Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29820 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Saturday, October 30, 2021 | |
Setter
Unknown | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29820 – Hints]Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29820 – Review] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Gazza (Hints)crypticsue (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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This is the second of two puzzles skipped by the National Post on Monday, February 7, 2022. 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. | |
Your Bonus Puzzle
Introduction
Judging by the comments on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, most solvers seem to have found this puzzle to be a bit more of a challenge than we usually see in a "Saturday Prize Puzzle".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
| 8a | Eradicate // native Australian solicitor (4,3) |
Roo[5] is an informal Australian term for a kangaroo.
A tout[10] is a person who solicits business in a brazen way.
| 10a | The real jerks // hit hard (7) |
Here and There
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Leather[5] (verb) is an informal British* term meaning to beat or thrash (someone) ⇒ he caught me and leathered me black and blue. |
| 11a | A county going after prize turned over // huge sum of money (9) |
Bucks.[5] is the abbreviation for Buckinghamshire[5], a county of central England.
| 12a | Item, // fine and good (5) |
| 13a | Consequently, cover // reliable (5) |
| 14a | For example, 22 // kettle has one (7) |
The
numeral "22" is a cross
reference indicator pointing to clue 22d (show more ).
To complete the clue, a solver must replace the cross reference indicator with the solution to the clue starting in the light* identified by the cross reference indicator.
The cross reference indicator may include a directional indicator but this is customarily done only in situations where there are both Across and Down clues originating in the light that is being referenced.
* light-coloured cell in the grid
hide
To complete the clue, a solver must replace the cross reference indicator with the solution to the clue starting in the light* identified by the cross reference indicator.
The cross reference indicator may include a directional indicator but this is customarily done only in situations where there are both Across and Down clues originating in the light that is being referenced.
* light-coloured cell in the grid
hide
| 17a | Retreat // harder on sons failing to clinch victory (4,2,4,5) |
The phrase pull in one's horns[5] (or mainly British draw in one's horns) means become more cautious, especially with regard to expenditure ⇒
there are some signs that consumers are beginning to pull in their horns in the face of tighter credit constraints.
| 19a | Go around cutting fruit /in/ French city (7) |
Limoges[5] is a city in west central France, the capital of Limousin. Famous in the late Middle Ages for enamel work, it has been noted since the 18th century for the production of porcelain.
| 21a | Colour // I observed in ring, twirling it around (5) |
| 24a | Wife in love, remarkably // I say (5) |
" wife " = W [w[2]]
| 26a | Butterfly // operating when windy? (6-3) |
The orange tip[5] is a cream-coloured butterfly of both Eurasia and North America, the male (and sometimes the female) of which has orange tips to the forewings.
| 27a | Morsel on red // dish (7) |
Rarebit[5] (also Welsh rarebit) is a dish of melted and seasoned cheese on toast, sometimes with other ingredients. The name is an alteration of Welsh rabbit[5] (probably originally used humorously).
| 28a | On supermarket shelf // just around the corner (2,5) |
The first part of the clue is what a literal reading of the solution might suggest.
Down
| 1d | Evidence cake's been swiped? // Good Lord! (6) |
The first part of the clue is what I would call a descriptive definition—it describes an occurrence which might result in crumbs being left behind.
Crumbs[5] (a euphemism for Christ) is an informal British term used to express dismay or surprise ⇒
‘Crumbs,’ said Emily, ‘how embarrassing.’.
| 2d | Igloo man built /in/ sparsely populated country (8) |
Mongolia[5] is a large and sparsely populated country of East Asia, bordered by Siberian Russia and China.
| 3d | Threatening, // in order to achieve command (10) |
| 4d | Hammered -- // as one's walls may be? (9) |
| 5d | Biting // pie (4) |
| 6d | The short grains /seen,/ again and again (6) |
| 7d | Three goddesses maintaining equipment /in/ ships (8) |
In Greek mythology, the Fates[10] are the three goddesses—Atropos, Clotho, and Lachesis—who control the destinies of the lives of humankind, which are likened to skeins of thread that they spin, measure out, and at last cut.
