Tuesday, December 18, 2018 — DT 28795

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28795
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, July 19, 2018
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28795]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Kath
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

Today's puzzle is no walk in the park — but neither is it a gruelling challenge.

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   Around French friend, unique // item of lingerie (8)

Ami^[8] is the masculine form of the French word meaning 'friend'.

5a   Endeavour, perhaps, to get an A for each English // subject (6)

HMS Endeavour^[7] was a British Royal Navy research vessel that Lieutenant James Cook commanded to Australia and New Zealand on his first voyage of discovery from 1768 to 1771.

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Vassal^[5] is a historical term for a holder of land by feudal tenure on conditions of homage and allegiance.

10a   Islander at sea with his boat /is/ fabled mariner (6,3,6)

Sinbad the Sailor^[5] is the hero of one of the tales in the Arabian Nights, who relates the fantastic adventures he has during his voyages.

Delving Deeper

One Thousand and One Nights[7] (often known in English as the Arabian Nights) is a collection of West and South Asian stories and folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. The work was collected over many centuries by various authors, translators, and scholars across West, Central, South Asia and North Africa. The tales themselves trace their roots back to ancient and medieval Arabic, Persian, Indian, Egyptian and Mesopotamian folklore and literature. Some of the stories of The Nights, particularly "Aladdin's Wonderful Lamp", "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves", and "The Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor", while almost certainly genuine Middle Eastern folk tales, were not part of The Nights in Arabic versions, but were added into the collection by Antoine Galland and other European translators.

11a   Weighty // individual not totally awake (7)

12a   Embracing Northern chapter, leave terribly // isolated territory (7)

The abbreviation for chapter (likely in textual references) is c.^[2]

13a   Foreign noble // prisoner turned over valuable item (8)

This noble is foreign to the Brits. To Canadians, all nobles are foreign.

A contessa^[5] is an Italian countess^[5], the wife or widow of a count or a woman holding the rank of count in her own right.

15a   Measures // quadrangles (5)

Here and There

In North America, a yard[3] is a tract of ground next to, surrounding, or surrounded by a building or buildings. In Britain, a yard[4] is a piece of enclosed ground, usually either paved or laid with concrete and often adjoining or surrounded by a building or buildings. What we would call a yard (i.e., the land surrounding a house), the Brits would call a garden. In Britain, a garden[2,10] is an area of land, usually one adjoining a house, where grass, trees, flowers and other ornamental plants, fruit, vegetables, etc, are grown (i.e., what one would call a yard in Canada and the US). Note that a British garden includes the lawn as well as everything else whereas a North American garden would comprise only the flower and vegetable beds and any trees or shrubs contained therein and exclude the lawn and any trees or shrubs growing there.

18a   Regarded // slice of marmalade tart on the counter (5)

20a   Greek island storing oil, primarily as // preservative (8)

Note that the solution given by Kath in her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog is incorrect. The error is discussed in the comments but the explanation itself has not been corrected.

The preservative is spelt CREOSOTE and the wordplay is CRETE (Greek island) containing (storing) {O (oil primarily; initial letter of Oil) + SO (as)}.

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Crete^[5] is a Greek island in the eastern Mediterranean (show more ).

Crete is noted for the remains of the Minoan civilization which flourished there in the 2nd millennium BC. It fell to Rome in 67 BC and was subsequently ruled by Byzantines, Venetians, and Turks. Crete played an important role in the Greek struggle for independence from the Turks in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, becoming administratively part of an independent Greece in 1913.

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So^[5] is an adverb (used as submodifier, with negative) meaning to the same extent (used in comparisons) ⇒ (i) he isn't so bad as you'd think; (ii) help without which he would not have done so well.

As^[5] is an adverb used in comparisons to refer to the extent or degree of something ⇒ it tasted like grape juice but not as sweet.

23a   Particular // motor fuel developed (7)

Motor^[5] is an informal British term for a car ⇒ we drove out in my motor.

25a   Present // left on ship beside fish (7)

26a   Printed // one introduction to novel with Shades of Grey formula? (2,5,3,5)

Scratching the Surface

Fifty Shades of Grey[7] is a 2011 erotic romance novel by British author E. L. James. It is the first instalment in the Fifty Shades trilogy that traces the deepening relationship between a college graduate, Anastasia Steele, and a young business magnate, Christian Grey. It is notable for its explicitly erotic scenes featuring elements of sexual practices involving bondage/discipline, dominance/submission, and sadism/masochism (BDSM).

27a   New hip, yet ghastly // figure (6)

28a   Garment/'s/ stiff material beginning to itch and irritate back (8)

Down

1d   Dilapidated cart's bearing old // wheel (6)

2d   Fellow on leave /is/ climber (9)

Mangetout^[5] is the British name for the snow pea, a variety of pea with an edible pod, eaten when the pod is young and flat.

