Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29876 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, January 5, 2022 | |
Setter
NY Doorknob aka Donnybrook (Paul Bringloe) | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29876]
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Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
2Kiwis | |
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
Jay takes his monthly sabbatical from the Cryptic Crossword to set the Toughie Crossword in The Daily Telegraph under the pseudonym Logman. In his absence, NY Doorknob steps in as usual to fill his shoes.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 | Fat // person sobbing? (7) |
| 5a | Superhuman // setter perhaps returned favour (7) |
| 9a | National /from/ Haiti open to change (9) |
The Story Behind the Picture
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| The 2Kiwis illustrate their review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog with a picture of Haile Selassie[5] (1892–1975), emperor of Ethiopia 1930–74*. In exile in Britain during the Italian occupation of Ethiopia (1936–41), he was restored to the throne by the Allies and ruled until deposed by a military coup. He is revered by the Rastafarian religious sect. * The name translates to English as "Power of the Trinity"; he was born Lij Tafari Makonnen Woldemikael. Prior to being named emperor, he served as regent beginning in 1916.[7] |
| 10a | Grind /having/ hollowed out green tree (5) |
| 11a | Fuss about rapier regularly /used as/ weapon (7) |
| 12a | Taking in a fine duck, serves revolutionary // course (7) |
" fine " = F[2] [grade of pencil lead]
"duck " = O [cricket term]
In cricket, a duck[5] (short for duck's egg) is a batsman’s score of nought [zero] ⇒
In British puzzles, "duck" is used to indicate the letter "O" based on the resemblance of the digit "0" to this letter.
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In cricket, a duck[5] (short for duck's egg) is a batsman’s score of nought [zero] ⇒
he was out for a duck. This is similar to the North American expression goose egg[5] meaning a zero score in a game.
In British puzzles, "duck" is used to indicate the letter "O" based on the resemblance of the digit "0" to this letter.
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| 13a | Snack/'s/ good chance for tucking into pickled eels (9) |
Evens[5] is a British term meaning even money[5], viz. odds offering an equal chance of winning or losing, with the amount won being the same as the stake* ⇒
the colt was 4-6 favourite after opening at evens.
* If the odds are evens[7], the payout will be equal to the amount wagered plus the original stake, that is, "double-your-money".
Elevenses[5] is an informal British term for a short break for light refreshments, usually with tea or coffee, taken about eleven o’clock in the morning.
| 16a | Huntress /from/ US state leaving home (5) |
In Roman mythology, Diana[10] is the virginal goddess of the hunt and the moon — and is often identified in clues as a huntress, Her counterpart in Greek mythology is Artemis.
| 17a | American brought to second class // property (5) |
" American " = A[1]
" second " = S [s[2]; measure of time]
| 18a | New arrival supplied with £1000 /for/ instrument (4,5) |
Grand[5] is an informal term for a thousand dollars or pounds ⇒
he gets thirty-five grand a year.
| 21a | Story // about backing to have importance (7) |
" about " = CA [ca[2]; circa (Latin)]
| 22a | Ace supporter nursing broken leg /in/ class (7) |
" ace " = A[5] [in card games]
| 25a | Doctor with an old woman /in/ emotional episode (5) |
| 26a | Among trees plan a delightful // walk (9) |
| 27a | North Surrey dancing // establishment for infants (7) |
Scratching the Surface
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| Surrey[5] is a county of southeastern England. |
| 28a | Touching line // from Brown, respected chap (7) |
Down
| 1d | Live, having received new heart! // Use lungs! (7) |
| 2d | Guide // Penny away from drug dealer (5) |
| 3d | Bankrupt // agent? Not entirely (5) |
| 4d | Dire // game across the Atlantic without ball? (7) |
Given this puzzle originally appeared in The Daily Telegraph, the phrase "across the Atlantic" must be interpreted from a British perspective.
| 5d | Start // seeing reforms close to Brussels (7) |
| 6d | Magistrate at party good /in/ cut-throat competition (3-3-3) |
Historically, doge[10] was the title of the chief magistrate in the republics of Venice (until 1797) and Genoa (until 1805).
"party " = DO
Do[5,12] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[12] term* for a party or other social event ⇒
* Although one US dictionary (Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12]) supports the contention by Lexico (Oxford Dictionary of English)[5] that this usage is at least chiefly British, two other US dictionaries[3,11] do not.
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Do[5,12] is an informal British[5] or chiefly British[12] term* for a party or other social event ⇒
the soccer club Christmas do.
* Although one US dictionary (Webster’s New World College Dictionary[12]) supports the contention by Lexico (Oxford Dictionary of English)[5] that this usage is at least chiefly British, two other US dictionaries[3,11] do not.
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" good " = G [g or g.[1]; a grade of numismatic coin perhaps]
| 7d | Lover // a Catholic picked up in Italian area (9) |
Roman[5] is a dated short form for Roman Catholic ⇒
the Roman Church's instructions to its clergy.
" area " = A[2] [geometry]
An inamorata[5] is a person's female lover.
| 8d | European died, swallowed by Asian land // mammal (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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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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The echidna[5] (also called spiny anteater) is a spiny insectivorous egg-laying mammal with a long snout and claws, native to Australia and New Guinea.
| 14d | Simple job for professor /to find/ seat (4,5) |
A chair[5] is a professorship ⇒
he held a chair in physics.
| 15d | Crazy ten years we have /in/ company? (9) |
It is essential to take "years we have" as a phrase when parsing the wordplay.
| 17d | An adolescent male dressed at last /in/ rubber? (7) |
Aladdin is the title character of the story of Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp[7], one of the folk tales recounted in One Thousand and One Nights (often known in English as the Arabian Nights)*, a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales. In the story, Aladdin discovers a cave filled with riches including a magic lamp from which, when it is rubbed, a genie appears.
* One of the 'orphan tales', Aladdin was not part of the original Nights collection and has no authentic Arabic textual source; rather, it was incorporated into the French version, Les mille et une nuits, by its translator, Antoine Galland.
| 18d | Physical attack // that may require charge (7) |
| 19d | Uproarious scene? // Put up with it, keeping quiet (4,3) |
A bear pit (another name for bear garden[5]) is a scene of uproar and confusion.
Origin: The original sense was ‘a place set apart for bear-baiting’; bear gardens were often used for other rough sports, hence the figurative meaning.
| 20d | Call taken by eastern court /in/ local language (7) |
" court " = CT [Ct or ct[2]; in street addresses]
| 23d | Smile, entertaining adult // suggestion (5) |
"adult " = A [former British film classification]
The A (Adult) certificate is a former film certificate[7] issued by the British Board of Film Classification. This certificate existed in various forms from 1912 to 1985, when it was replaced by the PG (Parental Guidance) certificate. [Despite its demise in the real world, it continues to find widespread use in Crosswordland.]
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The A (Adult) certificate is a former film certificate[7] issued by the British Board of Film Classification. This certificate existed in various forms from 1912 to 1985, when it was replaced by the PG (Parental Guidance) certificate. [Despite its demise in the real world, it continues to find widespread use in Crosswordland.]
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| 24d | British people /forming/ couple (5) |
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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