Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Wednesday, December 23, 2020 — DT 29351


Puzzle at a Glance
Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29351
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Thursday, April 30, 2020
Setter
RayT (Ray Terrell)
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29351]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Kath
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

Introduction

For a RayT creation, today's puzzle is definitely on the gentle side.

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

7a General // French refusal to arrest a European ... (8)

The French word for 'no' is non[8].

I have observed that a European in Crosswordland is almost invariably a Pole.



Napoleon I[5] (1769–1821) was emperor of France 1804–14 and 1815; full name Napoleon Bonaparte; known as Napoleon. (show more )

In 1799 Napoleon joined a conspiracy which overthrew the Directory, becoming the supreme ruler of France. He declared himself emperor in 1804, and established an empire stretching from Spain to Poland. After defeats at Trafalgar (1805) and in Russia (1812), he abdicated and was exiled to the island of Elba (1814). He returned to power in 1815, but was defeated at Waterloo and exiled to the island of St Helena.

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9a ... reportedly arrests // Europeans (6)

Re my observation on the preceding clue: for every rule there is an exception.

10a Fool /could make/ love in bed (4)

"love " = O [nil score in tennis]

In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒ love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.

Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).

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What did she say?
In her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Kath describes the piece of furniture in question as "a baby’s bed".
Cot[5] is the British name for a crib[5] — a small bed with high barred sides for a baby or very young child.

11a Seeming // old and wise taking time (10)

"old " = O [linguistics]

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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12a Slow // blast with Queen in comeback (6)

Blast[5] is an informal British expression of annoyance Blast! The car won't start!.

"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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14a Occasional // record with one disco dancing (8)

"record " = EP [extended play]

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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15a Cuts back almost everything /getting/ wind (6)

17a Hollow /and/ irritated about Republican (6)

"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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20a Liberal // vote for keeping Conservative in charge (8)

"Conservative " = C [member of British political party]

The abbreviation for Conservative may be either C.[10] or Con.[10].

The Conservative Party[5] is a major right of centre British political party promoting free enterprise and private ownership that emerged from the old Tory Party* under Sir Robert Peel in the 1830s and 1840s.

* Historically, a Tory[10] was a member of the English political party that opposed the exclusion of James, Duke of York from the royal succession (1679–80). Tory remained the label for subsequent major conservative interests until they gave birth to the Conservative Party in the 1830s.

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"in charge " = IC

The abbreviation i/c[2,5] can be short for either:
  • (especially in military contexts) in charge (of) ⇒ the Quartermaster General is i/c rations
  • in command (of) ⇒ 2 i/c = second in command.
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Scratching the Surface
The surface reading alludes to a political entity, the Liberal Party[5], that is virtually a spent force in the UK (show more ).

The Liberal Party[5] (abbreviation Lib.[5] or L[2])* in Britain emerged in the 1860s from the old Whig Party and until the First World War was one of the two major parties in Britain. In 1988 the party regrouped with elements of the Social Democratic Party to form the Social and Liberal Democrats, now known as the Liberal Democrats.

However, a small Liberal Party still exists (founded in 1989 by members of the original Liberal Party opposed to its merger with the Social Democratic Party) although it has never held a UK, Scottish or European parliamentary seat, though it has had representation on local councils.[7].

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22a Modicum // of egotism or selfishness (6)

23a Group // pleased to accept free gin (10)

24a Composer // being artistic created harmony initially (4)

Johann Sebastian Bach[5] (1685–1750) was a German composer. An exceptional and prolific baroque composer, he produced a massive body of work — not to mention twenty children. (show more )

Bach produced works ranging from violin concertos, suites, and the six Brandenburg Concertos (1720–1) to clavier works and sacred cantatas. Large-scale choral works include The Passion according to St John (1723), The Passion according to St Matthew (1729), and the Mass in B minor (1733–8). He had twenty children: Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714–88) wrote church music, keyboard sonatas, and a celebrated treatise on clavier playing, and Johann Christian Bach (1735–82) became music master to the British royal family and composed thirteen operas.

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25a Suit // warms up around summer's end (6)

26a Beginning to strip, strip off // frock (8)

Down

1d Lady /finding/ singles in pubs (8)

A baroness[5] is the wife or widow of a baron or a woman holding the rank of baron in her own right either as a life peerage or as a hereditary rank.

Note: Baroness is not used as a form of address, baronesses usually being referred to as ‘Lady’.

2d Rifle /is/ also left raised (4)

3dGet the next round in! (6)

A cryptic definition that has nothing to do with golf, either on the course or in the clubhouse bar.

4d Search bank /becoming/ poorer (8)

5d Chopped hot recipe holding large // chopper ... (10)

6d ... hot dish /is/ cold, it's said (6)

8d Mesh covers the woman/'s/ bottom! (6)

13d Terrible meal in tray /is/ nourishing (10)

16d 'Surprise!', // like host in broadcast (8)

18d Lover castigated about /being/ dull (8)

19d Sailors consumed by ship/'s/ propellers (6)

"ship " = SS

In Crosswordland, a ship is almost invariably a steamship, the abbreviation for which is SS[5] the SS Canberra.

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21d Anger /from/ sticky situation trapped by credit (6)

Choler[5] is an archaic term for anger or irascibility.

22d Old lady can start to say // prayer (6)

Matins[5] (also mattins) is a Christian service of morning prayer, especially in the Anglican Church.

24d Supporter first to bring up // insult (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]   - 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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