Tuesday, October 23, 2018 — DT 28755

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28755
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Saturday, June 2, 2018
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28755 – Hints] Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28755 – Review]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Big Dave (Hints) gnomethang (Review)
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
Notes
As this was a Saturday "Prize Puzzle" in Britain, there are two entries related to it on Big Dave's Crossword Blog — the first, posted on the date of publication, contains hints for selected clues while the second is a full review issued following the entry deadline for the contest. The vast majority of reader comments will generally be found attached to the "hints" posting with a minimal number — if any — accompanying the full review.

Introduction

I found this challenging and enjoyable puzzle to be quite a step up from a typical "Saturday Prize Puzzle".

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

Notes on Today's Puzzle

This commentary is intended to serve as a supplement to the review of this puzzle found at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

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 The Story 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   Next // X-ray should be here in hospital directory (10)

6a   Sport where players change clubs with no transfer fee (4)

Transfer fee^[5] is a British term for a fee paid by one soccer or rugby club to another for the transfer^* of a player.

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^* Transfer^[10] (said of a football [soccer] player, especially a professional) denotes to change clubs or (said of a club, manager, etc.) to sell or release (a player) to another club.

9a   Take /and/ squander? (5)

Take^[5] is used in the sense of to require or use up (a specified amount of time) ⇒ take time to smell the roses.

10a   Plastic egret -- nice, /should be/ animated (9)

12a   Cabinet perhaps // goes off to the Left -- maturity comes later? (7)

Off^[10] (said of food or drink) means having gone bad, sour, etc ⇒ this milk is off.

13a   Rambling pair left /for/ thirty days (5)

15a   Taking part in sportswear, a cheat /reveals/ something wrong in the head (7)

17a   Proclaim /as/ leader of the Americans and French (7)

"and French" = ET (show explanation )

In French, et^[8] is a conjunction meaning 'and'.

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19a   Lose heart, /having/ endless need to accommodate dad ... (7)

21a   ... following grasping half-idle // mum (7)

Although mum generally means silent, I think it can be considered to mean silence in the phrase mum's the word^[10] which denotes that silence or secrecy is to be observed.

22a   One's trapping in river // areas (5)

"one" ⇒ "ace" = A (show explanation )

A^[5] is an abbreviation for ace (in card games).

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The word "in" seems to have been thrown in merely to achieve a smooth surface reading. I can find no evidence of there being an expression "trap in" to justify its use in the wordplay.

24a   Funny thing, // there's nothing in packet (7)

27a   Schools with no one left /to get/ bus, maybe (9)

28a   King being shown in reduced // one's rank, having stripes (5)

"king" = K (show explanation )

K^[5] is an abbreviation for king that is used especially in describing play in card games and recording moves in chess.

hide explanation

The surface reading here is certainly far from elegant. It remains ugly, even with the insertion of a couple of pauses (King, being shown in, reduced one's rank, having stripes).

29a   Assess // velocity (4)

30a   This person tucking into meat shuns prepared // relish (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, (the or this) speaker, (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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Down

1d   Most of capital area is upwardly mobile // too (4)

Oslo^[5] is the capital and chief port of Norway, on the south coast at the head of Oslofjord. Founded in the 11th century, it was known as Christiania (or Kristiania) from 1624 until 1924 in honour of Christian IV of Norway and Denmark (1577–1648).

2d   Hoards /made by/ 29 ground squirrels, oddly (9)

The numeral "29" 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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3d   After artist died, half of score /is/ set to be heard (5)

"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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4d   Norm /is/ too old, rejecting one blood type after another (7)

I puzzled a very long time before the parsing of this clear became clear. You start with OVERAGE (too old); you then remove (rejecting) the O (one blood type) to get VERAGE; finally you place what remains after A (another [blood type]).

Initially, I surmised that "after" might have some obscure meaning along the lines of "to be replaced by". However, that line of investigation proved fruitless.

5d   Nuisance, having to shore up river /that's/ most low (7)

The Dee^[5,7] could refer to any of several rivers in Scotland and England as well as Ireland and Australia, the most prominent being:

• a river in northeastern Scotland, which rises in the Grampian Mountains and flows eastwards past Balmoral Castle to the North Sea at Aberdeen
• a river that rises in North Wales and flows past Chester and on into the Irish Sea

7d   Being seen by water /getting/ more warm, going topless (5)

"Being" here is a noun.

8d   Ladies -- /maybe/ diverting if it's Alice, or maddening if it's Celia? (10)

This clue has a single definition and two sets of wordplay. By the way, read the link word ("maybe") as though it were two words ("may be").

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The ladies^[5] is a British term for a women’s public toilet.

Facilities^[2] is a euphemistic word 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.

11d   Step-by-step // rag for playing as a pair (7)

14d   School captain/'s/ striking effort, blocked by post ... (10)

In soccer, a header^[5] is a shot or pass made with the head.

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Headmaster^[5] (abbreviation HM^[5]) is a chiefly British term for a man who is the head teacher in a school.

16d   ... roughly misses -- // he sets up these sessions (7)

Usually, ellipses simply extend the surface reading across the clues they link. However, in the present case, they serve a more important function — indicating that the pronoun "he" relates back to the solution to 14d.

18d   Projection that water won't quite go round (9)

20d   Commander's tracked vehicle reversed over // animal (7)

CO^[5] is the abbreviation for Commanding Officer.

The parsing of this clue seems a bit awkward — mostly because it is written in the past tense:

• CO (commander; commanding officer) is following ('s tracked; contraction for 'has tracked') a reversal (reversed) of CAR (vehicle) + ON (over; above or on top of)

Scratching the Surface
In the surface reading, "reversed" is the British way of saying 'backed up'.

21d   Improvised // score (7)

The first definition equates to scratch^[5] (adjective) in the sense of assembled or made from whatever is available, and so unlikely to be of the highest quality ⇒ City were fielding a scratch squad.

23d   Engineers show // what chemicals may do (5)

"engineers" = RE (show explanation )

The Corps of Royal Engineers^[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers^[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.

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25d   Sulphur used in crop // driers (5)

The symbol for the chemical element sulphur is S^[5].

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An oast^[2] is:

• a kiln for drying hops or, formerly, malt
• (also oast house) a building, usually with a conical roof, containing such kilns.

26d   Small Korean ruler // over-the-top scoop! (4)

Kim Jong-un^[5] has been the leader of North Korea since 2011.

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