Thursday, June 4, 2015 — DT 27677

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27677
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, December 19, 2014
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27677]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Deep Threat
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

Today, Giovanni shows us his gentler side.

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   Secret // needle like this has been lifted (3,3,6)

8a   Small organisms // Georgia found in drink (5)

"Georgia" = GA (show explanation)

The US Postal Service abbreviation for the state of Georgia^[7] is GA.

hide explanation

9a   Outside church Daniel chewed a // bit of food (9)

An enchilada^[5] is a tortilla served with chilli sauce and a filling of meat or cheese.

11a   Sound of tongue, say, /getting/ salt (9)

Tungstate^[10] is a salt of tungstic acid.

12a   Bill Hill /seen as/ an insincere type? (5)

A tor^[5] is a hill or rocky peak.

Actor^[5] is used in the sense of a person who behaves in a way that is not genuine.

13a   Hostile row backed by others? (5,4)

16a   Restricted round end of semester, /being/ examined (5)

18a   Housed, but not in the basement? (3,2)

19a   Bent // administration (9)

Scratching the Surface
In Britain, the word bent[5] has the same connotation (dishonest or corrupt) as does the word crooked[5] in North America. [It would appear that the British use both bent and crooked in this sense].

20a   One banished /from/ English team starts to look exasperated (5)

Eleven^[5] is the number of players on a cricket^[7] side or an Association football^[7] [soccer] team — and is often used as a metonym for such a team ⇒ at cricket I played in the first eleven.

22a   Series of questions // schematic in arrangement (9)

A catechism^[5] is a summary of the principles of Christian religion in the form of questions and answers, used for religious instruction.

25a   Sink to the depths /and/ administer corporal punishment (3,6)

What did he say?

In his review, Deep Threat refers to what Mr Quelch did when he had Billy Bunter bent over. Greyfriars School[7] is a fictional English public school used as a setting in the long-running series of stories by English writer Charles Hamilton (1876–1961), who wrote under the pen-name Frank Richards. The stories are focused on the Remove (or lower fourth form), whose most famous pupil was Billy Bunter. Henry Samuel Quelch Esq., M.A. is Form Master [teacher] of the Remove. Firm but fair ("a Beast, but a just Beast"), he stands no nonsense and does not spare the rod. A form[7] is a class or grouping of students in a school. The term is used predominantly in the United Kingdom, although some schools, mostly private, in other countries also use the title. Pupils are usually grouped in forms according to age and will remain with the same group for a number of years, or sometimes their entire school career. Forms are normally identified by a number such as "first form" or "sixth form". A form number may be used for two year groups and differentiated by the terms upper and lower. The sixth form is the senior form of a school, and is usually divided into two year groups: the lower sixth and upper sixth. If there is more than one form for each year group they will normally be differentiated by letters, e.g., "upper four B", "lower two Y". Schools do not follow a consistent pattern in naming forms. Remove[10] is a British term for a class or form in certain schools, especially one for children of about 14 years, designed to introduce them to the greater responsibilities of a more senior position in the school.

26a   Grotesque act // of sycophant I criticise (5)

27a   Need for cadet to be trained // in civil war group? (12)

The North was a Union, the South was a Confederation.

Down

1d   High notes coming from here in church? (5,4)

2d   Insects // loud above meadows (5)

"loud" = F (show explanation)

Forte^[5] (abbreviation f^[5]) is a musical direction meaning (as an adjective) loud or (as an adverb) loudly.

hide explanation

3d   Animal // hospital burning -- initial hint of arson? (5)

4d   Dodgy dealer // always introduced by big noise (9)

5d   Ending // of weather pattern with cold coming in (9)

6d   Soldiers going up a street // get very hot (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

7d   Type of word // that contributes to an oration (4,2,6)

10d   Branch of study that could help high-level management (12)

I took AERONAUTICS for a test flight, but it came up short—sending me back to the drawing board.

Similar — but different

Although, superficially, 7d and 10d might appear to have similar structures (i.e., they each conclude with a subordinate clause introduced by the word 'that'), I have deemed them to be different in one key respect. In 7d, I believe that both the definition as well as the cryptic definition that constitutes the wordplay are sufficiently strong to stand in their own right. Moreover, the condition described by the subordinate clause is not a necessary attribute of the solution (i.e., a part of speech is used elsewhere than in an oration). Therefore, I have marked it as a double definition, with the latter one being cryptic. In 10d, on the other hand, both the definition and the wordplay are much vaguer and do not as readily stand on their own. However, when used in combination, they form a cryptic definition comprising a vague standard definition (the portion with the solid underline) together with a bit of cryptic elaboration (the portion with the dashed underline). While this argument may be seen by some as 'splitting hairs', I do note that the manner in which Deep Threat has underlined the definitions in his review would appear to indicate that he has drawn a similar conclusion.

