Monday, January 31, 2022

Monday, January 31, 2022 — DT 29814 (Published Saturday, January 29, 2022)


Puzzle at a Glance
Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29814
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Saturday, October 23, 2021
Setter
Unknown
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29814 – Hints]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29814 – Review]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Gazza (Hints)
Rahmat Ali (Review)
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
Notes

This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the Saturday, January 29, 2022 edition of the National Post.

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.

Introduction

The "Falcon's Experience" graph above looks like a rainbow today. I found parts of this puzzle extremely difficult although it seems to have posed no major hurdles for most Brits.

In the puzzle, there's a Nina (sometimes called an Easter Egg)—a hidden feature such as a secret message. If you read Comment #41 in the hints on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, you will discover the significance of the 14d/8d combination and also likely the clues at 2d and 21d.

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 Award // half-decent speech (10)

Decoration[5] is used in the sense of a medal or award conferred as an honour ⇒ a decoration won on the field of battle.

6a 'Paddington's Home' // screened by picture palace from the East End (4)

Paddington Bear[7] is a fictional character featured in more than twenty children's books written by British author Michael Bond. Paddington, a friendly bear from "darkest Peru"—with his old hat, battered suitcase, duffel coat and love of marmalade—has become a classic character from British children's literature. (show more )

In the first story, A Bear Called Paddington, Paddington is found at Paddington railway station in London by the Brown family, sitting on his suitcase (bearing the label "WANTED ON VOYAGE") with a note attached to his coat which reads, "Please look after this bear. Thank you." Author Michael Bond has said that his memories of newsreels showing trainloads of child evacuees leaving London during the war, with labels around their necks and their possessions in small suitcases, prompted him to do the same for Paddington.

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Scratching the Surface
Picture palace[5] is a dated British term* for a cinema [British name for a movie theatre].

* This being a term with which I am very familiar, I am surprised to see it labelled as British; however, its absence from US dictionaries would seem to confirm its British pedigree.



The East End[5] is the part of London east of the City (show explanation ) as far as the River Lea, including the Docklands—an area whose residents are known as cockneys.

The City[5], or simply City, is short for the City of London[5]not to be confused with the city of London.

The City of London[7] is a city and ceremonial county within London. It constituted most of London from its settlement by the Romans in the 1st century AD to the Middle Ages, but the conurbation has since grown far beyond the City's borders. The City is now only a tiny part of the metropolis of London, though it remains a notable part of central London. It is one of two districts of London to hold city status, the other being the adjacent City of Westminster.

It is widely referred to simply as the City (often written as just "City" and differentiated from the phrase "the city of London" by capitalising "City") and is also colloquially known as the Square Mile, as it is 1.12 sq mi (2.90 km2), in area. Both of these terms are also often used as metonyms for the United Kingdom's trading and financial services industries, which continue a notable history of being largely based in the City. This is analogous to the use of the terms Wall Street and Bay Street to refer to the financial institutions located in New York and Toronto respectively.

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10a Nuts // quite like what a cricketer might hold (5)

Who do you believe?
The term batty is found in both British and US dictionaries and is an informal term meaning either:
  • odd or eccentric[2,4,10,11,12,14,15]
  • crazy, insane, irrational, mad or mentally deranged[1,2,3,4,5,10,11,12,14,15] [this sense characterized by one dictionary as old-fashioned]
However, is it a British or an American expression? You be the judge.
  • According to Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries), batty[5] is an informal mainly British term.
  • On the other hand, the Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary claims batty[11] to be slang originating in America in the early 20th century.
Several dictionaries[3,4,10] suggest this sense of the word is related to the expression bats in the belfry.

Batty[2] means batlike, referring to a bat (the mammal). While the definition relates to the flying mammal, the setter makes the whimsical leap of logic that it can be extended to include a cricket bat.

11a Picked up something from Rome // that smells nice (9)

Popery[5] is a derogatory, mainly archaic term specifically denoting the doctrines, practices, and ceremonies associated with the Pope or the papal system and, more generally, for Roman Catholicism ⇒ the Anglicans campaigned against popery.

