Thursday, July 21, 2016 — DT 28076

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28076
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, March 31, 2016
Setter RayT (Ray Terrell)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28076]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By ShropshireLad
BD Rating
Difficulty - ★★ / ★★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Experience ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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

Introduction

ShropshireLad claims that this puzzle exhibits "a lack of innuendo". I think if one looks hard enough — or just possesses a puerile mind — one can find some (albeit rather mild).

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.

Primary indications (definitions) are marked with a solid underline in the clue; subsidiary indications (be they wordplay or other) are marked with a dashed underline in all-in-one (&lit.) clues, semi-all-in-one (semi-&lit.) clues and cryptic definitions. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//). Definitions presented in blue text are for terms that appear frequently.

Across

1a   Shocked /seeing/ part of bag has torn (6)

4a   Peeled herb stuffing small pies /for/ tapas (8)

A tapa^[3,11] (often tapas, especially in British dictionaries where the singular — for the most part — does not exist [explore further ]) is any of various small, savory Spanish dishes, often served as a snack or appetizer (typically with wine or beer) or with other tapas as a meal.

Oxford Dictionaries explains the etymology as Spanish tapa, literally 'cover, lid' (because the dishes were given free with the drink, served on a dish balanced on, therefore ‘covering’, the glass).^[5]

Among my regular online reference sources, the singular version (tapa^[3,11]) is found in the two American dictionaries, but not in the three British dictionaries (which list the word only in the plural, tapas^[2,4,5,10]). However, the singular version tapa^[1] is found in my hard-copy edition of The Chambers Dictionary.

close

Starter^[5] is a chiefly British term [according to Oxford Dictionaries, but certainly a term that is by no means foreign to Canada] meaning the first course of a meal.

9a   Danger // which catches engineers (6)

"engineers" = RE (show explanation )

The Corps of Royal Engineers^[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers^[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.

hide explanation

10a   Row after French meeting about // border (8)

In the cryptic reading, about^[5] is used in the sense of on the subject of or concerning.

11a   Satisfy // need initially in criminal depravity (8)

13a   Starts to cringe or wince, ending really scared (6)

15a   Scandalous, // man on tube line flashing (13)

The Tube^[5] is a British trademark for the underground railway system in London ⇒ a cross-London trek on the Tube. The term "the tube" can also refer to a train running on the Tube ⇒ I caught the tube home.

Too Good to Ignore
This photo (which I once used as an illustration in a review for another puzzle on Big Dave's Crossword Blog) is just too appropriate not to include here. It shows a man strolling along the tracks of the Paris Métro.

18a   Entered marina, churning // sea (13)

22a   Recover, // say, being seen in shower (6)

24a   Avoid work // delay after morning's over (8)

26a   Unsparing // swine with a learner, holding cane (8)

"learner" = L (show explanation )

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.

hide explanation

In the cryptic reading, unsparing^[10] is used in the sense of not sparing or frugal; in other words, lavish or profuse.

Scratching the Surface

As is often the case in RayT's puzzles, this clue seems to have an underlying complexity beyond the simple surface reading. For me, the clue conjures up an image of a cruel and ruthless teacher who is indeed "unsparing" — firmly subscribing to the old adage spare the rod and spoil the child. A cane[5] is a length of cane or a slender stick, especially one used as ... an instrument of punishment. The cane[5] is (or was) a form of corporal punishment used in certain schools, involving beating with a cane ⇒ wrong answers were rewarded by the cane.

27a   Sheen // about to follow craving (6)

Scratching the Surface

Charlie Sheen[7] (stage name of Carlos Irwin Estévez) is an American actor whose personal life has made headlines, including reports of alcohol and drug abuse and marital problems, as well as allegations of domestic violence. His contract for Two and a Half Men was terminated by CBS and Warner Bros. in March 2011. On November 17, 2015, Sheen publicly revealed that he was HIV positive, having been diagnosed about four years earlier.

28a   Section of trestle's stood // on edge (8)

29a   Push // bike reportedly (6)

Ignore ShropshireLad's hint. The word you are looking for is not a part of a bike — it is a word denoting to try to sell (something, especially small goods) by going from place to place.

Down

1d   Cheers up on course /to get/ fit (6)

Cheers^[5] is a chiefly British expression expressing gratitude or acknowledgement for something ⇒ Billy tossed him the key. ‘Cheers, pal.’.

Ta^[5] is an informal British exclamation signifying thank you ⇒‘Ta,’ said Willie gratefully.

In sailing, tack^[5] is a boat’s course relative to the direction of the wind ⇒the brig bowled past on the opposite tack.