14d   Given dope // and dumped? (6,3)

The wordplay is based on a British meaning of the word 'tip'. As a noun, tip^[10] means a dump for refuse,  etc. and, as a verb, it means to dump (rubbish, etc).

15d   Order I did enact /as/ shown (9)

17d   One fool, one an old rocker // brought into club? (9)

Nit^[5] is an informal British term for a foolish person ⇒ you stupid nit!. 

 Ted^[2] is short for Teddy boy^[5], a slang term originally applied to a young man belonging to a subculture in 1950s Britain characterized by a style of dress based on Edwardian fashion (typically with drainpipe trousers, bootlace tie, and hair slicked up in a quiff) and a liking for rock-and-roll music.The name comes from from Teddy, pet form of the given name Edward (with reference to Edward VII's reign). Judging by the entry in the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, it would appear that the term Teddy boy^[2] is now applied to any unruly or rowdy adolescent male.

We saw both of these terms on Monday—albeit in separate clues.

21d   Church anthem not with it -- // jazzy piece wanted (5)

In the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England, an introit^[10] is a short prayer said or sung as the celebrant is entering the sanctuary to celebrate Mass or Holy Communion.

Intro^[1] is an informal contraction of introduction, used especially of the opening passage of a jazz or popular music piece.

23d   Embraced by sailor this person /becomes/ more submissive (5)

"this person" = ME (show explanation)

It is a common cryptic crossword convention for the creator of the puzzle to use terms such as (the) compiler, (the) 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

24d   Talk about minister's latest // plan (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

Wednesday, June 3, 2015 — DT 27676

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27676
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Thursday, December 18, 2014
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27676]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Falcon
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

Today I had the opportunity to spend time with an old acquaintance—one I first met last December. I must admit that it took a moment to recognize the puzzle as such.

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   Cry // during 'Billy Elliot' (4)

Scratching the Surface
Billy Elliot[7] is a 2000 British film set in north-eastern England during the 1984-85 coal miners' strike which tells the story of 11-year-old Billy, an aspiring dancer dealing with the negative stereotype of the male ballet dancer. The story was later adapted for the stage as Billy Elliot the Musical.

3a   Retired performer /in/ demand (5)

An act^[2] is (1) a short piece of entertainment, usually one of a series in a variety show or (2) the person or people performing this.

6a   Bishop takes port /and/ spirit (4)

"Bishop" = B (show explanation)

B^[5] is an abbreviation for bishop that is used in recording moves in chess.

hide explanation

Rio de Janeiro^[5] (commonly known as Rio) is a city in eastern Brazil, on the Atlantic coast; population 6,093,472 (2007). The chief port of Brazil, it was the country’s capital from 1763 until 1960, when it was replaced by Brasilia.

8a   Regular route undertaken /with/ a bad attitude (5-10)

9a   Picturesque // view, they say, adjacent to Manx prison? (6)

Nick^[5] is an informal British name for a prison ⇒ he’ll end up in the nick for the rest of his life.

The Manx cat^[10] is a short-haired tailless variety of cat, believed to originate on the Isle of Man^[5], a British Crown dependency in the Irish Sea.

"Manx prison" is NIC[K] (prison) with its final letter removed (tailless, like a Manx cat).

10a   Boycott start of term -- that is // formal (5,3)

Black^[5] is a dated British expression meaning to refuse to handle (goods), undertake (work), or have dealings with (a person or business) as a way of taking industrial action ⇒ the printers blacked firms trying to employ women.

11a   Cover up // offensive remark about a European (8)

13a   Develop extremely elegant // heavenly body (6)

15a   Hesitate with opening key change -- // the one or the other? (6)

17a   Angels // somehow spare that man (8)

A seraph^[5] (plural seraphim or seraphs) is an angelic being, regarded in traditional Christian angelology as belonging to the highest order of the ninefold celestial hierarchy, associated with light, ardour, and purity.

