Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29264 | |
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph
Monday, January 20, 2020 | |
Setter
Campbell (Allan Scott) | |
Link to Full Review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29264] | |
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
Miffypops' cheeky pseudonym today is Harry Hewitt. To understand the joke (and the comments on Big Dave's Crossword Blog), one must be aware that former British Army cavalry officer James Hewitt[7] carried on an affair with Princess Diana from 1986 to 1991 while she was married to Prince Charles. There have been persistant rumours that he is also the biological father of Prince Harry. However, Harry was born in 1984, prior to the commencement of the affair.Apparently, this "conspiracy theory" regarding Harry's parentage has been alive and well since his childhood. And all this while, I have been blissfully unaware of it!
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 | Sublime // joke grasped by academic in charge (8) |
"in command " = IC
| 9a | Drug // I swallowed after operation (6) |
| 10a | Right // do well after Surrey's opener dropped (6) |
Scratching the Surface
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| Surrey[5] is a county of southeastern England. |
| 11a | Abruptly end // holiday away (5,3) |
Here and There
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The British use the word holiday(s) for what North Americans (especially our neighbours living south of the border) would call vacation[5]. (read more )
Holiday[5,10] (often holidays) is a chiefly British term for a period in which a break is taken from work or studies for rest, travel, or recreation ⇒ (i) I spent my summer holidays on a farm; (ii) Fred was on holiday in Spain. According to British dictionaries, the usual US and Canadian term for such a break is vacation. However, I am accustomed to hearing the two terms used almost interchangeably in this sense — in much the same manner that I would use fall and autumn interchangeably. This may not be the case in all parts of Canada, but I grew up in the Maritimes and have lived in Eastern Ontario for most of my life, both areas where British influence is particularly strong. In Britain, the word vacation[5] has a very specific meaning, a fixed holiday period between terms in universities and law courts ⇒ the Easter vacation. In North America, such a period might be called a break[7]. hide |
| 12a | What Open University offers // article outlined -- cut ad out (5,9) |
In the UK, the Open University[5] (abbreviation OU[5]) is a university that teaches mainly by broadcasting, correspondence, and summer schools, and is open to those without formal academic qualifications.
The Open University[7] is the largest university in the UK for undergraduate education. The majority of the OU's undergraduate students are based in the United Kingdom and principally study off-campus; many of its courses (both undergraduate and postgraduate) can also be studied anywhere in the world. Most of those studying are mature students with the majority of students in the 2015–16 academic year being between 25 and 34 years of age.
| 15a | Smash // slate (4) |
Slate[5] is an informal British term meaning to criticize severely ⇒
his work was slated by the critics.
| 17a | Fool nicking small // wrench (5) |
Here and There
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Judging by dictionary entries, the word "twit" may
have a slightly different connotation in the UK than it does in North
America. US dictionaries, for the most part, focus on the fact that such a person is a
pest whereas British dictionaries stress the person's lack of intellectual
capacity. (show more )
British dictionaries define variously
US dictionaries, on the other hand, define twit as an informal term for:
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As both a containment indicator and in the surface reading, nick[5] is used in an informal British sense meaning to steal ⇒
he'd had his car nicked by joyriders.
| 19a | Demanding // firm (4) |
| 20a | What to do when no longer having an axe to grind? (4,3,7) |
| 23a | Uncomplimentary // reviewer, a 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.
 |
| Automobile displaying an L-plate |
hide
| 25a | Constant companion /of/ Irish playwright holding party (6) |
George Bernard Shaw[5] (1856–1950) was an Irish dramatist and writer. His best-known plays combine comedy with a questioning of conventional morality and thought; they include Man and Superman (1903), Pygmalion (1913), and St Joan (1923). A socialist, he became an active member of the Fabian Society. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1925.
"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
| 27a | In // hotel, immersed in a large volume (2,4) |
"hotel " = H [NATO Phonetic Alphabet]
In what is commonly known as the NATO Phonetic Alphabet[7]*, Hotel[5] is a code word representing the letter H.
