Happy Canada Day
Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29927 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Saturday, March 5, 2022 | |
Setter
Anthony Plumb (unconfirmed)*
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Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29927 – Hints]Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29927 – Review] | |
Big Dave's Crossword Blog review written by
Tilsit (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 puzzle appears on the Friday Diversions page in the Thursday, June 30, 2022 edition of the National Post. * In the intro to his hints, Tilsit guesses the setter might be Cephas. However, in a comment, Cephas denies being the setter and, in turn, guesses the puzzle might be the work of Anthony Plumb. 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
Happy Canada Day everyone!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 | About time skilled // knights sat here? (5,5) |
" time " = T [t[1]; symbol used in physics]
The Round Table[5] is the table at which King Arthur and his knights sat so that none should have precedence.
| 6a | Where men might eat // jam (4) |
| 9a | Adapted bowl building less wide // vessel (6,4) |
In cricket, a wide[5] (also called wide ball and denoted on cricket scorecards by the abbreviation w[5]) is a ball that is judged to be too wide of the stumps for the batsman to play, for which an extra is awarded to the batting side.
* An extra[5] is a run scored other than from a hit with the bat, credited (in most cases) to the batting side rather than to a batsman. The types of extra[7] are no ball, wide, bye, leg-bye, and penalty runs.
| 10a | Minimal investment restricts // African country (4) |
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.
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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.
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| 12a | Writer /from/ south-east in bed? On the contrary (6) |
Americanism?
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| I am surprised to see "bed" being used to clue crib[5] as the latter is mainly a North American usage. To the Brits, a young child's bed is called a cot[5]. However, this usage seems to have generated nary a peep of protest on Big Dave's Crossword Blog – not even from Protector Chief of the English Language, Rabbit Dave. |
| 13a | Truth `// about tucking into new variety (8) |
" about " = C [c.[2]; circa (Latin)]
| 15a | Small walk after school /to get/ anorak at the station? (12) |
Potter[3,4,11], a chiefly British counterpart to the North American term putter, means to move with little energy or direction ⇒
to potter about town.
In Britain, anorak[5] is an informal, derogatory term for a studious or obsessive person with unfashionable and largely solitary interests ⇒
with his thick specs, shabby shoes, and grey suit, he looks a bit of an anorak. The term derives from the anoraks* worn by trainspotters (see below), regarded as typifying this kind of person.
* An anorak[5] is a waterproof jacket, typically with a hood, of a kind originally used in polar regions. Although the terms anorak and parka[7] are sometimes used interchangeably, they are actually quite different garments. Strictly speaking, an anorak is a waterproof, hooded, pull-over jacket without a front opening, and sometimes drawstrings at the waist and cuffs, and a parka is a hip-length cold-weather coat, typically stuffed with down or very warm synthetic fiber, and with a fur-lined hood.
Trainspotter[5] is a British term for a person who collects train or locomotive numbers as a hobby*.
* The name is also often used in a derogatory sense to refer to a person who obsessively studies the minutiae of any minority interest or specialized hobby ⇒
the idea is to make the music really really collectable so the trainspotters will buy it in their pathetic thousands.
| 18a | Terrible slur worried // dogs (4,8) |
A bull terrier[5] is a short-haired dog of a breed that is a cross between a bulldog and a terrier.
| 21a | Grease sophisticated? // Crude in the main (3,5) |
The main[5] is an archaic or literary term for the open ocean.
| 22a | Pilot almost swallowing six // trifles (6) |
| 24a | Trees // he climbs on a regular basis (4) |
| 25a | Odd // social event adult left (10) |
"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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" left " = L [l[2]]
| 26a | Finishes // repairs with minutes to go (4) |
" minutes " = M [m[10]]
| 27a | Teenager // upset with the French perfume (10) |
"the French " = LE [French definite article]
Down
| 1d | Meal // starts to really excel with endless Italian food (6) |
| 2d | Lower milk containers? (6) |
Lower is used in the whimsical cryptic crossword sense of an animal that lows (moos) – in other words, a bovine animal.
| 3d | Day I tell off student in Cambridgeshire city // on purpose (12) |
" day " = D [d[2]]
"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.
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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.