19a   Ideal spot managed without parking /and it's/ remote (8)

21a   Needle /provoked by/ feisty lush to a great extent (6)

22a   Fruit avoided by vegetarians? (9,6)

23a   Pin-up // I would briefly look over (4)

"look" = LO (show explanation)

Lo^[5] is an archaic exclamation used to draw attention to an interesting or amazing event ⇒ and lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them.

hide explanation

24a   Mothers keeping quiet -- // it's infectious (5)

"quiet" = P (show explanation)

Piano^[3,5] (abbreviation p^[5]), is a musical direction meaning either (as an adjective) soft or quiet or (as an adverb) softly or quietly.

hide explanation

25a   Cutting edge // commercials on the radio (4)

Down

1d   Where US-style greeting irks her badly? (9)

Almost anywhere in the UK could be a candidate for the solution to this clue if one were to judge by the outcry on Big Dave's blog whenever a US-style expression of any description makes its way into the puzzle.

I would say that the entire clue serves as the definition with the wordplay being the portion of the clue with the dashed underline—thereby making this a semi-&lit. (semi-all-in-one) clue.

2d   Spoils // exotic allure by beginning to swear (7)

When this puzzle first appeared, I ventured the opinion that "it seems a mighty huge stretch to imagine that the solution is synonymous with the definition". However, several comments on Big Dave's site took issue with that point of view. For instance, Rabbit Dave in Comment #2 states "I think the definition for 2d is fine; “spoils” and the answer can both mean “prizes”".

3d   Simple furniture? (4,5)

4d   What are the odds of army over brave // unsophisticated beings? (7)

5d   Uncontrolled lust overcoming a // place in Oklahoma (5)

6d   Holiday's affected -- // pack tents up (5,4)

7d   It is about half of them on Ecstasy /making/ record (7)

"Ecstasy" = E (show explanation)

E^[5] is an abbreviation for the drug Ecstasy or a tablet of Ecstasy ⇒ (i) people have died after taking E; (ii) being busted with three Es can lead to stiff penalties.

hide explanation

12d   Peacekeepers facilitate outbreak of flu -- /isn't that/ awkward? (9)

13d   Airborne troops circling location -- // they could be hanging on (9)

Para^[4,11] (short for paratrooper) is a soldier in an airborne unit.

14d   Trombones will be played as Queen leaves after time /in/ memorial (9)

"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).

hide explanation

16d   As an alternative, // home brew's brought in shillings and pence (7)

In the British currency system used prior to the introduction of the current decimal currency system, a shilling^[5] (abbreviation s^[5]) was a coin and monetary unit equal to one twentieth of a pound and a penny^[5] (abbreviation d^[5] [for denarius]) was a coin or monetary unit equal to one twelfth of a shilling or 240th of a pound.

17d   Crook admires // weapon (7)

As an anagram indicator, crook^[2] is almost certainly used in the sense of a verb meaning to bend or curve.

18d   Measure put in place under prince // that will raise the standard? (7)

Prince Hal^[7] is the standard term used in literary criticism to refer to Shakespeare's portrayal of the young Henry V of England as a prince before his accession to the throne, taken from the diminutive form of his name used (almost exclusively) by Falstaff in the plays Henry IV, Part 1 and Henry IV, Part 2.

Hal is portrayed as a wayward youth who enjoys the society of petty criminals and wastrels, a depiction which draws on exaggerations of the historical prince Henry's supposed youthful behaviour.

20d   Shot this man for overturning // symbol of respect (5)

"this man" = ME (show explanation)

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

hide explanation

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, June 2, 2015 — DT 27675

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27675
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, December 17, 2014
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27675]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By 2Kiwis
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

I fully concur with the 2Kiwis that this puzzle is worthy of three stars for difficulty and four stars for enjoyment. For me, it was 1a which was the last to fall. Even then, I got the solution largely from the pattern of the checking letters—then had to sort out the wordplay. I thought it was an outstanding clue, and—hands down—my favourite.

Reading Brian's comments on Big Dave's blog today would almost make one suspect that he has undergone a "road to Damascus" experience.

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   Not at all // amused, reply angrily dismissing daughter (2,8)

6a   Measure of a ruler/'s/ progress? (4)

9a   Civilisation /finds/ remedy imprisoning Unionist officer (7)

A Unionist^[5] (abbreviation U^[10]) is (1) a person, especially a member of a Northern Ireland political party, who is in favour of the union of Northern Ireland with Great Britain or (2) historically, a member of a British political party formed in 1886 which supported maintenance of the parliamentary union between Great Britain and Ireland.

10a   The charms of West Africa must include Italian // cocktails (7)

"Italian" = IT (show explanation)

A couple of explanations are available:

• 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

Mojo^[10] is US slang of West African origin for an amulet, charm, or magic spell.

A mojito^[5] is a cocktail consisting of white rum, lime or lemon juice, sugar, mint, ice, and carbonated or soda water.

12a   Earth/'s/ revised opinion? (6,2,5)

This is an inverse anagram (or, as the 2Kiwis call it in their review, a reverse anagram). (show explanation)

In a regular anagram, an anagram indicator operates on the anagram fodder (both of which are found in the clue) to produce a result (which is found in the solution).

Thus, if one were to encounter "change of heart" in a clue, one would decipher it as an anagram of (change of) HEART producing EARTH with the anagram indicator being "change of", the anagram fodder being "heart", and the result being "EARTH".

In an inverse anagram, on the other hand, the solver is presented with the result of an anagram operation and is required to find the anagram indicator and anagram fodder that would produce that result. That is, the result is found in the clue and the anagram indicator and anagram fodder are found in the solution. In the present instance, "Earth" (found in the clue) could be the result of an anagram operation in which the anagram indicator is "change of" and the anagram fodder is "heart".

Often, as today, there is no explicit indication of the existence of an inverse anagram apart from the "?" at the end of the clue.

Besides inverse anagrams, one may also encounter other types of inverse wordplay, such as inverse reversals.

By the way, I prefer to use the term inverse wordplay rather than reverse wordplay as the workings of this clue type is very much analogous to that of an inverse function in mathematics. Thus the term appeals to my engineering and mathematical background. Besides, I think the terminology inverse reversal is much preferable to the awkward phraseology reverse reversal.

hide explanation

14a   New honesty boxes left // in a sneaky way (2,3,3)

15a   Emphasise // a little money in Europe captures carbon (6)

A cent^[5] is a monetary unit in various countries^[10], equal to one hundredth of a dollar, euro, or other decimal currency unit. However, in Britain — despite having adopted a decimal currency system — one hundredth of a pound is known as a penny rather than a cent.

17a   Edge that projects, // initially from different angle (6)

19a   Almost get wind of a venue for carnival // setting (8)

The 2Kiwis have omitted the middle element of the charade in their explanation. The wordplay is {SCEN[T] (get wind of) with the final letter removed (almost)} + A (from the clue) + RIO (venue for carnival).

21a   Rather alert, possibly grabbing gold // eventually (6,2,5)

"gold" = OR (show explanation)

Or^[5] is gold or yellow, as a heraldic tincture.

hide explanation

24a   Worker // engaged in heart-to-heart is antagonistic (7)

25a   Round of applause given to fish // expert (3,4)

Dab^[5] is a name given to any of several species of  small, commercially important flatfish found chiefly in the North Atlantic.

Dab hand^[5] is an informal British term for a person who is an expert at a particular activity ⇒ Liam is a dab hand at golf.

26a   Positive response by European // viewers (4)

27a   Annoys son unloading lorry // for no reason (10)

Lorry^[5] is a British term for a truck.

Down

1d   Illegal scheme set up /to get/ coats (4)

Mac^[5] is an informal name for a mackintosh^[5], a British term for a full-length waterproof coat.

2d   European hypocrisy dismissing new // mammal (7)

Have you noticed that Poles seem to be turning up everywhere in Crosswordland recently.

A polecat^[5] is a weasel-like Eurasian mammal with mainly dark brown fur and a darker mask across the eyes, noted for its fetid smell. There are three species, in particular the European polecat (Mustela putorius) which is the probable ancestor of the domestic ferret. In North America [although only in the US, as far as I know], the name is also applied to the skunk.

3d   Hazard of university? (8,5)

Likely an allusion to the expression "hazard a guess".

4d   One mesmerises // subjects ultimately leaving in a confused state (8)

A Svengali^[5] is a person who exercises a controlling or mesmeric influence on another, especially for a sinister purpose. The term comes from the name of a musician in George du Maurier's novel Trilby (1894), who controls Trilby's stage singing hypnotically.

5d   Casanova/'s/ city love (5)

"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.

hide explanation

7d   Compound // charge applied to idiot (7)

Nit^[5] is an informal British term for a foolish person ⇒ you stupid nit!.

8d   Indecision /of/ the man with one in position (10)

11d   Policeman chasing Gospel // artist (4,9)

What did they say?