12a Air // support on course to cover Matthew and son (8)

Matthew the Apostle[7], also known as Saint Matthew and possibly as Levi, was, according to the New Testament, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus.

"son " = S [genealogy]

In genealogies, s[5] is the abbreviation for son(s) m 1991; one s one d*.

* married in 1991; one son and one daughter.

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13a Article with yours truly /as/ subject (5)

15a Men provided something cold /for/ opening (7)

"men " = OR [other ranks]

In the British armed forces, the term other ranks[5] (abbreviation OR[5]) refers to all those who are not commissioned officers.

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17aFemale with pride (7)

A pride[5] is a group of lions forming a social unit.

19aSupport for the board? (7)

Board[5,10] is an archaic term for a table, especially one used for eating at, and especially when laden with food ⇒ he looked at the banquet which was spread upon his board.

21a Resent band/'s/ attitude (7)

Set[5] is used in the sense of a group of people with common interests or occupations or of similar social status ⇒ it was a fashionable haunt of the literary set.

22a Some man I certified /gets/ better (5)

24a Owner /of/ business backed worker accepting trophy (8)

"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.

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Occupant[5] is used in the sense of the holder of a position or office.

27a Theatre regularly ignored Friends character? // Blow it! (9)

Monica Geller[7], portrayed by American actress Courteney Cox, is one of the six main characters who appear on the American sitcom Friends which aired for ten seasons from 1994 to 2004.

Post Mortem
Entering an incorrect solution at 16d caused grief here. It did not help that Friends is a show that I rarely—if ever—watched.

28a Logs I ordered // somewhere in Ireland (5)

Sligo[5] is a a seaport in the Republic of Ireland located on Sligo Bay, an inlet of the Atlantic. It is the county town of Sligo, a county in the province of Connacht.

29a Look // unpleasant for the audience (4)

30a Rich // remark made to tailor for a job well done (4-6)

As published in the National Post, the clue is identical to the one that appeared in the print edition of The Daily Telegraph.

As Gazza writes in his hint on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, "I don’t really understand why you’d compliment a tailor in such a way – surely it’s what you might say to a cobbler who’d done a good repair?".

The clue was later revised on the Telegraph Puzzles website to read:
  • Rich remark made to cobbler for a job well done (4-6)

Down

1d Obligation // of French telecom company (4)

"of French " = DE

In French, de[8] is a preposition meaning 'of'' or 'from'.

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"telecom company " = BT [British Telecom]

BT[5] (the abbreviation for British Telecom) is a trade name of BT Group plc[7] (trading as BT and formerly known as British Telecom), a British multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It has operations in around 180 countries and is the largest provider of fixed-line, broadband and mobile services in the UK, and also provides subscription television and IT services.

* the designation plc stands for public limited company[7] (show more )

The designation plc (standing for public limited company[7]) is used in the UK, some Commonwealth jurisdictions, and the Republic of Ireland. The term "public limited company" and the "PLC"/"plc" suffix were introduced in 1981; prior to this, all limited companies bore the suffix "Limited" ("Ltd."), which is still used by private limited companies.

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2d Girl /with/ unusually nice heart (9)

3d Perhaps write right // verse (5)

4d Joint // league leader? (7)

Joint[5] is a British term* for a large piece of meat cooked whole or ready for cooking ⇒ a joint of ham.

* or perhaps not so British[3,11]



Side[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒ there was a mixture of old and young players in* their side. (show more)

* Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" or "in a team" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.

In North America, the term side[3] is used in a very general fashion that can denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples ⇒ (i) Previous England rugby sides, and England teams in many other sports, would have crumbled under the weight of such errors.; (ii) They'll face better sides than this Monaco team, but you can only beat what's put in front of you.

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5d Food // over at breakfast? (7)

"over " = O [cricket term]

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation O[5] denotes over(s), an over[5] being a division of play consisting of a sequence of six balls bowled by a bowler from one end of the pitch, after which another bowler takes over from the other end.