* officially the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet
hide
In what is commonly known as the NATO Phonetic Alphabet[7]*, Hotel[5] is a code word representing the letter H.
* officially the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet
hide
| 28a | Road safety features // in cases yet to be resolved (4-4) |
A cat's eye[7] (generic name) is a retroreflective safety device used in road marking which originated in the UK in 1934 and is today used all over the world. The company founded by the inventor of the device manufacturers them under the trademark Catseye® (which The Chambers Dictionary incorrectly spells as Cat's-eye[1]).
Down
| 1d | Beautiful // food, reportedly (4) |
| 2d | Page checked by very severe // correspondent (3,3) |
Penal[5] is used in the sense (used especially in relation to taxation or interest rates) extremely severe ⇒
avoid borrowing at penal rates of interest.
| 3d | Blackleg /in/ second taxi (4) |
Blackleg[5] is a derogatory British term for a person who continues working when fellow workers are on strike; in other words, a strike-breaker.
| 4d | Person, for example, associated with a // wine shop (6) |
Here and There
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On both sides of the Atlantic, bod[3,4,11] is slang for the physical human body or build ⇒ likes brainy men who maintain a good bod(Catherine Breslin). However, in Britain, bod[3,4,11] is also slang for a person ⇒ he's a queer bod. |
A bodega[5], especially in Spain and other Spanish-speaking countries, is a wine-shop or a warehouse for storing and maturing wine.
| 5d | Difficult: // getting credit on top of loans is hard (8) |
Tick[5] (used in the phrase on tick) is an informal British term meaning credit ⇒
the printer agreed to send the brochures out on tick.
Origin: The term apparently originates as a short form for ticket in the phrase on the ticket, referring to an IOU or promise to pay.
| 6d | Man -- name sure confused // hospital worker (5,5) |
In Britain, a staff nurse[5] is an experienced nurse less senior than a sister[5](a senior female nurse, typically in charge of a ward in a hospital) or charge nurse[5] (a nurse in charge of a ward in a hospital).
| 8d | River round York's centre /in/ flood (7) |
The Trent[5] is the chief river of central England, which rises in Staffordshire and flows 275 km (170 miles) generally north-eastwards, uniting with the River Ouse 25 km (15 miles) west of Hull to form the Humber estuary.
Scratching the Surface
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York[5] is a city in North Yorkshire, northern England, on
the River Ouse. (show more )
The Romans occupied the site, known as Eboracum, from AD 71 until about AD 400; in AD 867 it was taken by the Vikings. It is the seat of the Archbishop of York and is noted for its magnificent cathedral, York Minster. hide |
| 13d | Consider // intentional (10) |
| 14d | Join // squad, English (5) |
| 16d | French revolutionary leader leading honourable // race (8) |
Jean-Paul Marat[10] (1743–1793) was a French revolutionary leader and journalist. He founded the radical newspaper L'Ami du peuple and was elected to the National Convention (1792). He was instrumental in overthrowing the Girondists (1793); he was stabbed to death in his bath by Charlotte Corday.
The abbreviation Hon.[5] stands for Honourable when used in titles of the British nobility, members of parliament and some other politicians, and (in the US) judges.
| 18d | Male not in to send out // carriage (7) |
| 21d | Permit /produced by/ tense wife leaving gate (6) |
A wicket[5] (also wicket door or wicket gate) is a small door or gate, especially one beside or in a larger one.
Here ... but not there
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| Wicket[5] in the sense of an opening in a door or wall, often fitted with glass or a grille and used for selling tickets or a similar purpose is apparently a North American usage. |
| 22d | Large hole /in/ case presented by barrister at the end (6) |
| 24d | Easy to lose head /in/ defeat (4) |
Slick[5] is used in the sense of done or operating in an impressively smooth and efficient way.
| 26d | Sign /of/ ladies losing weight (4) |
Key to Reference Sources:
[1] - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
[2] - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
[3] - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
[4] - TheFreeDictionarycom (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
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