Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29315 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Thursday, March 19, 2020 | |
Setter
RayT (Ray Terrell) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29315]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Miffypops | |
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
On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, today sees the completion of the swap of blogging assignments between pommers (who, going forward, will review puzzles that appear in the UK on Monday) and Miffypops who henceforth will share responsibility with Kath for puzzles that appear on Thursday. By the way, from his blog today, it is difficult to tell whether Big Dave is running a crossword blog or a book club.Miffypops never assigns a star rating to puzzles. The ratings that are included in his reviews are always supplied by someone else — usually Big Dave, although the rating for today's puzzle was provided by crypticsue. I must say I am rather surprised to see that she rated it ****/***** for difficulty!
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 | Shone with cryptic decrypted /showing/ brilliance? (12) |
Pyrotechnics[5] is used in the figurative sense of a brilliant performance or display of a specified skill ⇒
he thrilled his audience with vocal pyrotechnics.
| 8a | Roll over following dog/'s/ keeper (7) |
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.
| 9a | Bridled admitting Government's head // was in power (7) |
| 11a | Foreign art /of/ old, fake French china (7) |
"old " = O [linguistics]
In linguistics, O[12] is the abbreviation for Old ⇒ (i)
However, a second entry from this same source shows o (lower case) meaning old (not capitalized) suggesting that the use of this abbreviation may not necessarily be confined to the field of linguistics.
Another possibility arises from the British abbreviation OAP[5] standing for old-age pensioner.
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In linguistics, O[12] is the abbreviation for Old ⇒ (i)
OFr[Old French]; (ii)
OE[Old English].
However, a second entry from this same source shows o (lower case) meaning old (not capitalized) suggesting that the use of this abbreviation may not necessarily be confined to the field of linguistics.
Another possibility arises from the British abbreviation OAP[5] standing for old-age pensioner.
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In Britain, china[5] is an informal term for a friend (or, as the Brits would say, a mate*). This meaning comes from cockney rhyming slang (show explanation ), where china is the shortened form of china plate which rhymes with 'mate'.
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.
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* In Britain, mate[5] — in addition to being a person’s husband, wife, or other sexual partner — is an informal term for a friend or companion ⇒
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.
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* In Britain, mate[5] — in addition to being a person’s husband, wife, or other sexual partner — is an informal term for a friend or companion ⇒
my best mate Steve.
Ami[8] is the masculine form of the French word meaning 'friend'.
Origami[5] is the Japanese art of folding paper into decorative shapes and figures.
| 12a | Backing canvas held /making/ bloomers (7) |
When I first encountered the word 'bloomer' in the sense of a flowering plant, I supposed it was another one of those whimsical cryptic crossword constructions — like a river being described as either a flower (something that flows) or a banker (something possessing banks). However, it turns out to be a legitimate dictionary definition, a bloomer[5] being a plant that produces flowers at a specified time ⇒
fragrant night-bloomers such as nicotiana.
Scratching the Surface
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| RayT's clues usually exhibit a smooth surface reading. However, I must say the surface reading of this clue doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Although, in the wordplay, "canvas" is being used in a nautical sense, I don't believe that is the case in the surface reading . I might guess that it is intended to be the material on which an artist paints, with "backing" being the covering applied to the back of the painting. Perhaps paintings are sometimes backed with a "backing canvas" (although I believe the backing material is usually heavy paper). "Bloomers"[5]
are likely ladies underwear (given the identity of the compiler) or, possibly, stupid mistakes. Although I cannot assemble these elements into any kind of truly meaningful surface reading, I presume it has something to do with ladies' canvas underwear [guaranteed, no doubt, to scratch the surface]. |
| 13a | Weapon /taken from/ ceasefire, reportedly (5) |
From a British perspective, piece[5] is an informal North American term for a firearm.
| 14a | Hip cure's unusual including a new // cover (9) |
Here and There
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| When it comes to describing insurance protection, while the same verb form is used in Britain and North America, we
use a different form of the noun on this side of the pond. As a verb, cover[5] means to protect against a liability, loss, or accident involving financial consequences ⇒ your contents are now covered against accidental loss or damage in transit. However, in the UK, the word cover[5] is also used as a noun to denote protection by insurance against a liability, loss, or accident ⇒ your policy provides cover against damage by subsidence. This is equivalent to the North American term coverage[5] meaning the amount of protection given by an insurance policy ⇒ your policy provides coverage against damage by subsidence. |
| 16a | Reptile // I assume collects dung (9) |
Assume[3] is used in the sense of to clothe oneself in or don* ⇒
The queen assumed a velvet robe.
* I must say I am a bit surprised to see this meaning in the puzzle as it does not appear in The Chambers Dictionary (supposedly the "Bible" for The Daily Telegraph puzzles). In fact, I found it in this literal sense in only one dictionary — and a US dictionary at that, the American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language. Collins English Thesaurus does list don as a synonym for assume in the figurative sense of to undertake or take on ⇒
She will assume the role of Chief Executive.
Guano[5] is the excrement of seabirds and bats, used as fertilizer.
The iguanodon[5] was a large partly bipedal herbivorous dinosaur of the early to mid Cretaceous period, with a broad stiff tail and the thumb developed into a spike.
| 19a | Sailor embraced by sailor around // foreign capital (5) |
"sailor " = AB [able seaman]
In the Royal Navy, according to Lexico (Oxford Dictionary of English), able seaman[5] (abbreviation AB[5]), is a rank of sailor above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman. On the other hand, Collins English Dictionary tells us that an able seaman[10] (also called) is an ordinary seaman, especially one in the merchant navy, who has been trained in certain skills.
