Thursday, June 20, 2019 — DT 28930

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28930
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, December 24, 2018
Setter Mister Ron (Chris Lancaster)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28930]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Miffypops
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

With temperatures in Ottawa in the mid- to upper- 20° C range, perhaps we should consider today's puzzle to be an Australian Christmas treat.

In Comment #1 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, crypticsue remarks that people who don’t like Christmas-themed crosswords ... are going to be very chuffed with this one. Fortunately, Rabbit Dave is quick to point out 'Chuffed' is one of those delightfully bizarre English words which is an antonym of itself.^*

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^* The only meaning of chuffed^[5] of which I was aware is as an informal British term meaning very pleased ⇒ I’m dead chuffed to have won. Apparently, chuffed^[1,10] can also mean disgruntled, displeased, unhappy, etc. — although I first discovered this meaning in a US dictionary as it appears in only one of my several British dictionaries.

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 program, 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 directly from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion similar to one that would be found in a dictionary
• 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 (for example, defining topiary as "clip art")
• a "whimsical definition": a definition "invented" by the setter often by extrapolating a non-existent meaning for a word from a similar word (for example, defining a bird as a "winger" [something possessing wings] or a river as a ''flower" [something that flows] or to extrapolate that, since disembowel means 'to remove the innards of ', that discontent must mean 'to remove the contents of')
• a "definition by example": the presence of one of these is often flagged with a question mark (for example, defining atoll as "coral?" where an atoll is but one form that coral may take).

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 other varieties of definition (such as cryptic definitions, whimsical definitions, definitions by example, etc.) 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	Crazily scream 'It's myrrh!' /as/ a festive greeting (5,9)

Scratching the Surface
Myrrh[5] is a fragrant gum resin obtained from certain trees and used, especially in the Near East, in perfumery, medicines, and incense. According to the Biblical account, it was one of the gifts brought by the wise men to the baby Jesus (Matthew 2:1-12).

9a	Answer Rodney's brother and assistant: // cook turkey on the barbie here? (8)

Derek "Del Boy" Trotter (usually shortened to simply Del) and his younger brother Rodney are fictional characters on the British television sitcom Only Fools and Horses^[7] which was originally broadcast on BBC in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991 with sporadic Christmas specials continuing until 2003.

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Barbie^[5] is an informal Australian^* and New Zealand term for a barbecue.

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^* "hint, hint"

Adelaide^[5] is a city in Australia, the capital and chief port of the state of South Australia.

As Australia is in the Southern Hemisphere, Christmas occurs there during the summer barbecue season.

10a	Wake up // party animal to receive seconds (5)

12a	Sing happily // till drunk (4)

13a	Get rid of // nameless relation playing around with Bet (10)

Scratching the Surface
Bet[7] is a common pet name for Elizabeth[7] or many of its numerous shortened forms such as Beth[7], Betsy[7], or Betty[7].

15a	Dodgy Hogmanay // tree (8)

Scratching the Surface
Hogmanay[5] is the Scottish New Year’s Eve, and the celebrations that take place at this time.

16a	Possibly meet men to follow // shooting star? (6)

"men" = OR [other ranks] (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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18a	Doubtful // Queen will return after occasionally funny slur (6)

"Queen" = ER [regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth] (show more )

The regnal ciphers (monograms) of British monarchs are initials formed from the Latin version of their first name followed by either Rex or Regina (Latin for king or queen, respectively). Thus, the regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth is ER^[5] — from the Latin Elizabetha Regina.

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20a & 25d

Very late collection /for/ a seasonal service (8,4)

Midnight Mass^[5] is a mass celebrated at or shortly before midnight, especially on Christmas Eve.

23a	Remove limitations on // Germany and Spain regarding 75% of Strictly (10)

"Germany" = D [IVR code] (show explanation )

 
German Licence Plate Format
(The IVR code is on the left below the EU flag emblem)

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) country code for Germany is D^*[5].

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^* from German Deutschland

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"Spain" = E [IVR code] (show explanation )

Spanish Licence Plate Format
(The IVR code is on the left below the EU flag emblem)

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) code for Spain is E^*[5].

