Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29665 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Monday, May 3, 2021 | |
Setter
Campbell (Allan Scott) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29665]
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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
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, pommers succinctly sums up this puzzle with his characterization of this puzzle as "a pretty normal Monday affair with quite a few gimmes to get you a start and then a few with much more complicated wordplay to get you exercising the grey matter".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
| 5a | Quiet formal announcement following end of weather // forecast (7) |
| 7a | Finished first in that // Open? (5) |
Scratching the Surface
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| The surface reading may allude to the golf tournament known around the world as the British Open but which, in typical British fashion, is known in the UK simply as The Open[7]. |
| 9a | Conservative, // directly opposed (6) |
The second definition comes straight from The Chambers Dictionary. I think "directly opposed" is being used in the sense of directly facing. Square[5] denotes being at right angles or perpendicular to something; as you would be, for example, if you were facing a building directly across the street. In soccer and cricket, square[5] denotes in a direction transversely across the field or pitch,
a square passbeing a pass straight across the field as opposed to one travelling forward or backward at an angle. In baseball, a batter "squares to bunt" by switching out of their normal batting stance to directly face the pitcher.
| 10a | Disciplinarian/'s/ point in trading centre (8) |
A martinet[3,4,11] is a strict disciplinarian, especially a military one.
| 11a | Held back /in/ reserve, and groomed (10) |
| 13a | Titled lady // enthralled by high-powered American (4) |
In the UK, Dame[2] is the title given to a woman who has been awarded the highest or second-highest class of distinction in any of four British orders of chivalry, or honours for service or merit awarded by the Queen or the Government. It is also the title given to a baronetess*.[7]
* Wives of baronets are not baronetesses; only women holding baronetcies in their own right are so styled.[7] In history there have been only four baronetesses.[7]
The Story Behind the Picture
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| The photo used by pommers to illustrate his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog depicts Dame Edna Everage[7], a character created and performed by Australian comedian Barry Humphries, known for her lilac-coloured or "wisteria hue" hair and cat eye glasses or "face furniture", her favourite flower, the gladiolus ("gladdies") and her boisterous greeting: "Hello, Possums!". |
| 14a | Notices // form provided is about European father (10,3) |
Although pommers, in his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, suggests an alternate meaning of "form", I prefer to stick with the education-oriented one.
In Britain, a form[5] is [or, perhaps more correctly,was] a class or year in a school, usually given a specifying number. This is similar to the North America concept of a grade although the numbering system for forms and grades are vastly different. (show more )
The term "form" seems to have become passé as Miffypops in his review of DT 28163 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog refers to "sixth-former" as "What a schoolchild would be during the year before university back in the old days. This would now be known as year 13 or 14." Furthermore, Wikipedia (see table below) characterizes the term "form" as an "alternative/old name".
A form[7] is a class or grouping of students in a school. The term is used predominantly in the United Kingdom, although some schools, mostly private, in other countries also use the title. Pupils are usually grouped in forms according to age and will remain with the same group for a number of years, or sometimes their entire school career.
Forms are normally identified by a number such as "first form" or "sixth form". A form number may be used for two year groups and differentiated by the terms upper and lower [in general, this would seem to apply primarily for the sixth form]. Usually the sixth form is the senior form of a school [although this apparently does not hold true for New Zealand where they would appear to have a seventh form]. In England, the sixth form is usually divided into two year groups, the lower sixth and upper sixth, owing to the 3-year English college/university system. In Scotland or North America, the 6th form is usually a single year, owing to the 4-year college/university system. If there is more than one form for each year group they will normally be differentiated by letters, e.g., "upper four B", "lower two Y". Schools do not follow a consistent pattern in naming forms [in the foregoing quotation witness Miffypops' reference to "year 14", a term which does not appear in the table below].
Wikipedia would appear to be at best ambiguous and at worst inconsistent on the relationship between the British and American systems of naming school years. The article from which the table below is excerpted shows that the British first form is equivalent to the American 6th grade. On the other hand, the article cited above states "In North America, the 1st Form (or sometimes 'Form I') is equivalent to 7th Grade." However, this latter statement may in fact be a comparison between the few North American schools to use the form system and the vast majority of North American schools that don't rather than a comparison between British and American schools.
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The term "form" seems to have become passé as Miffypops in his review of DT 28163 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog refers to "sixth-former" as "What a schoolchild would be during the year before university back in the old days. This would now be known as year 13 or 14." Furthermore, Wikipedia (see table below) characterizes the term "form" as an "alternative/old name".
A form[7] is a class or grouping of students in a school. The term is used predominantly in the United Kingdom, although some schools, mostly private, in other countries also use the title. Pupils are usually grouped in forms according to age and will remain with the same group for a number of years, or sometimes their entire school career.
Forms are normally identified by a number such as "first form" or "sixth form". A form number may be used for two year groups and differentiated by the terms upper and lower [in general, this would seem to apply primarily for the sixth form]. Usually the sixth form is the senior form of a school [although this apparently does not hold true for New Zealand where they would appear to have a seventh form]. In England, the sixth form is usually divided into two year groups, the lower sixth and upper sixth, owing to the 3-year English college/university system. In Scotland or North America, the 6th form is usually a single year, owing to the 4-year college/university system. If there is more than one form for each year group they will normally be differentiated by letters, e.g., "upper four B", "lower two Y". Schools do not follow a consistent pattern in naming forms [in the foregoing quotation witness Miffypops' reference to "year 14", a term which does not appear in the table below].
Wikipedia would appear to be at best ambiguous and at worst inconsistent on the relationship between the British and American systems of naming school years. The article from which the table below is excerpted shows that the British first form is equivalent to the American 6th grade. On the other hand, the article cited above states "In North America, the 1st Form (or sometimes 'Form I') is equivalent to 7th Grade." However, this latter statement may in fact be a comparison between the few North American schools to use the form system and the vast majority of North American schools that don't rather than a comparison between British and American schools.
Naming of School Years (British System vs American System)[7]
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| Age Range | British System | American System | |
| Name | Alternative/Old Name | Name | |
| 11-12 | Year 7 | First form | 6th grade |
| 12-13 | Year 8 | Second form | 7th grade |
| 13-14 | Year 9 | Third form | 8th grade |
| 14-15 | Year 10 | Fourth form | 9th grade |
| 15-16 | Year 11 | Fifth form | 10th grade |
| 16-17 | Year 12 | Lower sixth form | 11th grade |
| 17-18 | Year 13 | Upper sixth form | 12th grade |
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"European " = E [as in E number]
E[1,2] is the abbreviation for European (as in E number*).
* An E number[1,4,10,14] (or E-number[2,5]) is any of various identification codes required by EU law, consisting of the letter E (for European) followed by a number, that are used to denote food additives such as colourings and preservatives (but excluding flavourings) that have been approved by the European Union.
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E[1,2] is the abbreviation for European (as in E number*).
* An E number[1,4,10,14] (or E-number[2,5]) is any of various identification codes required by EU law, consisting of the letter E (for European) followed by a number, that are used to denote food additives such as colourings and preservatives (but excluding flavourings) that have been approved by the European Union.
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| 16a | Get through? // I don't know (4) |
| 17a | Vexatious // English gang returned to squeeze different ones (10) |
| 19a | Singer /in/ pub, Italian individual (8) |
"Italian " = IT [in reference to either the language or the vermouth]
| 20a | Just // son given hint (6) |
| 22a | Live // way out guarding head of state (5) |
| 23a | Star, depressed // when the day is done? (7) |
From a British perspective, sundown[5] is a North American term for sunset[5].
Down
| 1d | Dairy product /produced by/ fine Greek character (4) |
Eta[5] is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet (Η, η).
Feta[5] is a white salty Greek cheese made from the milk of ewes or goats.
| 2d | How crabs move, /and/ fish among rocks (8) |
Ide[5] is another name for the orfe[5], a silvery freshwater fish of the carp family, which is fished commercially in eastern Europe.
| 3d | Recently stolen piece of angling equipment /in/ fast car (3,3) |
| 4d | Bribes had worked, protecting knight // in prison (6,4) |
"knight " = N [chess notation]
A knight[5] is a chess piece, typically with its top shaped like a horse’s head, that moves by jumping to the opposite corner of a rectangle two squares by three. Each player starts the game with two knights.
N[5] is the abbreviation for knight used in recording moves in chess [representing the pronunciation of kn-, since the initial letter k- represents 'king'].
As an aside, it is interesting to note that the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary defines:
On the other hand, both The Chambers Dictionary and the Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary list K or K.[1,11] as an abbreviation for knight without specifying the specific context in which this abbreviation is used. However, the context may well be in an honours list rather than in a game of chess. In the UK, for instance, KBE[5] stands for Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
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A knight[5] is a chess piece, typically with its top shaped like a horse’s head, that moves by jumping to the opposite corner of a rectangle two squares by three. Each player starts the game with two knights.
N[5] is the abbreviation for knight used in recording moves in chess [representing the pronunciation of kn-, since the initial letter k- represents 'king'].
As an aside, it is interesting to note that the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary defines:
- K[2] as an abbreviation used in chess for knight.
- K[2] is a symbol used in chess to represent a king.
- N[2] is a symbol used in chess to represent a knight.
On the other hand, both The Chambers Dictionary and the Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary list K or K.[1,11] as an abbreviation for knight without specifying the specific context in which this abbreviation is used. However, the context may well be in an honours list rather than in a game of chess. In the UK, for instance, KBE[5] stands for Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
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| 5d | Resentment /of/ crown voiced (5) |
| 6d | Footman is out and about just after that /in/ play (5,2,6) |
Timon of Athens[7] (The Life of Tymon of Athens) is a play by William Shakespeare, published in the First Folio (1623) and probably written in collaboration with another author, most likely Thomas Middleton, in about 1605–1606.
| 8d | Mother lost small // flask (7) |
| 12d | Drink first drop of malt whisky, say, /for/ morale (4,6) |
| 14d | Farce // enjoyed involving artist breaking into church (7) |
"artist " = RA [Royal Academician | Royal Academy]
Charade[5] is used in the sense of an absurd pretence intended to create a pleasant or respectable appearance.
| 15d | Service // still good around noon (8) |
In the Christian Church, evensong[5] is a service of evening prayers, psalms, and canticles, conducted according to a set form, especially that of the Anglican Church ⇒
choral evensong.
| 17d | Wasted // opening in brilliant game (6) |
Depending on the dictionary, lotto (in addition to being another term for lottery) is either the former name for[1,2] or a game similar to[3,4,5,10,11,12] bingo.
What did he say?
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In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, pommers reveals that the game in question isHouse[5] and housey-housey[5] (also housie-housie) are old-fashioned British terms for bingo.also called housey-housey. |
| 18d | Guys eating most of blue // fruit (5) |
| 21d | Atmosphere /caused by/ raising catastrophe (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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