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In the Royal Navy, according to Lexico (Oxford Dictionary of English), able seaman[5] (abbreviation AB[5]), is a rank of sailor above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman. On the other hand, Collins English Dictionary tells us that an able seaman[10] (also called) is an ordinary seaman, especially one in the merchant navy, who has been trained in certain skills.
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Rabat[5] is the capital of Morocco, an industrial port on the Atlantic Coast. It was founded as a military fort in the 12th century by the Almohads.
| 21a | The man's muffling noise facing good // thrashings (7) |
| 23a | Discerning // piano with blue note occasionally (7) |
| 24a | Rejected free bank /getting/ more unpleasant (7) |
| 25a | Identify bad smell /in/ snake oil (7) |
| 26a | Remarkably // racy blonde is dancing (12) |
Down
| 1d | Hunger consumes ogre // like a pig (7) |
An orc[10] is a member of an imaginary race of evil goblins, especially in the fiction of English writer J. R. R. Tolkien.
| 2d | Go over // some upset apple-cart erratically (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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The phrase upset the apple cart[5] means to spoil a plan or disturb the status quo ⇒ Science is upsetting the apple cart, challenging long held notions related to life span and personality, undermining our cherished, traditional thoughts about ourselves. |
| 3d | Restrained about blunder if // frightened (9) |
| 4d | Worried // about being visibly embarrassed (5) |
| 5d | What might rule out a couple? (7) |
| 6d | Commit // criminal offence accepting gaol initially (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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| Gaol[10] is a British variant spelling of jail. |
| 7d | Fantastic meal, cod and chips, // carried out (12) |
Scratching the Surface
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| In the UK, chips[2]are strips of deep-fried potato, similar to but usually shorter and thicker than French fries[2]. |
| 10d | Lecture // detectives over position protecting Queen (12) |
"detectives " = DIS [detective inspector]
A detective inspector (abbrevation DI[5]) is a senior police officer in the UK. Within the British police, inspector[7] is the second supervisory rank. It is senior to that of sergeant, but junior to that of chief inspector. Plain-clothes detective inspectors are equal in rank to their uniformed counterparts, the prefix 'detective' identifying them as having been trained in criminal investigation and being part of or attached to their force's Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
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A detective inspector (abbrevation DI[5]) is a senior police officer in the UK. Within the British police, inspector[7] is the second supervisory rank. It is senior to that of sergeant, but junior to that of chief inspector. Plain-clothes detective inspectors are equal in rank to their uniformed counterparts, the prefix 'detective' identifying them as having been trained in criminal investigation and being part of or attached to their force's Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
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"Queen " = ER [regnal cipher of Queen Elizabeth]
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.
* A cipher[5] (also cypher) is a monogram[5] or motif of two or more interwoven letters, typically a person's initials, used to identify a personal possession or as a logo.
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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.
* A cipher[5] (also cypher) is a monogram[5] or motif of two or more interwoven letters, typically a person's initials, used to identify a personal possession or as a logo.
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| 15d | Appears strange embracing nude, oddly // smooth (9) |
| 17d | Thunder God controlling // weather (7) |
As a hidden word indicator, controlling is used in the sense of containing ⇒
Police attempting to contain political unrest.
| 18d | Spoils // musical covered by empty numbers (7) |
Annie[7] is a Broadway musical based upon the popular comic strip Little Orphan Annie created by American cartoonist Harold Gray (1894–1968). The original Broadway production, which opened in 1977, ran for nearly six years and won the Tony Award for Best Musical.
While US dictionaries list nanny[7] only as a noun, British dictionaries also show it as a verb meaning to (1) work as a nanny or (2) to be overprotective towards ⇒
We've been nannied for so long that we've forgotten how to do anything for ourselves.
| 19d | Core supporter upset supporting Republican // rubbish (7) |
"Republican " = R [member or supporter of US political party]
A Republican[5] (abbreviation R[5] or Rep.[5]) is a member or supporter of the Republican Party[5], one of the two main US political parties*, favouring a right-wing stance, limited central government, and tough, interventionist foreign policy. It was formed in 1854 in support of the anti-slavery movement preceding the Civil War.
* the other being the Democratic Party
Although, in the UK, republican[5] can refer to an advocate of a united Ireland, the abbreviation does not appear to apply to that usage.
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A Republican[5] (abbreviation R[5] or Rep.[5]) is a member or supporter of the Republican Party[5], one of the two main US political parties*, favouring a right-wing stance, limited central government, and tough, interventionist foreign policy. It was formed in 1854 in support of the anti-slavery movement preceding the Civil War.
* the other being the Democratic Party
Although, in the UK, republican[5] can refer to an advocate of a united Ireland, the abbreviation does not appear to apply to that usage.
hide
Rhubarb[5] is an informal British term denoting nonsense* ⇒
it was all rhubarb, about me, about her daughter, about art.
* This usage may well come from the world of British theatre where the term rhubarb[5] refers to the noise made by a group of actors to give the impression of indistinct background conversation, especially by the random repetition of the word ‘rhubarb’.
| 20d | Beer producer // close to employing right container (7) |
| 22d | Game's up /seeing/ fiddle? (5) |
Strad[5] is an informal term for a Stradivarius[5], a violin or other stringed instrument made by Italian violin-maker Antonio Stradivari[5] (c.1644–1737) or his followers.
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
I’m also surprised by the rating. Solved all clues which is unusual for me.
ReplyDeleteNearly four stars in difficulty for me, as I required on-line help for several clues. I typically find Ray T's oblique synonyms a challenge.
ReplyDeleteThey are invariably in the dictionary, but often rarely used and certainly far from the first to come to mind.
Delete