Fit here is the manifestation of a medical condition.

2d   Lectured // hard and fought to pen article (9)

"hard" = H (show explanation )

H^[5] is an abbreviation for hard, as used in describing grades of pencil lead ⇒ a 2H pencil.

hide explanation

3d   Awkwardly sat in mud missing new // ground (7)

Ground^[5] denotes an area of land, often with associated buildings, used for a particular sport ⇒ (i) a football ground; (ii) Liverpool’s new ground is nearing completion. While this is not an entirely British usage, the term is likely used there more often and applied to a wider range of sports facilities than would be the case in North America. For instance, I can't imagine a stadium in Canada being referred to as a 'ground'.

What did he say?

In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, ShropshireLad comments Clever to have 2 anagram indicators in the clue. He is referring to the words "awkwardly" which turns out to be the anagram indicator and the word "ground" which is frequently used as an anagram indicator. The setter has cleverly set up a situation where the solver must decide which of these two words is the anagram indicator and which is the definition.

5d   Last of beer in barrel /producing/ wind (4)

In the cryptic reading, "wind" is a verb meaning to coil.

6d   Capital // managed by clown (7)

Rangoon^[5] is the former capital of Burma (Myanmar), a port in the Irrawaddy delta; population 4,088,000 (est. 2007). For centuries a Buddhist religious centre, it is the site of the Shwe Dagon Pagoda, built over 2,500 years ago. The modern city was established by the British in the mid 19th century and was the capital from 1886 until it was replaced by Naypyidaw in 2005 [today's setter seems not to have received the memo].

What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, ShropshireLad comments, with respect to the word "goon", that Peter Sellers, Spike et al leap to mind. The Goon Show[7] was a British radio comedy programme featuring Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Peter Sellers — originally produced and broadcast by the BBC Home Service from 1951 to 1960.

7d   End to corpulence on low-fat // cream (5)

8d   Perhaps trifle upset supporting state's leader // under pressure (8)

In his directions, ShropshireLad fails to make clear that the leader of State is to be added at the beginning of the solution (in a down clue, the S is supported by the reversal of DESSERT).

Trifle^[5] is a British term for a cold dessert of sponge cake and fruit covered with layers of custard, jelly, and cream.

12d   Chap oddly never /gets/ bird (6)

Nary^[5,10] is an informal or dialect form of not or never ⇒ (i) there was nary a murmur or complaint; (ii) nary a man was left. It is a variant of ne'er a (never a).

Scratching the Surface
Chap[3,4,11] is an informal term for a man or boy; a fellow. It is a shortened form of chapman[3,4,11], an archaic term for a trader, especially an itinerant pedlar [British spelling of peddler].  Bird[5] is an informal British term for a young woman or a man’s girlfriend.

14d   Army surrounding Islamic republic/'s/ capital (6)

"army" = TA (show explanation )

In the UK, Territorial Army^[5] (abbreviation TA^[5]) was, at one time, the name of a volunteer force founded in 1908 to provide a reserve of trained and disciplined military personnel for use in an emergency. Since 2013, this organization has been called the Army Reserve.

hide explanation

Tirana^[5] is the capital of Albania, on the Ishm River in central Albania; population 407,000 (est. 2009). Founded by the Turks in the 17th century, it became capital of Albania in 1920.

16d   Get behind, possibly, /being/ unenlightenend (9)

Benighted^[5] means:

1. in a state of pitiful or contemptible intellectual or moral ignorance ⇒ they saw themselves as bringers of culture to poor benighted peoples;
2. overtaken by darkness ⇒ a storm developed and we were forced to wait benighted near the summit.

17d   Outrageous // devil, guy fronting Queen (8)

"queen" = R (show explanation )

Regina^[5] (abbreviation R^[5]) [Latin for queen] denotes the reigning queen, used following a name (e.g. Elizabetha Regina, Queen Elizabeth) or in the titles of lawsuits (e.g. Regina v. Jones, the Crown versus Jones — often shortened to R. v. Jones).

Thus Queen Elizabeth signs her name as 'Elizabeth R' as seen here on Canada's paint-stained constitution.

hide explanation

19d   Test with intravenous injection /for/ minor (7)

20d   Gourmet // put last of sauce on good kipper (7)

Pi^[5] is an informal British short form for pious. 

Kipper^[5] (usually seen as a past participle used as an adjective kippered) is a verb meaning to cure (a herring or other fish) by splitting it open and salting and drying it in the open air or in smoke.

