Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29175 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Monday, October 7, 2019 | |
Setter
Uncredited — likely Campbell (Allan Scott) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29175] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By
Miffypops | |
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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Introduction
An especially gentle puzzle today — easy even by "Monday" standards.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.
| Markup Conventions | |
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| Click here for further explanation and usage examples of markup conventions used on this blog. | |
Across
| 7a | Apricot tart contains // soft cheese (7) |
Ricotta[2] is a soft white unsalted Italian curd cheese made from sheep's or cow's milk and often used in sauces for ravioli, lasagne, etc.
| 9a | Theatrical company rented playhouse, finally // full (7) |
Rep[2,5] is an informal short form for repertory theatre (also simply repertory). It can refer either to the practice of performing of various plays, operas, or ballets by a company at regular short intervals ⇒
once, when I was in rep, I learned Iago in three days) or to a repertory theatre or company ⇒
the Birmingham Rep*.
* Birmingham Repertory Theatre[7], commonly called Birmingham Rep or just The Rep, is a theatre located in Birmingham, England.
"rented" = LET (show explanation )
Let[5] is a British* term meaning to allow someone to have the use of (a room or property) in return for regular payments ⇒ (i)
* However, based on its appearance in US dictionaries, I seriously doubt that this word is quite as British as Lexico (formely Oxford Dictionaries Online) would have us believe.[3,11]
hide
Let[5] is a British* term meaning to allow someone to have the use of (a room or property) in return for regular payments ⇒ (i)
she let the flat [apartment] to a tenant; (ii)
they’ve let out their house.
* However, based on its appearance in US dictionaries, I seriously doubt that this word is quite as British as Lexico (formely Oxford Dictionaries Online) would have us believe.[3,11]
hide
| 10a | Waterway // shown in plan, a channel to the west (5) |
| 11a | One responsible for arranging // rare song, I suspect (9) |
| 12a | Deliberately ignore // the alternative method after search (4,3,5,3) |
| 13a | Perhaps Ulster/'s/ best film (7) |
An ulster[5] is a man’s long, loose overcoat of rough cloth, typically with a belt at the back.
Scratching the Surface
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| Ulster[10] is a widely-used [albeit considered inaccurate by many*] informal name for the UK province of Northern Ireland. * Historically Ulster was a province and former kingdom of northern Ireland which passed to the English Crown in 1461. In the 17th century, confiscated land was given to English and Scottish Protestant settlers giving rise to serious long-term conflict. Ulster was partitioned in 1921, with six counties [Antrim, Down, Armagh, Londonderry, Tyrone, and Fermanagh] forming Northern Ireland (a province within the United Kingdom) and three counties [Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan] joining the Republic of Ireland. |
| 16a | One feels // queen should be repelled by insect (7) |
Anne[7] (1665–1714) became Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Acts of Union, two of her realms, the kingdoms of England and Scotland, united as a single sovereign state, the United Kingdom of Great Britain. She continued to reign as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland until her death.
| 19a | This may prove a comfort to one who's just retired (8,7) |
Retired ... but merely for the night.
| 23a | Spirit /of/ leading investor (9) |
In general use, an archangel[5] is an angel of greater than ordinary rank; more specifically, in traditional Christian angelology, a being of the eighth-highest order of the ninefold celestial hierarchy.
| 24a | Piece of furniture, // one skirted by cleaner (5) |
Char[5] is an informal British term for charwoman[5] (or charlady[5]), a dated British name for a woman employed as a cleaner in a house or office.
What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops describes this cleaner asHis comment is an allusion to a character from the BBC radio comedy programme It's That Man Again[7] (or, commonly, ITMA) which ran from 1939 to 1949. It featured popular characters such as Colonel Chinstrap and Mrs. Mopp in comic situations often related to current war news. ITMA was credited with sustaining wartime morale.your daily Mrs Mop (sic). The programme generated certain catchphrases that long outlived the series — among them being cleaning lady Mrs Mopp's query "Can I Do* You Now, Sir?". * Do[5] is an informal British expression meaning to do the cleaning for a person or household ⇒ Florrie usually did for the Shermans in the mornings. Of course, it has other connotations as well! The title ITMA refers to a contemporary phrase concerning the ever more frequent news-stories about Nazi leader Adolph Hitler in the lead-up to the Second World War. |
| 25a | A male aboard pilot // ship (7) |
| 26a | Order to economise /is/ to no avail (7) |
Down
| 1d | Pair allowed /in/ band (8) |
A brace[10] is a pair, especially of game birds ⇒
a brace of partridges.
| 2d | Knife // fight about it upset student (8) |
"student " = L [driver under instruction]
The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various jurisdictions (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.
hide
The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various jurisdictions (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.
hide
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| Automobile displaying an L-plate |
| 3d | Old man having part to play /in/ prisoner's conditional release (6) |
| 4d | Bum /in/ boozer (6) |
Scratching the Surface
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| In British English, boozer[5] is not only an informal term for a person who drinks large quantities of alcohol but also an informal term for a pub or bar. |
| 5d | Whingers disconcerted // US composer (8) |
George Gershwin[5] (1898–1937) was an American composer and pianist, of Russian-Jewish descent; born Jacob Gershovitz. He composed many successful songs and musicals, the orchestral work Rhapsody in Blue (1924), and the opera Porgy and Bess (1935). The lyrics for many of these were written by his brother Ira Gershwin (1896–1983).