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^* from Spanish España

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Scratching the Surface
Strictly Come Dancing[7] (informally known as Strictly) is a British television dance contest, featuring celebrity contestants, with professional dance partners competing in a ballroom and Latin dance competition.

24a	Slump over // dessert? (4)

"over" = O [cricket term] (show explanation )

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation O^[5] denotes over(s), an over^[5] being 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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Sago^[7] is a starch extracted from the spongy centre, or pith, of various tropical palm stems. It is a major staple food for the lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Moluccas — not to mention British school students (to whom it is popularly — or, perhaps more accurately, unpopularly — known as frogspawn).

Sago is often produced commercially in the form of "pearls". Sago pearls can be boiled with water or milk and sugar to make a sweet sago pudding. Sago pearls are similar in appearance to tapioca pearls and the two may be used interchangeably in some dishes. In the UK, both sago and tapioca have long been used in sweet milk puddings which, apparently, are an unwelcome staple at British boarding schools.

Boarding School Humour?
Hastalosco Jones introduces what may be a bit of British boarding school humour at Comment #8 alluding to an old riddle Question: How do you start a pudding race? Answer: Sago (pronounced 'say go').

26a	Complain about one // girl (5)

27a	Stress // most of hamper upset little sister (8)

28a	Sozzled sellers sense stocking books /could show/ persistence (14)

"books" = NT (show explanation )

In Crosswordland, the term "books" — and related phrases such as "collection of books" or "religious books" — are commonly used to clue either the Old Testament (OT) or the New Testament (NT). Today, as is often the case, the clue provides no indication whether the reference is to the former or the latter.

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Down

2d	Leader of reindeer facing terrible holdup? (7)

The entire clue is both definition and wordplay.

The "terrible holdup" faced by the reindeer is a Christmas Eve fog that threatens to prevent Santa from making his rounds. Rudolph comes to the rescue — his glowing red nose lighting the way.

Delving Deeper

The story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer[7] first appeared in a 1939 booklet written by Robert L. May and published by Montgomery Ward, a US department store. May's brother-in-law, Johnny Marks, adapted the story of Rudolph into a song. Gene Autry's recording of the song hit No. 1 on the Billboard pop singles chart the week of Christmas 1949. Autry's recording sold 2.5 million copies the first year, eventually selling a total of 25 million, and it remained the second best-selling record of all time until the 1980s.

3d	Thou shalt broadcast, // Noel! (4)

4d	Musical group // that keeps things tidy on top? (8)

Hair^[7] (extended title: Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical) is a 1967 rock musical ... (show more )

... with a book and lyrics by James Rado and Gerome Ragni and music by Galt MacDermot. A product of the hippie counter-culture and sexual revolution of the 1960s, several of its songs became anthems of the anti-Vietnam War peace movement. The musical's profanity, its depiction of the use of illegal drugs, its treatment of sexuality, its irreverence for the American flag, and its nude scene caused much comment and controversy. The musical broke new ground in musical theatre by defining the genre of "rock musical", using a racially integrated cast, and inviting the audience onstage for a "Be-In" finale.

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Post Mortem
I inadvertently obtained the correct solution from the illustration in Miffypops' review. I had actually pencilled in HAIRBUNS* with a note to investigate further — then carelessly neglected to do so. [Note to self; read "notes to self" before starting to write the review.] * "Hair buns" may well "keep things tidy on top"; unfortunately, the numeration would be (4,4) rather than (8).

5d	Son leaves somewhere cold /for/ somewhere warmer (6)

"son" = S [genealogy] (show explanation )

In genealogies, s^[5] is the abbreviation for son(s) ⇒ m 1991; one s one d^*.

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^* married in 1991; one son and one daughter.

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Siberia^[5] is a vast region of Russia, extending from the Urals to the Pacific and from the Arctic coast to the northern borders of Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and China. Noted for the severity of its winters, it was traditionally used as a place of exile; it is now a major source of minerals and hydroelectric power.

