Puzzle at a Glance
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Puzzle number in The Daily Telegraph
DT 29942 | |
Publication date in The Daily Telegraph
Wednesday, March 23, 2022 | |
Setter
Jay (Jeremy Mutch) [?] | |
Link to full review
Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 29942]
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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
Many of those posting comments at Big Dave's Crossword Blog doubt – as do I – that this offering was compiled by Jay. I agree with Senf that it definitely has more of a New York Doorknob feel about it. However, neither of them – or anyone else – confirms the authorship of the 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
| 1a | At least no-one pole dancing lacks energy, /getting/ more than enough work (1,3,2,4,5) |
" energy " = E[2] [symbol used in physics]
| 9a | Bragged about Democrat /getting/ mobbed (7) |
" Democrat " = D[5] [member or supporter of the US Democratic Party]
| 10a | Trial /may be/ exhausting, needing hotel for women (7) |
" hotel " = H[5] [NATO Phonetic Alphabet[7]]
" women " = W[2] [marking on a public toilet, perhaps]
| 11a | The girl's testing meal in hospital // room for plants (9) |
| 12a | Water // sports or dubious activities at the outset (4) |
| 13a | The allure of Blackpool /may be/ slim with son going to back (6) |
" son " = S [s[5]; genealogy]
Blackpool[5] is a seaside resort in Lancashire, north-western England. One of its major attractions is the Blackpool Illuminations[7], an annual lights festival founded in 1879 and held each autumn. Also known locally as The Lights or The Illuminations, the event runs each year for 66 days, from late August until early November at a time when most other English seaside resorts' seasons are coming to an end. The display stretches along the Promenade for 6.2 miles (10 km) uses over one million bulbs.
| 15a | Wild deer, if moved outside New Zealand, /must be/ panic-stricken (8) |
| 18a | Minister shortly to cover broadcast /for/ large areas of America (8) |
| 19a | Remain // working after check (4,2) |
| 22a | Right hand clenches when // disregarding danger (4) |
" right hand " = RH [r.h.[5]]
| 23a | Floods /causing/ universal charges by day (9) |
| 26a | Widen // pass through Scottish mountain (7) |
Ben[5] (used especially in place names) is Scottish for a high mountain or mountain peak ⇒
Ben Nevis*.
* Ben Nevis[5] is a mountain in western Scotland. Rising to 1,343 m (4,406 ft), it is the highest mountain in the British Isles.
| 27a | Fool /offering/ cheap wine and beer regularly (7) |
Plonk[5] is an informal British term for cheap wine of inferior quality ⇒
we turned up at 8 p.m., each clutching a bottle of plonk.
Origin: 1930s (originally Australian) probably an alteration of 'blanc' in French vin blanc ‘white wine’
Plonker[5] is an informal British term for a foolish or inept person ⇒
As usual I joined in - what a pair of plonkers we were, lying there giggling on the lawn.
Usage warning: Plonker[5] is also vulgar British slang for a man's penis [and certainly not the only word to share these two meanings].
| 28a | Violent disturbance -- // charge coming after Real and Celtic played (10,5) |
Scratching the Surface
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| Real Madrid Club de Fútbol[7] (Royal Madrid Football Club), commonly known as Real Madrid, or simply as Real, is a professional football [soccer] club based in Madrid, Spain that plays in La Liga, the top division of the Spanish football league system.
Celtic Football Club[7] is a football [soccer] club based in Glasgow, Scotland which plays in the Scottish Premiership, the top division of the Scottish football league system. |
Down
| 1d | Everyone goes round company house /for/ booze (7) |
Co[5] (also Co.) is the abbreviation for Company [in particular, in the name of a business].
" house " = HO [ho.[1,10]]
| 2d | Old party's essentially sure // reputation (5) |
" old " = O[12] [linguistics;
OFr(Old French),
OE(Old English)]
"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.
hide
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.
hide
| 3d | Painting // metal rods for distribution (3,6) |
An old master[5] is:
- a great artist of former times, especially of the 13th-17th century in Europe ⇒
the Dutch old masters
- a painting by a great artist of former times ⇒
a large collection of old masters
| 4d | Decree /there's/ nothing precipitate about Germany (6) |
| 5d | Record time crossing border /for/ objects of little worth (8) |
| 6d | Room /for/ one of Pinter's works? (4) |
Harold Pinter[5]
(1930–2008) was an English dramatist, actor, and director. (show more )
His plays are associated with the Theatre of the Absurd and are typically marked by a sense of menace. Notable plays: The Birthday Party (1958), The Caretaker (1960), and Party Time (1991). He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2005.
hide
His plays are associated with the Theatre of the Absurd and are typically marked by a sense of menace. Notable plays: The Birthday Party (1958), The Caretaker (1960), and Party Time (1991). He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2005.
hide
| 7d | I'm 19 and I forced // hatred (9) |
The
numeral "19" is a cross
reference indicator pointing to clue 19a (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
| 8d | Country /that's/ busy with computer network over time (7) |
A LAN (local area network[5]) is a computer network that links devices within a building or group of adjacent buildings, especially one with a radius of less than 1 km.
| 14d | Good boys pitch for PM (9) |
" good " = G [g or g.[1]; a grade of numismatic coin perhaps]
William Ewart Gladstone[5]
(1809–1898) was a British Liberal statesman, prime minister 1868–74,
1880-5, 1886, and 1892-4. (show more )
At first a Conservative minister, he later joined the Liberal Party, becoming its leader in 1867. His ministries saw the introduction of elementary education, the passing of the Irish Land Acts and the third Reform Act, and his campaign in favour of Home Rule for Ireland.
hide
At first a Conservative minister, he later joined the Liberal Party, becoming its leader in 1867. His ministries saw the introduction of elementary education, the passing of the Irish Land Acts and the third Reform Act, and his campaign in favour of Home Rule for Ireland.
hide
| 16d | No rise -- and debts /must be/ scandalous (9) |
"rise " = TOR [rocky hill]
A tor[7] is a large, free-standing rock outcrop that rises abruptly from the surrounding smooth and gentle slopes of a rounded hill summit or ridge crest. In the South West of England, the term is commonly also used for the hills themselves – particularly the high points of Dartmoor in Devon and Bodmin Moor in Cornwall.
hide
A tor[7] is a large, free-standing rock outcrop that rises abruptly from the surrounding smooth and gentle slopes of a rounded hill summit or ridge crest. In the South West of England, the term is commonly also used for the hills themselves – particularly the high points of Dartmoor in Devon and Bodmin Moor in Cornwall.
hide
| 17d | City // brothels in Kiribati protected (8) |
Helsinki[5] is the capital of Finland, a port in the south on the Gulf of Finland.
Scratching the Surface
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Kiribati[5] is a country in the south-western Pacific Ocean including the Gilbert Islands, the Line Islands, the Phoenix Islands, and Banaba (Ocean Island). (show more )
Inhabited by Micronesian people, the islands were sighted by the Spaniards in the mid 16th century. Britain declared a protectorate over the Gilbert and Ellice Islands in 1892, and they became a colony in 1915. British links with the Ellice Islands (now Tuvalu) ended in 1975, and in 1979 Kiribati became an independent republic within the Commonwealth. hide |
| 18d | Couple without one fit // moral tale (7) |
" one " = I[2] [Roman numeral]
| 20d | Universal remedy // not striking a chord? (7) |
| 21d | More work // initially undertaking repairs to patio (6) |
Utopia[7] is a work of fiction and political philosophy by English lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman and noted Renaissance humanist Sir Thomas More (1478–1535) published in 1516 in Latin. The work describes the political system of an imaginary ideal island nation.
| 24d | City // overly protective of Kentucky (5) |
" Kentucky " = KY[5] [postal abbreviation]
| 25d | Make revisions to // upwards trend (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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