Tuesday, February 23, 2016 — DT 27917

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27917
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Saturday, September 26, 2015
Setter Unknown
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27917 – Hints] Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27917 – Review]
Big Dave's Crossword Blog Review Written By Big Dave (Hints) crypticsue (Review)
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
As this was a Saturday "Prize Puzzle" in Britain, there are two entries related to it on Big Dave's Crossword Blog — the first, posted on the date of publication, contains hints for selected clues while the second is a full review issued following the entry deadline for the contest. The vast majority of reader comments will generally be found attached to the "hints" posting with a minimal number — if any — accompanying the full review.

Introduction

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. Crypticsue awarded this Saturday prize puzzle a mere one star for difficulty. However, as she says in her review, that is double the half star she had awarded to the Saturday puzzle the previous week (DT 27911 which appeared in the National Post this Wednesday past, February 17, 2016). I stand in awe!

After writing the review, I can see why I found the puzzle to be more than one star difficulty. It has a fairly high content of Briticisms. While I was familiar with most of them, aside from the ancient BBC radio programme, I find that they tend to ooze to the surface over time rather than pop immediately to mind. This greatly extends the solving time. 

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   Pain from exercise /in/ saddle perhaps (6)

As a noun, saddle stitch^[5] denotes:

1. a stitch of thread or a wire staple passed through the fold of a magazine or booklet; or
2. (in needlework) a decorative stitch made with long stitches on the upper side of the cloth alternated with short stitches on the underside.

As a verb, saddle-stitch^[5] means to sew with a saddle stitch ⇒ a short-sleeved white shirt, saddle-stitched round the collar.

5a   Detectives must probe old coin /in/ the West (8)

"detectives" = CID (show explanation )

The Criminal Investigation Department (seemingly better known by its abbreviation CID^[2]) is the detective branch of a British police force.

hide explanation

In his hint, Big Dave refers to "a foreign coin" as the equivalent British coin is known as a penny. While the coin is not foreign in Canada, it has been extinct for four years.

9a   Place of worship /gets/ a celebrant excited (10)

In the sense of a place of worship, tabernacle^[10] may refer to:

1. the Jewish Temple regarded as the shrine of the divine presence;
2. a meeting place for worship used by Mormons or Nonconformists; or
3. (mainly Roman Catholic Church) a canopied niche or recess forming the shrine of a statue.

10a   Secures // trousers (4)

Bag^[10] is an informal British term meaning to to reserve or secure the right to do or to have something ⇒ he bagged the best chair.

Bags^[5] is a dated British term for loose-fitting trousers ⇒ a pair of flannel bags.

11a   Someone lacking faith in one // violinist (8)

Niccolò Paganini^[5] (1782–1840) was an Italian violinist and composer. His virtuoso violin recitals, including widespread use of pizzicato and harmonics, established him as a major figure of the romantic movement.

Pedant's Corner
A pagan[5] is not someone who lacks faith, but rather a person holding religious beliefs other than those of the main world religions.

12a   Goblin /has/ ill feeling about king (6)

"king" = R (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

13a   American education // put into employment (4)

The abbreviation for education is ed.^[2].

15a   Drink humorously described /in/ a manuscript penned by a dramatic diarist (5,3)

In her explanation, crypticsue fails to account for one of the As. The wordplay is {A (from the clue) + MS (manuscript)} contained in (penned by) {A (from the clue) + DALE (diarist)}

I must admit that I bunged this one in — having never heard of the diarist.

Mrs Dale's Diary^[7] was the first significant BBC radio serial drama. It was first broadcast in 1948 on the BBC Light Programme, which became Radio 2 in 1967; it ran until 1969. A new episode was broadcast each weekday afternoon, with a repeat the following morning.