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| Automobile displaying an L-plate |
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Ely[5] (pronounced EE-lee) is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, eastern England, on the River Ouse.
| 4d | Some flipping yob's appropriate // court punishment (4) |
In Britain, an ASBO[5] is a court order which can be obtained by local authorities in order to restrict the behaviour of a person likely to cause harm or distress to the public.
Origin: abbreviation of antisocial behaviour order
Scratching the Surface
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| In the surface reading: Flipping[5,10]
(adjective
or adverb) is an informal British term used for emphasis or to express mild annoyance ⇒ (i)
are you out of your flipping mind?; (ii) it’s flipping cold today. Origin: a euphemism for the taboo word f**king Yob[5] is an informal British term for a rude, noisy, and aggressive young person. Origin: back slang [reversal] for 'boy' |
| 5d | Heard lies about heading to party -- /this is/ what we expect from the PM (10) |
Scratching the Surface
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| This would have been an especially topical clue when it appeared in the UK in early March with the Prime Minister's indiscretions still very fresh in solvers' minds. Partygate is a political scandal in the United Kingdom about parties and other gatherings of government and Conservative Party staff held during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, when public health restrictions prohibited most gatherings. While several lockdowns in the country were in place, gatherings took place at 10 Downing Street [the office and residence of the British prime minister], its garden and other government buildings. Report of events attracted media attention, public backlash and political controversy. In late January 2022, twelve gatherings came under investigation by the Metropolitan Police [London's police service, informally known as Scotland Yard], including at least three attended by Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister. The police issued 126 fixed penalty notices (FPNs) to 83 individuals whom the police found had committed offences under COVID-19 regulations, including one each to Johnson, his wife Carrie Johnson, and Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor of the Exchequer [finance minister], who all apologised and paid the penalties. |
| 7d | I came up with price right away /for/ waste (8) |
" right " = R [r or r.[2]]
| 8d | Smack builders in this workplace? (8) |
Smack[5] is a British term for a single-masted sailing boat used for coasting*⇒
the village still harbours a few fishing smacks.
* Coast[5] means to sail along the coast, especially in order to carry cargo ⇒
he coasted down the eastern shore
| 11d | Jumbo might show these // low spirits crossing path (6,6) |
The vapours[5] is a dated term for a sudden feeling of faintness or nervousness or a state of depression ⇒
a fit of the vapours.
Jumbo[5] denotes a very large airliner (originally and specifically a Boeing 747).
| 14d | This could be found in explosive // exchange critic had in leaving hospital (6,4) |
Nitric acid[10] is a colourless or yellowish fuming corrosive liquid usually used in aqueous solution. An oxidizing agent and a strong monobasic acid, it is important in the manufacture of fertilizers, explosives, and many other chemicals.
| 16d | Old boy with very large settee, not oddly // out-of-date (8) |
"old boy " = OB
In Britain, an old boy[5] (abbreviation OB[2]) is:
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In Britain, an old boy[5] (abbreviation OB[2]) is:
- a former male student of a school or college ⇒
an old boy of Banbury County School
- a former male member of a sports team or company ⇒
the White Hart Lane old boy squared the ball to present an easy chance from 12 yards
‘Look here, old boy,’ he said.
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" large " = L[5] [clothing size]
| 17d | Skier perhaps did this // second demonstration, upset after all collapsed (8) |
" second " = S [s[2]; measure of time]
To slalom[5] is to race on skis down a winding course marked out by poles.
| 19d | Location south of a // street (6) |
| 20d | Bad actor allowed // leading role (6) |
Hamlet is the title character in the play Hamlet[7] (in full The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark), a tragedy written by William Shakespeare at an uncertain date
between 1599 and 1602. (show more )
Set in Denmark, the play dramatises the revenge Prince Hamlet is called to wreak upon his uncle, Claudius, by the ghost of Hamlet's father, King Hamlet. Claudius had murdered his own brother and seized the throne, also marrying his deceased brother's widow.
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Set in Denmark, the play dramatises the revenge Prince Hamlet is called to wreak upon his uncle, Claudius, by the ghost of Hamlet's father, King Hamlet. Claudius had murdered his own brother and seized the throne, also marrying his deceased brother's widow.
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| 23d | Blubber /from/ sea mammal, we're told (4) |
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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