Wednesday, July 18, 2018 — DT 28682

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28682
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, March 9, 2018
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28682]
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

After giving several false alarms recently, my pangram^* detector totally failed me today.

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^*a puzzle in which the solutions to the clues include at least one instance of every letter in the alphabet

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: "*" 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

1a   Bill about to enter woodland /that's/ divine (8)

5a   Make sense of // marine unit (6)

A fathom^[5] is a unit of length equal to six feet (1.8 metres), chiefly used in reference to the depth of water ⇒ sonar says that we're in eighteen fathoms.

9a   Funny chap Eric brought to head /for/ indolence (8)

Eric Idle^[7] is an English comedian, actor, voice actor, author, singer-songwriter, musician, writer and comedic composer. Idle is a member of the English surreal comedy group Monty Python, a member of the parody rock band The Rutles, and the author of the Broadway musical Spamalot.

"head" = NESS (show explanation )

Ness^[5] (a term usually found in place names) means a headland or promontory ⇒ Orford Ness.

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10a   Pipe /in/ underground passage changed at the entrance (6)

12a   Holy group beginning to voice our // relish (6)

SA^[5] is the abbreviation for Salvation Army.

13a   Moving /with/ aim to settle in Herts town (8)

Tring^[7] is a small town in Hertfordshire, England situated 30 miles (48 km) north-west of London. Settlements in Tring date back to prehistoric times. Today, it is largely a commuter town within the London commuter belt.

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Trending^[5] is used in the sense of changing or developing in a general direction ⇒ unemployment has been trending upwards.

15a   Unnatural pose to employ /in/ embrace (7)

16a   Money put down -- little time to waste /for/ Oriental drink (4)

Sake^[5,10] (or saké^[10] or saki^[5,10]) is a Japanese alcoholic drink made from fermented rice, traditionally drunk warm in small porcelain cups.

20a   What curiously /is/ the opposite of 22? (4)

The numeral "22" is a cross reference indicator (show more ).

To complete the clue, a solver must replace the cross reference indicator with the solution to the clue starting in the light^* identified by the cross reference indicator.

The cross reference indicator may include a directional indicator but this is customarily done only in situations where there are both Across and Down clues originating in the light that is being referenced.

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^* light-coloured cell in the grid

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21a   Commanding officer with onset of hunger tucked into cheese // roll (7)

OC^[5] is the abbreviation for Officer Commanding ⇒ shall I give the necessary orders to OC F Company, sir?.

Brie^[5] is a kind of soft, mild, creamy cheese with a firm white skin.

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Brioche^[5] is a light sweet yeast bread typically in the form of a small round roll ⇒ (i) she ate a brioche and drank milky coffee; (ii) scallops crumbed in brioche.

If this clue raised questions in your mind, you might wish to peruse the discussion in the thread arising from Comment #7 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog.

25a   Sort of business person // no longer given beer (8)

Porter^[5] is a dark brown bitter beer brewed from malt partly charred or browned by drying at a high temperature (originally made as a drink for porters).

26a   Settle down temporarily /in/ enclosure with a politician (6)

"politician" = MP (show explanation )

In Britain (as in Canada), a politician elected to the House of Commons is known as a Member of Parliament^[10] (abbreviation MP^[5]) or, informally, as a member^[5].

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28a   Country // artist starts to enjoy landscape on far side of island (6)

"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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29a   Fellow hugging one companion, soldier going round // American state (8)

"companion" = CH (show explanation )

A Companion of Honour (abbreviation CH) is a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour^[7], an order of the Commonwealth realms^[7] founded by King George V in June 1917 as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion.

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"soldier" = GI (show explanation )

A GI^[5] is a private soldier in the US army ⇒ she went off with a GI during the war.

Contrary to popular belief, the term apparently is not an abbreviation for general infantryman, but rather derives from the term government (or general) issue (originally denoting equipment supplied to US forces).

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30a   Good American, he had // demonstrated sentimentality (6)

"good" = G (show explanation )

The abbreviation G^[a] for 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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31a   Despatched from 'ere /in/ a few words? (8)

An aitch dropped by the setter in the clue — in imitation of cockney speech mannerisms (show explanation ) — indicates that the solver must also drop one in the solution.

A cockney^[5,10] is a native of East London [specifically that part of East London known as the East End^[5]], traditionally one born within hearing of Bow Bells (the bells of St Mary-le-Bow^[7] church).