In their review, the 2Kiwis describe the policeman as a bobby that you used to see walking the beat. In Britain, bobby[5] is an informal name for a police officer. The name comes from a nickname for Robert, the given name of Sir Robert Peel[5] (1788–1850), British Prime Minister 1834-5 and 1841-6, who as Home Secretary (1828–30) established the Metropolitan Police [perhaps better known as Scotland Yard].

John Constable^[5] (1776–1837) was an English painter. Among his best-known works are early paintings such as Flatford Mill (1817) and The Hay Wain (1821), inspired by the landscape of his native Suffolk.

13d   Seize // dissident factions in church (10)

"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

16d   Sort of weather front // Dec could set right (8)

In the field of meteorology, an occluded front^[5] is a composite front produced by occlusion^[5], a process by which the cold front of a rotating low-pressure system catches up the warm front, so that the warm air between them is forced upwards off the earth’s surface between wedges of cold air.

18d   Trouble with private English // child under one's wing (7)

20d   Has another look at sentence // concerning engineers and adverts (7)

"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

22d   Weight // when university's given acceptance? (5)

23d   Starts to eat and drink, getting you // nervous (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

Monday, June 1, 2015 — DT 27674

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27674
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Setter Shamus (Philip Marlow)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27674]
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

Introduction

I learned at least one new word today—not to mention new meanings for a few others.

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   Harassment /in/ MI6 HQ? (11)

The Secret Intelligence Service^[7] (SIS), commonly known as MI6 (Military Intelligence, Section 6), is the British intelligence agency which supplies the British Government with foreign intelligence. It operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) alongside the internal Security Service (MI5), the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) and Defence Intelligence (DI).

As crypticsue points out in the thread attached to Comment #15 on Big Dave's blog, "John le Carre books [...] were always talking about stations in connection with spies". To which Michael adds "Yes, John Le Carre was always referring to London Station or Berlin Station or whatever when referring to MI6 Headquarters".

7a   Basil, say, among group /getting/ drink (7)

In Britain, sherbet^[5] is not another name for sorbet but, rather, a flavoured sweet effervescent powder eaten alone or made into a drink ⇒ disks of fruit-flavoured rice paper filled with sherbet.

8a   Italian staple // put in apricot tart (7)

Ricotta^[2] is a soft white unsalted Italian curd cheese made from sheep's or cow's milk and often used in sauces for ravioli, lasagne, etc.

10a   Mention of wrinkle /being/ genuine (5)

Pukka^[5] (or pukkah), a word of Hindi origin, means genuine ⇒ the more expensive brands are pukka natural mineral waters.

The word "pucker", when pronounced in a non-rhotic^[5] British accent ("puckah"), sounds like "pukka".

Non-rhotic accents omit the sound < r > in certain situations, while rhotic accents generally pronounce < r > in all contexts. Among the several dozen British English accents which exist, many are non-rhotic while American English (US and Canadian) is mainly rhotic. This is, however, a generalisation, as there are areas of Britain that are rhotic, and areas of America that are non-rhotic. For more information, see this guide to pronouncing < r > in British English.

11a   Sign of the self? (9)

12a   The sliding in ice venue /is/ deliberate again (7)

14a   Ambition followed by inexperienced driver in the German // car (7)

"inexperienced driver" = L; "the German" = DER (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 countries (including the UK) if its driver is a learner under instruction.

In German, der^[8] is one of the several forms that the definite article may assume.

hide explanation

The Daimler Company Limited^[7], until 1910 The Daimler Motor Company Limited, was an independent British motor vehicle manufacturer founded in 1896. The company bought the right to the use of the Daimler name from Gottlieb Daimler and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft of Germany.

Through a series of mergers and acquisitions stretching out over more than a century, Daimler and the Daimler brand have successively been owned by Birmingham Small Arms Company (BSA) (1910), Jaguar Cars (1960), British Motor Corporation (1966), British Leyland (1968), the Ford Motor Company (1989) and finally Tata Motors (2008). As Tata has not used the Daimler marque since acquiring it, the brand would appear to be dormant.

The British automaker should not be confused with the German manufacturer of Mercedes-Benz automobiles, Daimler AG^[7] (formerly DaimlerChrysler AG and before that Daimler-Benz AG—which was formed through a merger of Benz & Cie. with the aforementioned Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft).

15a   A large restrictive area holding soft // drink for teenagers (7)

"soft"= P (show explanation)

Piano^[3,5] (abbreviation p^[5]), is a musical direction meaning either (as an adjective) soft or quiet or (as an adverb) softly or quietly.

hide explanation

Alcopop^[5] is a British colloquial term for a ready-mixed drink that resembles a soft drink but contains alcohol. In Canada, such a beverage is known as a cooler^[7].