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Iberia^[10] is another name — and, according to Oxford Dictionaries Online, the ancient name^[5] — for the Iberian Peninsula, comprising the countries of Spain and Portugal.

6d	A lucky bit of 11? (10)

The numeral "11" is a cross reference indicator to clue 11d (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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Bit^[2] is an obsolete British term (used in compounds) for a coin, especially a small coin ⇒ threepenny bit.

Before the introduction of decimal currency in Britain in 1971, the threepence coin^[7], usually simply known as a threepence, thruppence, or threepenny bit, was a unit of currency equaling one eightieth of a pound sterling, or three old pence sterling. It was used in the United Kingdom, and earlier in Great Britain and England. Threepence coins minted prior to 1936 were small silver coins. Although a larger and much heavier brass threepence coin was introduced in 1936, circulation silver threepences also continued to be minted until 1945.

In late Victorian England, it was common practice to include small silver coins in the Christmas pudding mixture, which could be kept by the person whose serving included them. The usual choice was a silver threepence or a sixpence. The coin was believed to bring wealth in the coming year.^[7] As several comments on Big Dave's Crossword Blog make clear, the coins hidden in the Christmas pudding were the silver version not the brass version shown in the illustration used by Miffypops in his review.

7d	Praise // grown-up getting to grips with a charade at last (7)

8d	Star with allowance /for/ party (11)

11d	Papa surprisingly muddling up // what's served with brandy sauce (4,7)

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

Christmas pudding^[7] is a type of pudding^* traditionally served as part of the Christmas dinner in the UK, Ireland and in other countries where it has been brought by British immigrants. It has its origins in medieval England, and is sometimes known as plum pudding or just "pud", though this can also refer to other kinds of boiled pudding involving dried fruit. (show more )

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^* Whereas, in North America, the term pudding^[5] specifically means a dessert with a soft or creamy consistency, in Britain it denotes a much broader range of sweetened usually cooked desserts.

Despite the name "plum pudding", the pudding contains no actual plums due to the pre-Victorian use of the word "plums" as a term for raisins. The pudding is traditionally composed of thirteen ingredients, symbolizing Jesus and the Twelve Apostles, including many dried fruits held together by egg and suet, sometimes moistened by treacle or molasses and flavoured with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and other spices.

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The pudding is usually aged for a month or more, or even a year; the high alcohol content of the pudding prevents it from spoiling during this time. To serve, the pudding is reheated by steaming once more, and dressed with warm brandy which is set alight. It can be eaten with hard sauce (usually brandy butter or rum butter), cream, lemon cream, ice cream, custard, or sweetened béchamel, and is sometimes sprinkled with caster sugar.

14d	Showing anger, // aggrieve oddball eating just the outer parts of sprouts (10)

17d	Cut up good English // Xmas treat (5,3)

Pi^[5] is an informal British short form for pious.

19d	One troubled by the past, present and future? (7)

Ebenezer Scrooge^[7] is the focal character of Charles Dickens' 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the book, Scrooge is a cold-hearted miser who despises Christmas. Towards the end of the novella, Scrooge is transformed by ghosts into a better person who changed his ways to become more friendly and less miserly.  The tale of his redemption by the three Ghosts of Christmas (Ghost of Christmas Past, Ghost of Christmas Present, and Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) has become a defining tale of the Christmas holiday in the English-speaking world.

21d	Female relative that is stealing gift, ultimately: // it's hard (7)

22d	Trio travelling to take in Eastern newborn, initially -- from here? (6)

The Three Wise Men^[10] (or Three Magi^[10]) are the the wise men from the east^* who came to do homage to the infant Jesus (Matthew 2:1-12).

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^* Matthew is the only one of the four canonical gospels to mention the Magi. Matthew reports that they came "from the east" to worship the "king of the Jews". The gospel never mentions the number of Magi, but most western Christian denominations have traditionally assumed them to have been three in number, based on the statement that they brought three gifts. In Eastern Christianity, especially the Syriac churches, the Magi often number twelve.^[7]

25d

See 20a

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