The cockney^[5] dialect is characterized by dropping the aitch (H) from the beginning of words as well as the use of rhyming slang^[5].

Rhyming slang^[5] is a type of slang that replaces words with rhyming words or phrases, typically with the rhyming element omitted. For example, butcher’s, short for butcher’s hook, means ‘look’ in cockney rhyming slang. 

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Down

1d   Fragile // insect around is getting maiden hiding (6)

"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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What did he say?

In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Deep Threat describes this as A Russian doll clue. A matryoshka doll, also known as a Russian nesting doll, stacking dolls, or Russian doll, is a set of wooden dolls of decreasing size placed one inside another. The name "matryoshka", literally "little matron", is a diminutive form of Russian female first name "Matryona" or "Matriosha". Matryoshka dolls are often referred to as "babushka dolls", babushka meaning "grandmother" or "old woman". Clues, such as this one, where the solution is formed by nesting one piece inside a second piece and, in turn, nesting the result inside yet another piece are often described as such.

2d   Bank inadequate -- this person's // experience for a second time (6)

"this person's" = IVE (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.

Today, the setter has made the scenario slightly more complicated by combining "this person" with the verb "to have"^* producing "this person's" (a contraction of "this person has") which must be replaced by "I've" (a contraction of "I have").

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^* Although in the surface reading "this person's" is showing possession, for cryptic purposes it is interpreted as a contraction of "this person has".

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3d   Conservative is on adventure /to achieve/ victorious outcome (8)

"Conservative" = CON (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.

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^* 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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4d   Band /of/ specially trained troops on top of hotel (4)

In the UK, the Special Air Service^[5] (abbreviation SAS^[5]) is a specialist army regiment trained in commando techniques of warfare, formed during the Second World War and used in clandestine operations, frequently against terrorists.

Hotel^[5] is a code word representing the letter H, used in radio communication.

6d   Old boys // in maul after reunion (6)

In Britain, an old boy^[5] is a former male student of a school or college ⇒an old boy of Banbury County School.

7d   Give one award for playing for /being/ put at a disadvantage (8)

A cap is an "award for playing for [one's country]".

Cap^[5] is a British term for:

• a cap awarded as a sign of membership of a particular sports team, especially a national team [a team representing a country in international competition] ⇒ he has won three caps for Scotland
• a player to whom a cap is awarded ⇒ a former naval officer and rugby cap.

What did he say?

In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Deep Threat describes a cap as the award given to a sportsman for playing in an international side. Side[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒ there was a mixture of old and young players in* their side. * Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America. Furthermore, in the definition for cap above, note the use of "membership of a ... team" rather than "membership on a ... team". In North America, the term side[3] can be used in a very general fashion to denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples: Previous England rugby sides, and England teams in many other sports, would have crumbled under the weight of such errors.  They'll face better sides than this Monaco team, but you can only beat what's put in front of you.

8d   Traduced // mum showing furrowed brow, we hear? (8)

11d   City /offering/ quiet repose? No, upset! (7)

"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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Preston^[5] is a city in northwestern England, the administrative centre of Lancashire, on the River Ribble. It was the site in the 18th century of the first English cotton mills.

14d   Trip /in/ vessel ending in Greece with happiness spreading round (7)

17d   Always getting caught in police trap, // manoeuvring car? (8)

18d   Seductive females full of anger -- // they want blood! (8)

19d   Bird -- // that which covers short distance (8)

The whinchat^[7] is a small migratory passerine bird breeding in Europe and western Asia and wintering in central Africa.

According to resident birdwatcher Jane in a response to Comment #6 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, this bird "graces [British] shores from April to September".

22d   From what we hear, discharges // stop abruptly (6)

23d   Sheep falling over trap /in/ border area (6)

A gin^[2] (also gin trap) is a wire noose laid as a snare or trap for catching game.

24d   Victoria describes one // drunkard (6)

Victoria sponge^[5] (also Victoria sandwich) is a British term for a cake consisting of two layers of sponge^* made with additional fat and filled with jam.

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^* Sponge^[1,2,5,10] is a British shortened form for sponge cake.

27d   Ms Blyton turns up // to have a meal (4)

Enid Blyton^[5] (1897–1968) was an English writer of children’s fiction. Her best-known creation for young children is the character Noddy, who first appeared in 1949; her books for older children include the series of Famous Five and Secret Seven adventure stories.

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