Friday, May 11, 2018 — DT 28634

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28634
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, January 12, 2018
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28634]
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

I would say that this puzzle is definitely the sternest test of the week — but then one would expect nothing less from Giovanni.

I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.

Error in Today's Puzzle

The National Post — as was the case with The Daily Telegraph before it — has omitted the ellipsis at the end of clue 17a.

The clue should read:

• 17a   There's minimal effort to get this drink imbibed ... (3)

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: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that the preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the 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 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: 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 - for weekday puzzles, information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - for weekday puzzles, 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 - for weekday puzzles, 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

5a   Intuitive feeling when eating a // piece of venison? (6)

8a   Showered /in/ one rudimentary building behind toilet (8)

Lav^[10] is an informal British short form for lavatory.

Here and There

In Britain and North America, the term lavatory can refer either to a room or to a fixture or fixtures within that room — however, the fixture(s) in question may be understood differently in the UK than in North America. In Britain, lavatory[5] means: a flush toilet a room, building, or cubicle containing a toilet or toilets In North America, lavatory[3] can mean: a washbowl or basin, especially one permanently installed with running water a flush toilet a room equipped with washing and often toilet facilities  Thus, in the UK, the emphasis is on the lavatory as a place where one eliminates bodily wastes while in North America it is regarded primarily as a place where one washes the body.

9a   Female author /and/ daughter confronting disorderly crowd (7)

"daughter" = D (show explanation )

In genealogies, d^[5] is the abbreviation for daughter ⇒ Henry m. Georgina 1957, 1s 2d^*.

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^* Henry married Georgina in 1957. Their marriage produced 1 son and 2 daughters.

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Remarkably, I not only knew this novelist's last name but even correctly remembered her first name. Having never read her works, I presume my knowledge of her must come from her appearances in previous puzzles.

Margaret Drabble^[5] is an English novelist. Notable works: The Millstone (1966), The Ice Age (1977), The Radiant Way (1987), The Peppered Moth (2001), and The Red Queen (2004).

10a   Agree to change, /being/ keen (5)

11a   Gossiping // gent, I rant when put out (9)

13a   Stuff for sale, good deal, /in/ northern town (8)

Of the more than half a dozen towns named Stockton in England, in his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog Deep Threat has chosen to feature Stockton-on-Tees^[7], a town in County Durham in northeastern England.

Delving Deeper

The Stockton and Darlington Railway[7] (S&DR) was a railway company that operated in north-east England from 1825 to 1863. The world's first public railway to use steam locomotives, its first line connected collieries near Shildon with Stockton-on-Tees and Darlington. While coal waggons* were hauled by steam locomotives from the start, passengers were carried in coaches drawn by horses until carriages hauled by steam locomotives were introduced in 1833. * waggon is not a typo but an alternative British spelling of wagon[5]

14a   Frown /as/ underling finally put down (6)

17a   There's minimal effort to get // this drink // imbibed ... (3)

Although the wordplay is convoluted, it essentially amounts to hidden in (to get ... imbibed [by]) minimAL Effort

19a   ... it being drunk /in/ country location (3)

Often ellipses serve merely to extend the surface reading across two clues and play no part in the solution of the clue. However, that is not the case here. In this instance, the ellipses indicate that the pronoun "it" in 19a is acting as a cross reference indicator referring back to the drink in 17a. To complete this clue, one must insert the solution to 17a in place of the word "it".

20a   One of the Angry Young Men, intellectual by the sound of him. (6)

Although familiar with neither the literary group nor the novelist, I did manage to guess the solution which was confirmed as correct by Wikipedia.

The Angry Young Men^[5,7] were a group of mostly working- and middle-class British playwrights and novelists who who became prominent in the 1950s. Their work was marked by irreverence towards the Establishment and disgust at the survival of class distinctions and privilege. Notable members of the group were John Osborne and Kingsley Amis.

John Braine^[5] (1922–1986) was an English novelist, famous for his first novel, Room at the Top (1957), whose opportunistic hero was hailed as a representative example of an ‘angry young man’.

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The clue is structured as a cryptic definition comprising an embedded precise definition accompanied by cryptic elaboration.

23a   Bird is beginning to tweet /for/ e.g. birdwatcher (8)

A relative of whom I was unaware, the hobby^[5] is a migratory Old World falcon with long, narrow wings, catching dragonflies and birds on the wing.