18a   Short time in Lancashire town almost /producing/ laugh (7)

Chorley^[7] is a market town in Lancashire, in North West England, located 19.5 miles (31 km) north west of Manchester. Chorley is known as the home of the Chorley cake [which Gazza illustrates in his review].

20a   Unpleasant sensation // is in chest possibly (9)

21a   Walk proudly /in/ part of framework? (5)

22a   Account for // former partner left in agony (7)

23a   Skill // I kindled in a boy, nothing less (7)

24a   One initiating rage? (11)

Down

1d   Privilege after starter's gone to tuck into flesh /in/ animal (7)

A meerkat^[5] is any of three species of small southern African mongoose, especially the suricate.

2d   Country // invested in, say, billions after revolution (5)

3d   Place for filming footballer /is/ a disappointment (7)

A back^[5] is a player in a team game who plays in a defensive position behind the forwards ⇒ their backs showed some impressive running and passing.

4d   After a time, Fifties rocker's // rattled (7)

Aerate^[1] would appear to be used in the sense of to excite or perturb (a sense of the word that seems to exist only in The Chambers Dictionary).

Ted^[2] is short for Teddy boy^[5], a slang term originally applied to a young man belonging to a subculture in 1950s Britain characterized by a style of dress based on Edwardian fashion (typically with drainpipe trousers, bootlace tie, and hair slicked up in a quiff) and a liking for rock-and-roll music.The name comes from from Teddy, pet form of the given name Edward (with reference to Edward VII's reign). Judging by the entry in the Chambers 21st Century Dictionary, it would appear that the term Teddy boy^[2] is now applied to any unruly or rowdy adolescent male.

5d   Unidentified // fool blocking work to support trendy firm (9)

Nit^[5] is an informal British term for a foolish person ⇒ you stupid nit!.

6d   Two features of tennis /in/ another game (7)

Netball^[5] is a seven-a-side game in which goals are scored by throwing a ball so that it falls through a netted hoop. By contrast with basketball, a player receiving the ball must stand still until they have passed it to another player. (show more)

The development of netball^[7], derived from early versions of basketball, began in England in the 1890s. Games are played on a rectangular court with raised goal rings at each end. Each team attempts to score goals by passing a ball down the court and shooting it through its goal ring. Players are assigned specific positions, which define their roles within the team and restrict their movement to certain areas of the court. During general play, a player with the ball can hold onto it for only three seconds before shooting for a goal or passing to another player. The winning team is the one that scores the most goals. Netball games are 60 minutes long. Netball is most popular in Commonwealth nations, specifically in schools, and is predominantly played by women.

There are many differences with basketball. For instance, there are no backboards; a shot on goal can only be made from within the shooting circle (no three point shots); only certain players may enter the shooting circle (either as attackers or defenders); only two attackers and two defenders may be in the shooting circle at one time; the ball is moved up and down the court through passing and must be touched by a player in each adjacent third of the court (no end to end passes); players can hold the ball for only three seconds at any time and it must be released before the foot they were standing on when they caught it touches the ground again (no dribbling).

hide explanation

7d   Best // travel is arranged, needing to cover up, going to Spain (11)

"Spain" = E (show explanation)

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) code for Spain is E^[5] [from Spanish España]. 

hide explanation

9d   Broth nearly spilt // in a repugnant way (11)

13d   Reveal involvement of // brat with deceit about pet (9)

16d   Put up with dirty place, home for fliers? (7)

Pit^[5] is slang for a very dirty or untidy place.

17d   Groomed // European enters before finale (7)

18d   Fall /of/ dishonourable type in action (7)

19d   Volunteer, // one that could be given lead? (7)

Terrier^[5] is an informal British term for a member of the Territorial Army (TA)^[5] which was at one time the name of a volunteer UK force founded in 1908 to provide a reserve of trained and disciplined military personnel for use in an emergency. Since 2013, it has been called the Army Reserve.

Lead^[5] is a British term for a strap or cord for restraining and guiding a dog or other domestic animal ⇒ the dog is our constant walking companion and is always kept on a lead. Despite being characterized as a British term by Oxford Dictionaries Online, the word lead^[3] is found in The American Heritage Dictionary as another name for a leash.

21d   Garment /that's/ right in humorous show (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