Monday, June 4, 2018 — DT 28650 (Published Saturday, June 2, 2018)

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28650
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Setter Jay (Jeremy Mutch)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28650]
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
Notes
This puzzle appears on the Monday Diversions page in the Saturday, June 2, 2018 edition of the National Post.

Introduction

While on the easier end of the spectrum, the puzzle did generate some controversy among the commentariat at Big Dave's Crossword Blog concerning the grammatical soundness of the solution at 8d and the scientific accuracy of the definition at 10a.

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.

Click here for an explanation of conventions and symbols used in explaining the parsing of clues.

The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in explaining the parsing of clues.

Legend: The following symbols are used in reviews: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that the preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the word is present in the clue

The review of a clue takes the following general structure:

#a/d   Clue containing parsing markup (num^*)

---

^* num = numeration

Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)

(Horizontal separator)

---

Explanations pertaining to the definition (or second definition in a double definition) and solution.

Explanatory Box

An explanatory box provides additional information about the clue. In most cases this information will not necessarily help in solving the clue but provides information about the clue. In the case of the weekday syndicated Daily Telegraph puzzles, such information is often intended to help the North American solver appreciate how the clue may be perceived by a British solver. These boxes may also provide information on people, places, films, television programmes, works of art and literature, etc. mentioned in the clue. Although the titles of these boxes will usually be drawn from a standard list, I do occasionally throw in a title specifically suggested by the subject at hand. The standard titles include: Scratching the Surface - an explanation of the surface reading of the clue Delving Deeper - in-depth information pertaining to a subject mentioned in an explanation Behind the Picture - for weekday puzzles, information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a discussion on Big Dave's Crossword Blog One box that may provide information that could prove helpful in solving the clue is the following: Here and There - for weekday puzzles, discusses words whose British meaning differs from their North American meaning

Note that there are many types of cryptic crossword clue and it is not my intention to exhaustively go through all of them here. I will only deal with clue types to the extent necessary to explain the conventions and symbols used on the blog. Furthermore, be aware that, in the world of cryptic crosswords, there seems to be an exception to every rule.

With one exception that I can think of, cryptic crossword clues provide two routes to the solution. These are commonly referred to as the definition and wordplay. While these terms serve well for most clues, there are some cases where the more formal terms of primary indication and subsidiary indication may be more appropriate.

Most cryptic crossword clues consist of a definition (primary indication) and wordplay (subsidiary indication). The definition may be a "precise definition" (a definition that is either taken straight from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion) or it may be a "cryptic definition" (a definition misleadingly phrased so as to misdirect the solver either with respect to the meaning of the definition as a whole or to an incorrect sense of a word used in the definition).

The only type of clue that I can think of where there are not two ways of finding the solution are those in which the entire clue is a cryptic definition.

I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and cryptic definitions by marking them with a dotted underline.

In clues in which both definition and wordplay are present, the two parts of the clue combine to provide an overall meaningful statement (the surface reading) which usually bears no relationship to the underlying cryptic reading of the clue. In some cases, an extra word or phrase will be inserted into the clue to create a meaningful link between the definition and wordplay. I define clues which contain such a link word or link phrase as having an explicit link and clues which contain no link word or link phrase as having an implicit link.

I mark the existence of an explicit link by enclosing the link word or link phrase between forward slashes (/link/) and mark the existence of an implicit link with double forward slashes (//) positioned between the definition and wordplay.

Examples

A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.

The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:

• 4d   Fellow left work // a failure (4)

Here the definition is "a failure" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as F (fellow; abbrev.) + L (left; abbrev.) + OP (work; abbrev. used in music) which gives us the solution F|L|OP. The double forward slashes (//) between the definition and wordplay indicate the existence of an "implicit link" between the two parts of the clue (that is, no extra words are inserted into the clue to form the link).

The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:

• 29a   Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)

Here the definition "female going to match" is cryptic (the setter is attempting to misdirect our thoughts to a sports event rather than a marriage ceremony) and thus is marked with a a dotted underline. The wordplay is {RIDES (travels) + (with) MA (mother)} contained in (in) BID (advance) giving us the solution B(RIDES|MA)ID. As in the first example, the double forward slashes indicate the presence of an implicit link.

The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:

• 18d   Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)

Here the definition is "staggering" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as N ([chess symbol for] knight) contained in (caught in) an anagram (misplaced) of BIG BLOW producing the solution WOBBLI(N)G. Finally, forward slashes mark the link word (/is/).

I also use distinctive underlining to mark &lit.^[7] and semi-&lit. clues. Note that the reviewers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog generally prefer to refer to these clue types by the less pretentious names of all-in-one or semi-all-in-one clues respectively.

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

In future, I will mark such clues with a combined solid and dashed underline. Although this is a departure from past practice, it would seem to make more sense than using a dotted underline as I have in the past). Henceforth, the dotted underline will be reserved for cryptic definitions.

In a semi-&lit. clue (or semi-all-in-one clue), either:

• the entire clue acts as the definition while a portion of the clue provides the wordplay; or
• the entire clue acts as the wordplay while a portion of the clue provides the definition.

For these clues, I will mark the definition with a solid underline and the wordplay with a  dashed underline. This means that a portion of the clue may have a solid underline, a portion of the clue may have a dashed underline and a portion of the clue may have a combined solid and dashed underline.

One final clue type is what I characterize as a cryptic definition comprised of a precise definition combined with cryptic elaboration. For example, in DT 28560 (setter unknown) the following clue appears:

•  26d   Heroic exploit, whichever way you look at it (4)

As the entire clue is a cryptic definition, it is marked with a dotted underline. The 'precise definition' is "heroic exploit" and is indicated by a solid underline.

