Happy New Year
Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29793 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, September 29, 2021 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29793]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Big Dave | |
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
Pretty standard fare from Jay—not overly difficult but a joy to solve.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 | Swimmer // caught the flu -- it's bad (10) |
"caught " = C [cricket notation]
The cuttlefish[5] is a swimming marine mollusc that resembles a broad-bodied squid, having eight arms and two long tentacles that are used for grabbing prey. Its internal skeleton is the familiar cuttlebone, which it uses for adjusting buoyancy.
| 6a | Boast /of/ credit that hurt (4) |
| 10a | Subject /offering/ latitude without resistance (5) |
"resistance " = R [symbol used in physics]
| 11a | Event for a cyclist // suffering after prison? (4,5) |
| 12a | Minister /and/ bishop aim to protect first lady (8) |
"first lady " = EVE
In the Bible, Eve[5,10] is the first woman, mother of the human race, fashioned by God from the rib of Adam, companion of Adam and mother of Cain and Abel* [Gen 2:18-25].
* not to mention Seth and her other sons and daughters [Gen 5:4]
Disobeying God, Eve[7] succumbs to the serpent's temptation to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and shares the fruit with Adam. As a result, the first humans are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
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In the Bible, Eve[5,10] is the first woman, mother of the human race, fashioned by God from the rib of Adam, companion of Adam and mother of Cain and Abel* [Gen 2:18-25].
* not to mention Seth and her other sons and daughters [Gen 5:4]
Disobeying God, Eve[7] succumbs to the serpent's temptation to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and shares the fruit with Adam. As a result, the first humans are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
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| 13a | This girl /may see/ Independent complaint rejected (5) |
"Independent " = I [politician with no party affiliation]
I[1] is the abbreviation for independent, in all likelihood in the sense of a politician with no party affiliation.
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I[1] is the abbreviation for independent, in all likelihood in the sense of a politician with no party affiliation.
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What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Big Dave informs us that this "complaint" may also be known as aWhereas North Americans merely whine, it would seem that Brits both whine and whinge.whinge. Whinge[5] is an informal British term that means:
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| 15a | Copies /may be/ run off initially in sections (7) |
| 17a | Ready to move, covering a good // distance (7) |
| 19a | Firm backed to pressure US // ink producer (7) |
| 21a | Leading lady // cheated, stifling urge (7) |
| 22a | Design criteria /can be/ a help for viewers? (5) |
| 24a | No girls attracted to end of ancient // furniture items? (8) |
Here and There
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| In Britain, a tallboy[5]
is a tall chest of drawers, typically one mounted on legs and in two sections, one standing on the other. In North America, a tallboy[5] is a large can in which beer or another drink is sold, typically holding 16 or 25 US fluid ounces. |
| 27a | Strange case -- youth /is/ one who's persuaded without effort (4,5) |
| 28a | Bar in American city /supplying/ dope (5) |
Inn[5] is used in the sense of a pub, typically one in the country, in some cases providing accommodation.
| 29a | Dish that's cooked /for/ brood (4) |
The name of this dish comes from its method of cooking rather than its ingredients.
| 30a | Data seen in most unusual // ecosystem (10) |
Down
| 1d | Ignores // prunes! (4) |
| 2d | Classified as revolutionary church in organised protest (3,6) |
| 3d | Temptation -- eating last of garlic // bread (5) |
| 4d | Dogs needing change of lead /and/ restraints (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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Lead[5] is a British* term for leash, a strap or cord for restraining and guiding a dog or other domestic animal ⇒ the dog is our constant walking companion and is always kept on a lead. * Despite being characterized as a British term by Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries), lead[3] is defined in The American Heritage Dictionary as another name for a leash. |
| 5d | Rising protest must be admitted by state, // sooner or later (7) |
Here and There
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In addition to the various senses* in which North Americans use demo[5] as a short form for demonstration, the Brits also use it in the sense of a public meeting or march protesting
against something or expressing views on a political issue ⇒ a peace demo. * these include:
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| 7d | Creature // in love depressed by case of rash (5) |
"love " = O [nil score in tennis]
In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒
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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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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| 8d | Really // fine at home -- always (4,1,5) |
The phrase well I never![5] is an informal exclamation expressing great surprise or indignation.
| 9d | Fish // bite on river Tay with no trouble at first (8) |
Scratching the Surface
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| The Tay[5] is the longest river in Scotland, flowing 192 km (120 miles) eastwards through Loch Tay, entering the North Sea through the Firth of Tay. |
| 14d | Provides cover for // tours and helps out (10) |
| 16d | Facing // work, advance with energy (8) |
"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 ⇒
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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.
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| 18d | Anyone upset about party in Africa /is/ a pest (9) |
The African National Congress[5] (abbreviation ANC)
is a South African political party and black nationalist organization. (show more )
Having been banned by the South African government 1960–90, the ANC was victorious in the country’s first democratic elections in 1994 and its leader Nelson Mandela became the country’s President.
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Having been banned by the South African government 1960–90, the ANC was victorious in the country’s first democratic elections in 1994 and its leader Nelson Mandela became the country’s President.
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| 20d | Fruit /may be/ an obligation when up (7) |
A satsuma[5] is a tangerine of a hardy loose-skinned variety, originally grown in Japan.
| 21d | Don keeps Phil off // this creature (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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| Whether coincidental or deliberate, my first thought was Don and Phil Everly who constituted the American country rock duo The Everly Brothers[7], known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. |
| 23d | Make certain, rejecting right // result (5) |
| 25d | Throw away travel // game (5) |
Bin[10,14] (also called dustbin or rubbish* bin) is a British term for a garbage can or trash can.
As a verb, bin[5] is an informal term meaning to throw (something) away by putting it in a bin.
| 26d | Calmly suggest removing contents /to get/ sac (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)
[15] - CollinsDictionary.com (Penguin Random House LLC/HarperCollins Publishers Ltd )
Signing off for today — Falcon