21d   Lets go in speech, /getting/ interruption (6)

There is considerable discussion in the Comments section on Big Dave's Crossword Blog concerning whether the solution should be FREEZE (which officially it is) or FRIEZE.

23d   Lord's purchasing old // property (5)

Scratching the Surface
The surface reading is clearly intended to direct our thoughts to a member of the British nobility. In the UK, Lord[5] is a title given formally to a baron, and less formally to a marquess, earl, or viscount (prefixed to a family or territorial name) ⇒ Lord Derby.

25d   Boys /and/ girl almost catching daughter (4)

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon

Wednesday, July 20, 2016 — DT 28075

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28075
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, March 30, 2016
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28075]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Kitty
BD Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Experience ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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

Introduction

This puzzle may be a bit on the gentle side for Jay but it is certainly not lacking in terms of its enjoyment factor.

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.

Primary indications (definitions) are marked with a solid underline in the clue; subsidiary indications (be they wordplay or other) are marked with a dashed underline in all-in-one (&lit.) clues, semi-all-in-one (semi-&lit.) clues and cryptic definitions. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//). Definitions presented in blue text are for terms that appear frequently.

Across

1a   Works // programme must anticipate right of light (5)

4a   Awfully bad manners cut short // identification of product (5,4)

9a   Rose, // for example with worker in queue (9)

"worker" = ANT (show explanation )

The word "worker" is commonly used in cryptic crossword puzzles to clue ANT or BEE.

A worker^[5] is a neuter or undeveloped female bee, wasp, ant, or other social insect, large numbers of which do the basic work of the colony.

In crossword puzzles, "worker" will most frequently be used to clue ANT and occasionally BEE but I have yet to see it used to clue WASP. Of course, "worker" is sometimes also used to clue HAND or MAN.

hide explanation

Queue^[5] is a chiefly British term meaning a line or sequence of people or vehicles awaiting their turn to be attended to or to proceed. As Collins English Dictionary states, the usual US and Canadian term is line^[4] — but only in this sense of the word (which, unfortunately, Collins fails to indicate). In North America, the word queue is used for a pigtail or in computer science. It is also interesting to note that while North Americans generally stand in line, they are not averse to jumping the queue.

Delving Deeper

The American Heritage Dictionary has the following to say about the history of this word queue[3]: When the British stand in queues (as they have been doing at least since 1837, when this meaning of the word is first recorded in English), they may not realize they form a tail. The French word queue from which the English word is borrowed is a descendant of Latin co-da, meaning "tail." French queue appeared in 1748 in English, referring to a plait of hair hanging down the back of the neck. By 1802 wearing a queue was a regulation in the British army, but by the mid-19th century queues had disappeared along with cocked hats. Latin co-da is also the source of Italian coda, which was adopted into English as a musical term (like so many other English musical terms that come from Italian). A coda is thus literally the "tail end" of a movement or composition.

10a   Part of drill used by soldiers /to get/ range (5)

"soldiers" = OR (show explanation )

In the British armed forces, the term other ranks^[5] (abbreviation OR^[5]) refers to all those who are not commissioned officers.

hide explanation

Orbit^[5] is used in the sense of an area of activity, interest, or influence ⇒ audiences drawn largely from outside the Party orbit.

11a   A way to travel on the back of a horse perhaps (7)

In this semi-&lit. clue^* (or, as some prefer to call it, semi-all-in-one clue), the entire clue acts as the definition while the portion with the dashed underline provides the wordplay.

^* In a true &lit. clue^[7] (sometimes called an all-in-one clue) the entire clue provides not only the definition (when read one way), but under a different interpretation is also the wordplay.

An alternative way to travel would be side-saddle.

12a   The setter's put in a dodgy term /for/ current device (7)

"the setter" = ME (show explanation )

It is a common cryptic crossword convention for the creator of the puzzle to use terms such as (the or this) compiler, (the or this) setter, (this) author, (this) writer, or this person to refer to himself or herself. To solve such a clue, one must generally substitute a first person pronoun (I or me) for whichever of these terms has been used in the clue.

hide explanation

Today, the 's (a contraction of the word "is") forms part of the containment indicator (is put in) rather than being combined with the word "setter" to produce IM (I am).

An ammeter^[5] is an instrument for measuring electric current in amperes.

13a   Some restaurateurs in Europe // like bears (6)

15a   Political manifesto // that may be one of Victoria's (8)

I would think that this is a double definition where the second definition is phrased in a rather cryptic manner. We must decipher that we are looking for something that may be found in Victoria Station.

London Victoria station^[7], generally known as Victoria, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground [subway] complex named after nearby Victoria Street (the latter being named after Queen Victoria). London Victoria is the second-busiest terminus in London (and the UK) after London Waterloo.

18a   Imposed // objective, packing on behalf of church (8)

"church" = CE (show explanation )

The Church of England^[10] (abbreviation CE^[10]) is the reformed established state Church in England, Catholic in order and basic doctrine, with the Sovereign as its temporal head.

hide explanation

20a   The rest of the day (6)

23a   Overweight guide lost, out of depth /and/ weary (7)

In the cryptic reading, "weary" is used as a verb.

24a   Takes off /and/ wanders around East Mediterranean initially (7)

26a   Purpose applied to accountant/'s/ campaign (5)

"accountant" = CA (show explanation )

The official designation CA^[5] for Chartered Accountant is used in Scotland — and was formerly employed in Canada. However, as of January 2013, Canadian CAs — together with CGAs (Certified General Accounts) and CMAs (Certified Management Accountants) have adopted the CPA (Chartered Professional Accountant) designation.

Outside Scotland, the term "chartered accountant" is used by members of the accounting profession in the UK who belong to certain professional bodies.

In the UK (apart from Scotland) the designatory letters are ACA^[10] (Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants) or FCA^[10] (Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants). The designatory letters ACA and FCA are also employed in the Republic of Ireland although there I would presume that they stand for Associate of Chartered Accountants Ireland and Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland respectively — Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) being the Irish counterpart to the Institute of Chartered Accounts in England and Wales (ICAEW) and Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS).^[7]

In addition to the organizations already mentioned there are a plethora of other bodies representing accountants in the UK. In fact, in the UK there are no licence requirements for individuals to describe themselves or to practise as accountants. However, those who use the description "chartered accountant" must be members of one of the organisations mentioned above or a recognised equivalent body in another Commonwealth country.

hide explanation

27a   Play // patience (9)

I almost fell into the trap of searching for a play entitled Tolerance but caught myself just in time. However, while writing the review I couldn't help but check if there might be such a work. It seems not, but Intolerance^[7] is a 1916 silent film directed by D. W. Griffith. This three-and-a-half-hour epic is widely regarded as one of the great masterpieces of the silent era, as well as one of the first art films.

28a   Builders regularly must follow school education // programmes (9)

29a   Left motorway during Italian // restriction (5)

The M1^[7] is a north–south motorway [controlled access, multi-lane divided highway] in England connecting London to Leeds.

"Italian" = IT (show explanation )

This clueing might be explained in a couple of ways:

• It.^[10] is an abbreviation for Italian or Italy.


• Italian^[10] is another name for Italian vermouth. It^[5] is an informal, dated British term for Italian vermouth ⇒ he poured a gin and it.

hide explanation

Down

1d   Engineers carpet to have clean covering, /but/ too early (9)

"engineers" = RE (show explanation )

The Corps of Royal Engineers^[7], usually just called the Royal Engineers (abbreviation RE), and commonly known as the Sappers^[7], is a corps of the British Army that provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces.

hide explanation

2d   Designate // to a great extent, protecting first in line (5)

3d   Love in tennis possibly /gives you/ stress (7)

"love" = O (show explanation )

In tennis, squash, and some other sports, love^[5] is a score of zero or nil ⇒ love fifteen. The resemblance of a zero written as a numeral (0) to the letter O leads to the cryptic crossword convention of the word "love" being used to clue this letter.

Although folk etymology has connected the word with French l'oeuf 'egg', from the resemblance in shape between an egg and a zero, the term apparently comes from the phrase play for love (i.e. the love of the game, not for money).

hide explanation

4d   Paid off // kid found in part of garden (6)

What did Kitty say?

In her review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Kitty refers to a bed as the part of a garden where you might find flowers In Britain, a garden[10] is an area of land, usually planted with grass, trees, flowerbeds, etc, adjoining a house — what would be known in Canada and the US as a yard. It is interesting to note that, in 2010, the definition of garden found at Oxford Dictionaries closely corresponded to the one above from Collins English Dictionary. At that time, garden was defined by Oxford as "a piece of ground adjoining a house, typically cultivated to provide a lawn and flowerbeds" [note that this definition explicitly indicates that the lawn is included in the garden]. Today, the definition for garden[5] has changed to read "(chiefly British) a piece of ground adjoining a house, used for growing flowers, fruit, or vegetables" [no mention of the lawn]. The new definition certainly sounds more like the North American usage than it does like the British usage. In fact, the definition for garden in the American English version of Oxford Dictionaries is "a piece of ground, often near a house, used for growing flowers, fruit, or vegetables". I wonder — does this indicate that the North American usage of the word is supplanting the former British usage!