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7d Mysterious // meteoroid oddly missing base (5)

In mathematics, e[5] is the transcendental* number that is the base of Napierian or natural logarithms, approximately equal to 2.71828.

* A transcendental number[5] is a number such as e or π that is real but not a root of an algebraic equation with rational coefficients.

8d See 14 Down

9d Coward // cut up over Scottish golfing resort (8)

Royal Troon Golf Club[7] is a links golf course founded in 1878 located in Troon, Scotland, southwest of Glasgow.

Poltroon[5] is an archaic or literary term for an utter coward.

14d & 8d
Strange haunting moves Trinity // College (10,10)

The University of Nottingham[7] is a public research university in Nottingham, United Kingdom.

Scratching the Surface
Trinity College[7] is a popular name for institutions of higher learning around the world. Three of the best known are:
  • Trinity College, Cambridge[7], a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England;
  • Trinity College, Oxford[7], a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England;
  • Trinity College Dublin[7], the sole constituent college of the University of Dublin.

Oops!
In a rare miscue on his part, the ever meticulous Rahmat Ali erroneously includes the word "Trinity" in both the wordplay and definition in his explanation. The definition is merely "college" as I show above.

16d Private // centre (8)

Post Mortem
Going for INTERNAL here led to my downfall at 27a.

18d Important // German city Italy almost rebuilt (9)

Essen[5] is an industrial city in the Ruhr valley, in northwestern Germany.

20d Controversial // European aim (7)

"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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21d Chap // I'm backing with each moving line (7)

"line " = L [textual references]

In textual references, the abbreviation for line [of written matter] is l.[5] l. 648.

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Chap[3,4,11] (show more ) is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[3] term for a man or boy — although a term that is certainly not uncommon in Canada.

Chap[3,4,11] is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar[a,b].

[a] Pedlar is the modern British spelling of peddler[14] which, in most senses, is considered by the Brits to be a US or old-fashioned British spelling. The exception is in the sense of a dealer in illegal drugs which the Brits spell as drug peddler.
[b] The current meaning of chap[2] dates from the 18th century. In the 16th century, chap meant 'a customer'. The dictionaries do not explain how a shortened form of 'chapman' (pedlar) came to mean 'customer'.

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23d Swear // dog's evil at first (5)

25d Group // own all but the last two (5)

While posse[5] might be used in the sense commonly seen in Western movies, the term is now used in an informal sense to mean a group of people who have a common characteristic or occupation (tea was handed round by a posse of mothers) or a group of young people who socialize together, especially to go to clubs or raves [clandestine, often illegal, dance parties]* (A couple of girls in Jessica's posse strolled by and scowled at me).

* several usage examples (including the one cited) refer to the members of the group as supporters of a particular individual in the group
 
26d Promise // part of hospital will get oxygen for American (4)

The symbol for the chemical element oxygen is O[5].

" American " = A[1]


References

Sources referenced in the blog are identified by the following symbols. The reference numbers themselves are hyperlinks to the entry in the source being referenced. Click on the number to view the source.

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

Saturday, January 29, 2022

Saturday, January 29, 2022 — Sounds Right To Me (NP 220129)

Introduction

You might say that today's puzzle from Cox & Rathvon (NP 220129) strikes the right note. As a regular often observes on Big Dave's Crossword Blog (a British blog where I review puzzles published in London's The Daily Telegraph), the puzzle was easy until it wasn't. Most of it seemed like a hot knife going through butter but a handful at the end proved rather testing.

I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

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
- yet to be solved

Symbols and Markup Conventions
  •  "*" - anagram
  • "~" - sounds like
  • "<" - indicates the preceding letters are reversed
  • "( )" - encloses contained letters
  • "_" - replaces letters that have been deleted
  •  "†" - indicates that the word is present in the clue
  • "//" - 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 the symbols and markup conventions used on this blog.

Across

1a Secret raid busted // religious ceremony (6,4)

{SACRED RITE}* — anagram of (busted) SECRET RAID

6a Boxer swallows large // chaw of tobacco (4)

P(L)UG — PUG[3,4,11] (boxer; slang, short for pugilist) containing (swallows) L(arge)

10a Indian pancake // Patrick dipped into Indian tea (7)

CHA(PAT)I — PAT ([diminutive for] Patrick) contained in (dipped into) CHAI (Indian [word for] tea)

11a Picture, as true // modern artist (7)

PIC|AS|SO — PIC ([diminutive for] picture) + AS (†) + SO (true; I swear it to be so)

Pablo Picasso[5] (1881–1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, and graphic artist, resident in France from 1904. Regarded as one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, he is known (among other things) for co-founding the Cubist movement.[7] (more )

Picasso’s prolific inventiveness and technical versatility made him the dominant figure in avant-garde art in the first half of the 20th century. Following his Blue Period (1901-4) and Rose Period (1905-6), Les Demoiselles d’Avignon (1907) signalled his development of cubism (1908–14). In the 1920s and 1930s he adopted a neoclassical figurative style and produced semi-surrealist paintings using increasingly violent imagery, notably The Three Dancers (1935) and Guernica (1937).

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12a Party animal // caught at first with stirrer (8)

C|AROUSER — C (caught at first; initial letter of Caught) + (with) AROUSER (stirrer)

13a Concerning // a ring engagement (5)

A|BOUT — A (†) + BOUT (ring engagement; one involving the tobacco-chewing chap from 6a)

15a Taxes // rings (5)

TOLLS — double definition; government-imposed levies and the sounds of bells

17a Keeping time, change // cockpit instrument (9)

AL(TIME)TER — ALTER (change) containing (keeping) TIME (†)

19a GI captures a vulgar // Italian hero (9)

G(A|RIBALD)I — GI (†) containing (captures) {A (†) + RIBALD (vulgar)}

Giuseppe Garibaldi[5] (1807–1882) was an Italian patriot and military leader of the Risorgimento. With his volunteer force of ‘Red Shirts’ he captured Sicily and southern Italy from the Bourbons in 1860–1, thereby playing a key role in the establishment of a united kingdom of Italy.

21a Opening // university in financial trouble (5)

DEB(U)T — U(niversity) contained in (in) DEBT (financial trouble)

23a Act like a loon with northern // bird (5)

RAVE|N — RAVE (act like a loon) + (with) N(orthern)

24a Meg’s sister, regal // in a funny way (8)

JO|KINGLY — JO (Meg's sister) + KINGLY (regal)

Little Women[7] is a novel by American author Louisa May Alcott (1832–1888), which was originally published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869. The novel follows the lives of four sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy March—detailing their passage from childhood to womanhood, and is loosely based on the author and her three sisters. Little Women is set in the Alcott family home, Orchard House, in Concord, Massachusetts.

27a Left inside eating strangely // jiggly dessert (7)

{GE(L)ATIN}* — L(eft) contained in (inside) anagram of (strangely) EATING

28a Spin // shingle all around (7)

ENGLISH* — anagram of (all around) SHINGLE

... the spin one might put on a billiard ball.

29a Rise and fall // in a draw, from the sound of it (4)

TIDE~  — sounds like (from the sound of it) TIED (in a draw)

30a Wagon maker // revised Whig tract around mid-march (10)

CARTWRIGHT* — anagram of (revised) WHIG FIRST containing (around) R (mid-march; middle letter of maRch)

Down

1d Item for carrying // fire (4)

SACK — double definition, a type of tote and to dismiss from employment

2d Cry about crone // painter (7)

C(HAG)ALL — CALL (cry) containing (about) HAG (crone)

Marc Chagall[5] (1887–1985) was a Russian-born French painter and graphic artist. His work was characterized by the use of rich emotive colour and dream imagery, and had a significant influence on surrealism.

3d Significant period, to // one of the Muses (5)

ERA|TO — ERA (significant period) + TO (†)

4d Put back // equestrian control before delay (9)

REIN|STALL — REIN (equestrian control) preceding (before) STALL (delay)

5d Narrow // recorder? (5)

TAPER — double definition, a verb meaning to reduce in width and a noun denoting a recording device or the person operating it

7d Yell after the Spanish // attack (4,3)

LA|SH OUT — SHOUT (yell) following (after) LA (the Spanish; feminine singular definite article in Spanish)

8d Author secretly // wore tights when dancing (5,5)

{GHOST WRITE}* — anagram of (when dancing) WORE TIGHTS

9d Got out // sardines, initially packed (8)

S|CRAMMED — S (sardines, initially: initial letter of Sardines) + CRAMMED (packed)

14d Great sight, changing // theatrical direction (5,5)

{STAGE RIGHT}* — anagram of (changing) GREAT SIGHT

... the direction here is an orientation rather than an acting instruction.

16d Roll taken by executive’s // constituents (8)

SU(BUN)IT|S — BUN (roll; type of bread) contained in (taken by) SUIT (executive) + S ('s)

18d Most complex // expression of disgust in essays by leader of Tories (9)

TR(ICK)IES|T — ICK (expression of disgust) contained in (in) TRIES (essays; attempts) + (by) T (leader [initial letter] of Tories)

On seeing "expression of disgust", the word that immediately came to mind was UGH and I quickly bunged TOUGHEST into the grid—only to find it did not fill all the available spaces.

Note to readers outside our borders
Members of Canada's Conservative Party are informally known as Tories. The party's current leader is Erin O'Toole[7].

20d Disparaged, // like Satan dressed in red (7)

R(EVIL)ED — EVIL (like Satan) contained in (dressed in) RED (†)

22d Overstuffed // pest consuming last of ethyl alcohol (7)

BU(L|GIN)G — BUG (pest) containing (consuming) {L (last [letter] of ethyL) + GIN (alcohol)}

24d Military cabal // appearing in Cajun tale (5)

_JUN|TA_ — hidden in (appearing in) CaJUN TAle

25d Reign ruined // African land (5)

NIGER* — anagram of (ruined) REIGN

26d Cool // piano lid (4)

P|HAT — P (piano; musical direction to play softly) + HAT (LID)

Epilogue

The title of today's post is inspired by 1 and 30 Across and 8 and 14 Down. No matter how you spell it, it still sounds right to me.



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

Hex Cryptic Crossword — NP 220122 (Cox and Rathvon)


Note to Readers
Following an announcement two weeks ago that due to copyright concerns the blog would no longer post a copy of the Cox and Rathvon puzzle, Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon (the setters of the puzzle) reached out to the blog indicating that they do not object to the blog posting a copy of the puzzle to which they own the copyright. Out of respect to the interests of the National Post, we have mutually agreed that the blog will delay posting a copy of the puzzle until one week following its appearance in the National Post. You can read more about this decision and the events leading up to it at An Exciting New Development. I am sure the hundreds of Hex fans who visit the blog every week join me in extending our sincere appreciation to Emily and Henry for their gracious gesture in allowing the puzzle to continue to be posted on this blog.

Introduction

Copyright © 2022 Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon,
used with permission
This puzzle from Cox & Rathvon
was published in the National Post on Saturday, January 22, 2022. You can find a full review of the puzzle at Saturday, January 22, 2022 — Kindergarten Rivalry (NP 220122).

Your comments—whether they be with regard to the puzzle or the blog—are always welcome. However, I suggest you post comments pertaining to the puzzle on the review of the puzzle in order to keep all such comments in one place.

How to print the puzzle
The items in bold text as well as the image of the puzzle are links. You can open either a PDF or JPG version of the puzzle in a browser window by clicking on "This puzzle from Cox & Rathvon" or the puzzle image respectively. Either of these can be printed using your standard browser print controls. Clicking on "Saturday, January 22, 2022 — Kindergarten Rivalry (NP 220122)" takes you to the review of the puzzle.

