Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 28863 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Saturday, October 6, 2018 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28863 – Hints]Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28863 – Review] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
Big Dave (Hints)crypticsue (Review) | |
BD Rating
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| 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
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Notes
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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.
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Introduction
In her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, crypticsue awards this puzzle four stars for enjoyment — and I would certainly not disagree with that assessment.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:
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The review of a clue takes the following general structure:
#a/d Clue containing parsing markup (num*)
* num = numeration
Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)
(Horizontal separator)
Explanatory Box
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| 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:
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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.
ExamplesI 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.
A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.
The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:
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).
- 4d Fellow left work // a failure (4)
The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:
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.
- 29a Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)
The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:
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/).
- 18d Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)
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)
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 Escort service provider perhaps -- // bribe with £500 (6,6)
The informal expression grease the palm of[5] means to bribe (someone) ⇒
the branch is alleged to have greased the palms of 130 politicians.
Monkey[5] is an informal British term for a sum of £500.
Escort[7] is a brand name used by Ford Motor Company for several vehicle models sold in different markets at various times:
| A variant of the Ford Squire estate car [station wagon] built and marketed in the United Kingdom from 1955 to 1961 |  |
| A vehicle manufactured by Ford Europe from 1968 to 2002 |  |
| A compact car manufactured for the North American market from 1980 to 2003 |  |
| A Ford Focus-based compact car for the Chinese market since 2015 |  |
Grease monkey[5] is an informal name for a mechanic.
9a Encourage // team with player sent off after try (7)
Eleven[5] is the number of players in* a cricket[7] side [team] or an Association football[7] [soccer] team — and is frequently used as a metonym for such a team ⇒
at cricket I played in the first eleven.
* Note that, in Britain, the words "side" and "team" are synonymous and a player is said to be "in a side" or "in a team" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.
Thus, doing the math, a "team with player sent off" equates to ten.
Scratching the Surface
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| The surface reading suggests a contest on a sports field rather than a proceeding in a court of law. In rugby, a try[5] (also called touchdown[5]) is an act of touching the ball down behind the opposing goal line, scoring points* and entitling the scoring side to a kick at goal. * generally five points but, in Rugby League, only four points[10] Note that although the surface reading might lead one to suspect that the clue refers to a rugby team, it really refers to a soccer or cricket team as rugby union[10] is played between teams of 15 players while rugby league[5] is contested by teams of thirteen. |
10a See a book spy pocketed, // not being secure (7)
The Latin term vide[2,5] (abbreviation vid., v[2] or v.) denotes refer to. see, or consult (used as an instruction in a text to refer the reader to a specified passage, book, author, etc., for further information) ⇒
vide the comments cited in Schlosser.
"book" = B [publishing] (show explanation )
The abbreviation for book is b[1,12] (or b.).*
* Although neither of the two dictionaries in which a listing for this abbreviation is found provide information on the context in which it is used, I would guess that it might be in publishing, in particular in bibliographies or footnotes and endnotes in academic works when referencing one or more books in a series of books ⇒
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The abbreviation for book is b[1,12] (or b.).*
* Although neither of the two dictionaries in which a listing for this abbreviation is found provide information on the context in which it is used, I would guess that it might be in publishing, in particular in bibliographies or footnotes and endnotes in academic works when referencing one or more books in a series of books ⇒
see b. 3, p. 233.
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11a Drip in hostelry coming back /for/ lots of drinks (5-2)
Hostelry[5] is an archaic or humorous term for an inn or pub.
Booze-up[10] is British, Australian and New Zealand slang for a drinking spree.
What did he say?
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In his hints on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Big Dave refers to the "hostelry" as beingMy fellow blogger Miffypops, who writes the reviews on Big Dave's Crossword Blog on Mondays, is the proprietor of The Green Man, a pub in Long Itchington, Warwickshire, England.like that run by Miffypops.  |
12a California men in charge // concerned with heat (7)
"men" = OR (show explanation )
In the British armed forces, the term other ranks[5] (abbreviation OR[5]) refers to all those who are not commissioned officers.
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In the British armed forces, the term other ranks[5] (abbreviation OR[5]) refers to all those who are not commissioned officers.
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"in charge" = IC (show explanation )
13a Still engages a second // worker in brewery (5)
14a Strong wine and potatoes from Indian, // they provide temporary relief (9)
"strong wine" = PORT (show explanation )
Indian[5] is an informal British term for an Indian meal or restaurant.
Aloo[5] (also spelled alu) is the Indian name for potato.
Portaloo[5] (trademark) is a British term for what is known in North America as a porta-potty (also Porta Potti), a portable building containing a toilet*.
16a Like some carphones // made by robots? (5-4)
19a American soldier going after my // dog (5)
"American soldier" = GI (show explanation )
A GI[5] is a private soldier in the US army ⇒
Origin: 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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A GI[5] is a private soldier in the US army ⇒
she went off with a GI during the war.