5d   Accommodating // different name on source of barley in beer (8)

6d   Welcome here /for/ a downtrodden person? (7)

7d   A dropping outside temperature shown in pub // flier (9)

8d   Consumer // taking top off radiator (5)

14d   Non-alcoholic rival /is/ a pushover (4,5)

Touch^[5] is used in the sense of be comparable to in quality or excellence ⇒ there’s no one who can touch him at lightweight judo.

16d   Financial review /of/ Mensa in a mess over exam (5,4)

Scratching the Surface
Mensa[5] is an international organization founded in England in 1945 whose members must achieve very high scores in IQ tests to be admitted.

17d   Set off sheltered by cycle // stand (8)

19d   Got angry about case of wastage /and/ growth (7)

21d   Wrong // time to be dismissed by any Greek god perhaps (7)

As a noun, immortal^[5] denotes an immortal being, especially a god of ancient Greece or Rome.

22d   Troubles coming after doctor /gives/ exercises (6)

23d   Data /from/ polyunsaturates full of carbon (5)

The symbol for the chemical element carbon is C^[5].

25d   Beam on everybody turning up, /showing/ such hostility (5)

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon

Tuesday, July 19, 2016 — DT 28074

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28074
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28074]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Gazza
BD Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★
Falcon's Experience ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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
Notes
The National Post has skipped DT 28071 through DT 28073 which were published in The Daily Telegraph from Friday, March 25, 2016 to Monday, March 28, 2016.

Introduction

Today the National Post takes another Great Leap Forward skipping over three puzzles. At a result we actually get a "Tuesday" puzzle on a Tuesday. We also get a grid that I do not recall having seen before.

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.

Primary indications (definitions) are marked with a solid underline in the clue; subsidiary indications (be they wordplay or other) are marked with a dashed underline in all-in-one (&lit.) clues, semi-all-in-one (semi-&lit.) clues and cryptic definitions. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//). Definitions presented in blue text are for terms that appear frequently.

Across

1a   Sensational // duck, wicket given after loud shout (6)

From the perspective of both the surface reading and the cryptic reading, this clue is about entirely about cricket.

In cricket, a duck^[5] 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.

In cricket, the term wicket^[5] can have any of several meanings:

1. each of the sets of three stumps with two bails across the top at either end of the pitch, defended by a batsman;
2. the prepared strip of ground between two sets of stumps ⇒ when they inspected the wicket, they found it being rolled by some prisoners;
3. the dismissal of a batsman; each of ten dismissals regarded as marking a division of a side’s innings ⇒ Darlington won by four wickets.

In the latter sense, wicket is abbreviated as W^[5] on scorecards.

Yellow^[5] (said of a style of writing, especially in journalism) denotes lurid and sensational ⇒ he based his judgement on headlines and yellow journalism.

5a   Unfair contest? // Short young lady lighter (8)

10a   Trim // tree with pendulous cones (6)

11a   Piece of pork, // free on bar (5,3)

12a   Hotel's restraint must be misplaced, // ultimately (2,3,4,6)

In the last resort^[5] means ultimately ⇒ in the last resort what really moves us is our personal convictions.

This expression has a somewhat different connotation than as a last (or final) resort^[5] which means when all else has failed ⇒ the soldiers had orders not to shoot except as a last resort to save human life.

16a   Skittle 17 out -- // high point (8)

The numeral "17" is a cross reference indicator directing the solver to insert the solution to clue 17d in its place to complete the clue. The directional indicator is customarily omitted in situations such as this where only a single clue starts in the light^* that is being referenced.

^* light-coloured cell in the grid

Skittles^[3,4,5,11] is a chiefly British term that can mean either:

1. a game played with wooden pins, typically nine in number, set up at the end of an alley to be bowled down with a wooden ball or disc (also known, especially in the US, as ninepins); or
2. the pins used in the game of skittles.

18a   Wrong /having/ commercial break (6)

Adrift^[10] is used in the informal sense of off course or amiss ⇒ the project went adrift.

20a   Agree, surprisingly, about introduction of grunge // style of music (6)

Reggae^[5] is a style of popular music with a strongly accented subsidiary beat, originating in Jamaica. Reggae evolved in the late 1960s from ska and other local variations on calypso and rhythm and blues, and became widely known in the 1970s through the work of Bob Marley; its lyrics are much influenced by Rastafarian ideas.

Scratching the Surface
Grunge[5] (also grunge rock) is a style of rock music characterized by a raucous guitar sound and lazy vocal delivery.

21a   How mate's changed // a bit (8)

22a   One banned, diplomatically, /from/ Goa? So partner Ann broadcast (7,3,5)

Scratching the Surface
Goa[5] is a state on the west coast of India; capital, Panaji. Formerly a Portuguese territory, it was seized by India in 1961. It formed a Union Territory with Daman and Diu until 1987, when it was made a state.

27a   Not the main attraction /in/ area, plant storing hydrogen (8)

It is interesting that Gazza thought of "side" in a North American context (in reference to an area of Manhattan) and I thought of it in the British context of Merseyside and Tyneside (areas adjacent to the rivers Mersey and Tyne respectively).

The symbol for the chemical element hydrogen is H^[5].

28a   Rule // in gaming over non-members (6)

29a   Quits just after Goran's first // service (8)

Quits^[5] is an adjective meaning (of two people) on even terms, especially because a debt or score has been settled ⇒ I think we’re just about quits now, don’t you?.

Evens^[1] as an adjective or adverb means quits.

On^[2] means immediately after, at or before ⇒ He found the letter on his return.

In the Christian Church, evensong^[5] is a service of evening prayers, psalms, and canticles, conducted according to a set form, especially that of the Anglican Church ⇒ choral evensong.

Scratching the Surface

Goran Ivanišević[7] is a retired Croatian professional tennis player and current tennis coach. He is the only person to win the men's singles title at Wimbledon as a wildcard. He achieved this in 2001, having previously been runner-up at the championships in 1992, 1994 and 1998. Before the 2001 tournament, he was ranked 125th and after his victory he was 16th. His career-high singles ranking was World No. 2 (behind Pete Sampras) in 1994. In tennis and other racket sports, service[5] is the action or right of serving to begin play.

30a   Rant /in/ exchange about onset of inflation (6)

Down

2d   Thoughtful to support former partner, /and/ costly! (9)

3d   Number // haggling with a US criminal? (8,3)

"Number" is used in the whimsical cryptic crossword sense of something that numbs.

4d   Go round // with list (5)

6d   Popular place /getting/ contribution (5)

7d   Mingle /with/ grockles, initially, in pool (5)

Mere^[5] is a chiefly literary, British term for a lake or pond ⇒ the stream widens into a mere where hundreds of geese gather.

Those of us in Ottawa should be familiar with this word as the Mackenzie King Estate (the country estate of Canada’s 10th and longest-serving prime minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King) is located just across the Ottawa River in Kingsmere, Quebec, on the shores of Kingsmere Lake (a name which surely amounts to Kingslake Lake).

Scratching the Surface
Grockle[5] is an informal, often derogatory, British term for a holidaymaker [vacationer], especially one visiting a resort in Devon or Cornwall [the area from whence Gazza hails].

8d   Body // temperature, approximately (5)

9d   Bowler perhaps receiving a mouthful /in/ home ground (7)

Bowler^[5] (also bowler hat) is a chiefly British name for a man’s hard felt hat with a round dome-shaped crown. The North American name for this item of apparel is derby^[5] — said to arise from American demand for a hat of the type worn at the Epsom Derby [a British horse race].

13d   Felt hat // put back on after ending of nuptials (7)

Stet^[5] (Latin 'let it stand') is an instruction used on a printed proof to indicate that a correction or alteration should be ignored.

Behind the Picture
The photo used by Gazza in his review shows the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (otherwise known as Prince William and the former Kate Middleton) wearing the emblematic hats presented to them at the Calgary Stampede in 2011. Here's another shot where they are into the spectacle rather than each other.

14d   Actual capital of mythical // royal domain (5)

15d   Drink /with/ team in small club (11)

17d   Laundered? // Caught by bank (5)

"caught" = C (show explanation )

In cricket, one way for a batsman to be dismissed is to be caught out^[5], that is for a player on the opposing team to catch a ball that has been hit by the batsman before it touches the ground.

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation c.^[2,10] or c^[5] denotes caught (by).

hide explanation

19d   Sweet-talked // female, embarrassed accepting coffee (9)

20d   Swift reply /from/ king that is sent round office (7)

"king" = R (show explanation )

Rex^[5] (abbreviation R^[5]) [Latin for king] denotes the reigning king, used following a name (e.g. Georgius Rex, King George) or in the titles of lawsuits (e.g. Rex v. Jones, the Crown versus Jones — often shortened to R. v. Jones).

hide explanation

23d   Go on horseback astride good // saddle (5)

"good" = G (show explanation )

The abbreviation G^[10] for good likely relates to its use in grading school assignments or tests.

hide explanation

A saddle^[5] is a low part of a ridge between two higher points or peaks ⇒ follow the road which goes across the saddle between two tors [hills or rocky peaks].

24d   Watering hole, // old, unaltered (5)

25d   Nut, // a small hard growth (5)

26d   Weird thing, // darkness (5)

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon

Monday, July 18, 2016 — DT 28056 (Summer Monday Bonus Puzzle)

Prologue

For several years, it has been the practive of the National Post not publish on Monday between Canada Day and Labour Day. To provide readers of the blog with a bit of mental exercise to keep the grey matter well-tuned, I am providing a puzzle that the National Post has skipped (drawn from my reserve of reviews for unpublished puzzles). Today I offer you DT 28056 which appeared in The Daily Telegraph on Tuesday, March 8, 2016 and was skipped by the National Post on Tuesday, July 5, 2016.

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28056
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28056]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Gazza
BD Rating
Difficulty - ★★	Enjoyment - ★★★★
Falcon's Experience ┌────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┬────┐ ███████████████████████████████████ └────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┴────┘ 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
Notes
The National Post skipped this puzzle on Tuesday, July 5, 2016.

Introduction

This puzzle may not be very difficult — but one could hardly fail to find it entertaining.

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.

Primary indications (definitions) are marked with a solid underline in the clue; subsidiary indications (be they wordplay or other) are marked with a dashed underline in all-in-one (&lit.) clues, semi-all-in-one (semi-&lit.) clues and cryptic definitions. Explicit link words and phrases are enclosed in forward slashes (/link/) and implicit links are shown as double forward slashes (//). Definitions presented in blue text are for terms that appear frequently.

Across

1a   Mark from a wound allowed /to become/ red (7)

5a   Feel // doubt (7)

9a   A king has challenger // coming (7)

"king" = R (show explanation )

Rex^[5] (abbreviation R^[5]) [Latin for king] denotes the reigning king, used following a name (e.g. Georgius Rex, King George) or in the titles of lawsuits (e.g. Rex v. Jones, the Crown versus Jones — often shortened to R. v. Jones).

hide explanation

Since "coming" is a gerund, it can assume the role of a noun.

10a   Warning: // pulse regularly dropped after test (7)

11a   Illumination that could be low level initially in time of darkness (9)

In this semi-&lit. clue^* (or, as some prefer to call it, semi-all-in-one clue), the entire clue serves as the definition while the wordplay is furnished by the portion with the dashed underline.

^* In a true &lit. clue^[7] (sometimes called an all-in-one clue) the entire clue provides not only the definition (when read one way), but under a different interpretation is also the wordplay.

12a   Smallest // let out, we hear (5)

Let^[5] is a chiefly British term meaning to allow someone to have the use of (a room or property) in return for regular payments ⇒ (i) she let the flat [apartment] to a tenant; (ii) they’ve let out their house. [I doubt that this word is quite as British as Oxford Dictionaries would have us believe.^[3,11]]

13a   It spins both ways (5)

15a   Share /in/ ball, now dance all topless! (9)

17a   Abused sew hats and work here? (9)

Another semi-&lit. clue (see explanation at 11a).

"work" = OP (show explanation )

In music, an opus^[5] (plural opuses or opera) is a separate composition or set of compositions.

The abbreviation Op.^[5] (also op.), denoting opus, is used before a number given to each work of a particular composer, usually indicating the order of publication. The plural form of Op. is Opp..

Opus^[5] can also be used in a more general sense to mean an artistic work, especially one on a large scale ⇒ he was writing an opus on Mexico.

hide explanation

19a   Get up, // shift // bandage (5)

22a   Cop it out // of sight (5)

Scratching the Surface
You have a choice here between two British expressions — one of which has far more dire implications. Cop it[5] is a British term meaning to get into trouble ⇒ will you cop it from your dad if you get back late?. Cop it[5] is a British term meaning to be killed ⇒ he almost copped it in a horrific accident.

23a   Resolve // to check explosive device (9)

25a   Group // are called inside (7)

26a   Observe // married men in bed (7)

What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Gazza refers to a cot as a child’s bed. In Britain, a small bed with high barred sides for a baby or very young child is called a cot[5] rather than a crib[5] as it is known in North America.

27a   Criminal held bar /as/ weapon (7)

A halberd^[5] (also known as a halbert) is a combined spear and battleaxe.

