Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29284 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, February 12, 2020 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29284]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
2Kiwis | |
BD rating
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| Difficulty - ★★★ | Enjoyment - ★★★★ |
Falcon's experience
┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐
███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ | |
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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
Jay seems to have upped the difficulty level a notch in today's puzzle.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
| 1a | On a trip with press, it transformed // cult leaders (4,7) |
| 9a | Walrus, perhaps // has to hurt crossing over (9) |
Walrus[1] is an informal name for a walrus moustache[5], a long, thick, drooping moustache.
Do You Remember ... ?
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This clue may stir memories for Ottawa hockey fans. During the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoff quarterfinal series between the Montreal Canadiens and the Ottawa Senators, Montreal player Brandon Prust referred to then Ottawa coach Paul MacLean as a "bug-eyed, fat walrus". The outcome? The "walrus" coached his team to a decisive victory — defeating the heavily favoured Canadiens in the best of seven series four games to one. |
| 10a | Type /of/ sultanate on the east of Qatar (5) |
Oman[5,7], officially the Sultanate of Oman, is an Arab country at the southeastern corner of the Arabian peninsula.
Scratching the Surface
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| Qatar[5] is a sheikhdom occupying a peninsula on the west coast of
the Persian Gulf. The country was a British protectorate
from 1916 until 1971, when it became a sovereign independent state. Oil
is the chief source of revenue. In the real world, Oman is southeast of Qatar and the two countries do not share a border. |
Roman[5] is type of of a plain upright kind used in ordinary print, especially as distinguished from italic and Gothic.
| 11a | Vote in // case of reasonable performance (6) |
A turn[5] is a short performance, especially one of a number given by different performers in succession ⇒ (i)
Lewis gave her best ever comic turn; (ii)
he was asked to do a turn at a children’s party.
| 12a | Watering hole /of/ a bloodsucker seen outside Delhi regularly (8) |
Alehouse[5] is a dated term for an inn[5]* or public house[5]**.
* in the sense of a pub, typically one in the country, in some cases providing accommodation
** formal British term for pub
Scratching the Surface
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| Delhi[5] (also known as Old Delhi) is a
walled city on the River Jumna in north central India, which was made
the capital of the Mogul empire in 1638 by Shah Jahan (1592–1666). Delhi is not to be confused with New Delhi[5], the capital of India, a city in north central India built 1912–29 to replace Calcutta (now Kolkata) as the capital of British India. With Delhi, it is part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. |
| 13a | Most important to net river and lake // fish (6) |
The marlin[2] (also called spearfish) is a large fish found in warm and tropical seas which has a long spear-like upper jaw.
| 15a | America // developing muscle and losing Democrat (5,3) |
"Democrat " = D [member or supporter of US political party]
Uncle Sam[5] is a personification of the federal government or citizens of the US. It is said (from the time of the first recorded instances) to have arisen as an expansion of the letters US.
| 18a | 1950s youth /from/ current book featuring in play (5,3) |
"book " = B
The abbreviation for book is b[1] (or b.[1]) or B[12].*
* 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 ⇒
hide
The abbreviation for book is b[1] (or b.[1]) or B[12].*
* 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.
hide
Teddy boy[5] is a slang term originally applied to a young man belonging to a subculture in 1950s Britain characterized by a style of dress based on Edwardian fashion (typically with drainpipe trousers, bootlace tie, and hair slicked up in a quiff* and a liking for rock-and-roll music. The name comes from from Teddy, pet form of the given name Edward (with reference to Edward VII's reign). Judging by the entry in the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, it would appear that the term Teddy boy[2] is now applied to any unruly or rowdy adolescent male.
* Quiff[3,4] is a chiefly British term for a prominent tuft of hair, especially one brushed up above the forehead.
| 19a | Eliminates // English jokes in speech (6) |
| 21a | Uranium in reactor upset // union official (8) |
Eurocrat[5] is an informal — and chiefly derogatory — term for a bureaucrat in the administration of the European Union.
| 23a | Work in regressive places /for/ bung (4,2) |
"work " = OP [opus]
In music, an opus[5] (Latin 'work', plural opuses or opera) is a separate composition or set of compositions.
The abbreviation Op.[5] (also op.), denoting opus, is used before a number given to each work of a particular composer, usually indicating the order of publication. The plural form of Op. is Opp..
Opus[5] can also be used in other contexts to denote an artistic work, especially one on a large scale ⇒
hide
In music, an opus[5] (Latin 'work', plural opuses or opera) is a separate composition or set of compositions.
The abbreviation Op.[5] (also op.), denoting opus, is used before a number given to each work of a particular composer, usually indicating the order of publication. The plural form of Op. is Opp..
Opus[5] can also be used in other contexts to denote an artistic work, especially one on a large scale ⇒
he was writing an opus on Mexico.
hide
| 26a | Upset, a steward will admit // discrimination (5) |
| 27a | Unexpected contender /may be/ mysterious, and worrying her so (4,5) |
| 28a | Firearm found after lesson /is/ an antique (6,5) |
A period piece[10] is an object, a piece of music, a play, etc, valued for its quality of evoking a particular historical period: often one regarded as of little except historical interest.
Down
| 1d | Boring // hospital doctor beset by signs of indecision (7) |
| 2d | Noise /made by/ little one after end of feeding (5) |
| 3d | In a pretty poor // sort of suit for father? (9) |
| 4d | Measure // edge (4) |
| 5d | Squeal about fine // increasing (8) |
Sing[10] is a mainly US slang term meaning to confess or act as an informer.
| 6d | This girl // owns up about artist (5) |
"artist " = RA
A Royal Academician (abbreviation RA[10]) is a member of the Royal Academy of Arts[5] (also Royal Academy; abbreviation also RA[10]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain.
hide
A Royal Academician (abbreviation RA[10]) is a member of the Royal Academy of Arts[5] (also Royal Academy; abbreviation also RA[10]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain.
hide
| 7d | Menu as set must include starter of bass /or/ ray (7) |
| 8d | Urges // simple reforms covering university -- and succeeded (8) |
| 14d | Aid workers, // looking embarrassed and annoyed (3,5) |
| 16d | Sets fire to joint /as/ warning for sailors (9) |
A lightship[5] is a moored or anchored boat with a beacon light to warn or guide ships at sea ⇒
The boat was a lightship, essentially a lighthouse on a ship, a ship with a lighthouse stuck in the middle of it.
| 17d | Less enthusiastic about a new // riddle (8) |
A riddle[5] is a large coarse sieve, especially one used for separating ashes from cinders or sand from gravel.
| 18d | Latent heat remaining should conceal // drama (7) |
| 20d | Best // resume novel, picking up quietly (7) |
| 22d | The chap wearing flat hat /is/ vulgar (5) |
"The chap " = HE
Chap[3,4,11] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[3] term for a man or boy — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada. It is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].
[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is considered by the Brits to be a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.
hide
Chap[3,4,11] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[3] term for a man or boy — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada. It is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].
[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is considered by the Brits to be a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.
hide
| 24d | Sample initially put into sterile // bag (5) |
| 25d | Spirit /of/ writer transformed internally (4) |
Biro[5] is a British trademark for a brand of ballpoint pen. However, the name is used generically for a ballpoint pen (in the same way that kleenex has become a generic term for facial tissue).
Origin: named after László József Bíró (1899–1985), the Hungarian inventor of the ballpoint pen
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] - Lexico (formerly Oxford Dictionaries Online) (Oxford Dictionary of English)
[6] - Lexico (formerly Oxford Dictionaries Online) (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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