Sunday, April 10, 2011 (ST 4423)

Puzzle at a Glance
Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4423
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, March 6, 2011
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4423]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, April 2, 2011

Introduction

A bit of research was needed to complete this puzzle, especially to track down the cricket term at 19a - a word that some may well consider to be an ethnic slur.

Today's Glossary

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

[An asterisk beside an entry merely indicates that it has been taken it from a Cumulative Glossary of entries which have previously appeared, in either this blog or its companion blog, the National Post Cryptic Crossword Forum.]

Appearing in Clues

Meanings listed in this section may reflect how the word is used in the surface reading of the clue. Of course, that meaning may be contributing to the misdirection that the setter is attempting to create.

nob¹ - noun British informal a person of wealth or high social position

Appearing in Solutions

Arms and the Man - a comedy by George Bernard Shaw, whose title comes from the opening words of Virgil's Aeneid in Latin: "Arma virumque cano" (Of arms and the man I sing).

*CH - abbreviation  [1^st entry] (in the UK) Companion of Honour

china - noun 2 British informal a friend. [from rhyming slang china plate ‘mate’]

Chinaman (or chinaman) - noun 2 Cricket a ball that spins from off to leg, bowled by a left-handed bowler to a right-handed batsman

*leg - noun 5 (also leg side, on or on side) Cricket 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.  The opposite of off.

fosterling - noun chiefly archaic a child who is fostered or adopted

ling² - noun the common heather of Eurasia

toad-in-the-hole - noun British a dish consisting of sausages baked in batter

toff - noun British informal derogatory a rich or upper-class person

twee - adjective British excessively or affectedly quaint, pretty, or sentimental: although the film‘s a bit twee, it’s watchable

W - abbreviation weak (apparently from the field of particle physics)
 
Commentary on Today's Puzzle

This commentary should be read in conjunction with the full review at Times for the Times, to which a link is provided in the table above.

1d   Sally Black protects small son (4)

A search for Sally Black turned up a couple of rather unlikely candidates - either a person or persons who worked behind the scenes on a number of television and motion picture productions or the winner of the 1880 California Derby (wearing the saddle, not in it).

In fact, the name is a bit of misdirection. The definition is "sally" in the sense of  'a witty or lively remark, especially one made as an attack or as a diversion in an argument; a retort' for which the solution is JEST. The wordplay is JET (black) containing S (small [part of] son; i.e., first letter of "son"). Since S is frequently seen in puzzles as an abbreviation for either "small" or "son", using "small son" to clue S is sort of a 'belt and suspenders' approach (or 'belt and braces' to the Brits).

Signing off for this week - Falcon