28a   Mad character after small // crush (7)

The Hatter^[7] (called Hatta in Through the Looking-Glass) is a fictional character in English writer Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and the story's sequel Through the Looking-Glass (1871). He is often referred to as the Mad Hatter, though this term was never used by Carroll. The phrase "mad as a hatter" predates Carroll's works and the characters the Hatter and the March Hare are initially referred to as "both mad" by the Cheshire Cat, with both first appearing in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, in the seventh chapter titled "A Mad Tea-Party".

Down

1d   One who criticises // prison? (7)

2d   Where trunks are taken off jumbos? (7)

3d   The French versus the Spanish: // well balanced (5)

"the French" = LE (show explanation )

In French, the masculine singular form of the definite article is le^[8].

hide explanation

"the Spanish" = EL (show explanation )

In Spanish, the masculine singular form of the definite article is el^[8].

hide explanation

4d   Great help with editing // newspaper (9)

The Daily Telegraph^[7] is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper, founded in 1855 as The Daily Telegraph and Courier, which is published in London and distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally [... and is the newspaper in which this puzzle initially appeared].

Drawing a Comparison
Well, GREAT HELP should certainly not cause consternation in the editorial offices of the Telegraph. Such may not have been the case on Saturday when American setters Cox and Rathvon made us aware that NEW YORK TIMES is an anagram of MONKEYS WRITE.

5d   The woman put on Alien -- // film (5)

"alien" = ET (show explanation )

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial^[7] (often referred to simply as E.T.) is a 1982 American science fiction film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg. It tells the story of a lonely boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, dubbed "E.T.", who is stranded on Earth. He and his siblings help the extraterrestrial return home while attempting to keep it hidden from their mother and the government.

hide explanation

6d   South side of a building due /to be/ bought (9)

I was thinking of "swallowed" meaning bought in the context of a corporate takeover — but Gazza has a different take on matters.

7d   Describe // former lover: ugly? (7)

What did he say?
In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Gazza refers to plain as an adjective meaning no oil painting. Be no oil painting[5] is an informal British term denoting (of a person) to be unattractive ⇒ he was no oil painting, but she had long passed the age of needing good looks about her.

8d   Where ham might be // warm after temperature starts to rise excessively (7)

14d   Reserve // break in Crete supported by church (9)

"church" = CE (show explanation )

The Church of England^[10] (abbreviation CE^[10]) is the reformed established state Church in England, Catholic in order and basic doctrine, with the Sovereign as its temporal head.

hide explanation

Scratching the Surface

Crete[5] is a Greek island in the eastern Mediterranean; population 630,000 (est. 2009); capital, Heraklion. It is noted for the remains of the Minoan civilization which flourished there in the 2nd millennium BC. It fell to Rome in 67 BC and was subsequently ruled by Byzantines, Venetians, and Turks. Crete played an important role in the Greek struggle for independence from the Turks in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, becoming administratively part of an independent Greece in 1913.

16d   Cosmetics: // pastes put on cheek? On the contrary (9)

17d   Put up with // Satchmo playing (7)

Scratching the Surface
Louis Armstrong[5] (1900–1971) was an American jazz musician; known as Satchmo. A major influence on Dixieland jazz, he was a trumpet and cornet player as well as a bandleader and a distinctive singer.

18d   Hospital department -- Henry comes across right // entrance (7)

"hospital department" = ENT (show explanation )

Should you not have noticed, the ear, nose and throat (ENT^[2]) department is the most visited section, by far, in the Crosswordland Hospital.

hide explanation

Hal^[nameberry] is a venerable nickname for Henry, Harry [itself a variant of Henry]^* and Harold, famously used by Shakespeare in King Henry IV as the name of the king's son, the future Henry V.

^* Harry was considered the "spoken form" of Henry^[7] in medieval England. Most English kings named Henry were called Harry. At one time, the name was so popular for English men that the phrase "Tom, Dick, and Harry" was used to refer to everyone. 

Enthral^[5] is the British spelling of enthrall.

20d   Obvious // I'd cut through tournament (7)

21d   Lieutenant in abrupt // retreat (7)

23d   Fear /making/ Penny study (5)

In the British currency system used prior to Decimal Day^[7] (February 15, 1971^*), a penny^[5] was equal to one twelfth of a shilling or 240th of a pound (and was abbreviated d, for denarius).

^* the date on which Britain converted to a decimal currency system.

In Britain, to read^[5] means to study (an academic subject) at a university ⇒ (i) I’m reading English at Cambridge; (ii) he went to Manchester to read for a BA in Economics.

24d   Dance /from/ graduate following alcohol (5)

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon