Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29834 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Tuesday, November 16, 2021 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29834]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Mr K | |
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
Today's offering from a mystery setter is a most enjoyable exercise requiring only a modest degree of mental exertion.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 | Darcy isn't likeable, initially -- Austen heroine/'s/ quandary (7) |
Emma Woodhouse[7] is the 21-year-old protagonist of Emma[7], a novel by English author Jane Austen (1775–1817) that was first published in 1815.
Scratching the Surface
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| The surface reading alludes to another Jane Austen novel. Fitzwilliam Darcy, generally referred to as Mr. Darcy[7], is one of the two central characters in Pride and Prejudice, a novel by English author Jane Austen (1775–1817) that was first published in 1813. He is an archetype of the aloof romantic hero, and a romantic interest of Elizabeth Bennet, the novel's protagonist. While he is wealthy, handsome, tall, and intelligent, Darcy lacks ease and social graces, and so others frequently mistake his initially haughty reserve as proof of excessive pride (which, in part, it is). Though he appears to be proud and is largely disliked by people for this reason, his servants vouch for his kindness and decency. Elizabeth is attractive, witty and intelligent – but with a tendency to form tenacious and prejudiced first impressions. As the story progresses, so does her relationship with Mr Darcy. The course of Elizabeth and Darcy's relationship is ultimately decided when Darcy overcomes his pride, and Elizabeth overcomes her prejudice, leading them both to surrender to their love for each other. |
| 5a | Live in // sin, habitually? To an extent (7) |
| 9a | Allowed // on a lake (5) |
"on " = LEG [cricket term]
In cricket, the on[5] (also known as on side) is another name for the leg[5] (also called leg side), the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman’s feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball ⇒
The other half of the field is known as the off[5] (also called off side).
hide
In cricket, the on[5] (also known as on side) is another name for the leg[5] (also called leg side), the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) away from which the batsman’s feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball ⇒
he played a lucky stroke to leg.
The other half of the field is known as the off[5] (also called off side).
hide
" lake " = L[2] [on maps]
| 10a | Awfully pleased about an // area for walking (9) |
| 11a | Playful university teacher hugging almost every // clergyman (10) |
A don[10] is a member of the teaching staff at a university or college, especially at Oxford or Cambridge.
In the Church of England, an archdeacon[2] is a member of the clergy who ranks just below a bishop.
| 12a | Police // announce // list of charges (4) |
This clue is a triple definition.
In the first definition, the Bill[5] (or the Old Bill) is an informal British term for the police ⇒
I couldn't hear that much outside but I think its more likely people driving past and dog walkers who often call the old bill and complain.
In the second definition, bill[5] is used in the sense of to describe or advertise someone or something in a particular way ⇒
Organisers are billing this event as a Celtic celebration.
In the third definition, bill is used in the sense of an invoice.
| 14a | Pub garden did cooked // food (5,7) |
| 18a | Arrogant // about grand piano at the front (12) |
| 21a | Husband bitten by green // parrot (4) |
" husband " = H [h[2]; genealogy]
| 22a | Professional compassion reduced debts -- /that's/ lucky (10) |
| 25a | Crikey, matron shot // bird! (9) |
The exclamation crikey[5] is an informal British expression of surprise ⇒
It might not be clever but, crikey, it sounds like fun.
Cor[5] is an informal British exclamation expressing surprise, excitement, admiration, or alarm ⇒
Cor! That‘s a beautiful black eye you’ve got!.
The cormorant[5] is a rather large diving bird with a long neck, long hooked bill, short legs, and mainly dark plumage. It typically breeds on coastal cliffs.
| 26a | A daughter wearing the first lady/'s/ skirt (5) |
" daughter " = D [d[2]; genealogy]
"the first lady " = EVE
In the Bible, Eve[5,10] is the first woman, mother of the human race, fashioned by God from the rib of Adam, companion of Adam and mother of Cain and Abel* [Gen 2:18-25].
* not to mention Seth and her other sons and daughters [Gen 5:4]
Disobeying God, Eve[7] succumbs to the serpent's temptation to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and shares the fruit with Adam. As a result, the first humans are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
hide
In the Bible, Eve[5,10] is the first woman, mother of the human race, fashioned by God from the rib of Adam, companion of Adam and mother of Cain and Abel* [Gen 2:18-25].
* not to mention Seth and her other sons and daughters [Gen 5:4]
Disobeying God, Eve[7] succumbs to the serpent's temptation to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and shares the fruit with Adam. As a result, the first humans are expelled from the Garden of Eden.
hide
| 27a | Tons with motive /for/ betrayal (7) |
" tons " = T [t[2]]
| 28a | Setter's perhaps after spicy // snacks (3,4) |
Down
| 1d | Attractive person sitting on bar going topless /for/ money (6) |
| 2d | Some empty cage largely reflecting // what's left after death (6) |
| 3d | Amorous old drunk/'s/ high (10) |
| 4d | Space entertaining Nero, primarily? (5) |
I think we can safely call this an &lit. clue[7] (or, as Big Dave prefers to call it, an all-in-one clue) in which the entire clue is both a cryptic definition and wordplay. I expect Nero likely considered the entertainment presented in Roman amphitheatres to be primarily for his pleasure—and, even if a bit questionable, the setter does flag the clue with a question mark.
| 5d | Unprepared, // I am quick with excuses, at heart (9) |
Unprepared is used in the sense of off the cuff.
| 6d | Virtually hot and cross after a // practical joke (4) |
| 7d | Blair is touring a // city (8) |
Brasilia[5] is the capital, since 1960, of Brazil. Designed by Lúcio Costa in 1956, the city was located in the centre of the country with the intention of drawing people away from the crowded coastal areas.
| 8d | People collecting old written record /for/ religious studies (8) |
" old " = O[12] [linguistics;
OFr(Old French),
OE(Old English)]
| 13d | Change // article headings in Daily Telegraph to include only males (10) |
Scratching the Surface
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| The Daily Telegraph[7] is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper, founded in 1855 as The Daily Telegraph and Courier, which is published in London and distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally*. * ... not to mention the newspaper in which this puzzle initially appeared |
| 15d | Belong // at paper, working with all the rage (9) |
| 16d | Foreman's sock? (8) |
George Foreman[5] is a retired US professional boxer. He won the world heavyweight title in 1973–4, regaining it in 1994–5 to become the oldest world heavyweight champion.
| 17d | What gunners might do -- /and/ unsuccessful cavalry? (8) |
The implied meaning of the second definition is "[what] unsuccessful cavalry [might do]". The cavalry are taking to heart the old adage
If at first you don't succeed, ....
I hesitated to mark this as a double definition, as I thought the answer to the second part might contain a hyphen. However, as Mr K points out in his review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, that does not seem to be the case. I also found an entry—albeit in a US dictionary—supporting the lack of a hyphen.
Recharge[15] means to make a new charge, especially to attack again.
| 19d | Regularly uproot last row /to get/ vegetable (6) |
| 20d | The woman's supporting American // doorkeepers (6) |
Usher[10] is used in the sense of a person who acts as doorkeeper, especially in a court of law.
| 23d | Pa drops a long // throw (5) |
| 24d | Ruffian upset small // lads (4) |
Yob[5] is an informal British term for a rude, noisy, and aggressive young person.
Origin: back slang [reversal] for boy
" small " = S[5] [clothing size]
References
Key to Reference Sources:
[1] - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
[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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