Delving Deeper

An innovative characteristic of the programme was that a brief introductory narrative in each episode was spoken by Mrs Dale as if she were writing her diary. The serial centred on Mrs Mary Dale, a doctor's wife, husband Jim, and the comings and goings of a middle-class society. The lead character, Mrs Dale, was played by Ellis Powell until she was sacked in controversial circumstances in 1963 and replaced by Jessie Matthews. In 1975 Matthews' biographer, Michael Thornton, wrote: On 19 February 1963, a plump and embittered fifty-six-year-old character actress called Ellis Powell walked out of Broadcasting House for the last time. She was not a star. In fact she had earned less than £30 a week. But her voice was as well known in Britain as that of Queen Elizabeth II, for it was heard twice a day by seven million devoted listeners. Miss Powell was Britain's most sacrosanct fictional paragon, Mrs. Dale, in the radio serial Mrs. Dale's Diary. And now, after fifteen years in the role she had created, the BBC had summarily fired her partly because of her drinking habits, and partly because it was felt that the role, and also the entire programme, was in need of a facelift. Three months later, at the age of fifty-seven, she died. Her friends believed she never recovered from the shock and distress of her summary dismissal by the BBC. In the last weeks of her life she worked as a [product] demonstrator at the Ideal Home Exhibition and as a cleaner in an hotel. The programme is thought to be the first British mainstream drama which depicted sympathetically a character known to be homosexual in a leading part – Richard Fulton, the husband of Mary's sister Sally. It was a brave move to feature a gay man, especially when homosexuality was still illegal in the United Kingdom. The phrase seized on by caricaturists as typical of Mrs Dale's narrative was "I'm rather worried about Jim..." Indeed, the phrase was a staple of many comedy programmes, radio and television, in the early 1960s aiming to poke fun at safe, staid and undemanding middle-class lifestyles. The last episode ended with Mrs Dale saying, "There's one thing that won't change - I shall always worry about Jim..."

What did he say?

In Comment #1 to the review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, gazza refers to Mrs Dale as being from the days of steam radio. In Britain, steam[2,10] is used as an adjective meaning old-fashioned in expressions such as steam radio, a term which seemingly came into use in the 1950s as television made its appearance. The idea behind the phrase is that radio would be obsoleted by television in the same way that steam engines were replaced by diesel locomotives. Today, apparently, some commentators in the U.K. refer in a similar manner to steam television which they see being superseded by programming broadcast over the Internet. For a more complete discussion, see the entry on steam radio at World Wide Words. Here, gazza uses the term "steam radio" to allude to the fact that the radio programme aired in the 1950s when this expression was in vogue.

Adam's ale^[5] is a dated, humorous term for water.

18a   Animal is tangled /in/ yacht's propeller (8)

19a   Pop group once providing their own backing (4)

Abba^[5] is a Swedish pop group which became popular in the 1970s with catchy, well-crafted songs such as ‘Waterloo’ (1974) and ‘Knowing Me Knowing You’ (1977).

21a   One harshly rules // what one can't do to a leopard? (6)

Contrary to crypticsue's assertion, I wouldn't say that you split the solution (2,4) — or even (2-4) as does Big Dave — to "find what you can’t do to a leopard". After all, words such as deice and demystify are not split (2, 3) and (2, 7) respectively.

23a   Distinction /of/ modern artist from 'ere (8)

A bit of cockney in the clue means you must insert a corresponding bit of cockney in the solution.

Delving Deeper
A cockney[5] is a native of East London [specifically that part of East London known as the East End], traditionally one born within hearing of Bow Bells (the bells of St Mary-le-Bow[7] church). Cockney is also the name of the dialect or accent typical of cockneys, which is characterised by dropping the H from the beginning of words and the use of rhyming slang[5].

Tracey Emin^[7] is an English artist and part of the group known as Britartists or YBAs (Young British Artists).

Highlights of her work include Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963–1995 (shown in Big Dave's hints), a tent appliquéd with names, exhibited at the Royal Academy in London and My Bed (shown at right), an installation at the Tate Gallery consisting of her own unmade dirty bed with used condoms and blood-stained underwear.

25a   Blue // feathers (4)

26a   The last thing in the Bible // that could make cosy appeal (10)

The Apocalypse^[5] is the complete final destruction of the world, as described in the biblical book of Revelation ⇒ the bell’s ringing is supposed to usher in the Apocalypse.

The Apocalypse^[5] is also another name (especially in the Vulgate Bible [used by the Roman Catholic church]) for the book of Revelation.

The Apocalypse is "the last thing in the Bible" in two senses. The book of Revelation is the final book of the Bible^[7] for most Christians, including those who follow the Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant traditions. Moreover, the Apocalypse, being the Biblical prophecy of "the complete final destruction of the world", will be the "last thing" in mankind's earthly existence.

27a   Box -- one acceptable /for/ horse (8)

As an adjective, on^[5,10] is an informal, chiefly British term meaning tolerable, practicable, acceptable, etc. It would seem that the expression may most likely be encountered in the negative ⇒ your plan just isn't on.

28a   Engine // stops going by elevated railway (6)

The El^[5] is a US term for:

1. an elevated railroad^* (especially that in Chicago); or
2. a train running on an elevated railroad^*.

^* Although this definition comes from a British dictionary, I deemed it apropos to replace the British railway with the US railroad.

Down

2d   Portia rarely displays // luxurious headgear (5)

Scratching the Surface

Portia is a female given name, perhaps best known as that of the wife of Brutus in William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. Porcia Catonis[7] (c.70 BC – 43 (or 42) BC), also known simply as Porcia, occasionally spelled "Portia" especially in 18th-century English literature, was a Roman woman who lived in the 1st century BC. She is best known for being the second wife of Marcus Junius Brutus, the most famous of Julius Caesar's assassins, and for her suicide, reputedly by swallowing hot coals.

3d   Trollope novel /in/ Churchill's retreat? (3,6)

Sir Winston Churchill^[5] (1874–1965) was a British Conservative statesman, Prime Minister 1940-5 and 1951-5.

I think "the war den" is merely a generic description of a place to which Churchill might retreat during the war years. I could find no evidence of any specific place called The War Den.

Antony Trollope^[5] (1815–1882) was an English novelist. He is best known for the six ‘Barsetshire’ novels, including Barchester Towers (1857), and for the six political ‘Palliser’ novels. He also worked for the General Post Office 1834–67 and introduced the pillar box^* to Britain.

^* A large red cylindrical public postbox [mailbox] used in the UK.

The Warden^[7], published in 1855, is the first book in Anthony Trollope's Chronicles of Barsetshire series of six novels. It was his fourth novel.

4d   Big actor falling short -- that is // what you need for a sad movie (6)

Big^[7] is a 1988 American fantasy comedy film that stars Tom Hanks as Josh Baskin, a young boy who makes a wish "to be big" and is then aged to adulthood overnight.

5d   What can make email bounce between two cricket sides // very rarely (4,2,1,4,4)

Here "two cricket sides" is actually two instances of the same side rather than two different sides.

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

Once in a blue moon^[5] is an informal expression meaning very rarely ⇒ he comes round once in a blue moon. The expression derives from the fact that a ‘blue moon’ is a phenomenon that occurs only very rarely.

Delving Deeper
The term blue moon[5] came from the US where it was originally applied to the third full moon in a season which (exceptionally) contains four full moons (each season, as defined by the mean sun, normally containing three full moons). This now historical meaning is no longer used. In later use, the term came to mean a second full moon in a calendar month.

6d   Revolutionary Nazi guard -- // knight perhaps (8)

Che Guevara^[7] (1928–1967) was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and military theorist. A major figure of the Cuban Revolution, his stylized visage has become a ubiquitous countercultural symbol of rebellion and global insignia within popular culture.

The SS^[5] (abbreviation of German Schutzstaffel 'defence squadron') was the Nazi special police force. Founded in 1925 by Hitler as a personal bodyguard, the SS provided security forces (including the Gestapo) and administered the concentration camps.

7d   Exclude // society girl meeting a queen (5)

"queen" = R (show explanation )

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

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

hide explanation

8d   Cook big lunch with last of brisket // joint for latecomers (9)

Scratching the Surface
Joint[5] is a British [or perhaps not so British[3,11]] term for a large piece of meat cooked whole or ready for cooking ⇒ a joint of ham.

14d   Pot caused rogue to be this? (6,3)

The wordplay (indicated by the dashed underline) is embedded in the definition (the entire clue).

16d   Corporation // to relieve Levantine city (5,4)

Levantine^[5] is an adjective denoting relating to the Levant^[5], an archaic name for the eastern part of the Mediterranean with its islands and neighbouring countries.

Tyre^[5] is a port on the Mediterranean in southern Lebanon; population 41,800 (est. 2009). Founded in the 2nd millennium BC as a colony of Sidon, it was for centuries a Phoenician port and trading centre.

Tyre^[5] is the British spelling of tire as an automobile part.

Corporation^[3,4,5,11] is a dated humorous term for a large paunch or pot belly.

Rising Again

The term Levant comes from French, literally 'rising', present participle of lever 'to lift' used as a noun in the sense 'point of sunrise, east'. The term is experiencing a rebirth with the emergence of the terrorist group the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant[7] (ISIL). Unfortunately, the CBC persists in referring to this group as ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), a nomenclature that I personally abhor. The word Isis has many other uses which are besmirched by association with this terrorist group. Among them, Isis is the goddess of fertility in Egyptian mythology and has been incorporated into the name of many beauty parlours. Isis is also the name by which the River Thames is known as it flows through Oxford, England.

17d   Meat that's cooked // soft with butter in sparkling wine (8)

"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

"Butter" is a somewhat whimsical term for an animal that butts.

Asti^[7] (formerly known as Asti Spumante) is a sparkling white Italian wine that is produced throughout southeastern Piedmont but is particularly focused around the towns of Asti and Alba. Since 1993 the wine has been classified as a Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) and as of 2004 was Italy's largest producing appellation.

The definition "meat that's cooked" sent me off on a lengthy investigation to understand why its defined specifically as "cooked".

Pastrami^[11] is a brisket^* of beef cured in a mixture of seasonings and smoked before cooking.

^* Most other dictionaries indicate that pastrami^[1,2,3.4.10] is usually made from a shoulder cut.

Delving Deeper

The recipe for pastrami[7] as we know it today was developed in the latter half of the 19th century in New York by Jewish immigrants from Romania. To make pastrami, the raw meat is brined, partially dried, seasoned with herbs and spices, then smoked and steamed [i.e., "cooked"]. The word pastrami is not — as I had always supposed — of Italian origin. Rather the word comes from Yiddish pastrame which in turn derives from Romanian pastrama. The modified “pastrami” spelling was probably introduced in imitation of the American English salami (a word of Italian lineage). In the course of researching this entry, I discovered that cuts of meat vary greatly around the world. "Different countries and cuisines have different cuts and names, and sometimes use the same name for a different cut; e.g., the cut described as "brisket" in the US is from a significantly different part of the carcass than British brisket."[7] The American cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead wrote that "cultures that divide and cut beef specifically to consume are the Koreans and the Bodi tribe in East Africa. The French and English make 35 differentiations to the beef cuts, 51 cuts for the Bodi tribe, while the Koreans differentiate beef cuts into a staggering 120 different parts."[7]

20d   Tease a Liberal Democrat // with coarse humour (6)

Although there is a political party in the UK known as the Liberal Democrats (see box), I could find no evidence of the party name commonly being abbreviated as LD. Rather, the party name is typically shortened to Lib Dem^[5] ⇒ (i) the Lib Dems have promised a wholesale review of policy; (ii) I’m voting Lib Dem. It is also unlikely that the clue is referring to the LDP^[5] (Liberal Democratic Party), a Japanese political party.

I believe that this is a situation where we must "lift and separate" (a crossword term inspired by the old Playtex bra commercials). I see this "Liberal Democrat" as being an amalgam of two political parties — one from the UK and one from the US.

"Liberal" = L (show explanation )

The Liberal Party^[5] (abbreviation Lib.^[5] or L^[2]) in Britain emerged in the 1860s from the old Whig Party and until the First World War was one of the two major parties in Britain. In 1988 the party regrouped with elements of the Social Democratic Party to form the Social and Liberal Democrats, now known as the Liberal Democrats. However, a small Liberal Party still exists.

Although Lib. may be the more common abbreviation for the Liberal Party in Britain—likely to distinguish it from the the Labour Party^[5] (abbreviation Lab.^[5])—Chambers 21st Century Dictionary indicates that L^[2] may also be used.

hide explanation

A Democrat^[5] (abbreviation D^[5]) is a member of the Democratic Party^[5], one of the two main US political parties (the other being the Republican Party), which follows a broadly liberal programme, tending to support social reform and minority rights.

Scratching the Surface
In the UK, the Liberal Democrats[5] are a political party (formerly the Social and Liberal Democrats) formed from the Liberal Party and members of the Social Democratic Party.

22d   Group of experts // criticise the Spanish (5)

"the Spanish" = EL (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

24d   Station in India // left from historic building (5)

This "station" is one's standing in the social pecking order.

Caste^[5] denotes each of the hereditary classes of Hindu society, distinguished by relative degrees of ritual purity or pollution and of social status ⇒ (i) members of the lower castes; (ii) a man of high caste.

Delving Deeper
There are four basic classes or varnas in Hindu society: Brahman (priest), Kshatriya (warrior), Vaisya (merchant or farmer), and Sudra (labourer). The lowest class, the scheduled caste (formerly known as untouchables), fall outside the varna system and have historically suffered extreme discrimination.

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, February 22, 2016 — DT 27916

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Daily Telegraph DT 27916
Publication Date in The Daily Telegraph Friday, September 25, 2015
Setter Giovanni (Don Manley)
Link to Full Review Big Dave's Crossword Blog [DT 27916]
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
Notes
The National Post has skipped DT 27915 which was published in The Daily Telegraph on Thursday, September 24, 2015.

Introduction

For a Giovanni, I would say that this puzzle falls a bit on the less difficult end of the scale.

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   The Parisian should be held in scorn, journalist // considered (12)

"the French" = LA (show explanation )

In French, the feminine singular form of the definite article is la^[8].

hide explanation

9a   Worry // about a group of soldiers (4)

"soldiers" = RE (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

10a   Ruler had meal behind shelter by river (9)

The Po^[7] is a river that arises in the Cottian Alps and flows eastward across northern Italy entering the Adriatic Sea through a delta near Venice.

12a   Bad people not right at the outset, // beasts (6)

Rotter^[5] is a informal, dated, chiefly British term for a cruel, mean, or unkind person ?Rosemary had decided that all men were rotters.

13a   For example, backward-looking tyrant confronting American // liberal (8)

Nero^[5] (AD 37-68) was Roman emperor 54-68; full name Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus. Infamous for his cruelty, he wantonly executed leading Romans. His reign witnessed a fire which destroyed half of Rome in 64.

15a   Mum joins team of west London rowers -- // one to fill up the number? (4-6)

Kew^[7] is a suburban district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, 7.1 miles (11.4 km) west by south-west of Charing Cross [considered to mark the centre of London]. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is also the home of important historical documents such as Domesday Book, which is on public display at The National Archives.

An eight^[5] is an eight-oared rowing boat or its crew.

Thus the setter uses the phrase "team of west London rowers" to clue KEW EIGHT.

A makeweight^{[2,3,4,5,10,11]} (or make-weight^[1]) is:

1. something put on a scale to make up the required weight; or
2. an unimportant person or thing that is only added or included in order to complete something ⇒ he has waited a long time to establish himself after two years as squad makeweight.

16a   Place of vice probed by a // cleric (4)

A den^[5] is a place where people meet in secret, typically to engage in an illicit activity ⇒ (i) an opium den; (ii) a den of iniquity.

A dean^[7], in a religious context, is a cleric holding certain positions of authority within a religious hierarchy. The title is used mainly in the Anglican Communion, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Lutheran Church.

In the Church of England and elsewhere in the Anglican Communion, the dean is the chief resident cleric of a cathedral or other collegiate church and the head of the chapter of canons. If the cathedral or collegiate church has its own parish, the dean is usually also rector of the parish.

18a   Refusal to take a husband /as/ a man coming to the rescue (4)

In the Bible, Noah^[5] was a Hebrew patriarch represented as tenth in descent from Adam. According to a story in Genesis he made the ark which saved his family and specimens of every animal from the Flood.

20a   'Hippy' perhaps // full and rich in tone (4-6)

Pear-shaped^[5], said of a person, denotes having hips that are disproportionately wide in relation to the upper part of the body ⇒ attention to detail helps disguise a pear-shaped figure.

Pear-shaped^[2], said of a vocal quality, denotes mellow, resonant and non-nasal.

What are they talking about?
In a couple of the comments on Big Dave's Crossword Blog [Comment #23 by Hilary, Cat's response to Comment #14], reference is made to a third meaning for pear-shaped. Go pear-shaped[5] is an informal British expression (originally Royal Air Force slang) meaning to go wrong ⇒ everything went pear-shaped.

23a   Decidedly // trendy items in the garden shed (2,6)

24a   Man // came down with old wife (6)

Is he suffering some new disease — like coming down with measles?

26a   Attire for cur(ate) (3,6)

I really can't believe this dead giveaway of a clue! It is like an artist's preliminary sketch that was never completed.

However, I must be missing something. The Brits seemed to adore this clue and find 27a (which I rather liked) to be very weak.

Curate^[5] may mean:

1. (also assistant curate) a member of the clergy engaged as assistant to a vicar, rector, or parish priest; or
2. (archaic) a minister with pastoral responsibility.

Dog collar^[5] is an informal term for a clerical collar.

27a   Fish had to be disposed of here? (4)

The wordplay (indicated by the dashed underline) is embedded in the definition (which is provided by the entire clue).

28a   Our sister is transformed by a thousand // cosmetic products (12)

Down

2d   Numerical choice /for/ a few (3,2,3)

3d   Record // run may end with it collapsing (4)

4d   Mountain // stuff, something hard (10)

The Matterhorn^[5] is a mountain in the Alps, on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Rising to 4,477 m (14,688 ft), it was first climbed in 1865 by the English mountaineer Edward Whymper.

5d   Like some gentry // brought down (6)

Landed gentry^[10] is a British term for upper class landowners ⇒ Most of them were the nobility and the landed gentry.

6d   Unusual Easter egg being hidden /in/ that shrub (3,4)

I interpret the phrase "that shrub" to indicate 'a type of shrub'.

7d   Rebuking // action of person in informal attire (8,4)

8d   Composer /showing/ second-rate skill 'satisfactory' (6)

Béla Bartók^[5] (1881–1945) was a Hungarian composer. His work owes much to Hungarian folk music and includes six string quartets, three piano concertos, and the Concerto for Orchestra (1943).

11d   Judgment of Conqueror possibly // who made many laugh! (6,6)

The wordplay alludes to the Norman Conquest^[5], the conquest of England by William of Normandy (William the Conqueror) after the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

Sir Norman Wisdom^[7] (1915–2010) was an English actor, comedian, and singer-songwriter best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring his hapless onscreen character Norman Pitkin. The films usually involved Pitkin in a manual occupation in which he is barely competent and in a junior position to a straight man, often played by Edward Chapman (as Mr Grimsdale) or Jerry Desmonde. From 1995 until 2004 he appeared in the recurring role of Billy Ingleton in the long-running BBC comedy Last of the Summer Wine. He retired from acting at the age of 90 after his health deteriorated.

What did he say?

In his review on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, Deep Threat describes Norman Wisdom as Enver Hoxha’s favourite comedian. Wisdom was a cult figure in Albania, where he was one of the few Western actors whose films were allowed in the country during the dictatorship of Enver Hoxha. In Hoxha's view, proletarian Norman's ultimately victorious struggles against capitalism, personified by Mr Grimsdale and the effete aristocratic characters played by Jerry Desmonde, were a Communist parable on the class war. On a visit in 2001, which coincided with the England football [soccer] team playing Albania in the city of Tirana, his appearance at the training ground overshadowed that of football superstar David Beckham. He appeared on the pitch before the start of the Albania v England match wearing a half-Albanian and half-English football shirt. He was well received by the crowd, especially when he performed one of his trademark trips on his way out to the centre circle.

14d   Plonk down here? (4,6)

17d   Little beast, the German /seen to be/ more crafty (8)

"the German" = DER (show explanation )

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

hide explanation

19d   Weapon // demonstrated in class again (7)

Assagai is an alternative spelling of assegai^[5], a slender, iron-tipped, hardwood spear used chiefly by southern African peoples.

21d   Dad wants ornamental fabric /in/ splendid home (6)

22d   Weird // football organisation dealt with heavy defeat (3-3)

The Football Association^[7], also known simply as the FA, is the governing body of football [soccer] in England. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the amateur and professional game in England.

25d   Fighting members (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

Saturday, February 20, 2016 — Insights, Past and Future

Introduction

I would agree with Peter's assessment (see comments below) that today's puzzle from Cox & Rathvon  is a "bit tougher than usual". However, a challenging mental workout is good for the mind — just as working up a 27a on the 28a is good for the body.

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

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue
	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 (//).

Across

1a   Peachy // police officer with outstanding idiosyncrasy (9)

COP|ACE|TIC — COP (police officer) + (with) ACE (outstanding) + TIC (idiosyncrasy)

6a   Check on // a good friend in a myth (5)

DAM|ON — DAM (check) + ON (†)

In Greek historiography, Damon and Pythias^[7] (or Phintias) is a legend surrounding the Pythagorean ideal of friendship. Pythias is accused and charged of creating a plot against the tyrannical Dionysius II of Syracuse. Pythias makes a request of Dionysius that he be allowed to settle his affairs on the condition that he leaves his friend, Damon, as a hostage, so if Pythias does not return, Damon would be executed. Eventually, Pythias returns to face execution to the amazement of Dionysius, who because of the sincere trust and love of their friendship, then lets both Damon and Pythias go free.

9a   Entertainer // smashed big melons (3,6)

{MEL GIBSON}* — anagram (smashed) of BIG MELONS

Mel Gibson^[7] is an American^* actor and filmmaker (screenwriter, producer and director). He is most well known as an action hero, for roles such as Martin Riggs in the Lethal Weapon buddy cop film series and Max Rockatansky in the first three films in the Mad Max post-apocalyptic action series.

^* He was born in Peekskill, New York, and moved with his parents to Sydney, Australia when he was 12 years old. Because his mother was born in Ireland, Gibson holds dual Irish and American citizenship.

10a   Word in French, and in French // choral piece (5)

MOT|ET — MOT (word in French; French word meaning 'word') + ET (and in French; French word meaning 'and')

A motet^[5] is a short piece of sacred choral music.

11a   Key for translating // notes rotates freely (7,5)

{ROSETTA STONE}* — anagram (freely) of NOTES ROTATES

The Rosetta Stone^[5] is an inscribed stone found near Rosetta (now called Rashid) in Egypt in 1799. Its text is written in three scripts: hieroglyphic, demotic, and Greek. The deciphering of the hieroglyphs by Jean-François Champollion in 1822 led to the interpretation of many other early records of Egyptian civilization.

The term Rosetta stone^[5] has come to denote any key to some previously undecipherable mystery or unattainable knowledge ⇒ zero point energy could be the Rosetta stone of physics.

14a   Deficiency in Bugsy actress // growing more opaque (10)

B(LACK)ENING — LACK (deficiency) contained in (in) BENING (Bugsy actress [Annette Bening])

Bugsy^[7] is a 1991 American crime-drama film which tells the story of mobster Bugsy Siegel and his relationship with Virginia Hill. It stars Warren Beatty as Siegel and Annette Bening as Hill.

16a   In retrospect, low-down // fate (4)

{D|OOM}< — reversal (in retrospect) of MOO (low; sound made by a cow) + D (down; abbrev. used in crossword puzzles, for instance)

18a   Called up // bar for climbers? (4)

RUNG — double definition

19a   Women's supporters run // pubs (10)

BRAS|SERIES — BRAS (women's supporters) + SERIES (run)

A brasserie^[11] is an unpretentious restaurant or tavern that serves drinks, especially beer, and simple food.

20a   Ravine or deep hole engulfing English // writer (6,6)

G(E)ORGE| OR|WELL — {GORGE (ravine) + OR (†) + WELL (deep hole)} containing (engulfing) E (English)

George Orwell^[5] (1903–1950) was a British novelist and essayist, born in India; pseudonym of Eric Arthur Blair. Orwell’s work is characterized by his concern for social injustice. His most famous works are Animal Farm (1945), a satire on Communism as it developed under Stalin, and Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949), a dystopian account of a future state in which every aspect of life is controlled by Big Brother.

25a   Greener vegetables displaying // freshness (5)

_NER|VE_ — hidden in (displaying) greeNER VEgetables

26a   Chopped trees near // Maritimer, maybe (9)

EASTERNER* — anagram (chopped) of TREES NEAR

A Maritimer^[5] is a native or inhabitant of the Maritime Provinces of Canada.

Canada's Maritime Provinces^[5] (also the Maritimes) are the provinces of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island, with coastlines on the Gulf of St Lawrence and the Atlantic.

This term is not to be confused with the Atlantic Provinces^[5] which include the province of Newfoundland and Labrador in addition to the Maritime Provinces. The term Maritime Provinces predates the entry of Newfoundland (later to be renamed Newfoundland and Labrador) into Confederation in 1949 while the term Atlantic Provinces was obviously coined after that date.

27a   Did nothing about my group/'s/ hard effort (5)

S(WE)AT — SAT (did nothing) containing (about) WE (my group)

28a   Punk tried mall // exercise machine (9)

TREADMILL* — anagram (punk) of TRIED MALL

As an anagram indicator, I infer that punk^[11] is being used in the sense of ill or sick (in other words, out of sorts) ⇒ feeling punk.

Down

1d   Amusingly weird // summer getaway (4)

CAMP — double definition

2d   Stealthily pick up // source for dates (4)

PALM — double definition

3d   Winds that warm // pair of goose eggs found in narrow openings (8)

CHIN(OO)KS — OO (pair of goose eggs) contained in (found in) CHINKS (narrow openings)

A chinook^[5] (also chinook wind) is a warm dry wind which blows down the east side of the Rocky Mountains at the end of winter [rapidly melting the accumulated snow].

Note to British Readers
The term "goose egg" is used in North America in much the same manner as "duck" is used in Britain, indicating a nil score in a sports competition.

4d   London gallery containing small // sample (5)

TA(S)TE — TATE (London gallery) containing (†) S (small; abbrev.)

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".]

5d   Fixed numbers // fore and aft on contestants (9)

CON_STANTS — CON (fore on CONtestants) and (†) STANTS (aft on conteSTANTS)

In mathematics, a constant^[5] is a quantity or parameter that does not change its value whatever the value of the variables, under a given set of conditions.

In physics, a constant^[5] is a number expressing a relation or property which remains the same in all circumstances, or for the same substance under the same conditions.

6d   Money-making machines holding 1000 // coins (5)

DI(M)ES — DIES (money-making machines) containing (holding) M ([Roman numeral for] 1000)

7d   City // grain-storage facility left Emily looking the other way (10)

{ME|TROP|OLIS}< — reversal (looking the other way) of {SILO (grain-storage facility) + PORT (left; nautical term) + EM ([diminutive form of the given name] Emily)}

8d   Lowest // profit involving insulated flask (10)

NE(THERMOS)T — NET (profit) containing (involving) THERMOS (insulated flask)

12d   Natives // ignore bias, surprisingly (10)

ABORIGINES* — anagram (surprisingly) of IGNORE BIAS

An aborigine^[5] is a person, animal, or plant that has been in a country or region from earliest times.

An Aborigine^[5] is an aboriginal inhabitant of Australia.

13d   Dish // Mom and I watch over, keeping company (4,6)

MA|I|N (CO)URSE — MA (mom) + (and) I (†) + NURSE (watch over) containing (keeping) CO (company; abbrev.)

15d   Pointer breaking into place where eggs are // thinnest (9)

N(ARROW)EST — ARROW (pointer) contained in (breaking into) NEST (place where eggs are)

17d   Bookish // reworking of elder law (4-4)

{WELL-READ}* — anagram of (reworking of) ELDER LAW

21d   Caller // speculated aloud (5)

GUEST~ — sounds like (aloud) GUESSED (speculated)

22d   Knock off // alien observed from the rear (5)

{WAS|TE}< — reversal (from the rear) of {ET (alien) + SAW (observed)}

Note to British Readers
Waste[5] is an informal North American term meaning to kill or severely injure (someone) ⇒ I saw them waste the guy I worked for.

23d   Insect one/'s/ averse to (4)

ANT|I — ANT (insect) + I ([Roman numeral for] one)

24d   Kind of exam // for a leader, in part (4)

_OR|A|L_ — hidden (in part) in fOR A Leader

Epilogue

The title of today's review is inspired by 11a (which was the key to understanding the past) and 20a (who gave us a glimpse into a scary future which unfortunately seems to be coming to pass).

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