s/ items in golf bag? (5)

Jeremy Irons^[7] is an English actor. He is one of the few actors who have won the "Triple Crown of Acting", winning an Academy Award (for film), an Emmy Award (television) and a Tony Award (for theatre).

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In golf, an iron^[2] is any of various clubs with an angled iron head, used for shorter distance shots of about 100-200 yards.

16d   Home I abandon, the ultimate in cruelty /and/ wickedness (8)

18d   Cain -- he'd turned into // a beast (7)

The echidna^[5] (also called spiny anteater) is a spiny insectivorous egg-laying mammal with a long snout and claws, native to Australia and New Guinea.

Scratching the Surface
In the Old Testament, Cain[5] is the eldest son of Adam and Eve, a farmer (tiller of the ground), and murderer of his brother Abel (Genesis 4:1–8).

21d   Young animal /in/ trap set up under equipment (6)

22d   Royal personage? // Journalist must take care (6)

Ward^[5] is used in the archaic sense of the state of being in the care of a guardian ⇒ the ward and care of the Crown.

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Edward^[5] was the name of six kings of England and also one of Great Britain and Ireland and one of the United Kingdom.

24d   Stay /to offer/ support (4)

A rest^[5] is a support for a cue in billiards or snooker.

26d   Chance // bottle won't open (4)

Bottle^[5] is an informal British term denoting the courage or confidence needed to do something difficult or dangerous ⇒ I lost my bottle completely and ran.

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)
^[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon