Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29679 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, May 19, 2021 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29679]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
2Kiwis | |
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
Following several weeks where the authorship of the "Wednesday" puzzle has been in doubt, Jay drops by Big Dave's Crossword Blog to confirm not only that today's puzzle is his creation, but furthermore that he has set all "Wednesday" puzzles since that one occasion where he took a day off—thereby triggering speculation every Wednesday since regarding the identity of the setter.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 | Chicken /that's/ sat on, we hear -- one's come down looking embarrassed (5,6,3) |
The Rhode Island Red[10] is a breed of domestic fowl, originating in America, characterized by a dark reddish-brown plumage and the production of brown eggs.
| 9a | Rough, // say -- disheartened about sailing boat (7) |
A ketch[5] is a two-masted, fore-and-aft rigged sailing boat with a mizzenmast stepped forward of the rudder and smaller than its foremast.
| 10a | Bonkers sign mostly about // wine (7) |
In astrology, Aries[10] (also called the Ram) is the first sign of the zodiac, symbol ♈, having a cardinal fire classification, ruled by the planet Mars. The sun is in this sign between about March 21 and April 19.
Madeira[5] (also Madeira wine) is a fortified wine from Madeira, the largest of the Madeiras, a group of islands in the Atlantic Ocean off north-western Africa.
| 11a | In case of opposite, women // are obliged to pay (3) |
| 12a | Keen // writer and French sailor (11) |
The
use of the word "writer" to clue PEN is likely to be slightly more
cryptic to the Brits than it is to us on this side of the pond. British
solvers will see "pen" as being a writing implement rather than the person wielding that implement. (show more )
In addition to defining pen[3,11] as a writing implement, North American dictionaries also define it as a writer or an author ⇒
hide
In addition to defining pen[3,11] as a writing implement, North American dictionaries also define it as a writer or an author ⇒
a hired pen, British dictionaries do not list this meaning although they do show pen[2,4] (or the pen[5,10]) as symbolically representing writing as an occupation (a sense of the word not found in US dictionaries).
hide
"French and " = ET
Rating[5] is a British term for a non-commissioned sailor in the navy ⇒
the rest of the new crew was made up of naval ratings.
Origin: So named from the position or rating held by a sailor, recorded on a ship's books.
| 14a | Better // uniform worn by old fool (6) |
"old " = O [linguistics]
In linguistics, O[12] is the abbreviation for Old ⇒ (i)
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.
hide
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.
hide
Who's Wearing What?
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| At Comment #16 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Vince remarks "Surely uniform is wearing, not worn by, old fool?". I agree. When you wear something, you cover yourself with it, and it is "uniform" that is covered by "old fool". However, his comment gains no support and, in fact, is summarily dismissed by a couple of usually very sharp regulars. |
| 15a | Man who mapped // strange moon crater without working (8) |
Gerardus Mercator[5] is the Latinized name of Gerhard Kremer (1512–1594), a Flemish geographer and cartographer who invented the system of map projection that is named after him.
| 17a | City // editor has not moved during Monday (8) |
In addition to being the name of the capital of Alberta, Edmonton[7] is also the name of a town in north London, England, located in the historic county of Middlesex.
| 19a | Seclusion /of/ hard-up criminal (6) |
Purdah[5] is a state of seclusion or secrecy ⇒
He has barely been seen or heard in the media since he went into purdah in the wake of the donation revelations.
Delving Deeper
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| The term purdah[5] comes from the practice in certain Muslim and Hindu societies of screening women from men or strangers, especially by means of a curtain. In Britain, purdah[5] is the name given to the period leading up to an election, during which government departments generally refrain from making any new announcements ⇒ it is very difficult at the moment with the election on and the government in purdah. |
| 22a | Only trace found by old boy /is/ out of date (11) |
"old boy " = OB
In Britain, an old boy[5] (abbreviation OB[2]) is:
hide
In Britain, an old boy[5] (abbreviation OB[2]) is:
- a former male student of a school or college ⇒
an old boy of Banbury County School
- a former male member of a sports team or company ⇒
the White Hart Lane old boy squared the ball to present an easy chance from 12 yards
‘Look here, old boy,’ he said.
hide
| 23a | Idiosyncratic /of/ Luton, say, losing top spot (3) |
Luton[5] is an industrial town in Bedfordshire, England, to the north-west of London.
Scratching the Surface
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| Luton Town Football Club[7] is a professional association football [soccer] club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. |
| 24a | New release // concerning contentious topic (7) |
| 26a | Asian // holiday destination invaded by English (7) |
Bali[5] is a mountainous island of Indonesia, to the east of Java. Bali[7] is Indonesia's main tourist destination, with tourism-related business making up 80% of the island's economy.
A Bengali[5] is a native of Bengal*.
* Bengal[5] is a region in South Asia, containing the Ganges and Brahmaputra River deltas. In 1947 the province was divided into West Bengal, which has remained a state of India, and East Bengal, now Bangladesh.
| 27a | Play // in the raw and settle for a change (3,7,4) |
The Winter's Tale[7] is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623.
Down
| 1d | Stop working after a row (4,2,4,4) |
I would say this clue is a cryptic definition with an embedded precise definition.
Rest on one's oars[5] means to relax one's efforts.
According to Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, to rest on your oars (or lean on your oars) is an old-fashioned British expression denoting that a person or organization does not work hard enough to make sure that they remain successful or get things done ⇒
The company has been resting on its oars and its competitors are catching up.
| 2d | Metal regularly found in open // gorge (7) |
| 3d | Odd, // but for one dodgy loan (11) |
| 4d | Expression // perhaps popular with golfers, initially (6) |
| 5d | Owned up /and/ afforded entry (8) |
| 6d | Failure /may be/ slander, with daughter in for leader (3) |
| 7d | In biofuel it is this // snobby (7) |
| 8d | Exaggerated // fear with all-nighter ruined (6,4,4) |
| 13d | Bookmakers /must have/ stories about worker (11) |
"worker " = ANT
The terms "worker" and "social worker" are commonly used in cryptic crossword puzzles to clue ANT or BEE.
A worker[5] is a neuter or undeveloped female bee, wasp, ant, or other social insect, large numbers of which do the basic work of the colony.
In crossword puzzles, "worker" will most frequently be used to clue ANT and occasionally BEE but I have yet to see it used to clue WASP. Of course, "worker" is sometimes also used to clue HAND or MAN.
hide
The terms "worker" and "social worker" are commonly used in cryptic crossword puzzles to clue ANT or BEE.
A worker[5] is a neuter or undeveloped female bee, wasp, ant, or other social insect, large numbers of which do the basic work of the colony.
In crossword puzzles, "worker" will most frequently be used to clue ANT and occasionally BEE but I have yet to see it used to clue WASP. Of course, "worker" is sometimes also used to clue HAND or MAN.
hide
Turf accountant[5,10] is a formal British name for a bookmaker.
* The first time I encountered this term, I presumed it was merely jocular slang; but, no, to my surprise I discovered it to be the formal term for this profession in the UK.
| 16d | Place for a gun mostly in // part of Germany (8) |
Holstein[5,10] is a region of northern Germany, situated in the southern part of the Jutland peninsula. In earlier times a duchy of the German kingdom of Saxony, it became a duchy of Denmark in 1474, then was taken by Prussia in 1866 and incorporated with the neighbouring duchy of Schleswig as the province of Schleswig-Holstein.
| 18d | Person expected to deliver // Ashes -- I'm out! (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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The Ashes[10] is a cremated cricket stump in a pottery urn now preserved at Lord's*. Victory or defeat in test matches (show explanation ) between England and Australia is referred to as winning, losing, or
retaining the Ashes.
A Test match[5] is an international cricket or rugby match, typically one of a series, played between teams representing two different countries ⇒ the Test match between Pakistan and the West Indies. hide explanation * Lord's Cricket Ground[7], commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in London that is widely referred to as the Home of Cricket and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum. The concept of The Ashes[7] originated in a satirical obituary published in a British newspaper, The Sporting Times, immediately after Australia's 1882 victory at The Oval [a cricket ground in London, England], their first Test win on English soil. The obituary stated that English cricket had died, and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia.  The mythical ashes immediately became associated with the 1882–83 series played in Australia, before which the English captain Ivo Bligh had vowed to "regain those ashes". The English media therefore dubbed the tour the quest to regain the Ashes. |
| 20d | Picture // designer with a master's degree (7) |
| 21d | Beginner // recognised buzzer on the telephone (6) |
| 25d | Spread // litter produced by one? (3) |
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
I am not a conspiracy theorist but isn’t it odd that the map maker has made two appearances in three days? I find this happens periodically and wonder if setters compete for the best clue formation.
ReplyDeleteThat thought has crossed my mind as well. However, I recall that a while ago Mr K on Big Dave's Crossword Blog did some analysis that showed that the rate at which such words appeared in close proximity was not out of line with statistical expectation. Apparently the probability of this happening through random chance is far higher than most of us would expect based on our "gut feel".
Delete