Here and There
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| Whereas North Americans merely whine, it would seem that Brits both whine and whinge. Whinge[5] is an informal British term that means:
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| 6d | Courage shown by last in convoy /in/ sound (6) |
Hearty[5] is used in the sense of (said of a person) strong and healthy ⇒
a formidably hearty spinster of fifty-five.
| 8d | Against having party /in/ flat (5) |
"party " = DO
Do[5,12] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[12] term* for a party or other social event ⇒
* although Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12] supports the contention by Oxford Dictionaries Online[5] that this usage is British, two other US dictionaries do not characterize do[3,11] used in this sense as a British term
hide
Do[5,12] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[12] term* for a party or other social event ⇒
the soccer club Christmas do.
* although Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12] supports the contention by Oxford Dictionaries Online[5] that this usage is British, two other US dictionaries do not characterize do[3,11] used in this sense as a British term
hide
Here and There
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Flat[5] is the British term for what would be called an apartment[5] in North America. (show more )
The term apartment is used in Britain, but seemingly in a more restricted sense than in North America applying to either temporary or upscale accommodation. As Lexico (formerly Oxford Dictionaries Online) puts it, an apartment[5] is:
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| 9d | Great at manoeuvring /in/ series of yacht races? (7) |
| 14d | Representative turned up, ringing about a church // minister (8) |
| 15d | Provoke // tense scaffolder? (7) |
A rigger[5] is a person who erects and maintains scaffolding, cranes, etc. ⇒
I rely upon labourers, riggers, and construction workers.
| 17d | Not this dear French // stateswoman (8) |
The masculine form of the French word for dear is cher[8].
Margaret Thatcher[5], Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven (1925–2013) was a British Conservative stateswoman, prime minister 1979–90. She was the country's first female prime minister, and became the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century.
| 18d | Star /in/ East, twinkling, seen by chance (8) |
| 19d | Undergraduate ultimately failing // to pass (6) |
| 20d | Shock /finding/ uniform inside streetcar, American (6) |
"uniform " = U [NATO Phonetic Alphabet]
In what is commonly known as the NATO Phonetic Alphabet[7]*, Uniform[5] is a code word representing the letter U.
* officially the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet
hide
In what is commonly known as the NATO Phonetic Alphabet[7]*, Uniform[5] is a code word representing the letter U.
* officially the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet
hide
Tram[5] (also tramcar) is a British term for streetcar[5], a passenger vehicle powered by electricity conveyed by overhead cables, and running on rails laid in a public road.
| 21d | Remark addressed to a back-seat driver that's double-edged? (4,2) |
Belt up[5] is an informal British admonishment to be quiet ⇒
for God's sake, belt up.
| 22d | Jack, // deceitful man (5) |
{END COMMON TEMPLATE}
{START EPILOGUE TEMPLATE}
Epilogue
{Insert EPILOGUE here}{END EPILOGUE TEMPLATE}
{START RESOURCES TEMPLATE}
Symbols:
En dash : –
Em dash : —
Bullet : •
Dashed underline (transparent): [xx]
Dotted underline (transparent): [xx]
Double underline (transparent): [xx]
Solid underline (transparent): [xx]
Dropped dashed underline (transparent): [xx]
Dropped dotted underline (transparent): [xx]
Dropped solid underline (transparent): [xx]
To double underline:
Outer span style: style="border-bottom: 2px dotted; display: inline-block; margin-bottom: 3px;"
Inner span style: style="border-bottom: 2px dashed;"
5d {content_inner_1}{content_inner_2}{content_inner_3}{content_inner_4}{content_inner_5}{content_inner_6}{content_outer} (7)
Arrow bullet (single) : ⇒
X. [code = &_#8658; (remove "_")]
Arrow bullet (multiple) : ⇒ (i)
X; (ii)
X. [code = &_#8658; (remove "_")]
HTML center code: style="text-align: center;"
HTML code to stop text wrapping: br clear="left|right|all"
HTML show/hide code (insert following id="examplex"): onclick="showHide('outsize_OS');return false;"
Image dimensions: (original) 560 x 315; 420 x 236; (in box) 400 x 225;
Code to disable related videos on YouTube embed: ?rel=0 at end of URL
To make background transparent use Online Image Editor (https://www.online-image-editor.com/)
To remove white border around images place style="border: 0px;" in the image tag
To insert "Listen" button (copy and past in HTML window): ()
To remove bullets from an unordered list place style="list-style-type: none;" in the ul tag
To create a left-aligned horizontal line place style="margin-left: 0; text-align: left; width: 75%;" in the hr tag
| {content} |
| {Main text* } * {Subtext} |
Scratching the Surface
Delving Deeper Here and There The Story Behind the Picture | |
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| In the surface reading, {content} |
What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops writes{content}.... |
What are they talking about?
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On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, {commenter(s)} write(s){content}.... |
Link to resources : "link text"
Superscript : [1] .[2] .[3] .[4] .[5] .[6] .[7] .[8] .[9] .[10] .
[#]
[#]
[#]{Main text* }
* {Subtext}
[#]{Anchor} .
Origin:
| {Anchor} . Facts: |
{END RESOURCES TEMPLATE}
{START SIGNOFF TEMPLATE}
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 Advanced 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)
