Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29453 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Thursday, August 27, 2020 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29453]
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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
This puzzle is from a mystery "Thursday" setter. On alternate Thursdays, The Daily Telegraph publishes puzzles compiled by Ray Terrell (RayT). These are interspersed with puzzles from one or more unidentified (mystery) setter(s).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 | School does something /to get/ mutual agreements (8) |
Comp[5] (short for comprehensive school[5]) is a British term for a secondary school which is attended by children of all abilities from a particular area.
| 6a | Fantasies? // Daughter has lots (6) |
| 9a | Army officer's spoken /with/ heart (6) |
| 10a | Modest // collection of two notes and a coin? (8) |
The spelling of the notes in this clue is that which The Chambers Dictionary shows as the principal spelling. However, most other British dictionaries show both of these spellings as variant and/or American spellings.
"note " = RE [in tonic sol-fa, the second note of a major scale]
In tonic sol-fa notation, re* is a US or variant British spelling* of the second note of a major scale.
* The only recognized spelling in American Dictionaries is re[3,6,11] while most British dictionaries show re[2,4,5,10] as a variant spelling of ray[2,4,5,10]. The Chambers Dictionary takes a different approach, showing the spelling as "re[1] (also anglicized in spelling as ray)".
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In tonic sol-fa notation, re* is a US or variant British spelling* of the second note of a major scale.
* The only recognized spelling in American Dictionaries is re[3,6,11] while most British dictionaries show re[2,4,5,10] as a variant spelling of ray[2,4,5,10]. The Chambers Dictionary takes a different approach, showing the spelling as "re[1] (also anglicized in spelling as ray)".
hide
"note " = TI [in tonic sol-fa, the seventh note of a major scale]
From a perusal of entries in American and British dictionaries, I gather that the only recognized spelling of this musical note in the US would be ti[3,11,12] while British dictionaries split into two camps. Two British dictionaries give the principal spelling as te[2,4,10] with ti[2,4,10] as an alternative spelling while two others take the contrary position, giving the spelling as ti[1,5] with te[1,5] as an alternative spelling.
Note that the sister publications, The Chambers Dictionary[1] and Chambers 21st Century Dictionary[2], are diametrically opposed on the issue and Lexico[5] (Oxford Dictionaries) has done a complete about face as I have notes in my files from a previous review showing that "Oxford Dictionaries decrees that te is the British spelling with ti being the North American spelling".
hide
From a perusal of entries in American and British dictionaries, I gather that the only recognized spelling of this musical note in the US would be ti[3,11,12] while British dictionaries split into two camps. Two British dictionaries give the principal spelling as te[2,4,10] with ti[2,4,10] as an alternative spelling while two others take the contrary position, giving the spelling as ti[1,5] with te[1,5] as an alternative spelling.
Note that the sister publications, The Chambers Dictionary[1] and Chambers 21st Century Dictionary[2], are diametrically opposed on the issue and Lexico[5] (Oxford Dictionaries) has done a complete about face as I have notes in my files from a previous review showing that "Oxford Dictionaries decrees that te is the British spelling with ti being the North American spelling".
hide
| 11a | Planned action /creating/ a bit of a scene (3,5) |
Set piece[5] is a British term for a carefully organized and practised move* in a team game by which the ball is returned to play, as at a scrum or a free kick** ⇒
in the 89th minute another set piece produced the third goal.
* a seemingly equivalent term — and one commonly heard in North American sport — is set play[5], a prearranged manoeuvre carried out from a restart by the team who have the advantage ⇒
the Germans scored the deciding goal on a set play, off a corner kick in the 15th minute
** in soccer and rugby, a free kick[5] is an unimpeded kick of the stationary ball awarded to one side as a penalty for a foul or infringement by the other side
In the arts, a set piece[5] is a passage or section of a novel, play, film, or piece of music that is arranged in an elaborate or conventional pattern for maximum effect.
I interpreted "scene" to be a subdivision of an act. In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops takes a different theatrical approach, suggesting that set piece could literally mean "a part of ... the scenery".
| 12a | Report of broadcast // relocated (6) |
| 13a | Village to be excited about store finally /offering/ something for the kitchen (9,3) |
| 16a | Member of royal family // can rebel with trip abroad (6,6) |
Prince Albert[5] (1819–1861) was consort to Queen Victoria and prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.
| 19a | High flier in trouble heading off /to meet/ old singer (6) |
In Greek mythology, Icarus[5] is the son of Daedalus, who escaped from Crete using wings made by his father but was killed when he flew too near the sun and the wax attaching his wings melted.
Enrico Caruso[5] (1873–1921) was an Italian operatic tenor. He was the first major tenor to be recorded on gramophone records.
| 21a | A tin hat I designed /for/ islander (8) |
| 23a | It sounds like Mrs Fawlty had // to make a hissing sound (8) |
Sybil Fawlty is the bossy wife of hotel owner Basil Fawlty in the British television sitcom Fawlty Towers[7] which was broadcast on the BBC in 1975 and 1979.
Sibilate[5] is a literary term meaning to utter with a hissing sound.
What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Miffypops describes Mrs Fawlty asI will presume that this remark was made tongue in cheek — might it even have been meant to be deliberately provocative? (see Miffypops' comment here)a character in an obscure sitcom from the last century. Despite only 12 episodes ever being produced, Fawlty Towers[7] is not only well-known in North America but, I suspect, in many other corners of the world. The show was ranked first on a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000 and, in 2019, it was named the 'greatest ever British TV sitcom' by a panel of comedy experts compiled by the British publication Radio Times. |
| 24a | Observe // one of estranged couple in film rolling over (6) |
Kramer vs. Kramer[7] is a 1979 American legal drama film starring Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep which tells the story of a couple's divorce, its impact on their young son, and the subsequent evolution of their relationship and views on parenting.
| 25a | One promising not to start // book (6) |
| 26a | I'd hissed -- terrible // bit of food on the table! (4,4) |
Down
| 2d | Nothing well-balanced /in/ old-style qualification (1,5) |
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).
| 3d | Picture /of/ little dog that's kept at home (3-2) |
| 4d | Fellow traveller maybe // three miles south of mountain pass (9) |
The league[2] is an obsolete unit of distance which can denote either:
- a unit for measuring distance travelled, usually taken to be 3 miles (about 4.8 km)
- a nautical measure equal to 1/20th of a degree or 3 international nautical miles (3.456 statute miles or 5.556 km)
| 5d | Snake // now more than half twisted (7) |
| 6d | Resolute, not half, /or/ put off? (5) |
| 7d | Old church getting fifty in season? // Wonderful! (9) |
While a "straightforward charade" (as Miffypops describes in his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog) would lead one to the correct solution, the setter has actually introduced a subtle wrinkle by placing the Roman numeral for fifty inside the season.
| 8d | Fellow with UK country relations /is/ a model (8) |
Northern Ireland[5] (abbreviation NI[5]) is a province [or not (see box)] of the United Kingdom occupying the northeast part of Ireland.
A Country or Not?
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| According to Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries), England[5], Scotland[5] and Wales[5] are countries but Northern Ireland[5] is a province. On the other hand, Wikipedia tells us that Northern Ireland[7] is variously described as a country, province, territory or region. Seeing that this is a Daily Telegraph puzzle, the final word should go to The Chambers Dictionary. However, we are out of luck as that publication does not have a listing for Northern Ireland — or, for that matter, England, Scotland or Wales. |
Mannikin[5] is a variant spelling of manikin[5], a jointed model of the human body, used in anatomy or as an artist's lay figure (not to be confused with mannequin[10], a life-size dummy of the human body used to fit or display clothes).
| 13d | Guessing // discharge has uranium? Get on the phone! (9) |
| 14d | Bishop guided around that place // chatted (9) |
Blether[5] is a Scottish variant of the term blather[5] (also blither[5]) meaning to talk long-windedly without making very much sense ⇒ (i)
she began blathering on about spirituality and life after death; (ii) (as noun blathering)
now stop your blathering and get back to work.
| 15d | Jazz fan hanging round about -- I have /to be/ artistic (8) |
Cat[5] is an informal North American term (especially among jazz enthusiasts) for a man ⇒ (i)
this West Coast cat had managed him since the early 80s; (ii)
the cat went crazy on the horn.
As can be seen from the usage examples, the term cat does not apply solely to jazz fans, but to performers and others associated with jazz as well. In fact, none of the nine usage examples provided by Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries) specifically relates to fans and almost all specifically mention performers.
| 17d | Learning // the alphabet? (7) |
| 18d | One of three in a boat // somewhere off the Scottish mainland (6) |
Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)[7], published in 1889, is a humorous account by English writer Jerome K. Jerome of a two-week boating holiday on the River Thames from Kingston upon Thames to Oxford and back to Kingston. The party making the trip consists of Jerome (a fictionalized version of the author himself), George, Harris and Jerome's dog Montmorency.
Harris[5] is the southern part of the island of Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides[5], the outermost members of a group of islands off the north-western coast of Scotland.
The pedant in me can't resist pointing out that, contrary to Miffypops statement, Harris is only part of an island.
| 20d | Happily // puffed up? (2,3) |
The phrase walk on air[5] (also tread on air) means to feel elated ⇒
Kacey said: ‘I'm walking on air, I was so chuffed [very pleased] to receive the invitation and the kind words’.
| 22d | Cautious // little girl turning up to support little boy (5) |
The terms "little girl" and "little boy" tell us we need shortened versions of the names rather than the names in full.
Without a doubt, Diana (often appearing in its diminutive form Di) is the most popular female name in Crosswordland.
We often see complaints about clues which call for an unspecified proper name. However, today the setter may have given us a bit of a hint as to the identity of the young lad. The "little boy" in question might be seen to be Timothy Cratchit, called "Tiny Tim"[7], a fictional character from the 1843 novel A Christmas Carol by English writer Charles Dickens (1812–1870).
Finally, forgive me Miffypops, but I have to point out that only the girl on the bottom is turned up; the boy on top of her is not.
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
As is often the case some correct answers but needed the hints to understand the parsing (1a, 19a). Didn’t twig to the anagram indicator in 16a. Still enjoyable though.
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