Given the numeration, the precise definition could give rise to at least two solutions, DEED or FEAT. However, the 'cryptic elaboration' ("whichever way you look at it") indicates that the solution is a palindrome thereby immediately eliminating one of the two obvious choices.

Note that the part of the clue that I have called 'cryptic elaboration' does not provide a second independent route to the solution (as the wordplay would do in most other types of clue). Rather it merely provides a piece of additional information (elaboration) related to the 'precise definition'.

Again, this approach is a departure from past practice, but like the other changes mentioned previously is intended to remove inconsistencies in the way that I have been applying parsing markup to clues. The markup rules that I have been using until now evolved bit-by-bit over a long period of time resulting in some degree of internal inconsistency.

hide explanation

Across

1a   Model firm's source of material /for/ programme (6)

5a   Call during session /for/ release (5,3)

9a   Argument against team allowance /is/ a factor (13)

"team" = SIDE (show explanation )

Side^[5] is a British term for a sports team ⇒ there was a mixture of old and young players in^* their side.

---

^* Note that, in Britain, a player is said to be "in a side" rather than "on a team" as one would say in North America.

In North America, the term side^[3] is used in a very general fashion that can denote one of two or more opposing individuals, groups, teams, or sets of opinions. While this same general usage is also found in the UK, the term side^[5] is also used there in a much more specific sense to mean a sports team, as we can clearly see from the following usage examples ⇒ (i) Previous England rugby sides, and England teams in many other sports, would have crumbled under the weight of such errors.; (ii) They'll face better sides than this Monaco team, but you can only beat what's put in front of you.

hide explanation

10a   /Giving/ help around new store, // one's a shooting star (8)

Astronomy 101

I expect that astronomers may quibble with the definition. A shooting star[5] is a small, rapidly moving meteor burning up on entering the earth's atmosphere. A meteor[5] is a small body of matter from outer space that enters the earth's atmosphere, becoming incandescent as a result of friction and appearing as a streak of light. A meteoroid[5] is a small body moving in the solar system that would become a meteor if it entered the earth's atmosphere. An asteroid[5] is a small rocky body orbiting the sun. Large numbers of these, ranging enormously in size, are found between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, though some have more eccentric orbits. Should one of these asteroids with an eccentric orbit happen to enter the earth's atmosphere — although I have no idea if that is even within the realm of possibility, then I suppose it would be considered to be a meteor or shooting star. By the way, at Comment #27, the 2Kiwis suggest that "the definition more aptly describes a meteor or meteorite". A meteorite[5] is a piece of rock or metal that has fallen to the earth's surface from outer space as a meteor — thus a "shooting star" that has fizzled out.

Being up front ...

Due to the use of a grammatical form known as "fronting" in this clue, the link word "giving" is positioned at the beginning of the clue rather than in the middle of the clue where it would be found had the setter used a normal declarative grammatical form: One's a shooting star /giving/ help around new store  (8) Fronting — moving part of a sentence from its normal position to the beginning of the sentence — is a grammatical form used for emphasis and dramatic effect. In cryptic crosswords, it is usually employed to enhance the surface reading of the clue.

11a   Sweeteners /offered by/ South American taking kid back (6)

12a   Make a mistake with // little job (6)

14a   Watered /and/ fed at last after the yard gets tidied (8)

16a   Engineers study module, /getting/ help that's available (8)

"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

Recourse^[5] is a source of help in a difficult situation ⇒ surgery may be the only recourse.

If you are having difficulty getting your head around the definition here, note that the above usage example could have been stated as ⇒ surgery may be the only help that's available.

19a   Rumour of butcher/'s/ transport (6)

A rare homophone that should require no explanation on this side of the pond.

21a   Stop // others following a river (6)

23a   Manoeuvred wagons to secure opposite directions /in/ last hurrah (8)

25a   Police // clear chap's bin in error (7,6)

In the UK, Special Branch^[5] is the police department dealing with political security.

Scratching the Surface
Bin[10,14] (also called dustbin or rubbish* bin) is the British term for a garbage can or trash can. * Rubbish[10,14] is the British term for garbage or trash.

26a   Pressure skilled worker, /being/ biased (8)

"pressure" = P (show explanation )

In physics, p^[5] is a symbol used to represent pressure in mathematical formulae.

hide explanation

27a   Leave // affected by case of dengue (6)

Scratching the Surface
Dengue[5] (also dengue fever) is a debilitating viral disease of the tropics, transmitted by mosquitoes, and causing sudden fever and acute pains in the joints.

Who are they talking about?
On Big Dave's Crossword Blog, the 2Kiwis write ‘affected’ as a performer might be in the style of Kenneth Williams. Kenneth Williams[7] (1926–1988) was an English actor, best known for his comedy roles and in later life as a raconteur and diarist. He was one of the main ensemble in 26 of the 31 Carry On films as well as appearing in many other British television programmes and radio comedies.

Down

2d   Zinc is organic in part, /providing/ bit of a bite (7)

In dentistry, bite^[1] denotes the manner or configuration in which the teeth come together.

3d   Stick around, love, /there's/ water transport (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.

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   Millions suffer with religious community /making/ such a purchase (4,5)

An order^[5] (also Order) is a society of monks, nuns, or friars living under the same religious, moral, and social regulations and discipline ⇒ the Franciscan Order.

5d   Extent /of/ wind across Germany (7)

"Germany" = D [IVR country code] (show explanation )

The International Vehicle Registration (IVR) country code for Germany is D^[5] [from German Deutschland].

