Wednesday, April 29, 2020 — DT 29174

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 29174
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Saturday, October 5, 2019
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29174 – Hints] Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29174 – Review]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Big Dave (Hints) crypticsue (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

This is a puzzle where the setter has laid lots of traps and I had to battle for every inch of territory. However, with considerable perseverance, I eventually managed to prevail without resorting to electronic aids.

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
"//" - marks the boundary between wordplay and definition when no link word or link phrase is present "/[link word or phrase]/" - marks the boundary between wordplay and definition when a link word or link phrase is present	"solid underline" - precise definition "dotted underline" - cryptic definition "dashed underline" - wordplay "double underline" - both wordplay and definition
Click here for further explanation and usage examples of markup conventions used on this blog.

Across

1a	They boost growth /of/ young theatre audiences (11)

7a	Barnet's gone flat? You should 'ave this // emergency action (7)

If the setter drops an H in the wordplay, the solver is expected to do likewise in the solution.

Barnet^[5] is an informal British term for a person's hair ⇒ It was an American era of big moustaches, buffed-up barnets, industrial-strength sideburns and intimidating, tightly permed chest hair.

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Origin: From rhyming slang barnet fair, the name of a famous horse fair held at Barnet, Hertfordshire.

What did she say?

In her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, crypticsue writes A Cockney might refer to his hair as his ‘barnet’ .... Cockneys[5,10], the natives of that part of East London known as the East End[5], speak a dialect (also known as cockney) that 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. hide

8a	Sell // cars? (7)

Double definition. The question mark indicates that cars are but an example of what might constitute the solution.

10a	Heard grower identify // drug dealer? (8)

This is a speak like a Brit homonym. Pronounced in a non-rhotic (show explanation ) accent typical of dialects found in many parts of Britain (especially southeastern England), the word "FARMER" sounds like "FAHMAH" and the word "PHARMACY" sounds like "PHAHMACY" .

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.

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I consider the definition to be cryptic as I am sure the owner of this establishment would much prefer to be known as a purveyor of pharmaceuticals.

11a	Watering hole // state's sited in Etna's core (6)

Cryptic or Not?

What is a cryptic definition and what is not a cryptic definition? "Watering hole" is a metaphorical allusion to a tavern as a place where animals congregate to drink. Although this bears all the hallmarks of a cryptic definition, I have not marked it as such because it is a commonly used expression for a drinking establishment. On the other hand, in reference to 1a, 'growth booster' is not a well-known term for a greenhouse. Neither is it an entirely straightforward description of what a greenhouse does. Thus I have not considered the definition there to be cryptic. As a further example, in 5d, "they keep water out" is a fairly straightforward description of what a seawall does and so I do not consider it to be cryptic. Admittedly, the classification decision is not always clear-cut and often rather subjective.

Scratching the Surface
The surface reading is certainly a bit bizarre, to say the least. Mount Etna[5] is a volcano in eastern Sicily, rising to 3,323 m (10,902 ft). It is the highest and most active volcano in Europe.

13a	Free // love then dash off (4)

Dash off ... as one would a handwritten note.

14a	One reckons // copper should cut appeal and roll over (10)

"copper " = CU

The symbol for the chemical element copper is Cu^[5] (from late Latin cuprum).

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Rota^[5] is a British term for a list showing when each of a number of people has to do a particular job ⇒ a cleaning rota.

16a	Absurd /and/ sadly ludicrous one should wear that (10)

How's That?

On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, crypticsue explains the wordplay thus: An anagram (sadly) of LUDICROUS ‘wearing’ or going round I (one) For those attempting to follow this explanation, let me point out that she appears to have made a bit of an error*. She is correct in saying that "LUDICROUS [is] going round I (one)". However, she is incorrect in saying that "LUDICROUS [is] ‘wearing’ I (one)"; in actual fact, "LUDICROUS ‘is being worn by’ I (one)" or, in other words, "I (one) is wearing LUDICROUS". I'm sure this was nothing more than a moment of inattention by a very busy lady who manages to solve as many puzzles in a day as I do in a week. Looking at the wordplay in more detail, we can see that it provides a series of two steps for the solver to follow. To make matters more challenging, the demarcation between the steps is not shown. Thus the solver must decipher where one step ends and the next begins. The first step is "sadly ludicrous" or an anagram of LUDICROUS. The second step is "one should wear that" ['that' referring to the result of Step 1]. Thus putting it all together, we have "I (one) should wear an anagram of LUDICROUS".

18a	Animal // pound holds up to twelve in the day (4)

21a	It's mad busting // in (6)

22a	One saves offshore // if able to, getting conversion (8)

If you thought immediately of a foreign tax haven, then the setter achieved his objective.

24a	Record's verse // part (7)

"record " = EP

EP^[10] (abbreviation for extended-play) is one of the formats in which music is sold, usually comprising four or five tracks. An EP contains more cuts than a single^[5] but fewer than an LP or long-playing^[5] record.

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25a	Rehearsed // section of orchestra in Edinburgh (7)

26a	More than one follower in family // and sect ends badly (11)

More misdirection from the setter. Hand's up everyone who thought of a family like that of Charlie Manson^[7].

Down

1d	Scraps // clothes used before maturity (7)

2d	Mystery // ingredient of Seagram gin -- enjoyment's up! (6)

What a Disaster!

In its roughly 140 year history, Seagram Company[7] rose from a small distiller of Canadian whisky based in Waterloo, Ontario in the mid-1800s, to be a Canadian multinational conglomerate that was the largest owner of alcoholic beverage lines in the world. However, in the mid-1990s control of the company passed to the next generation in the person of Edgar Bronfman Jr. and it did not take long for the once proud company to be destroyed. By the turn of the century, the company's assets had been sold off piecemeal to buyers around the world. Charles Bronfman (uncle of Bronfman Jr.) stated that the decisions leading to the demise of Seagram was "a disaster, it is a disaster, it will be a disaster...It was a family tragedy."

3d	Pronounced // absence of frozen stuff used in eating place (10)

4d	Little beasts, knocking off street // food (4)

The stoat^[5] (also known as the ermine, especially when in its white winter coat) is a small carnivorous mammal (Mustela erminea) of the weasel family which has chestnut fur with white underparts and a black-tipped tail. It is native to both Eurasia and North America and in northern areas the coat turns white in winter. In North America, it is known as the short-tailed weasel.

5d	They keep water out // as well as looking different (3,5)

6d	To get a rise, Foreign Office's exam /is/ least difficult (7)

Foreign Office^[5] (abbreviation FO^[5]) is short for Foreign and Commonwealth Office^[5], the British government department dealing with foreign affairs. [You may recall having seen this term appear recently in my continuing series on abbreviations used in cryptic crossword puzzles.]

7d	Accepted // lift (11)

9d	Given // change but no credit (11)

12d	Familiar // sweet filling maestro put on starter for dinner (10)

Sweet^[5] is used in the sense of charming and endearing.

Maestro^[10] is used in the sense of any man regarded as the master of an art: often used as a term of address.

15d	When they meet, something usually gets nicked (8)

Scratching the Surface
It is highly likely that there is a bit of intended misdirection here based on nick[5] being an informal British term meaning to steal ⇒ she nicked fivers from the till.

17d	Came to worship from north and south (7)

I see the entire clue as a cryptic definition which has an embedded precise definition. The double underline identifies the precise definition while the dotted underline marks the cryptic elaboration that tells us that the precise definition is a palindrome.

19d	Numbers /getting/ answer peak, with small following (7)

"small " = S [clothing size]

S^[5] is the abbreviation for small (as a clothing size).

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20d	Secure once more, // say, entering shower? (6)

23d	Sounds like the inevitable // event for charity (4)

Fete^[5] (also fête) is a British term for a public function, typically held outdoors and organized to raise funds for a charity, including entertainment and the sale of goods and refreshments ⇒ a church fete.

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 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)

Signing off for today — Falcon