Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29718 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Saturday, July 3, 2021 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29718 – Hints]Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29718 – Review] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Tilsit (Hints)Rahmat Ali (Review) | |
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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Notes
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As this was a Saturday "Prize Puzzle" in Britain, there are two entries related to it on Big Dave's Crossword Blog — the first, posted on the date of publication, contains hints for selected clues while the second is a full review issued following the entry deadline for the contest. The vast majority of reader comments will generally be found attached to the "hints" posting with a minimal number — if any — accompanying the full review.
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Introduction
In his introduction on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Tilsit guesses that the setter might be Chris Lancaster, the Telegraph Puzzles editor; however, this is not confirmed. In any event, the puzzle is light and highly enjoyable.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 | In speculation, judge // lacking (6) |
| 4a | Sorcerers, // security against conflict? (8) |
The latter part of the clue is a whimsical explanation of the solution split (3,5).
| 10a | State of ruin /in/ Paris dire, unfortunately (9) |
| 11a | Very excited, reader so expressively starts // poem (5) |
| 12a | Wrapping that woman's mother, edges of towel // warming (7) |
What did he say?
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On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Tilsit provides the following hintThere are two problems with this hint. First, Tilsit should have stated "outside" rather than "inside". Second, to be precise, he should have written "that woman's" instead of "that woman". Rahmat Ali has it correct in his review.Inside a word meaning that woman and an abbreviation for mother go the outer letters of TOWEL.. |
| 13a | Rescue of vessel, // vase gal damaged (7) |
| 14a | Key thus backfiring /for/ singers (5) |
| 15a | Fine electricity supplier, possibly? /That's/ pointless (8) |
What did he say?
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In his hint on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Tilsit writesE.ON[7] is a European electric utility company based in Essen, Germany that operates in over 30 countries and has over 33 million customers.... companies such as E.ON, Octopus, and ... Bulb .... Octopus Energy Group[7] is a British renewable energy group specialising in sustainable energy. With operations in the UK, Germany, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the United States, the company has over 2.4 million domestic and business customers*. * as of August 2021 Bulb Energy Ltd. is a British energy supply company operating in the United Kingdom, Texas, Spain, and France. As of March 2020 Bulb had over 1.5 million customers, representing a 5% domestic market share. Tilsit refers to Bulb as his favourite because they are cheap, green and customer service is good. Bulb began business in August 2015, buying and selling electricity and gas to supply domestic properties and businesses, as one of over 70 smaller energy companies competing with the "Big Six energy suppliers" which dominate the UK market. Bulb competes on price, offering a single variable tariff. It supplies 100% renewable electricity and 100% carbon neutral gas. Attracting venture capital, Bulb runs at a financial loss while achieving rapid growth in customers. |
| 18a | Gloss covering first of bandages on // part of leg (8) |
| 20a | Stray into outskirts of Killarney /in/ Irish county (5) |
Kerry[5] is a county of the Republic of Ireland, on the south-western coast in the province of Munster.
Scratching the Surface
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| Killarney[5] is a town in the south-west of the Republic of Ireland, in County Kerry, famous for the beauty of the nearby lakes and mountains. |
| 23a | Test pulse regularly, /for/ instance (7) |
| 25a | Apes shortly scoffing last of ripe // fruit (7) |
Orang[5] is short for orangutan[5], a large mainly solitary anthropoid arboreal ape (the only tree-dwelling great ape) with long shaggy reddish-brown hair, long strong arms, and hooked hands and feet, native to the tropical forests of Borneo and Sumatra.
| 26a | Greek character // featuring in Goethe tale (5) |
Theta[5] is the eighth letter of the Greek alphabet (Θ, θ).
Scratching the Surface
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| Johann Wolfgang von Goethe[5] (1749–1832) was a German poet, playwright, and scholar. Involved at first with the Sturm und Drang movement, Goethe changed to a more measured and classical style, as in the ‘Wilhelm Meister’ novels (1796–1829). Notable dramas: Götz von Berlichingen (1773), Torquato Tasso (1790), and Faust (1808–32). |
| 27a | Strange alien, right? Not I! (9) |
This is an &lit. clue[7] (or, as they prefer to call it on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, an all-in-one clue), a clue in which the entire clue (according to one reading) is wordplay and (under a different reading) is a definition—which, in this case, I would consider to be a cryptic definition.
| 28a | One or two girls? // That should add flavour (8) |
| 29a | Watching international cricket, // declare (6) |
Test[5] (short for Test match[5]) denotes 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.