Signing off for today — Falcon

Friday, January 28, 2022

Friday, January 28, 2022 — DT 29813


Puzzle at a Glance
Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29813
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Friday, October 22, 2021
Setter
Zandio
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29813]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Deep Threat
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

Zandio's puzzles always exhibit an element of quirkiness and today's is no different.

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 Issue bullet that's harmless // at close range (5-5)

6a Second in // craft (4)

9a Shocking // forbidden passion -- love found by you and me (10)

"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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10a Good to get massage /and/ something to eat (4)

"good " = G [academic result]

The abbreviation G[a] for good comes from its use in education as a grade awarded on school assignments or tests.

[a] Collins English to Spanish Dictionary

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12a Like a play on words lacking core // discipline (6)

13a More intelligent // British having longer showers? (8)

15aFriend in form? (12)

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.

Naming of School Years (British System vs American System)[7]
 Age RangeBritish SystemAmerican System
NameAlternative/Old NameName
11-12Year 7First form6th grade
12-13Year 8Second form7th grade
13-14Year 9Third form8th grade
14-15Year 10Fourth form9th grade
15-16Year 11Fifth form10th grade
16-17Year 12Lower sixth form11th grade
17-18Year 13Upper sixth form12th grade

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Schoolfellow[5] is a more formal term for schoolmate.

18a Feel war should be replaced, say, /in/ this social system (7,5)

21a After reflection during Whitsun, I'm retiring -- // end of the line (8)

Scratching the Surface
Whitsun[5] is the weekend or week including Whit Sunday[5] (also called Pentecost; US Whitsunday) which is the seventh Sunday after Easter, a Christian festival commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2).

22a Very cold spell -- // one bear's home, perhaps conserving energy (3,3)

"energy " = E [symbol used in physics]

In physics, E[5] is a symbol used to represent energy in mathematical formulae ⇒ E = mc2.

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24a Maiden about to meet king/'s/ brother (4)

"maiden "  = M [scoreless over in cricket]

In cricket, a maiden[5], also known as a maiden over and denoted on cricket scorecards by the abbreviation m.[10], is an over* in which no runs are scored.

* An over[5] is a division of play consisting of a sequence of six balls bowled by a bowler from one end of the pitch, after which another bowler takes over from the other end.

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25a Mail unfair in review /for/ novel (10)

26a Outstanding student /in/ head-to-head fight (4)

"student " = L [driver under instruction]

The cryptic crossword convention of L meaning learner or student arises from the L-plate[7], a square plate bearing a sans-serif letter L, for learner, which must be affixed to the front and back of a vehicle in various jurisdictions (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.

Automobile displaying an L-plate

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27a Using odd bits of turkey, guys cook American -- // awesome! (10)

Possibly, cook[5] is being used in the sense of to prepare food but I wonder if it might instead be used in the sense of alter dishonestly or falsify  cook the books.

Do[5] is an informal British term meaning to swindle It was only after travelling to Amsterdam and meeting the fraudsters that she became suspicious and contacted police, who told her: ‘Sorry, but you've been done.’.

Down

1d Encourage // seafront exercises (6)

Prom[5] is an informal British short form for promenade[5], a paved* public walk, typically one along the seafront at a resort.

* In Britain, pave[5] means to cover (a piece of ground) with flat stones or bricks—not asphalt.

PT[10] is the abbreviation for physical training[10], an old-fashioned term for training and practice in sports, gymnastics, etc, as in schools and colleges.

2d Games console given without wrapping --/that's/ mean (6)

Nintendo Co., Ltd.[7] is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan that develops video games and video game consoles.

3d Crane's action when flying // across the Atlantic? (12)

The question mark indicates this is a definition by example; the solution would be equally applicable had the clue been phrased "... across the Pacific".

4d Told a tale /showing/ origins of love in 'Edwin Drood' (4)

Scratching the Surface
The Mystery of Edwin Drood[7] is the final novel by English author Charles Dickens (1812–1870), originally published in 1870.