26a   Belong // as a troublesome person keeping jaunty (9)

28a   Bit of a flight // in best aircraft (5)

29a   Message // I have brought to young lady (7)

30a   Somehow barren /and/ tragic female kept outside dance (8)

Tess of the d'Urbervilles^[7] (extended title: Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented) is a novel by English writer Thomas Hardy (1840–1928). It initially appeared in a censored and serialised version, published by the British illustrated newspaper The Graphic in 1891 and in book form in 1892. Though now considered a major nineteenth-century English novel and possibly Hardy's masterpiece, Tess of the d'Urbervilles received mixed reviews when it first appeared, in part because it challenged the sexual morals of late Victorian England.

31a   Peril heading off across lake /for/ one pursuing water sport (6)

Down

1d   Senior figures -- // they aren't seen in 30 areas (6)

After some dithering, I eventually opted to call the second part of this clue a cryptic definition. However, feel free to consider it a precise definition, should you so choose.

The numeral "30" is a cross reference indicator directing the solver to insert the solution to clue 30a 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

What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Deep Threat describes the solution to the clue as being senior figures in some Nonconformist Churches. A Nonconformist Church[5] is a Protestant Church which dissents from the established Church of England.

2d   Like unknown author entertaining one in very good // French location (7)

"very good" = VG (show explanation )

The abbreviation VG^[a] for very good comes from its use in education as a mark for scholastic assignments or tests.

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^[a] Collins English to Spanish Dictionary

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Avignon^[5] is a city on the Rhône in south-eastern France. From 1309 until 1377 it was the residence of the popes during their exile from Rome, and was papal property until the French Revolution.

3d   A street artist, prominent Asian in rough fabric (9)

"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. 

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Khan^[5] is a title given to rulers and officials in central Asia, Afghanistan, and certain other Muslim countries.

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Astrakhan^[10] can mean either:

• a fur, usually black or grey, made of the closely curled wool of lambs from Astrakhan^*
• a cloth with a curled pile resembling this fur

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^* Astrakhan^[10,12] is a city in southeastern Russia, on the delta of the Volga River near the Caspian Sea, 21 m (70 ft) below sea level.

4d   Sheep /in/ tricky mire, number sinking under it (6)

The merino^[5] is a sheep of a breed with long, fine wool.

5d   Something of value from the past // maiden's left Russian museum (8)

"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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The Hermitage^[5] is a major art museum in St Petersburg, Russia, containing among its collections those begun by Catherine the Great.

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Origin: Named with reference to the ‘retreat’ in which the empress displayed her treasures to her friends.

6d   More than one sign of hesitation about black /as/ a colour (5)

"black" = B (show explanation )

B^[5] is an abbreviation for black used in describing grades of pencil lead ⇒ 2B pencils.

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7d   Awful noise after officer /appears in/ British territories once? (8)

12d   One deemed to be no sluggard /in/ a part of the Bible (3)

15d   Criticised // frightfully bad meal with stone in it (9)

The stone^[5] (abbreviation st^[5]) is a British unit of weight equal to 14 lb (6.35 kg) ⇒ I weighed 10 stone.

16d   Not without blemish tuminq up, I admitted // skin problem? (8)

Apart from being a skin problem, this clue (my last one solved) proved to be a parsing problem. It took a very long time for the penny to drop.

18d   Enthusiast absorbs English newspaper, // something that's been discarded (8)

The Financial Times^[7] (abbreviation FT) is a British international business newspaper that is printed on conspicuous salmon pink newsprint.

21d   Greek character // contributing to Attic history (3)

Chi^[5] is the twenty-second letter of the Greek alphabet (Χ, χ).

Scratching the Surface
Attic[5] is an adjective meaning relating to ancient Athens or Attica*, or the dialect of Greek spoken there. * Attica[5] is a triangular promontory of eastern Greece. With the islands in the Saronic Gulf it forms a department of Greece, of which Athens is the capital.

22d   Where religious figure appears, // tearing raiment (7)

A minaret^[5] is a slender tower, typically part of a mosque, with a balcony from which a muezzin^* calls Muslims to prayer.

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^* A muezzin^[5] is a man who calls Muslims to prayer from the minaret of a mosque.

24d   Ahead, // where consultant may be, doing the rounds (6)

Consultant^[5] is a British term for a hospital doctor of senior rank within a specific field ⇒ a consultant paediatrician.

25d   Force // husband into condition of reliance (6)

27d   Treacherous type disposing of leader /gets/ support (5)

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