A modern* frigate[5] is a warship with a mixed armament, generally lighter than a destroyer (although, in the US navy, heavier) and of a kind originally introduced for convoy escort work.
* Historically, a frigate was a sailing warship of a size and armament just below that of a ship of the line. Before that, in the late 16th century, a frigate was a light, fast boat which was rowed or sailed.
| 9d | Food // trapped, starter refused (4) |
Tuck[5] is a dated, informal British term for food eaten by children at school as a snack ⇒ (i)
our parents provided us with a bit of money to buy tuck with; (ii)
they send me a tuck box every month.
| 15d | Student of behaviour // got hostile when misbehaving! (10) |
An ethologist (not to be confused with an ethnologist) is an expert in or student of ethology[10] (not to be confused with ethnology[10]), the science of the behaviour of animals in their normal environment.
Almost an Oops!
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| Somehow, on solving, I managed to get the correct scientist. However, when writing the review I made the very mistake I warn against above. (I'll lay the blame for my misreading on my much delayed cataract surgery!) It was only when I found several people on Big Dave's Crossword Blog commenting on this being a never-before-heard-of field of study that I double checked my entry and discovered I had included the wrong scientist in my review (which fortunately was still at the draft stage). |
| 16d | Petty official // patient man throws out (9) |
In the Bible, Job[5] is a man whose patience and piety were tried by undeserved misfortunes. However, in spite of his bitter lamentations, he remained confident in the goodness and justice of God. His name has come to epitomise patience ⇒
In dealing with this series of difficult circumstances, she displayed the patience of Job.
Jobsworth[5] is a derogatory, informal British term for an official who upholds petty rules even at the expense of humanity or common sense ⇒
parks abound with jobsworths who delight in yelling that you can't do that without special permission.
| 17d | Food retailer really /for/ shipment (8) |
| 18d | Link // Republican with joy (8) |
" Republican " = R[5] [member or supporter of the US Republican Party]
| 20d | Assurance given by yours truly, // well! (2,4) |
As in 28a, the first part of the clue is what a literal reading of the solution might suggest.
| 22d | Boy in blue /or/ reddish-brown (6) |
Boys in blue[5] is an informal term for policemen or the police ⇒
two dozen boys in blue arrive in full riot gear.
| 23d | Country // in Burma likeable, /and/ in Panama liberated (4) |
This clue has three components—one is the definition and two are wordplay.
Mali[5]
is a landlocked country in West Africa, south of Algeria. Former name (until 1958)
French Sudan. (show more )
Conquered by the French in the late 19th century, Mali became part of French West Africa. It became a partner with Senegal in the Federation of Mali in 1959 and achieved full independence a year later, on the withdrawal of Senegal.
hide
Conquered by the French in the late 19th century, Mali became part of French West Africa. It became a partner with Senegal in the Federation of Mali in 1959 and achieved full independence a year later, on the withdrawal of Senegal.
hide
| 25d | Oil perhaps // observed from below in defective bulldozer (4) |
What did she say?
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In her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, crypticsue describes lube asThat comes straight from The Chambers Dictionary, which defines lube[1] as a chiefly North American or Australian short form of lubricant or lubricate. However, other British dictionaries don't seem to see lube in the same light. Lexico (Oxford Dictionaries) is the only other British source I found which bestows a North American (US actually) and Australian identity on the word lube[5] and then only when it is used (or should I say misused) in the sense of an oil change for a vehicle.A chiefly North American or Australian word meaning to lubricate. |
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
The puzzle in the Post is actually DT29822.
ReplyDeletePuzzler,
ReplyDeleteAgain thank you for bringing this to my attention. It has been my practice to check that the puzzle I blog is the one that is actually published. However, the National Post has not skipped a puzzle for such a long that that I seem to have become careless.