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Origin:  Early 19th century: from French, literally ‘eat all’.

3d   Play about Eastern area, // somewhere like Shanghai (7)

Shanghai^[5] is a city on the east coast of China, a port on the estuary of the Yangtze. (show more )

Opened for trade with the west in 1842, Shanghai contained until the Second World War areas of British, French, and American settlement. It was the site in 1921 of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party.

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4d   Item for sale, American // plant (5)

Lotus^[2] is the name of several species of water lily.

• a species of water lily sacred to the ancient Egyptians and often depicted in Egyptian art
• either of two species of water lily belonging to a separate genus, widely cultivated as ornamental plants, one native to Asia, with pink flowers and traditionally associated with Buddhism and Hinduism, and the other native to southern USA, with yellow flowers

The lotus of Greek mythology was not a water lily but the fruit of the jujube shrub, used by the ancient Greeks to make bread and wine, consumption of which was thought to produce a state of blissful and dreamy forgetfulness.

6d   Chaos /having/ refurbished ranch within a year (7)

7d   Regularly used staple's a // condiment (5)

8d   Heard what one needs to start Swiss // charity (8)

9d   Teenager changed // form (8)

14d   Rocky UK isle contains church // of that kind (8)

Suchlike^[5] is a pronoun denoting things of the type mentioned ⇒ carpets, old chairs, tables, and suchlike.

16d   Bringing back // wartime code-breaker around November to support soldiers (9)

Alan Turing^[5] (1912–1954) was an English mathematician. He developed the concept of a theoretical computing machine, a key step in the development of the first computer, and carried out important code-breaking work in the Second World War. He also investigated artificial intelligence.

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

"soldiers" = 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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17d   Bit // familiar, being discontented with director's instruction (8)

19d   Bold // of French automotive firm to acquire centre in Afghanistan (7)

"of French" = DE (show explanation )

In French, de^[8] is a preposition meaning 'of'' or 'from'.

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Fiat Automobiles S.p.A.^[7] (originally FIAT, Italian: Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino, lit. 'Italian Automobiles Factory, Turin') is the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy, part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.

21d   Wound // stung (7)

It took some convincing for me to accept the first definition, but in the end I came around.

According to The Chambers Dictionary, screw^[1] means to wind (with in, up, etc). I did manage to find a usage example at Oxford Dictionaries Online that uses both wind and screw in the same sentence in roughly this sense ⇒ You make a sandwich of the printing plate and the paper and some sort of pad on top of the paper, put it in the press and wind a handle to screw down the top plate of the press. I think one might equally well say ... to wind down the top plate of the press.

22d   Wife nervy about // monster (6)

In heraldry, a wyvern^[5] is a winged two-legged dragon with a barbed tail.

24d   Superhero's sidekick // not finished dressing (5)

Robin^[7] is the name of several fictional superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was initially a junior counterpart to the superhero Batman.

You Can't Tell the Robins Without a Program

Over the years, Robin[7] has had several incarnations. The character's first incarnation Dick Grayson appeared from 1940 through the early 1980s, at which time the character set aside the Robin identity and became the independent superhero Nightwing. The character's second incarnation Jason Todd appeared from 1983 until 1988, when the character was murdered by the Joker. Jason would later find himself alive after a reality changing incident, eventually becoming the Red Hood. The character's third incarnation Tim Drake appeared from 1991 to 2009, evolving over that period from sidekick to a superhero in his own right. In 2004 storylines, established DC Comics character Stephanie Brown became the fourth Robin for a short duration before the role reverted to Tim Drake. Damian Wayne succeeds Drake as Robin in 2009. In a 2011 continuity reboot, Tim Drake was revised as having assumed the title Red Robin, and Jason Todd, operating as the Red Hood, was slowly repairing his relationship with Batman. Dick Grayson resumed his role as Nightwing and Stephanie Brown was introduced anew under her previous moniker Spoiler. A 2016 continuity relaunch starts off with Damian Wayne as Robin, Tim Drake as Red Robin, Jason Todd as Red Hood, and Dick Grayson as Nightwing. Robins have also been featured throughout stories set in parallel worlds, owing to DC Comics' longstanding "Multiverse" concept. For example, in the original Earth-Two, Dick Grayson never adopted the name Nightwing, and continues operating as Robin into adulthood. In the New 52's "Earth-2" continuity, Robin is Helena Wayne, daughter of Batman and Catwoman, who was stranded on the Earth of the main continuity and takes the name Huntress.

25d   Animal, // according to Cockney, slept upside-down (5)

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).

Cockney is also the name of the dialect or accent typical of cockneys, which is characterised by dropping the aitch (H) from the beginning of words as well as the use of rhyming slang (show explanation ).

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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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