Origin: 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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Cor[5] is an informal British exclamation expressing surprise, excitement, admiration, or alarm ⇒
Cor! That‘s a beautiful black eye you’ve got!.
21a Guide // broadcast of person cooking spicy food (7)
Courier[5] is a British term for a person employed to guide and assist a group of tourists ⇒
he worked as a courier on a package holiday to Majorca.
Although I am unable to find the word in my dictionaries. apparently a curryer is "someone cooking spicy food" — possibly a term invented by the setter of the puzzle.
You Don't Say!
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| Homophone clues often spark controversy and this one seems to have divided the Big Dave commentariat more than most. I certainly pronounce the two words similarly. While I could not find a British speech sample for the cook, that for the guide (LISTEN) given by Oxford Dictionaries Online certainly sounds like what I would imagine the non-rhotic British pronunciation of the the cook to be.
I definitely pronounce the two words similarly. While I could not find a
British speech sample for the term for the "cook", that for the name of the "guide" given by
Oxford Dictionaries Online certainly sounds like () how I would imagine the term for the "cook" to be pronounced in a non-rhotic (show explanation
) British accent.
Non-rhotic accents omit the sound < r > in certain situations, while rhotic accents generally pronounce < r > in all contexts. Among the several dozen British English accents which exist, many are non-rhotic while American English (US and Canadian) is mainly rhotic. This is, however, a generalisation, as there are areas of Britain that are rhotic, and areas of America that are non-rhotic. For more information, see this guide to pronouncing < r > in British English. hide |
23a Large number // move aimlessly forward round island (7)
24a Puzzles // formulated in games (7)
25a Moves softly, // softly forward in games (7)
"softly" = P [music notation] (show explanation )
Tie[5] is is used in a British sense meaning a sports match between two or more players or teams in which the winners proceed to the next round of the competition ⇒
Swindon Town have gained themselves a third round tie* against Oldham.
* This does not mean — as a North American might suppose — that Swindon Town and Oldham played to a draw in the third round. Rather, it means that Swindon Town defeated their opponent in the second round and will move on to face Oldham in the third round.
What did he say?
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In his hints on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Big Dave tells us that we needThe short answer is that I have no idea where this comes from. Clearly, it is not the same adverb that we encountered in 23a although the two adverbs ostensibly share the same meaning.that adverb we saw in 23a. The Chambers Dictionary lists to[1] as an adverb meaning forward but gives no examples of this usage. After a long search, I finally found an example in a US source, Webster’s New World College Dictionary ⇒ his hat is on wrong side to[12]. |
26a Half-heartedly cleaning mule // station (7,5)
Char[5] (verb) is an informal British term meaning to work as a charwoman ⇒
she'd had to char and work in a grocery store to put herself through university.
A mule[5] is the offspring of [or cross between] a donkey and a horse (strictly, a male donkey and a female horse), typically sterile and used as a beast of burden.
Charing Cross railway station[7] (also known as London Charing Cross) is a central London railway terminus between the Strand and Hungerford Bridge in the City of Westminster. It is connected to Charing Cross Underground [subway] station[7].
Down
1d Ran gaol cruelly /as/ alternative to porridge (7)
Scratching the Surface
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| Gaol[10] is a British variant spelling of jail. Porridge is an informal British expression* for either:
* The expression apparently derives from porridge once being the traditional breakfast in UK prisons. |
2d Beg, // heading off from downtown area before time (7)
3d Two features of seaside introducing parking /for/ one that likes paddling (9)
Pleasure piers have been a fixture of British seaside resorts since the early 19th century. (show more )
Pleasure piers[7] were first built in Britain during the early 19th century with the earliest structure being the Ryde Pier on the Isle of Wight, opened in 1814. At that time the introduction of the railways for the first time permitted mass tourism to dedicated seaside resorts. The large tidal ranges at many such resorts meant that for much of the day, the sea was not visible from dry land. The pleasure pier was the resorts' answer, permitting holidaymakers to promenade over and alongside the sea at all times. Providing a walkway out to sea, pleasure piers often include amusements and theatres as part of the attraction. The world's longest pleasure pier is at Southend-on-sea, Essex, and extends 1.3 miles (2.1 km) into the Thames estuary.
Following the building of the world's first seaside pier at Ryde, the pier became fashionable at seaside resorts in England and Wales during the Victorian era, peaking in the 1860s with 22 being built in that decade. A symbol of the typical British seaside holiday, by 1914, more than 100 pleasure piers were located around the UK coast. In a 2006 UK poll, the public voted the seaside pier onto the list of icons of England.
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Pleasure piers[7] were first built in Britain during the early 19th century with the earliest structure being the Ryde Pier on the Isle of Wight, opened in 1814. At that time the introduction of the railways for the first time permitted mass tourism to dedicated seaside resorts. The large tidal ranges at many such resorts meant that for much of the day, the sea was not visible from dry land. The pleasure pier was the resorts' answer, permitting holidaymakers to promenade over and alongside the sea at all times. Providing a walkway out to sea, pleasure piers often include amusements and theatres as part of the attraction. The world's longest pleasure pier is at Southend-on-sea, Essex, and extends 1.3 miles (2.1 km) into the Thames estuary.
Following the building of the world's first seaside pier at Ryde, the pier became fashionable at seaside resorts in England and Wales during the Victorian era, peaking in the 1860s with 22 being built in that decade. A symbol of the typical British seaside holiday, by 1914, more than 100 pleasure piers were located around the UK coast. In a 2006 UK poll, the public voted the seaside pier onto the list of icons of England.
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"parking" = P |
Paddle[10] is used in the sense of to walk or play barefoot in shallow water, mud, etc.
The sandpiper[5] is a wading bird with a long bill and typically long legs, nesting on the ground by water and frequenting coastal areas on migration.
4d Operatic heroine's career's beginning // to take off (5)
Mimi is the tragic heroine of the opera La bohème[7] by Italian composer Giacomo Puccini (1858–1924). Mimi is also the name of the heroine of the 1996 Broadway musical Rent[7] which is based on La bohème.
5d Short literary work // Fitzgerald produced after a month (7)
Ella Fitzgerald[5] (1917–1996) was an American jazz singer, known for her distinctive style of scat singing.
Scratching the Surface
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| F. Scott Fitzgerald[5] (1896–1940) was an American novelist. His novels, in particular The Great Gatsby (1925), provide a vivid portrait of the US during the jazz era of the 1920s. |
6d Ban // so restricts business expert (7)
7d Husband cheating initially trapped by investigator, // the old twister (6,7)
US singer Chubby Checker[6] (born Ernest Evans) popularized dance crazes such as “The Twist” (1960).
Scratching the Surface
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Twister[5] is an informal British term for a swindler or a dishonest person ⇒ she's a back-stabbing, double-dealing twister. |
8d One working in the kitchen // cooked sports cuisine (13)
Kitchen[5] is an informal term for the percussion section of an orchestra.
15d Like dodgy joint // that could give me haircut (9)
17d Some misdemeanour is hard // to encourage (7)
18d Something sparkling // cook gently keeps hot (7)
Shimmer[5] (noun) denotes a soft, slightly wavering light ⇒
a pale shimmer of moonlight.
19d Song // itinerant plays in company (7)
As well as being a genre of music, calypso[5] can also denote a song of that style ⇒
a man was playing a calypso on a double bass.
20d Calamitous // sport with oval ball in America takes over (7)
The "sport with oval ball" is rugby and not North American football — which itself has its roots in rugby. Rugby union[10] (abbreviation RU[5]) is a form of rugby football played between teams of 15 players (in contrast to rugby league[5], which is played in teams of thirteen).
Delving Deeper
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| Maybe professional rugby will eventually take over in Canada. At least, it seems to have established a beachhead. The Toronto Wolfpack[7] are a Canadian professional rugby league club, based in Toronto, which competes in the Betfred Championship [the second tier of the English Rugby Football League]. The team began playing in 2017 in League 1 [tier three] and won a promotion in its inaugural season. In 2018 the club competed in the Championship [tier two] and The Qualifiers, where it was one win away from promotion to the top-tier Super League. Wolfpack will return to the Championship in 2019. The club is the first North American team to play in the Rugby Football League system, the first fully professional rugby league team in Canada and the first transatlantic rugby league team. It has recently been announced that a group of investors has purchased an English rugby team with the intention of relocating it to Ottawa. The Hemel Stags[7] is a rugby league club based in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England which has played in Betfred League 1 [tier three] since the 2013 season but has withdrawn from the league for the 2019 season. The plan is to move the team to Ottawa and compete as a member of League 1 in the 2020 season. As Ottawa and Toronto would be competing in different tiers (unless Toronto were to be relegated this year), it is hard to say if we might see the two Canadian teams play each other. However, it would not appear to be out of the question as, in soccer, Toronto F.C. (of the MLS) does on occasion play matches against — and sometimes lose to — Ottawa Fury F.C. (of the USL Championship). While it may seem strange to have a Canadian team in an English sports league, a member of the ownership group has pointed out that it costs less to fly to England than it does to fly to many destinations within Canada. |
"over" = O [cricket term] (show explanation )
22d Geordie teacher got up // out of bed (5)
Geordie[5] is an informal British term for a person from Tyneside[5], an industrial conurbation on the banks of the River Tyne, in northeastern England, stretching from Newcastle upon Tyne to the coast. Used as an adjective, it denotes relating to Tyneside, its people, or their accent or dialect ⇒
Geordie humour.
It is common practice for British school students to address (or refer to) their male teachers as "Sir", as in To Sir, with Love[7], a 1967 British drama film starring Sidney Poitier that deals with social and racial issues in an inner-city school.
Key to Reference Sources:Signing off for today — Falcon
[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)
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