German Licence Plate Format

hide explanation

6d   Claim Amsterdam must welcome // religious leaders (5)

In Islam, an imam^[10] is a leader of congregational prayer in a mosque.

7d   Enter opening to grab right // price normally (5,4)

8d   Forces of peace with courage // are disconcerting (7)

"forces of peace" = UN (show explanation )

The United Nations^[5] (abbreviation UN) is an international organization of countries set up in 1945, in succession to the League of Nations, to promote international peace, security, and cooperation.

The UN Security Council bears the primary responsibility for the maintenance of peace and security, and may call on members to take action, chiefly peacekeeping action, to enforce its decisions.

hide explanation

Point of Contention

In the thread arising from Comment # 6 on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, there is quite a discussion concerning this clue. As pointed out in the thread, some solvers confused "disconcerting" used as an adjective with "disconcerting" used as a present participle. Some of the difficulty may also have stemmed from solvers not properly identifying the definition, which is "are disconcerting" and not merely "disconcerting". Disconcert[5] is a transitive verb [i.e., it takes an object] meaning to disturb the composure of or unsettle ⇒ (i) the abrupt changes disconcert her; (ii) the abrupt changes are disconcerting her. One could equally well use unnerve[5], a transitive verb meaning make (someone) lose courage or confidence ⇒ (i) the abrupt changes unnerve her; (ii) the abrupt changes are unnerving her. Granted, the clue employs the present continuous* tense while the solution uses the simple present (also known as present indefinite) tense. * which is formed from the simple present of the auxiliary verb 'to be' together with the present participle of the main verb

13d   Reparation, // note, meant changes (9)

15d   Gave up hope, /seeing/ second couple in action (9)

17d   Landmass /and/ sea air swirling, full of uranium (7)

The symbol for the chemical element uranium is U^[5].

18d   Plies drunk working /for/ Greek character (7)

Epsilon^[5] is the fifth letter of the Greek alphabet (Ε, ε).

20d   Departing loveless, poor actor /finds/ material (7)

For "love", see 3d.

Gingham^[5] is lightweight plain-woven cotton cloth, typically checked in white and a bold colour.

22d   Catches on // small branches (5)

24d   Offspring in charge of // such a boom? (5)

"in charge (of)" = IC (show explanation )

The abbreviation i/c^[2,5] can be short for either:

• (especially in military contexts) in charge (of) ⇒ the Quartermaster General is i/c rations
• in command (of) ⇒ 2 i/c = second in command.

hide explanation

Depending on the context, i/c can mean either "in charge" or "in charge of". Therefore, one could also parse the clue — as the 2Kiwis have done:

• Offspring in charge /of/ such a boom? (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)
^[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
^[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)
^[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon

Saturday, June 2, 2018 — A Feast of Pasta

Introduction

Today's puzzle from Cox & Rathvon provides something for lovers of Italian food to sink their teeth into.

I spent the weekend on my first camping trip of the summer. Aside from the annoying 17d's, it was an enjoyable experience.

I invite you to leave a comment to let us know how you fared with the puzzle.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

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 █ - yet to be solved

Click here for an explanation of conventions and symbols used in explaining the parsing of clues.

The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in explaining the parsing of clues.

Legend: The following symbols are used in reviews: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that the preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the word is present in the clue

The review of a clue takes the following general structure:

#a/d   Clue containing parsing markup (num^*)

---

^* num = numeration

Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)

(Horizontal separator)

---

Explanations pertaining to the definition (or second definition in a double definition) and solution.

Explanatory Box

An explanatory box provides additional information about the clue. In most cases this information will not necessarily help in solving the clue but provides information about the clue. In the case of the weekday syndicated Daily Telegraph puzzles, such information is often intended to help the North American solver appreciate how the clue may be perceived by a British solver. These boxes may also provide information on people, places, films, television programmes, works of art and literature, etc. mentioned in the clue. Although the titles of these boxes will usually be drawn from a standard list, I do occasionally throw in a title specifically suggested by the subject at hand. The standard titles include: Scratching the Surface - an explanation of the surface reading of the clue Delving Deeper - in-depth information pertaining to a subject mentioned in an explanation Behind the Picture - for weekday puzzles, information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a discussion on Big Dave's Crossword Blog One box that may provide information that could prove helpful in solving the clue is the following: Here and There - for weekday puzzles, discusses words whose British meaning differs from their North American meaning

Note that there are many types of cryptic crossword clue and it is not my intention to exhaustively go through all of them here. I will only deal with clue types to the extent necessary to explain the conventions and symbols used on the blog. Furthermore, be aware that, in the world of cryptic crosswords, there seems to be an exception to every rule.

With one exception that I can think of, cryptic crossword clues provide two routes to the solution. These are commonly referred to as the definition and wordplay. While these terms serve well for most clues, there are some cases where the more formal terms of primary indication and subsidiary indication may be more appropriate.

Most cryptic crossword clues consist of a definition (primary indication) and wordplay (subsidiary indication). The definition may be a "precise definition" (a definition that is either taken straight from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion) or it may be a "cryptic definition" (a definition misleadingly phrased so as to misdirect the solver either with respect to the meaning of the definition as a whole or to an incorrect sense of a word used in the definition).

The only type of clue that I can think of where there are not two ways of finding the solution are those in which the entire clue is a cryptic definition.

I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and cryptic definitions by marking them with a dotted underline.

In clues in which both definition and wordplay are present, the two parts of the clue combine to provide an overall meaningful statement (the surface reading) which usually bears no relationship to the underlying cryptic reading of the clue. In some cases, an extra word or phrase will be inserted into the clue to create a meaningful link between the definition and wordplay. I define clues which contain such a link word or link phrase as having an explicit link and clues which contain no link word or link phrase as having an implicit link.

I mark the existence of an explicit link by enclosing the link word or link phrase between forward slashes (/link/) and mark the existence of an implicit link with double forward slashes (//) positioned between the definition and wordplay.

Examples

A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.

The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:

• 4d   Fellow left work // a failure (4)

Here the definition is "a failure" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as F (fellow; abbrev.) + L (left; abbrev.) + OP (work; abbrev. used in music) which gives us the solution F|L|OP. The double forward slashes (//) between the definition and wordplay indicate the existence of an "implicit link" between the two parts of the clue (that is, no extra words are inserted into the clue to form the link).

The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:

• 29a   Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)

Here the definition "female going to match" is cryptic (the setter is attempting to misdirect our thoughts to a sports event rather than a marriage ceremony) and thus is marked with a a dotted underline. The wordplay is {RIDES (travels) + (with) MA (mother)} contained in (in) BID (advance) giving us the solution B(RIDES|MA)ID. As in the first example, the double forward slashes indicate the presence of an implicit link.

The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:

• 18d   Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)

Here the definition is "staggering" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as N ([chess symbol for] knight) contained in (caught in) an anagram (misplaced) of BIG BLOW producing the solution WOBBLI(N)G. Finally, forward slashes mark the link word (/is/).

I also use distinctive underlining to mark &lit.^[7] and semi-&lit. clues. Note that the reviewers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog generally prefer to refer to these clue types by the less pretentious names of all-in-one or semi-all-in-one clues respectively.

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

In future, I will mark such clues with a combined solid and dashed underline. Although this is a departure from past practice, it would seem to make more sense than using a dotted underline as I have in the past). Henceforth, the dotted underline will be reserved for cryptic definitions.

In a semi-&lit. clue (or semi-all-in-one clue), either:

• the entire clue acts as the definition while a portion of the clue provides the wordplay; or
• the entire clue acts as the wordplay while a portion of the clue provides the definition.

For these clues, I will mark the definition with a solid underline and the wordplay with a  dashed underline. This means that a portion of the clue may have a solid underline, a portion of the clue may have a dashed underline and a portion of the clue may have a combined solid and dashed underline.

One final clue type is what I characterize as a cryptic definition comprised of a precise definition combined with cryptic elaboration. For example, in DT 28560 (setter unknown) the following clue appears:

•  26d   Heroic exploit, whichever way you look at it (4)

As the entire clue is a cryptic definition, it is marked with a dotted underline. The 'precise definition' is "heroic exploit" and is indicated by a solid underline.

Given the numeration, the precise definition could give rise to at least two solutions, DEED or FEAT. However, the 'cryptic elaboration' ("whichever way you look at it") indicates that the solution is a palindrome thereby immediately eliminating one of the two obvious choices.

Note that the part of the clue that I have called 'cryptic elaboration' does not provide a second independent route to the solution (as the wordplay would do in most other types of clue). Rather it merely provides a piece of additional information (elaboration) related to the 'precise definition'.

Again, this approach is a departure from past practice, but like the other changes mentioned previously is intended to remove inconsistencies in the way that I have been applying parsing markup to clues. The markup rules that I have been using until now evolved bit-by-bit over a long period of time resulting in some degree of internal inconsistency.

hide explanation

Across

1a   Fix a huge amount with one // kind of pasta (8)

RIG|A|TON|I — RIG (fix) + A (†) + TON (huge amount) + (with) I ([Roman numeral for] one)

Rigatoni^[5] is pasta in the form of short hollow fluted tubes.

5a   That woman will salt // some pasta (6)

SHELL|S — SHELL (that woman will; contracted as she'll) + S (salt; abbreviation)

10a   Misguided coaching, skipping a // pasta choice (7)

GNOCCHI* — anagram (misguided) of CO[A]CHING with the A removed (skipping A)

Gnocchi^[5] are small dumplings made from potato, semolina, or flour, usually served with a sauce.

11a   Droop in Turner/’s/ pasta (7)

LA(SAG)NA — SAG (droop) contained in (in) LANA (Turner; American actress Lana Turner^[7])

12a   Excuse // a Liberal before last of spaghetti (5)

A|LIB|I — A (†) + LIB (Liberal; abbrev.) + I (last [letter] of spaghettI)

13a   Unconventional // fence for horses around eating time (3-6)

{OFF-CENTRE}* — anagram (horses around) of FENCE FOR containing (eating) T (time; abbrev.)

14a   Revolutionary direction /for/ pasta topping (6)

CHE|ESE — CHE (revolutionary; Argentine Marxist revolutionary Ernesto "Che" Guevara^[7]) + ESE (east-south-east^[5])

15a   Whip // company into mass movement (7)

S(CO)URGE — CO (company; abbrev.) contained in (into) SURGE (mass movement)

18a   Shed, empty, gaining approval in inspection (4-3)

LO(OK)-SE|E — {LOSE; shed) + E (empty; abbrev. found on a fuel gauge)} containing (gaining) OK (approval)

21a   Pasta // covered by carrot initially (6)

_ROT|INI_ — hidden in (covered by) carROT INItially

Rotini^[6] is pasta in short pieces with a helical shape.

24a   I call “Pine nuts!” /for/ angel hair pasta (9)

CAPELLINI* — anagram (nuts) of I CALL PINE

Capellini^[6] is pasta in the form of long, thin round strands, only slightly thicker than angel hair.

Angel hair^[5] (also angel's hair) is a type of pasta consisting of very fine long strands.

Scratching the Surface
Pine nuts[5] are the edible seeds of various pine trees.

26a   Risk // piece of pie, returning Italian bread? (5)

P|ERIL< — P (piece [initial letter] of pie) + reversal (returning) of LIRE (Italian bread [money])

The lira^[10] (plural lire or liras) was the former standard monetary unit of Italy, San Marino, and the Vatican City, divided into 100 centesimi; replaced by the euro in 2002.

27a   Bum is full, having ingested a bit of Italian // pasta (7)

FUS(I)LLI* — anagram (bum) of IS FULL containing (having ingested) I (bit [initial letter] of Italian)

Fusilli^[5] is pasta pieces in the form of short spirals.

28a   Remarks about wood // walks in a casual way (7)

S(ASH)AYS — SAYS (remarks; verb) containing (about) ASH (wood)

29a   Hey, “Moranis” /is/ name mentioned in Hamlet (6)

YO|RICK — YO (hey) + RICK (Moranis; Canadian comic actor Rick Moranis^[7])

Yorick^[7] is a character in William Shakespeare's play Hamlet. He is the dead court jester whose skull is exhumed by the First Gravedigger in Act 5, Scene 1, of the play.

30a   Warbler // depicted originally in relief painting (8)

REDSTART — D (depicted originally; initial letter of Depicted) contained in (in) {REST (relief) + ART (painting)}

The North American bird known as a redstart^[5] is an American warbler, the male of which is black with either a red belly or orange markings.

The bird know to much of the rest of the world as the redstart^[5] is a Eurasian and North African songbird related to the chats, having a reddish tail and underparts.

Down

1d   In Ulster, e.g., Gaelic // pop musical style (6)

_R|EG|GAE_ — hidden in (in) UlsteR EG GAElic

2d   Fairly satisfactory // entree of slop? (7)

GOO|DISH — GOO (slop) + DISH (entree)

3d   Dotty sickens at // lousy taste (9)

TACKINESS* — anagram (dotty) of SICKENS AT

4d   Bad-smelling // egg is found in Alaskan city (7)

N(O|IS)OME — {O ([letter that looks like an] egg) + IS (†)} contained in (found in) NOME (Alaskan city)

6d   Rush // south in repugnance (5)

HA(S)TE — S (south; abbrev.) contained in (in) HATE (repugnance)

7d   More cheerful // arsonist? (7)

LIGHTER — double definition; the second being cryptic

8d   Iditarod racer going around state // was drooling (8)

SL(AVER)ED — SLED (Iditarod racer) containing (going around) AVER (state)

The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race^[7] is an annual long-distance sled dog race run in early March from Anchorage to Nome, entirely within the US state of Alaska.

9d   Fakes // steep banks (6)

BLUFFS — double definition

16d   Scopes out strange // sea creatures (9)

OCTOPUSES* — anagram (strange) of SCOPES OUT

17d   Miss Florida entering alongside // pest (5,3)

B(LACK| FL)Y — {LACK (miss) + FL (Florida; Postal Service abbrev.)} contained in (entering) BY (alongside)

19d   Operation Puzzle // protestor? (7)

OP|POSER — OP (operation; abbrev.) + POSER (puzzle)

20d   Bring out // letters from Felicity (6)

_ELICIT_ — hidden in (letters from) FELICITy

21d   Second note is Susan/’s/ new edition (7)

RE|IS|SUE — RE (second note) + IS (†) + SUE ([diminutive for] Susan)

In tonic sol-fa, re^[5] is the second note of a major scale.

22d   Ivan ran off, /in/ bliss (7)

NIRVANA* — anagram (off) of IVAN RAN

Nirvana^[5] is:

• (in Buddhism) a transcendent state in which there is neither suffering, desire, nor sense of self, and the subject is released from the effects of karma and the cycle of death and rebirth. It represents the final goal of Buddhism.
  (in Hinduism and Jainism) another term for moksha, release from the cycle of rebirth impelled by the law of karma.

23d   150 doughnuts put in front of alien/’s/ small room (6)

CLOSET — CL ([Roman numeral for] 150) + OS (doughnuts; the letter O being a letter that looks like a doughnut) + (put in front of) ET (alien)

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.

25d   Flower // I call mutant (5)

LILAC* — anagram (mutant) of I CALL

Epilogue

Can you distinguish your rotini from your fusilli?

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)
^[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
^[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)
^[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon

Friday, June 1, 2018 — DT 28649

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 28649
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Tuesday, January 30, 2018
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 28649]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Mr K
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 review was written in bits and pieces around blogging the puzzle that appeared yesterday in The Daily Telegraph — one that should appear in the National Post toward the end of October. As a result, the two puzzles are a bit jumbled in my mind. Mr K thought this puzzle was on the easier end of the spectrum, and I am certainly prepared to accept his judgement in that regard.

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.

Click here for an explanation of conventions and symbols used in explaining the parsing of clues.

The purpose of this article is to explain the conventions and symbols that I use on this blog in explaining the parsing of clues.

Legend: The following symbols are used in reviews: "*" anagram "~" sounds like "<" indicates that the preceding letters are reversed "( )" encloses contained letters "_" replaces letters that have been deleted "†" indicates that the word is present in the clue

The review of a clue takes the following general structure:

#a/d   Clue containing parsing markup (num^*)

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^* num = numeration

Explanations pertaining to the wordplay (or first definition in a double definition)

(Horizontal separator)

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Explanations pertaining to the definition (or second definition in a double definition) and solution.

Explanatory Box

An explanatory box provides additional information about the clue. In most cases this information will not necessarily help in solving the clue but provides information about the clue. In the case of the weekday syndicated Daily Telegraph puzzles, such information is often intended to help the North American solver appreciate how the clue may be perceived by a British solver. These boxes may also provide information on people, places, films, television programmes, works of art and literature, etc. mentioned in the clue. Although the titles of these boxes will usually be drawn from a standard list, I do occasionally throw in a title specifically suggested by the subject at hand. The standard titles include: Scratching the Surface - an explanation of the surface reading of the clue Delving Deeper - in-depth information pertaining to a subject mentioned in an explanation Behind the Picture - for weekday puzzles, information about an illustration found on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What did he/she/they say? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a remark made in a review or comment on Big Dave's Crossword Blog What are they talking about? - for weekday puzzles, an explanation of a discussion on Big Dave's Crossword Blog One box that may provide information that could prove helpful in solving the clue is the following: Here and There - for weekday puzzles, discusses words whose British meaning differs from their North American meaning

Note that there are many types of cryptic crossword clue and it is not my intention to exhaustively go through all of them here. I will only deal with clue types to the extent necessary to explain the conventions and symbols used on the blog. Furthermore, be aware that, in the world of cryptic crosswords, there seems to be an exception to every rule.

With one exception that I can think of, cryptic crossword clues provide two routes to the solution. These are commonly referred to as the definition and wordplay. While these terms serve well for most clues, there are some cases where the more formal terms of primary indication and subsidiary indication may be more appropriate.

Most cryptic crossword clues consist of a definition (primary indication) and wordplay (subsidiary indication). The definition may be a "precise definition" (a definition that is either taken straight from a dictionary or at least phrased in a non-misleading fashion) or it may be a "cryptic definition" (a definition misleadingly phrased so as to misdirect the solver either with respect to the meaning of the definition as a whole or to an incorrect sense of a word used in the definition).

The only type of clue that I can think of where there are not two ways of finding the solution are those in which the entire clue is a cryptic definition.

I identify precise definitions by marking them with a solid underline in the clue and cryptic definitions by marking them with a dotted underline.

In clues in which both definition and wordplay are present, the two parts of the clue combine to provide an overall meaningful statement (the surface reading) which usually bears no relationship to the underlying cryptic reading of the clue. In some cases, an extra word or phrase will be inserted into the clue to create a meaningful link between the definition and wordplay. I define clues which contain such a link word or link phrase as having an explicit link and clues which contain no link word or link phrase as having an implicit link.

I mark the existence of an explicit link by enclosing the link word or link phrase between forward slashes (/link/) and mark the existence of an implicit link with double forward slashes (//) positioned between the definition and wordplay.

Examples

A few examples may help to illustrate these points more clearly.

The first example is a clue used by Jay in DT 28573:

• 4d   Fellow left work // a failure (4)

Here the definition is "a failure" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as F (fellow; abbrev.) + L (left; abbrev.) + OP (work; abbrev. used in music) which gives us the solution F|L|OP. The double forward slashes (//) between the definition and wordplay indicate the existence of an "implicit link" between the two parts of the clue (that is, no extra words are inserted into the clue to form the link).

The second example is a clue used by Giovanni in DT 28575:

• 29a   Female going to match // travels with mother in advance (10)

Here the definition "female going to match" is cryptic (the setter is attempting to misdirect our thoughts to a sports event rather than a marriage ceremony) and thus is marked with a a dotted underline. The wordplay is {RIDES (travels) + (with) MA (mother)} contained in (in) BID (advance) giving us the solution B(RIDES|MA)ID. As in the first example, the double forward slashes indicate the presence of an implicit link.

The third example is a clue used by Rufus is DT 28583:

• 18d   Knight caught by misplaced big blow /is/ staggering (8)

Here the definition is "staggering" which is marked with a solid underline to show that it is a precise definition. The wordplay parses as N ([chess symbol for] knight) contained in (caught in) an anagram (misplaced) of BIG BLOW producing the solution WOBBLI(N)G. Finally, forward slashes mark the link word (/is/).

I also use distinctive underlining to mark &lit.^[7] and semi-&lit. clues. Note that the reviewers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog generally prefer to refer to these clue types by the less pretentious names of all-in-one or semi-all-in-one clues respectively.

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

In future, I will mark such clues with a combined solid and dashed underline. Although this is a departure from past practice, it would seem to make more sense than using a dotted underline as I have in the past). Henceforth, the dotted underline will be reserved for cryptic definitions.

In a semi-&lit. clue (or semi-all-in-one clue), either:

• the entire clue acts as the definition while a portion of the clue provides the wordplay; or
• the entire clue acts as the wordplay while a portion of the clue provides the definition.

For these clues, I will mark the definition with a solid underline and the wordplay with a  dashed underline. This means that a portion of the clue may have a solid underline, a portion of the clue may have a dashed underline and a portion of the clue may have a combined solid and dashed underline.

One final clue type is what I characterize as a cryptic definition comprised of a precise definition combined with cryptic elaboration. For example, in DT 28560 (setter unknown) the following clue appears:

•  26d   Heroic exploit, whichever way you look at it (4)

As the entire clue is a cryptic definition, it is marked with a dotted underline. The 'precise definition' is "heroic exploit" and is indicated by a solid underline.

Given the numeration, the precise definition could give rise to at least two solutions, DEED or FEAT. However, the 'cryptic elaboration' ("whichever way you look at it") indicates that the solution is a palindrome thereby immediately eliminating one of the two obvious choices.

Note that the part of the clue that I have called 'cryptic elaboration' does not provide a second independent route to the solution (as the wordplay would do in most other types of clue). Rather it merely provides a piece of additional information (elaboration) related to the 'precise definition'.

Again, this approach is a departure from past practice, but like the other changes mentioned previously is intended to remove inconsistencies in the way that I have been applying parsing markup to clues. The markup rules that I have been using until now evolved bit-by-bit over a long period of time resulting in some degree of internal inconsistency.

hide explanation

Across

1a   Artist in state at flipping // opera (2,8)

"artist" = RA (show explanation )

A Royal Academician (abbreviation RA^[10]) is a member of the Royal Academy of Arts^[5] (also Royal Academy; abbreviation also RA^[10]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain. 

hide explanation

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La traviata^[7] (The Fallen Woman) is an opera by Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave. It is based on La Dame aux Camélias (1852), a play adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas, fils. The opera was originally titled Violetta, after the main character. It was first performed in 1853 at the La Fenice opera house in Venice.

6a   Fish, // black as soot initially (4)

"black" = B (show explanation )

B^[5] is an abbreviation for black used in describing grades of pencil lead ⇒ 2B pencils.

hide explanation

9a   Having head of security inside gallery /makes/ sense (5)

"gallery" = TATE (show explanation )

The Tate Gallery^[5] (commonly known simply as the Tate) is a national museum of art in London, England founded in 1897 by the sugar manufacturer Sir Henry Tate (1819–1899) to house his collection of modern British paintings, as a nucleus for a permanent national collection of modern art. It was renamed Tate Britain in 2000, when the new Tate Modern gallery opened. [I would surmise that by that time the original collection could no longer be considered "modern".]

hide explanation

10a   One under no compulsion // to release spy (4,5)

12a   Blandishments, // fine lines describing former queen (7)

"fine" = F (show explanation )

F^[5] is an abbreviation for fine, as used in describing grades of pencil lead.

---

Note: Oxford Dictionaries surprisingly characterizes this usage as British

hide explanation

"line" = L (show explanation )

In textual references, the abbreviation for line is l.^[5] ⇒ l. 648.

hide explanation

Anne^[7] (1665–1714) became Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Acts of Union, two of her realms, the kingdoms of England and Scotland, united as a single sovereign state, the United Kingdom of Great Britain. She continued to reign as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland until her death.

The use of the word "describing" as a containment indicator is a common cryptic crossword device which relies on describe^[1,2,12] being used in the sense of to trace the outline of or delineate ⇒ skaters describing circles on the ice.

Thus, in today's clue, we have LL (lines) containing (describing; outlining or forming a container around) ANNE (former Queen).

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Flannel^[10] (noun) is an informal British term for;

• indirect or evasive talk
• deceiving flattery

13a   Danse macabre /in/ saloon (5)

Saloon^[5] (also known as saloon car^[10]) is a British term for a car (known in Canada, the US, and New Zealand as a sedan^[10]) having a closed body and a closed boot [trunk] separated from the part in which the driver and passengers sit ⇒ a four-door saloon.

Surprisingly, this Americanism did not elicit the usual howls of protest from the commentariat on Big Dave's Crossword Blog.

Scratching the Surface
Danse macabre[5] is another term for dance of death[5], a medieval allegorical representation in which a personified Death leads all types of people to the grave, intended to emphasize the equality of all before death.

15a   Teacher in a flap, recalled // coffee shop worker (7)

It is common practice for British school students to address (or refer to) their male teachers as "Sir", as in To Sir, with Love^[7], a 1967 British drama film starring Sidney Poitier that deals with social and racial issues in an inner-city school.

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A barista^[10] is a person who prepares and serves coffee in a coffee bar.

17a   Send male out /to get/ carriage (7)

19a   List // that is full of incorrect times (7)

21a   Writer with firearm bagging one // bird (7)

Here and There
The setter has almost certainly used "writer" in the sense of an implement used for writing. While North American dictionaries also define pen[3,11] as a writer or an author ⇒ a hired pen, British dictionaries do not list this meaning although they do show pen[2,4] (or the pen[5,10]) as symbolically denoting writing as an occupation.

22a   Log // that may be turned into treen (5)

Scratching the Surface
Treen[5] (noun) denotes small domestic wooden objects, especially antiques.

24a   Person going to Margate perhaps // runs into truck (7)

"runs" = R (show explanation )

On cricket scorecards [not to mention baseball scoreboards], the abbreviation R^[5] denotes run(s).

In cricket, a run^[5] is a unit of scoring achieved by hitting the ball so that both batsmen are able to run between the wickets, or awarded in some other circumstances.

hide explanation

Tipper^[5] is a British name^* for a dump truck^[5].

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^* Other British terms for such a vehicle are dumper^[5], dumper truck^[5], tip truck^[10], tipper truck^[10], and tipper lorry^[10].

---

Margate^[7] is a seaside town in East Kent, England. For at least 250 years, Margate has been a leading seaside resort in the UK, drawing Londoners to its beaches, Margate Sands.

Tripper^[5] is an informal British term for a person who goes on a pleasure trip or excursion.

27a   High-flier's stand-in // car I parked in allotment (9)

Allotment^[5] is a British term for a plot of land rented by an individual for growing vegetables or flowers. This term is also used in Canada — at least in Ottawa — although one would be more apt to hear it referred to here by the full version of the name, allotment garden^[7].

28a   A British national // racecourse (5)

Ascot Racecourse^[7] is a British racecourse, located in Ascot, Berkshire, England, which is used for thoroughbred horse racing — both flat racing (show more ) and National Hunt Racing (show more ). It is one of the leading racecourses in the United Kingdom, hosting 13 of Britain's 36 annual Group 1 horse races. The course enjoys close associations with the British Royal Family, being approximately six miles from Windsor Castle.

A flat race^[5] is a horse race over a course with no jumps, as opposed to a steeplechase or hurdles.

hide

National Hunt racing^[7] is the official name given to that form of the sport of horse racing in the United Kingdom, France and Ireland in which the horses are required to jump fences and ditches. National Hunt racing in the UK is divided into two major distinct branches: hurdles and steeplechases. Alongside these there are "bumpers", which are National Hunt flat races. In a hurdles race, the horses jump over obstacles called hurdles; in a steeplechase the horses jump over a variety of obstacles that can include plain fences, water jump or an open ditch.

hide

29a   Take home // unopened tea service (4)

"service" = RN (show explanation )

The Royal Navy^[5] (abbreviation RN) is the British navy. It was the most powerful navy in the world from the 17th century until the Second World War.

hide explanation

30a   Stuffing not put back /in/ bear (10)

Paddington Bear^[7], a polite immigrant bear from Deepest, Darkest Peru, with his old hat, battered suitcase, duffle coat and love of marmalade sandwiches, has become a classic character from English children's literature. (show more )

In the first story, Paddington is found at Paddington railway station in London by the Brown family, sitting on his suitcase (bearing the label "WANTED ON VOYAGE") with a note attached to his coat which reads, "Please look after this bear. Thank you." Author Michael Bond has said that his memories of newsreels showing trainloads of child evacuees leaving London during the war, with labels around their necks and their possessions in small suitcases, prompted him to do the same for Paddington.

hide

Down

1d   Instrument female dropped /for/ another one (4)

2d   After time, request church // working party (4,5)

"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

3d   Scene of conflict /in/ region housing indefinite number (5)

"indefinite number" = N (show explanation )

The letter n^[10] is used (especially in mathematics) as a symbol to represent an indefinite number (of) ⇒ there are n objects in a box.

hide explanation

4d   From Spain, fantastic // royal daughter (7)

Historically, the term infanta^[5] denoted a daughter of the ruling monarch of Spain or Portugal, especially the eldest daughter who was not heir to the throne.

5d   A kind of racing // article having little depth? (3,4)

The Flat^[5] is a British term for flat racing^[5], a type of horse racing conducted over a course with no jumps, as opposed to a steeplechase or hurdles.

7d   At Hogwarts, Dumbledore was one // up (5)

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, shortened to Hogwarts^[7], is a fictional British school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in British novelist J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series.

Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore^[7] is a fictional character in British novelist J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. For most of the series, he is the headmaster of the wizarding school Hogwarts.

In Britain, head^[5] is short for headmaster^[5] (a man who is the head teacher in a school), headmistress^[5] (a woman who is the head teacher in a school), or head teacher^[5] (the teacher in charge of a school).

8d   Schedule this month, one // no longer changeable (3,2,5)

Instant^[5] (abbreviation inst.^[5]) is a dated expression once used in business letters. It is a postpositive adjective meaning of the current month ⇒ (i) your letter of the 6th instant; (ii) we are pleased to acknowledge receipt of your letter of 14 inst.

11d   Do without // it, as ban involved (7)

14d   Destroy // old book, well-read (10)

16d   It's to be raised, bishop winning // support for a jockey (7)

"bishop" = RR (show explanation )

Right Reverend^[5] (abbreviation RR^[2]) is a title given to a bishop, especially in the Anglican Church ⇒ the Right Reverend David Jenkins, Bishop of Durham.

hide explanation

18d   Maybe four, score /for/ stroke made by batsman? (6,3)

In cricket, a square cut^[5] is a cut (show more ) hit square (show more ) on the offside (show more ).

In cricket, cut^[5] means

• to hit (the ball) to the off side with the bat held almost horizontally ⇒ He opens the over by stepping to the leg side and swinging his bat through a horizontal arc, cutting the ball to point for four more
• to play such a stroke against (the bowler) ⇒ Wayne Phillips cut a ball from spinner Phil Edmonds that hit Allan Lamb's boot as he turned to take evasive action

hide

In soccer and cricket, square^[5] denotes in a direction transversely across the field or pitch.

hide

In cricket, the off^[5]  (also called off side) is the half of the field (as divided lengthways through the pitch) towards which the batsman's feet are pointed when standing to receive the ball.  The other half of the field is known as either the leg^[5] (also called leg side) or on^[5] (also called on side) ⇒ he played a lucky stroke to leg.

hide explanation

20d   Young Miss Havisham // set off with Miss Fitzgerald (7)

Ella Fitzgerald^[5] (1917–1996) was an American jazz singer, known for her distinctive style of scat singing.

Estella Havisham^[7] (best known in literature simply as Estella) is a significant character in English writer Charles Dickens' novel, Great Expectations (show more ).

Like the protagonist, Pip, Estella is introduced as an orphan, but where Pip was raised by his sister and her husband to become a blacksmith, Estella was adopted and raised by the wealthy and eccentric Miss Havisham to become a lady.

hide

21d   Trained /and/ incisive (7)

23d   Coach // tour rearranged to take in Turkey's capital (5)

25d   Flat/'s/ electric current shown in diagram (5)

"electric current" = I (show explanation )

In physics, I^[5] is a symbol used to represent electric current in mathematical formulae.

hide explanation

Scratching the Surface
Flat[5] is the British term for what would be called an apartment[5] in North America.

26d   Shock /caused by/ dangerous feat? No end (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)
^[12] - CollinsDictionary.com (Webster’s New World College Dictionary)
^[13] - MacmillanDictionary.com (Macmillan Dictionary)
^[14] - CollinsDictionary.com (COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon