Friday, September 10, 2021

Friday, September 10, 2021 — DT 29713


Puzzle at a Glance
Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29713
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Monday, June 28, 2021
Setter
Campbell (Allan Scott)
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29713]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Big Dave
BD rating
Difficulty - ★★Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's experience
┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐
███████████████████████████████████
└────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘
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

Introduction

One usually gets a consistently good puzzle from Campbell. There are a few easy clues to allow one to get started and draw one into the puzzle and a few to make the brain work (or as the Brits like to say "it carries a sting in the tail"). These serve as bookends to a lot of solid enjoyable clues.

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
  • "//" - marks the boundary between wordplay and definition when no link word or link phrase is present
  • "/[link word or phrase]/" - marks the boundary between wordplay and definition when a link word or link phrase is present
  • "solid underline" - precise definition
  • "dotted underline" - cryptic definition
  • "dashed underline" - wordplay
  • "wavy underline" - whimsical and inferred definitions
Click here for further explanation and usage examples of markup conventions used on this blog.

Across

1a Work inside cold American // plant (6)

5a Dean at bizarre church // social event (3,5)

"church " = CE [Church of England]

The Church of England[10] (abbreviation CE[10]) is the reformed established state Church in England, Catholic in order and basic doctrine, with the Sovereign as its temporal head.

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A tea dance[5] is an occasion consisting of afternoon tea with dancing, originating in 19th-century society.

Scratching the Surface
A dean[2] is a senior clergyman* in an Anglican cathedral.

* in rank, below a bishop and above a canon

9a Flattering remark /made by/ companion, we hear (10)

10a Member of the clergy heading off // shortly (4)

A canon[2] is a member of the clergy* attached to a cathedral.

* in rank, below a dean

11a Everyone taken in by half of hoofer/'s/ sensational advertising (8)

12a Salad ingredient // consumed by undergrad is healthy (6)

13a Royal // family associated with Germany originally (4)

A royal[5] is a member of the royal family ⇒ the royals are coming under the TV microscope.

Scratching the Surface
The British royal family has deep German roots. From 1714 to the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, the crown was held by the House of Hanover[5]. When her son Edward VII acceded to the throne, the name changed to Saxe-Coburg-Gotha as his father Prince Albert was a prince of the German duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha[5]. In 1917, the name was changed to Windsor[5] in response to anti-German feeling in the First World War. So, for over 400 years Britain has been ruled by "Germans".

15a Answer/'s/ way out (8)

There may be two definitions—but I would say there's little to choose between them.

18a Smoked beef // over rye, initially given to French friend (8)

Ami[8] is the masculine form of the French word meaning 'friend'.



Pastrami[5] is highly seasoned smoked beef, typically served in thin slices. The recipe for pastrami[7] as we know it today was developed in the latter half of the 19th century in New York by Jewish immigrants from Romania.

Origin: Despite appearances, the word pastrami[7] is not—as I had always supposed—of Italian origin. Rather the word comes from Yiddish pastrame which in turn derives from Romanian pastrama. The modified “pastrami” spelling was probably introduced in imitation of the American English salami (a word which is of Italian lineage).

19a Fizzy drink // accordingly put next to prosecutor (4)

"prosecutor " = DA [US district attorney]

In the US, a district attorney[5] (abbreviation DA) is a public official who acts as prosecutor for the state in a particular district.

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21a Lots /of/ strips of pasta needing no introduction (6)

23a Best player/'s/ back (8)

25a Piano tune /for/ two (4)

"piano " = P [music notation (piano)]

Piano[3,5] (abbreviation p[5]), is a musical direction meaning either (as an adjective) soft or quiet or (as an adverb) softly or quietly.

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26a The head after tongue -- // what to put it on, once sliced? (6,4)

You need to replace the pronoun "it" in the definition with its antecedent "tongue".

Loaf[2,5,10] is an informal British term meaning the head, brains, or common sense. It is found, for instance, in the informal British expression use one's loaf[5] meaning to use one's common sense ⇒ But we would urge people to use their loaf when parking and make sure they don't leave anything of value on display.

Origin: Cockney rhyming slang (show more ) from loaf of bread.

A cockney[5,10] is a native of East London [specifically that part of East London known as  the East End[5]], traditionally one born within hearing of Bow Bells (the bells of St Mary-le-Bow[7] church).

The cockney[5] dialect is characterized by dropping the aitch (H) from the beginning of words as well as the use of rhyming slang[5].

Rhyming slang[5] is a type of slang that replaces words with rhyming words or phrases, typically with the rhyming element omitted. For example, butcher’s, short for butcher’s hook, means ‘look’ in cockney rhyming slang.

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27aOne who's never met his match? (8)

28a Stop working /in/ retreat (6)

Down

2d Member describing old article/'s/ distinctive smell (5)

"old " = O [linguistics]

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.

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3d First-class // spinner having fine match (3-6)

"fine " = F [grade of pencil lead]

F[5] is an abbreviation for fine, as used in describing grades of pencil lead.

Note: Surprisingly, Lexico (formerly Oxford Dictionaries Online) characterizes this usage as British.

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4d Reticent engaging with German // forger? (6)

Mit[8] is the German word for 'with'.

5dWith good visibility in seaside resorts, // there's no apparent danger (3,5,2,5)

The first part of the clue is a literal interpretation of the idiom that is the solution to the clue.

6d Following each one, // despite everything (5,3)

7d Prize /in/ American lottery raised (5)

8d Angry over promise /to supply/ puzzle (9)

14d Female lover // over in Rabat, a Romanian (9)

An inamorata[5] is a person's female lover.

Scratching the Surface
Rabat[5] is the capital of Morocco, an industrial port on the Atlantic Coast. It was founded as a military fort in the 12th century by the Almohads.

16d Under strain, guide // high-flier up for trial? (4,5)

17d Opera // fairs badly in China? (8)

China[5] is an informal British term for a friend (or, as the Brits would say, a mate*).

Origin: Cockney rhyming slang (show more ) from china plate (rhymes with 'mate').

A cockney[5,10] is a native of East London [specifically that part of East London known as  the East End[5]], traditionally one born within hearing of Bow Bells (the bells of St Mary-le-Bow[7] church).

The cockney[5] dialect is characterized by dropping the aitch (H) from the beginning of words as well as the use of rhyming slang[5].

Rhyming slang[5] is a type of slang that replaces words with rhyming words or phrases, typically with the rhyming element omitted. For example, butcher’s, short for butcher’s hook, means ‘look’ in cockney rhyming slang.

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* In Britain, mate[5]—in addition to being a person’s husband, wife, or other sexual partner—is an informal term for a friend or companion ⇒ my best mate Steve.



Parsifal[5] is an opera by German composer Richard Wagner. Twenty-five years in the writing, it was first performed in 1882. It is loosely based on Parzival by Wolfram von Eschenbach, a 13th-century epic poem of the Arthurian knight Parzival (Percival) and his quest for the Holy Grail (12th century).

20d Relish (foremost of relishes) /in/ small dish (6)

22d Tree /with/ large span (5)

"large " = L [clothing size]

L[5] is the abbreviation for large (as a clothing size).

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The larch[5] is a coniferous tree with bunches of deciduous bright green needles, found in cool regions of the northern hemisphere. It is grown for its tough timber and its resin (which yields turpentine).

24d Love new tune // being broadcast (2,3)

"love " = O [nil score in tennis]

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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"new " = N [abbreviation used on maps]

N[5] is an abbreviation (chiefly in place names) for New ⇒ N Zealand.

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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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