Friday, December 17, 2010 (DT 26346)

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26346
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26346]
Big Dave's Review Written By Falcon
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - **	Enjoyment - ***
Falcon's Performance N/A

Introduction

Your eyes do not deceive you, the reviewer of this puzzle on Big Dave's Blog really is yours truly. This was the first of several reviews that I have done for Big Dave's site, roughly on a monthly basis.

Given that I had solved the puzzle previously, I have not included a performance rating for myself today. Actually, I am surprised at how much I had forgotten about the puzzle in three months. While the solutions to some clues came back to me readily, others required some thought - almost as if I was seeing them for the first time. Amazingly, despite only having originally awarded it two stars for difficulty, I had to resort to my Tool Chest today to help me solve a couple of clues.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

declare - to end an innings voluntarily before 10 wickets have fallen.

Appearing in Solutions:

conservatory - noun

• British a room with a glass roof and walls, attached to a house at one side and used as a sun lounge or for growing delicate plants. 
• North American another term for conservatoire
  conservatoire - noun British a college for the study of classical music or other arts, typically in the continental European tradition.

demo - noun 1 chiefly British a public demonstration: a peace demo

The Football Association (also known as simply The FA) - a governing body of football (soccer to North Americans) in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.

Lord's Cricket Ground (generally known as Lord's) - a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London, England owned by Marylebone Cricket Club. Lord's is widely referred to as the "home of cricket" and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum.

MB - abbreviation 1 Medicinae Baccalaureus (Latin), Bachelor of Medicine. [This British degree is seemingly equivalent to an MD (Medicinae Doctor (Latin), Doctor of Medicine) awarded in North America. Despite the name of their degree, British physicians are still referred to as doctors. In Britain, an MD is a higher level degree, pursued by those wishing to enter the field of medical research.]

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

8a A cricket ground reportedly welcoming very quiet cheers (8)

This clue relies on the British pronunciation of the word 'Lords' which sounds something like 'lawds'. Thus the solution is APPLAUDS (cheers) with the wordplay being A + LAUDS (which sounds like the British pronunciation of Lords, a cricket ground in London) containing PP (pianissimo, a musical direction meaning very quiet).

21a Kid chasing black crow (4)

Comparing the meanings of rag in British and American dictionaries suggests that, while the term can be used in the sense of 'to kid' on both sides of the Atlantic, there may be a bit of difference in the meaning. In North America the term seems to generally suggest a more light-hearted playful teasing, whereas the British definition seems to impart a bit more mean-spirited connotation to the word.

21d One directing players not to declare? (5)

Here the definition is "one directing players" with the solution being BATON, the pronoun "one" referring to something directing players in an orchestra, rather than to someone. The phrase "not to declare" alludes to cricket, where to declare means "to end an innings voluntarily before 10 wickets have fallen". Thus the captain of the batting side has the choice to either declare or BAT ON.

Wikipedia has the following to say about declaration in cricket:

The captain of the batting side may declare an innings closed, when the ball is dead, at any time during a match. Usually this is because the captain thinks his team has already scored enough runs to win the match, though tactical declarations are sometimes used in other circumstances.

A captain considering declaration must balance the risks of declaring too early (thus setting too low a target for the opposing team) against those of declaring too late or not at all (thus causing a draw by leaving insufficient time to complete the match).

Signing off for today - Falcon

Thursday, December 16, 2010 (DT 26345)

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26345
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Setter Shamus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26345]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ***	Enjoyment - ***
Falcon's Performance ***

Introduction

I failed to realize that today's puzzle is a pangram - a puzzle in which the solutions incorporate every letter of the alphabet. However, it didn't escape the notice of the ever sharp-eyed folks at Big Dave's Blog.

I have long ago realized that the clues that one fails to solve are not necessarily the most difficult ones. Sometimes an individual just seems to have a mental block on a particular clue. So it was for me today. I was kicking myself for needing electronic assistance for a couple of really straightforward clues.

Perhaps I could have given myself an additional star today, since after using my electronic aids to help solve three or four clues in the bottom half of the puzzle, I found myself able to complete unaided the remaining (totally unrelated) clues in the top half of the puzzle.

Yesterday, I somehow managed to paste the wrong URL into the link to Big Dave's site. That has now been fixed. My apologies to those who were affected by it.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

Redgrave - British actress Vanessa Redgrave, Lynn Redgrave or Jemma Redgrave. The clue attempts to misdirect us to Steve Redgrave, an English rower who won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000.

Appearing in Solutions:

B² - abbreviation 3 International Vehicle Registration code Belgium.

It would be interesting to know why this is considered an abbreviation as opposed to a symbol (see commentary on the use of K below).

EC (Eastern Central) postcode area (also known as the London EC postcode area) - a group of postcode districts in central London, England. It includes almost all of the City of London as well as parts of several other London Boroughs.

K³ - abbreviation 5 cards king. 6 chess knight.

K⁴ - symbol 3 chess king.

plumb - [Collins English Dictionary] verb 4. to connect or join (a device such as a tap) to a water pipe or drainage system

The word plumber undoubtedly is derived from this meaning of plumb. However, to the best of my knowledge, the word plumb is not used in this sense in North America, although the word plumber certainly is. As evidence, note that the entry from the American Heritage Dictionary at the same site does not include this meaning.

RA - abbreviation [3^rd entry] (in the UK) Royal Academician, a member of the Royal Academy of Arts

the sharp end - phrase 1 [2^nd entry] the most risky or unpleasant part of a system or activity: businessmen are at the sharp end of the recession

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

24a  Principal knight is harsh (5)

In modern chess notation, the symbol for king is K and that for knight is N. However, according to the Search Chambers website, K can mean either of the following:

• K³ - abbreviation 6 chess knight.
• K⁴ - symbol 3 chess king .

So I guess today we need an abbreviation and not a symbol.

Signing off for today - Falcon

Wednesday, December 15, 2010 (DT 26344)

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26344
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Monday, September 13, 2010
Setter Rufus
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26344]
Big Dave's Review Written By Libellule
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - **	Enjoyment - ***
Falcon's Performance *****
Notes The National Post has skipped DT 26343 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Saturday, September 11, 2010

Introduction

Puzzles published on Monday in the U.K. (as this one was) tend to be on the less difficult side, but still highly enjoyable. And this one is no exception. The setter, Rufus, is an acknowledged master of the cryptic definition. As this is a style of clue for which I have a particular fondness, his puzzles are among the most enjoyable for me.

Today I thought I would come up a couple of clues short of solving the puzzle unaided. However, I went out and did some Christmas shopping, and upon my return was able to solve the two remaining clues - including correctly guessing the hitherto unknown British expression at 13d. I guess CrypticSue's advice to go away and cogitate works. I would think that my performance today entitles me to a temporary pass out of Mary's Clueless Club.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

Homer Simpson - fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the boorish father of the eponymous family comprising his wife, Marge, and three children: Bart, Lisa, and Maggie. The family resides in the town of Springfield where Homer works at the Nuclear Power Plant.

Horatio Nelson (1758 – 1805) - English flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. Of his several victories, the most well known and notable was The Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, during which he was shot, dying towards the end of the battle. In 1793, while fighting in Corsica, he had lost the sight in his right eye.

Winnie-the-Pooh (or, as Disneyized, Winnie the Pooh) - fictional bear appearing in a series of children's stories by English author A. A. Milne.

Appearing in Solutions:

Sir Arthur Bliss (1891 – 1975) - British composer.

form - noun 6 chiefly British a class or year in a school, usually given a specifying number: the fifth form

not a patch on - British informal greatly inferior to: he no longer looked so handsome — he wasn't a patch on Peter

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

16a Stop for Jack to revive (5,2)

"Jack" is slang for sailor. I initially put HEAVE TO in here, but eventually realized the 'error' of my ways' and changed it to BRING TO. However, upon checking the dictionary, I find I may well have had good reason for my original solution. Heave to means "to stop (a vessel) or (of a vessel) to stop, as by trimming the sails, etc.", while bring to means "to cause (a ship) to turn into the wind and reduce her headway" (Collins English Dictionary). So, bring to would seem to mean 'to slow', whereas heave to means 'to stop'. However, given that the setter as well as several of the visitors to Big Dave's site seem to have naval experience (unlike myself), I have to assume that the wording of the clue is accurate in the eyes of a sailor.

Signing off for today - Falcon

Tuesday, December 14, 2010 (DT 26342)

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26342
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, September 10, 2010
Setter Giovanni
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26342]
Big Dave's Review Written By Gazza
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ****	Enjoyment - ***
Falcon's Performance ***

Introduction

As you can see from my performance rating in the table above, I had to resort to my Tool Chest a bit earlier today than has recently been the case. I thought perhaps my brain had been frozen while clearing the snow from my driveway following our first significant snowfall of  the season. I was therefore relieved to see that Gazza rates the puzzle as 4* for difficulty. I did need to rely on Gazza to explain the wordplay for 20d (chemistry never being my forte) and why 19d requires an adjective for a solution.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

Haymarket - a street in the St. James's district of the City of Westminster, a London Borough. It runs from Piccadilly Circus at the north to Pall Mall at the south.

Appearing in Solutions:

DD - abbreviation: Divinitatis Doctor (Latin), Doctor of Divinity.

Denis Diderot (1713 – 1784) - French philosopher, art critic, and writer. He was a prominent figure during the Enlightenment and is best-known for serving as co-founder and chief editor of and contributor to the Encyclopédie.

able seaman - noun a rank of sailor in the Royal Navy above ordinary seaman and below leading seaman.

largo - Music adverb & adjective (especially as a direction) in a slow tempo and dignified in style; noun a passage , movement, or composition marked to be performed in this way.

John Stuart Mill (1806 – 1873) - British philosopher and civil servant. An influential contributor to social theory, political theory, and political economy, his conception of liberty justified the freedom of the individual in opposition to unlimited state control.

nutter - noun British informal a mad or eccentric person.

Parliament Hill - an area of open parkland in the south-east corner of Hampstead Heath in north-west London, England. The hill is notable for its excellent views of the capital's skyline. Unlike Parliament Hill in Ottawa, which is the site of the Canadian Houses of Parliament, the London counterpart is not home to the British Houses of Parliament which are located a few miles to the south in the City of Westminster.

John Whitaker (Jack) Straw - a British Labour Party politician who served in British Cabinets under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

22a Philosopher's ism is rejected - bad! (4)

Having spelled the entry at 19d incorrectly, I was stymied here until I realized the error. With the incorrect checking letters _E_L, the only philosopher that I could find matching this pattern was 20^th century French philosopher Simone Weil. Of course, this obviously did not satisfy the wordplay.

We are indeed looking for a philosopher; however, it is 19^th century British philosopher John Stuart Mill.The wordplay is M {ISM with IS deleted (rejected)} + ILL (bad) giving us MILL.

Signing off for today - Falcon

Monday, December 13, 2010 (DT 26341)

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26341
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, September 9, 2010
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26341]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - **	Enjoyment - ***
Falcon's Performance ***

Introduction

Big Dave thought this puzzle was easy. However, I had more problems with it than I did with several puzzles last week which were rated more difficult by Big Dave and his colleagues. I finally hauled out the Tool Chest with four clues remaining to be solved, although it actually did not help me. I eventually solved three of the four remaining clues without the help of my electronic aids, in the process discovering that one of my existing entries was incorrect. As for the final unsolved clue, my electronic aids pointed me to an incorrect solution.

By the way, after my experience last week, I have adjusted the scale I use to rate my performance on the puzzle. Now one star is 0%-39%, two stars is 40%-69%, three stars is 70%-89%, four stars is 90%-99%, and five stars is 100%. With the old scale, I thought I might never get anything but four stars - making the scale pretty useless. One side effect of starting the rating system is that I have noticed that I am now more reluctant to throw in the towel early.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

bespoke - [Collins English Dictionary] adjective Chiefly British

1. (especially of a suit, jacket, etc.) made to the customer's specifications
2. making or selling such suits, jackets, etc.: a bespoke tailor

Appearing in Solutions:

British Airways plc (BA) - the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom and the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations.

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

6a Cunning tramp miles away (4)

I thought that cunning, in addition to meaning shrewdness (the use of clever methods to get what you want, especially methods that involve tricking or cheating people), might also possibly refer to such methods themselves (e.g., a trap). Thus, I had presumed that the wordplay might be TRAP, TRAMP with "M(iles) away". However, the wordplay is actually ARCH, MARCH with "M(iles) away". This error presented a major obstacle to solving 8d, although I eventually saw the light.

12a Free bar (4)

The checking letters narrowed the solution down to _A_E. A check for words matching this pattern and meaning both "free" and "bar" turned up only a single candidate, EASE (although I was not entirely confident that I understood why). However, I should have concentrated on another near match, "safe" and "save" - as EASE turned out to be incorrect.

Signing off for today - Falcon

Saturday, December 11, 2010 - Clothing for All Seasons

Introduction

In  today's puzzle by Cox and Rathvon we seem to get an item of clothing for each season of the year. As an added bonus we get a pair of dueling philosophers - Descartes at 26a and Spinoza at 6d. Wikipedia has this to say about Spinoza, "By virtue of his magnum opus, the posthumous Ethics, in which he opposed Descartes' mind–body dualism, Spinoza is considered to be one of Western philosophy's most important philosophers.".

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

Spinoza (1632 – 1677) - [American Heritage Dictionary] Dutch philosopher and theologian whose controversial pantheistic doctrine advocated an intellectual love of God. His best-known work is Ethics (1677).

Appearing in Solutions:

Amadeus - a 1984 film based loosely on the lives of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Antonio Salieri, two composers who lived in Vienna, Austria, during the latter half of the 18th century.

Ariadne - in Greek mythology, the daughter of King Minos of Crete

René Descartes (1596 – 1650) - a French philosopher, mathematician, physicist, and writer who has been dubbed the "Father of Modern Philosophy".

T. S. (Thomas Stearns) Eliot OM (1888 – 1965) - an American-born English poet, playwright, and literary critic, arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century.

James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (1942 – 1970) - an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, who is widely considered to be the greatest electric guitarist in the history of rock music.

La Tosca - a five-act drama by the 19th-century French playwright Victorien Sardou, first performed in 1887. Although the play itself is no longer performed, its operatic adaptation, Giacomo Puccini's Tosca, has achieved enduring popularity.

Marcus Aemilius Lepidus - any of several Romans of that name who held the post of consul from 232 B.C. through 6 A.D.

Miramax Films - an American film production company

Potsdam Conference - a conference held in Potsdam, occupied Germany, from 16 July to 2 August 1945, at which the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States gathered to decide how to administer punishment to the defeated Nazi Germany, as well as to deliberate matters such the establishment of post-war order, peace treaties issues, and countering the effects of war.

Rama - Hindu deity and hero of the Indian epic, the Ramayana.

Rip Van Winkle - title character in a short story by Washington Irving which was published in 1819.

Titania - the name of a character in William Shakespeare's play A Midsummer Night's Dream. In Shakespeare's play, she is the queen of the fairies. Due to Shakespeare's influence, later fiction has often used the name "Titania" for fairy queen characters.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted

Across

1a P(AN|A|MA) HAT - {AN + A (two articles) + (next to) MA (mother)} contained in (in) PHAT (cool)

6a PUPIL - double definition; "student" & "eye opening"

9a TH(ROW) IN - THIN (slight) containing (about) ROW (fight)

10a TEN|AN(C)Y - C (Conservative) contained in (in) {TEN (number) + ANY (whatever)}

Here 'any' could mean 'whatever' as in a response to the question, "Which ones would you prefer?" to which one might reply "Any", "Whatever", or "Don't care".

11a DE(A)N - DEN (study) containing (interrupted by) A

12a {TRENCH COAT}* - anagram (changed) of TECHNOCRAT

14a MI(RAMA)X - MIX (medley) containing (about) RAMA (Hindu hero)

15a ARIA|DNE< - ARIA (song) + reversal (brought back) of END (finale)

17a {LA TOSCA}* -anagram (badly) of ALSO ACT

19a OP(TIC)AL - OPAL (precious stone) containing (split by) TIC (quirk)

21a CAP(RI P|ANT)S - {RIP (Van Winkle) + ANT (colonist)} contained in (in) CAPS (tops)

23a SO|UP - SO (then) + UP (going to the plate; up to bat, a baseball expression)

25a FI(NAG)LE - NAG (horse) contained in (in) FILE (line)

26a RENE|WED - RENE (Descartes) + WED (got married)

27a RE(P)LY - RELY (count) containing (about) P (piano; musical direction, not the instrument)

28a SNOWSHOES - anagram (off) of ENOS SHOWS

Down
1d POTS|DAM - POTS (dope's) + DAM (mother)

2d {N(O)RWAY RAT}* - anagram (ruined) of WARRANTY containing (covering) O (scratch)

Here "scratch" could mean "nothing" in the sense of "He built a successful business from scratch" (i.e., from, or starting with, nothing) or it could be a reference to the golf term 'scratch' meaning a handicap of 0.

3d MOWN~ - sounds like (audibly) MOAN (beef; i.e., complain)

4d HEN(D)RI|X - {HENRI (Matisse) + X (cross)} containing (about) D (barely acceptable; i.e., as a mark on a test in school)

5d TITANIA* - anagram (strangely) of IT AINT A

6d PAN|T(HEIST)S - {PAN (criticize) + TS (Eliot)} containing (about) HEIST (theft)

7d P|INTO - P (chief [letter] of police) + INTO (fascinated by)

8d LA(YET)TE - YET (still) contained in (packing) LATE (overdue)

Here "packing" is used in the sense of 'filling' (fans packing a stadium) rather than 'carrying' (a cowboy packing a gun).

13d S(MASHING)LY - SLY (Sylvester; diminutive form) containing (keeps) MASHING (processing potatoes)

16d {DOCTOR WHO}* - anagram (wrecked) of HOT ROD COW

17d LUCIFER* - anagram (riled) of CRUEL IF

18d AMADEUS - MADE (produced) contained in (in) AUS (Austria)

AUS is the International Vehicle Registration code for Australia, not Austria. However, it is listed here as an abbreviation for both Austria and Australia..

19d ON|T(A)RIO - ON (performing) + (with) TRIO (small combo) containing (around) A (one)

20d LE(PI)D|US - PI (private investigator) contained in (inside) LED (guided) + US (American)

22d P(IN)-UP - PUP (dog) containing (circling) IN (popular)

24d ON|US - cryptic & lit. clue; our burden is an ONUS, and it is also ON US.

Signing off for today - Falcon

Friday, December 10, 2010 (DT 26340)

Daily Telegraph Puzzle Number DT 26340
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Setter Jay
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 26340]
Big Dave's Review Written By Big Dave
Big Dave's Rating
Difficulty - ***	Enjoyment - ****
Falcon's Performance ****

Introduction

I thought that today I had finally broken the jinx of finishing one solution short, in that I was able to complete the grid unaided. However, through a dictionary check I was to discover that one of my entries was not a real word and I had to pull out the Tool Chest to help me find the correct solution.

Today's Glossary

Selected abbreviations, people, places, words and expressions appearing in today's puzzle

Appearing in Clues:

golf - noun 2 a code word representing the letter G, used in radio communication.

Appearing in Solutions:

cast-iron - adjective 1 made of cast iron. 2 very strong. 3 said of a rule or decision: firm; not to be altered. 4 said of an argument, etc: with no flaws, loopholes, etc.

CID - abbreviation Criminal Investigation Department, the detective branch of the British police force.

f - abbreviation 6 (plural ff.) following (page).

Financial Times (FT) - a British international business newspaper, a morning daily published in London. It is printed on pink newsprint (thus Big Dave's reference to "the pink newspaper" - which I am pretty sure is definitely not a comment on the paper's political stance).

manor - 2 (one's manor) informal the district covered by a police station.

RE - abbreviation (2^nd entry) (in the UK) Royal Engineers, the field engineering and construction corps of the British army.

Sark - one of the Channel Islands, a small island lying to the east of Guernsey.

tenner - noun colloquial 1 [British] a £10 note. 2 US a $10 bill.

wind-up - noun 1 British informal an attempt to tease or irritate someone.

Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the review at Big Dave's Crossword Blog, to which a link is provided in the table above.

8d Money for singer's broadcast (6)

As were some of the Brits, I was convinced that this clue was an anagram (as indicated by the word "broadcast") of SINGER. The only possibilities that fit the checking letters seemed to be SEGNIR and GESNIR. The former, especially, actually looked like it might well be a Scandinavian word, so I went with it. However, a check in the dictionary showed that neither possibility was, in fact, a word. So back to the drawing board. Eventually, it dawned on me that this is a homophone (sounds like) clue (with the indicator being "broadcast"). What we want is a slang expression for money that sounds like a singer.

20d Hopin' to find a way to cure the pain (7)

By dropping the G from the word in the clue (hopin'), the setter is telling us that the solution is a word that means "hoping" with the final G dropped. Thus, ASPIRING means "hoping", and we drop the G to get ASPIRIN, which is "a way to cure the pain".

One sometimes sees similar clues in which the leading H is dropped (a la the Cockney dialect).

Signing off for today - Falcon