Scratching the Surface
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| The surface reading may refer to a circumstance that can arise during the play of a cricket match. In cricket, a team continues to bat until ten of the eleven players on the team have been dismissed* unless the captain of a batting team declares the innings closed prematurely [the rationale for doing so is explained below]. In the event that the captain declares the innings closed, his team takes the field and the opposing team bats. * batsmen always appear in pairs and once ten players have been dismissed there are not enough players left to form a pair Why Declare?
The primary objective of each team in cricket[7] is to score more runs than the opposing team. However, in Test cricket (a match between national teams), it is not only necessary to score the most runs but also to dismiss the opposition twice in order to win the match, which would otherwise be drawn. Therefore, the captain of a batting team which has built up a large lead may declare the innings closed prematurely in order to allow the opposition to bat (and thus gain an opportunity to dismiss them). As a captain, the key to victory is picking the right time to declare. Should he declare too early, the other team may score more runs than his team has amassed and thereby win. On the other hand, if he were to declare too late, the match may end before his team can dismiss the other team resulting in a draw, even though his team may have a substantial lead in runs. |
What did he say?
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On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Tilsit writesLord's[7], also known as Lord's Cricket Ground, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London that is widely referred to as the "Home of Cricket" and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club as well as the home or former home of a number of national and international cricket governing bodies*.If you were watching an international cricket match at Lord’s ... * the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the European Cricket Council (ECC) and, until August 2005, the International Cricket Council (ICC) |
Down
| 1d | County has wrong date /for/ item in private chamber (8) |
Beds.[5] (or Beds[10]) is the abbreviation for Bedfordshire[5], a county of south central England.
| 2d | Admire // muscle in repose (7) |
| 3d | Forenames rearranged, // one's in order (9) |
A Freemason[5]
is a member of an international order established for mutual help
and fellowship, which holds elaborate secret ceremonies. (show more )
The original free masons were itinerant skilled stonemasons of the 14th century, who are said to have recognized fellow craftsmen by secret signs. Modern freemasonry is usually traced to the formation of the Grand Lodge in London in 1717; members are typically professionals and businessmen.
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The original free masons were itinerant skilled stonemasons of the 14th century, who are said to have recognized fellow craftsmen by secret signs. Modern freemasonry is usually traced to the formation of the Grand Lodge in London in 1717; members are typically professionals and businessmen.
hide
| 5d | Comprehensive, // where queen might go? (6,3,5) |
The second part of the clue is a possible literal interpretation of the idiomatic expression that forms the solution to the clue.
The queen[5] is the most powerful chess piece, of which each player has one, able to move any number of spaces in any direction along a rank, file, or diagonal on which it stands*.
* Thus the queen, if unobstructed, can move "across the board" either from end to end, side to side, or even diagonally from one corner to the diagonally opposite corner.
| 6d | Storey that's reached from above or below? (5) |
I see this clue as a cryptic definition which consists of a precise definition accompanied by "cryptic elaboration".
*The "cryptic elaboration" does not supply a second independent route to the solution but rather provides supplementary information related to the precise definition (namely, that the solution is a palindrome).
| 7d | Baking ingredient // present, it's said (7) |
| 8d | Hit the roof -- // stop when you do that! (3,3) |
Similar to 5d, the second part of the clue is a possible literal interpretation of the idiomatic expression that forms the solution to the clue.
| 9d | Rule of law I care about // damaged listener (11,3) |
| 16d | Enjoy a drink of whisky? // Willingly! (4,1,4) |
Similar to 5d and 8d, the first part of the clue might be seen as a literal interpretation of the idiomatic expression that forms the solution to the clue. However, unlike the two former clues, this could also be viewed as a simple charade of LIKE (enjoy) + A (from the clue) + SHOT (drink of whisky).
| 17d | Sense // I place in hearing? (8) |
| 19d | Gosh! // Sky! (7) |
| 21d | I'm great, playing // old American music (7) |
Ragtime[5] is a kind of music evolved by black American musicians in the 1890s and played especially on the piano, characterized by a syncopated melodic line and regularly accented accompaniment.
| 22d | Risk taker // a cut above (6) |
| 24d | Song // sung initially in tree (5) |
A psalm[5] is a sacred song or hymn, in particular any of those contained in the biblical Book of Psalms and used in Christian and Jewish worship.
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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