Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29408 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Monday, July 6, 2020 | |
Setter
Campbell (Allan Scott) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29408]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
pommers | |
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
As I worked my way through this puzzle, I occasionally felt a sense of déjà vu. In the end, it turned out that I had not, in fact, seen the puzzle before. However, there are a few clues that are either similar to — or produce the same solutions as — clues that I have seen before. I am also particularly attuned to Campbell's style, having regularly reviewed his puzzles for the past year.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 | Spoke about Conservative, // one who favours extreme change (7) |
"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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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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| 5a | Framework /of/ church when applied to sister (7) |
| 9a | Usual? Not on a // butterfly (5) |
The comma[5,7] (also comma butterfly) is a widespread butterfly that has orange and brown wings with ragged edges, and a white comma-shaped mark on the underside of the hindwing. It is found in Europe, North Africa, and Asia.
The white "comma" is visible on the hindwing, although it looks more like a shallow "U" due to the angle at which the butterfly is sitting (click on the image to enlarge it).
| 10a | One of the last to go in, // kind welcoming trouble (4-5) |
In cricket, a player who is batting is said to be in[5]. Conversely, a player
who is fielding is said to be out[5]. The ins and outs of cricket are explained in thisexplanation of cricket for a foreigner (which may well leave you unsure whether you are coming or going).
CRICKET: AS EXPLAINED TO A FOREIGNER...Now, should you have not quite followed that explanation, here is my attempt to clarify the "ins" and "outs" of cricket:
You have two sides, one out in the field and one in. Each man that's in the side that's in goes out, and when he's out he comes in and the next man goes in until he's out. When they are all out, the side that's out comes in and the side that's been in goes out and tries to get those coming in, out. Sometimes you get men still in and not out.
When a man goes out to go in, the men who are out try to get him out, and when he is out he goes in and the next man in goes out and goes in. There are two men called umpires who stay out all the time and they decide when the men who are in are out. When both sides have been in and all the men have been out, and both sides have been out twice after all the men have been in, including those who are not out, that is the end of the game.
Simple!
You have two sides [teams], one out in the field and one in [batting]. Each man that's in the side [in Britain, one says "in a side" rather than "on a team"] that's in [batting] goes out [I believe this means that he forgoes the cucumber sandwiches in the clubhouse in order to go out to the playing area to bat], and when he's out [dismissed] he comes in [returns to the clubhouse for more cucumber sandwiches] and the next man goes in [bats] until he's out [dismissed]. When they are all out [all players (but one) on the batting side are dismissed], the side that's out [fielding] comes in [bats] and the side that's been in [batting] goes out [fields] and tries to get those coming in [to bat], out [dismissed]. Sometimes you get men still in [batting] and not out [Since batsmen must always bat in pairs, the team is dismissed once ten of the eleven players have been dismissed, leaving no partner for the lone remaining player. Although the team is "out" (dismissed), the eleventh player is said to be "not out".].hide
When a man goes out [from the clubhouse to the playing area] to go in [bat], the men who are out [fielding] try to get him out [dismissed], and when he is out [dismissed] he goes in [returns to the clubhouse] and the next man in [scheduled to bat] goes out [from the clubhouse to the playing area] and goes in [bats]. There are two men called umpires who stay out [on the playing area] all the time [(they never get to eat cucumber sandwiches)] and they decide when the men who are in [batting] are out [dismissed]. When both sides have been in [batted] and all the men have been out [dismissed], and both sides have been out [dismissed] twice after all the men have been in [batted], including those who are not out [the eleventh player who has batted but not been dismissed], that is the end of the game.
Note: In cricket, the division of play is called an 'innings', rather than an 'inning' as in baseball. The word "innings' (like the words 'fish' or 'sheep') can be either singular or plural. A cricket match consists of four innings* (or sometimes two innings) with ten "outs" (dismissals) per innings. In cricket, each team's at bat is called an innings whereas, in baseball, each team's at bat constitutes a half inning. Thus, in baseball, the visiting team bats in the top of each inning and the home team bats in the bottom of each inning. In cricket, one side bats in the first and third innings and the other team bats in the second and fourth innings.Simple! (although the remarks concerning the cucumber sandwiches may not be entirely accurate)
In cricket, a tailender[5,10] (or tail-ender[2]) is a weak batsman sent in to bat towards the end of the batting order ⇒
an astonishing display of hitting by the tailender.
| 11a | Copper gets gear changed, // some of it good, some of it bad (7,3) |
Curate's egg[5] is a British expression denoting a thing that is partly good and partly bad ⇒
this book is a bit of a curate's egg.
Origin: A cartoon that appeared in the now defunct British satirical magazine Punch (1895) depicting a meek curate who, given a stale egg at the bishop's table, assures his host that ‘parts of it are excellent’. [In the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches, a curate[5,7] is member of the clergy engaged as assistant to a vicar, rector, or parish priest.]
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| Bishop: "I'm afraid you've got a bad egg, Mr Jones"; Curate: "Oh, no, my Lord, I assure you that parts of it are excellent!" "True Humility" by George du Maurier, originally published in Punch, 9 November 1895. |
| 12a | Ordinary guys // writing on the wall (4) |
"ordinary " = O [British academic qualification]
Historically, in the UK (with the exception of Scotland), O level[5] (short for ordinary level[5]) was a qualification in a specific subject formerly taken by school students aged 14-16, at a level below A (advanced) level. It was replaced in 1988 by the GCSE[5] (General Certificate of Secondary Education).
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Historically, in the UK (with the exception of Scotland), O level[5] (short for ordinary level[5]) was a qualification in a specific subject formerly taken by school students aged 14-16, at a level below A (advanced) level. It was replaced in 1988 by the GCSE[5] (General Certificate of Secondary Education).
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The British expression the writing is on the wall[5] (North American the handwriting is on the wall) denotes there are clear signs that something unpleasant or unwelcome is going to happen.
| 14a | CCTV, perhaps, // almost always effective -- conceal weapon (12) |
| 18a | Obsession /of/ individual recording soul (3-5,4) |
Mind and soul are used in the sense of a person:
- mind[5] in the sense of a person identified with their intellectual faculties ⇒
he was one of the greatest minds of his time
. - soul[5] in the sense of a person embodying a specified quality ⇒
he was the soul of discretion
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Safe to Ignore
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| You can ignore the comment in pommers' review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog pertaining to the numeration of this clue. The comment relates to an error which was present for a time on the Telegraph Puzzles website. The clue as it appears in the National Post is correct. |
| 21a | Honour holding old // musical instrument (4) |
"honour " = OBE [Officer of the Order of the British Empire]
OBE[5] is the abbreviation for Officer of the Order of the British Empire.
The Order of the British Empire[5] is an order of knighthood applicable to the United Kingdom and certain Commonwealth realms which was instituted in 1917 and is divided into five classes, each with military and civilian divisions. The classes are: Knight or Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE), Knight or Dame Commander (KBE/DBE), Commander (CBE), Officer (OBE), and Member (MBE). The two highest classes entail the awarding of a knighthood.
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OBE[5] is the abbreviation for Officer of the Order of the British Empire.
The Order of the British Empire[5] is an order of knighthood applicable to the United Kingdom and certain Commonwealth realms which was instituted in 1917 and is divided into five classes, each with military and civilian divisions. The classes are: Knight or Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire (GBE), Knight or Dame Commander (KBE/DBE), Commander (CBE), Officer (OBE), and Member (MBE). The two highest classes entail the awarding of a knighthood.
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| 22a | On account of test, short prayer /required/, say (3,7) |
The word "required" acts as a link word which the solver must infer to mean "required [to produce]".
What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, pommers informs us that the second component of the charade isIn the UK except Scotland, GCSE[5,10] (General Certificate of Secondary Education) is a qualification obtained through a public examination in specified subjects typically taken by school students aged 14-16, at a level below A level [Advanced level].a test like a GCSE. |
| 25a | Sauntering /in/ street, swaggering (9) |
After fruitlessly searching for evidence to explain why "swaggering" means "rolling", I came to the conclusion that the word should have been "staggering"*. Upon reading pommers review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, I discovered that he had reached the same conclusion suggesting "there might be a misprint here".
* Roll[10] used in the sense of to walk with a swaying gait, as when drunk; in other words, sway.
Contrary View
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| In Comment #4 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Gazza writes "I checked the BRB and it does list the required word for 25a under ‘swagger’ – so it’s probably not a misprint". My copy of the BRB (Big Red Book or The Chambers Dictionary) does not list "roll" under "swagger" but it does list "swagger" under "roll". |
| 26a | Lowest // score, ultimately, in final (5) |
| 27a | Lengthen // lease, in writing (3,4) |
"lease " = LET
Let[5] is a British* term meaning to allow someone to have the use of (a room or property) in return for regular payments ⇒ (i)
* However, based on its appearance in US dictionaries[3,11], I seriously doubt this word is as exclusively British as Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries) would have us believe.
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Let[5] is a British* term meaning to allow someone to have the use of (a room or property) in return for regular payments ⇒ (i)
she let the flat [apartment] to a tenant; (ii)
they’ve let out their house.
* However, based on its appearance in US dictionaries[3,11], I seriously doubt this word is as exclusively British as Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries) would have us believe.
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Down[5] means in or into writing ⇒
Graham noted the numbers down carefully.
| 28a | Slammer, finally -- bad result /for/ cattle thief (7) |
Down
| 1d | Starts to renovate old cottage of church officer /in/ an old decorative style (6) |
Rococo[5] is an elaborately ornamental late baroque style of decoration prevalent in 18th-century continental Europe, with asymmetrical patterns involving motifs and scrollwork.
| 2d | Reserved // object, last in sale (6) |
| 3d | Drag a scout free -- this rescue worker might (10) |
The entire clue serves as a descriptive definition in which the wordplay is embedded.
Brits use the word coastguard[5] to "denote a member of the coastguard organization as well as the name of the organization itself.
| 4d | American after fortune /for/ plant (5) |
Lotus[2,10]
is a popular name for a variety of different plants, including several
species of water lily as well as a Mediterranean shrub. (show more )
Lotus is the name of several species of water lily:
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Lotus is the name of several species of water lily:
- any of several water lilies of tropical Africa and Asia, especially the white lotus, a species of water lily sacred to the ancient Egyptians and often depicted in Egyptian art
- either of two species of water lily belonging to a separate genus, widely cultivated as ornamental plants, one native to Asia, with pink flowers that is the sacred lotus of Buddhism and Hinduism, and the other native to the southern USA, with yellow flowers
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| 5d | Cold fish on shoot /gets/ a wrap? (9) |
A ling[5] is any of a number of long-bodied edible marine fishes including a large eastern Atlantic fish of the genus Molva related to the cod, in particular Molva molva, which is of commercial importance.
Cling film[5] (or clingfilm[1,2,10], also clingwrap[10]) is a British term for a thin transparent plastic film that adheres to surfaces and to itself, used as a wrapping or covering for food.
North American term: plastic wrap
| 6d | Article about a // neighbourhood (4) |
| 7d | Deposit // small sum of money in crumpled tens (8) |
| 8d | Bolt, maybe, /in/ small piece of office equipment (8) |
Usain Bolt[5] is a Jamaican athlete. At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing he won gold medals in the 100 metre and 200 metre races, setting a new world record time for each. He defended his Olympic titles in 2012 and 2016, winning gold in the 100 metre and 200 metre races both years, and becoming the first athlete to win gold in the 100 metre and 200 metre races three times.
| 13d | Golf course /in/ narrow valley -- good scores there (10) |
A glen[5] is a narrow valley, especially in Scotland or Ireland.
The adverb "there" relates back to "golf course", so the last part of the clue is equivalent to "good scores on a golf course".
In golf, an eagle[5] is a score of two strokes under par at a hole.
Gleneagles is not a single golf course but a collection of golf courses at the Gleneagles Hotel[7] near Auchterarder, Scotland. Of the several courses at the hotel, the most prominent would be the Jack Nicklaus-designed PGA Centenary Course which hosted the Ryder Cup* in 2014.
* the Ryder Cup[7] is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States
| 15d | Winner, Scotsman, /becoming/ strait-laced (9) |
| 16d | Huge // company deficit a line /shows/ (8) |
Despite being positioned at the end of the clue, the word "shows" functions in the same fashion as a link word. In fact, from a cryptic perspective, one could rephrase the clue as:
- Company deficit a line /shows/ huge (8)
| 17d | Protest about renegade // party member (8) |
In Britain*, the term demo[5] (abbreviation for demonstration) can denote a public meeting or march protesting against something or expressing views on a political issue ⇒
a peace demo.
* Brits also use demo[5] as a short form for demonstration in the sense of a practical exhibition and explanation of how something works or is performed.
| 19d | Stretch /of/ lake twists to the north (6) |
| 20d | Morse creator // put off about vote (6) |
Inspector Endeavour Morse[7] is a fictional character in the eponymous series of detective novels by British author Colin Dexter (1930–2017), as well as the 33-episode British television drama series Inspector Morse[7] produced between 1987 and 2000. Morse is a senior CID (Criminal Investigation Department) officer with the Thames Valley Police force in Oxford, England.
| 23d | Keen // listener comprehending good English (5) |
As a containment indicator, comprehending[5] is used in a formal sense meaning including, comprising, or encompassing.
| 24d | Real solid houses // to boot (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
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