The novel turned out to be more of a mystery than intended. It was scheduled to be published in twelve instalments from April 1870 to February 1871, of which only six were completed before Dickens's death in 1870. Dickens left no detailed plan for the remaining instalments or solution to the novel's mystery.

5d Sitting on the fence -- // Tyne ritual when drunk (10)

Scratching the Surface
Despite being unable to find confirmation in any of my reference sources, I presume that Tyne is a shortened version of Tyneside[5], the name of an industrial region on the banks of the River Tyne, in northeastern England, stretching from Newcastle upon Tyne to the coast.

7d Awful // run with kid falling in burrow (8)

"run " = R [cricket notation]

On cricket scorecards [not to mention baseball scoreboards], the abbreviation R[5] denotes run(s).

In cricket, a run[5] is a unit of scoring achieved by hitting the ball so that both batsmen are able to run between the wickets, or awarded in some other circumstances.

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8dKnockout round involving locals? (3,5)

Local[5] is an informal British term for a pub convenient to a person’s home ⇒ had a pint in the local.

Visitors to Big Dave's Crossword Blog propose various interpretations of the sense in which "knockout" is used in the cryptic reading of the clue. Like Margaret at Comment #19, I supposed it was alluding to the possibility that the volume of alcohol consumed might leave some participants in an unconscious state.

Scratching the Surface
Knockout[5] is a British term* for a tournament in which the loser in each round is eliminated ⇒ At the Games there will be eight teams in each competition battling it out in pools, followed by the knockout rounds.

* a British term according to Lexico, although I somehow doubt they hold exclusive rights to it

11dHitchcock, say, would do this // kind of political manoeuvre (6,6)

The first part of the clue is what I think of as a descriptive definition; a literal interpretation of the solution describes something that Alfred Hitchcock might well do during the filming of his movies.

Sir Alfred Hitchcock[5,7] (1899–1980) was an English* film director, producer, and screenwriter who has been called the "Master of Suspense". (show more )

* A British citizen by birth, Hitchcock became an American citizen in 1955.

Acclaimed in Britain for films such as The Thirty-Nine Steps (1935), he moved to Hollywood in 1939. Among his later works, notable for their suspense and their technical ingenuity, are the thrillers Strangers on a Train (1951), Psycho (1960), and The Birds (1963).

Known by the nickname Hitch[7], he is also well known for his cameo roles in most of his films.

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Direct action[5] is the use of strikes, demonstrations, or other public forms of protest rather than negotiation to achieve one's demands ⇒ protestors took direct action by chaining themselves to bulldozers.

14d Behind European athlete, // one that came first (10)

"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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16d Ordered to wed, Tim // was unfaithful (3-5)

17d Barrier placed around Lima or // another city (8)

"Lima " = L [NATO Phonetic Alphabet]

In what is commonly known as the NATO Phonetic Alphabet*[7], Lima[5] is a code word representing the letter L.

* officially the International Radiotelephony Spelling Alphabet

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Florence[5] is a city in west central Italy, the capital of Tuscany, on the River Arno. (show more )

Florence was a leading centre of the Italian Renaissance from the 14th to the 16th century, especially under the rule of the Medici family during the 15th century.

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19d Turned over in pontoon, I sacrificed // fortune needed to win here (6)

Scratching the Surface
Pontoon[5] is a British name for the card game or vingt-et-un (known in North America as blackjack[5]).

20d Design has been put into that man's // suit (6)

23d North-bound motorway service // area for pigs? (4)

Motorway[2,5] (abbreviation M[5]) is a British, Australian, and New Zealand term for a dual-carriageway road [divided highway] designed for fast-moving traffic, especially one with three lanes per carriageway [direction of travel] and limited access and exit points [controlled access].

"service " = RAF

The Royal Air Force[5] (abbreviation RAF) is the British air force, formed in 1918 by amalgamation of the Royal Flying Corps (founded 1912) and the Royal Naval Air Service (founded 1914).

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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