Sunday, July 29, 2012 - ST 4492

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4492
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, July 1, 2012
Setter Tim Moorey
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4492]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, July 21, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, July 28, 2012
Notes This puzzle appears in the the Saturday, July 28, 2012 edition of the Ottawa Citizen.

Introduction

I have been a bit swamped lately and struggling to keep up with all the puzzles (solving and blogging). However, I am now caught up for the moment - until the next deluge arrives. With several puzzles simultaneously on the go (in various stages of solving or blogging), it is not always an easy task to keep them clearly sorted in my mind and they sometimes seem to become just one big blur.

This puzzle from Tim Moorey, as I recall, was considerably less of a solving challenge for me than the one the previous week from Dean Mayer. However, it does contain quite a few British references. Since I had encountered many of them in previous puzzles, they did not hamper me too much in solving the puzzle, but they do increase the blogging workload.

In my review, I try to provide explanations for any British references that may be unfamiliar to North American readers as well as to define terms from various specialized fields. Often setters will make use of abbreviations that arise from specific uses of common words in specialized fields of endeavour. An example from today's puzzle is the use of H as a symbol representing the henry which is the SI unit of inductance. Many novice solvers wrongly believe that H is just an abbreviation for the man's name Henry and, therefore, mistakenly assume that any other given name can be similarly abbreviated.

I always try to provide a detailed parsing for a few of the more difficult clues where I think readers might need more of an explanation than is provided in Dave Perry's review at Times for the Times. If the solution to any clue is not clear to you, please leave a comment and I would be pleased to explain it.

Notes 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.

1a   Poles become tired approaching county (10)

Staffs.^[5] is the abbreviation for Staffordshire^[5], a county of central England.

2a   Call for aid, oxygen just OK (2,2)

The symbol for the chemical element oxygen is O^[5].

10a   Last word about copper shows ability to make good judgements (6)

The symbol for the chemical element copper is Cu^[5].

11a   Article containing rubbish about humble Aussie newcomer (4-2)

In Britain, a receptacle in which to deposit rubbish is called a bin^[5]. In Australia, blow-in^[5] is an informal term for a newcomer or recent arrival.

13a   Neat French cap reduced in spring-time (4-4)

Kepi (worn by the French Foreign Legion)

A kepi is a French military cap with a horizontal peak.

17a   HP Sauce with pie and two hours for perfection! (4,8)

Hire purchase^[5] is a system used in Britain by which one pays for a thing in regular instalments while having the use of it. In North America, such an arrangement would be called buying on the installment plan or rent to own (or lease to own).^[7]

21a   Bargain housing indeed around for those on soft left (6)

In Britain, a snip^[5] is a surprisingly cheap item or, in other words, a bargain • the wine is a snip at £3.65. According to both Oxford^[5] and Collins, pinko^[10] (a person regarded as mildly left-wing) is chiefly a North American term.

The definition is "those on the soft left" and the wordplay is a reversal (around) of {SNIP (bargain) containing (housing) OK (indeed)} to give the solution PINKOS.

22a   US military transport and motor vessel, English in appearance (6)

A motor vessel (abbreviation MV)^[10] is a ship whose main propulsion system is a diesel or other internal-combustion engine. The name of a motor vessel is often prefixed with MV. A Humvee™^[5] is a type of American four-wheel-drive all-terrain military vehicle. The name is derived from the initials of high-mobility multi-purpose vehicle.

26a   Prophet is one to give you comfort externally, for example (10)

The definition is "prophet" and I parse the wordplay as SOOTHER (one to give you comfort) containing (externally for) SAY (example) to produce the solution SOOTHSAYER.

I initially tried to make this work using SAY = "for example" but, at least to my way of thinking, "externally" just doesn't seem to function properly on its own as a containment indicator.

2d   Help with case on adult spread (5,3)

Leg and on are synonymous cricket terms. The  on^[5] (also called the on side) is 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. Another term for this side of the field is the leg side^[5] (also called simply the leg).

Adult (abbreviation A)^[10] was formerly a film certification in Britain designating a film certified for viewing by anyone, but which contains material that some parents may not wish their children to see. The A certification has been superseded by the PG (Parental Guidance) certification.^[7]

4d   Henry's cutting rent projection for plant (5)

In physics, the henry (abbreviation H) is the SI unit of inductance, equal to an electromotive force of one volt in a closed circuit with a uniform rate of change of current of one ampere per second.

5d   Destroyer needing sort of sly waft? (3,4)

In Britain, fly swat^[5] is another name for a fly swatter.

6d   Little buzzer on right not worth mentioning (5,4)

Small beer^[5] is a British expression to describe a thing that is considered unimportant • even with £10,000 to invest, you are still small beer for most stockbrokers.

7d   No ketchup is ordered for mobile food stall (4,7)

Once I finally figured out the solution, I wondered why a soup kitchen would be defined as a "mobile food stall" since my image was of a rather more permanent establishment. Oxford only served to confirm my misgivings, defining a soup kitchen^[5] as a place where free food is served to those who are homeless or destitute. However, Collins (which seems to be the favourite dictionary of the Sunday Times puzzle team) provided an explanation, proclaiming a soup kitchen^[10] to be a place or mobile stall where food and drink, especially soup, is served to destitute people.

12d   Guards dither about those caught running (7,4)

On cricket scorecards, the abbreviation c^[5] indicates caught (by) • ME Waugh c Lara b Walsh 19.

16d   Neckwear of a union in Glasgow? (5,3)

Question marks and exclamation points in clues are usually a warning that the setter is being a bit mischievous and that we are likely to encounter a twist of some kind in the wordplay. Since Glasgow^[7] is a city in Scotland (the largest, in fact), a union (or tie, in the sense of a bond or link) in Glasgow could be described as A SCOT TIE which, if numerated (5,3) would become a form of neckwear.

19d   The French stick with Egyptian vegetable (6)

In this clue, I don't think that "stick" means a stick of chewing gum (which was my first thought). Gum is a synonym for glue and though it is not a word that I would be likely to use, it is found with this meaning in American (as well as British) dictionaries. Gum^[4] (as a verb) means to to stick together or in place with gum (the noun).

21d   A chain is a measure of length (5)

Talk about a convoluted clue! This is going to take a bit of explanation, so bear with me.

This is a charade type clue where the wordplay is PER (A) + CH (chain) producing the solution PERCH (a measure of length).

In the first part of the clue, "A" is used to mean PER, as it is used in the following statement "As a teenager, I had a large collection of singles which had to be played at 45 revolutions a minute" where the more technical term would be 'revolutions per minute'.

A chain^[3,4] is a unit of length (although this fact is largely incidental to the solving of the clue, it does serve to add an additional level of obfuscation to the clue). In fact, a chain is either of two units of length. In surveying, it is a unit of 66 feet (Gunter's chain) while, in engineering, it is a unit of 100 feet (engineer's chain). However, what matters to us as puzzle solvers is that whatever its length, it can be abbreviated as ch.^[10]

The solution, perch, is a historical measure (once used in Britain). A perch^[5] (also called a pole or a rod) is a measure of length, especially for land, equal to a quarter of a [surveyor's] chain or 5 ¹/₂ yards.

To further confuse matters, a perch (also known as a square perch, pole, square pole, rod, or square rod) is a measure of area, especially for land, equal to 160th of an acre or 30 ¹/₄ square yards.

All of this goes a long way to explaining why we needed the metric system!

24d   It may be high in the afternoon (3)

In Britain, high tea^[5] is a meal eaten in the late afternoon or early evening, typically consisting of a cooked dish, bread and butter, and tea.

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)

Signing off for this week - Falcon

Sunday, July 22, 2012 - ST 4491

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4491
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, June 24, 2012
Setter Dean Mayer (Anax)
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4491]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, July 14, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, July 21, 2012
Notes This puzzle appears in the the Saturday, July 21, 2012 edition of the Ottawa Citizen.

Introduction

This is by far the most difficult puzzle that I can recall ever having encountered — at least it is the puzzle that gave me the most difficulty. I worked away at it off-and-on for over a week, using every puzzle-solving tool at my disposal, before finally taking a peek (with eight clues left to solve) at Dave Perry's review at Times for the Times. From there, I got the solution to one of the unsolved clues — which was actually so simple that I kicked myself severely for not getting it on my own. Nevertheless, that one answer was just enough of a nudge to get me over the hump and I was then able to complete the puzzle — albeit with lots of assistance from the implements in my Tool Chest. I also discovered that I had an incorrect solution which had created a substantial obstacle to making progress in the lower right hand corner of the puzzle.

Note on Publication Schedule for the Ottawa Citizen

As of this weekend, the Ottawa Citizen will no longer publish an edition on Sunday. Many features, including The Sunday London Times Crossword, which formerly appeared in the Sunday edition of the paper, are now found in the newly-christened Weekend Edition of the paper (which comes out on Saturday). Since the Citizen considers this to be a Sunday crossword, I will continue to identify it as such.

Notes 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.

1a   Try to put potty back (4)

Potty^[10] is an informal British term meaning foolish or slightly crazy.

3a   Got rid of a mind (8)

This is the clue for which I sought help from Dave Perry's review. Although it is quite straight forward, I made life difficult for myself by trying to split the clue after the word "of" — rather than before. It is a double definition with the two parts being "got rid" and "of a mind". I had mistakenly included the "of" with the first part. Of course, "got rid of" means "disposed of" implying that "got rid" must mean "disposed". After realizing my folly, I was "of a mind" to kick myself.

10a   Right contact number in this French business (9)

In French grammar, ce^[8] is a determiner meaning this.

11a   Huge 2 in port (5)

The number "2" is a cross-reference indicator. To complete the clue, one must substitute the solution to 2d (which happens to be the only entry starting on the square numbered 2) in place of the cross-reference indicator. Had there also been a clue 2a in the puzzle, the setter would have needed to specify which of the two solutions was intended.

The sizes of clothing that North Americans would describe as plus-size^[7] (or often big and tall in the case of men's clothing) would be called outsize (OS^[5]) in Britain.

16a   How one gets alternative view from panorama immediately? (2,3,4,2,1,3)

It should be fairly obvious that Dave Perry meant to say "to get OR (alternative) ..."

20a   Speak softly and see females calm down (4,3)

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

21a   Around leg, primarily, one has a leg support (7)

This is the clue that I had wrong for quite some time — before the solution to one of the down clues showed me the error of my ways. I had CRAMPON (a device attached to boots for walking on ice or snow) as "a leg support" based mainly on "leg" and "ON" being synonymous cricket terms. Of course, a crampon really isn't a leg brace and I had no explanation for CRAMP — but then that is hardly unusual with some of the obscure British terms that show up in these puzzles.

The leg brace is, in reality, a caliper^[10] (which Collins English Dictionary identifies as the usual US spelling of calliper). This medical device, also known as a calliper splint, is a splint consisting of two metal rods with straps attached, for supporting or exerting tension on the leg.

The wordplay is a charade of CA (around) + L (leg, primarily; i.e., the first letter of Leg) + I ([Roman numeral for] one) + (has) PER (a). In the final part of the charade, the PER is clued simply by the word "a", as in "To play a single, one would set the phonograph to play at 45 revolutions a minute."

23a   Tip on rocks? (5)

This is an & lit.^[7] (or all-in-one) clue, one in which the entire clue serves as both definition and wordplay. In the wordplay, we have an anagram (rocks) of TIP ON. As a definition, point^[10] might refer to a promontory, one usually smaller than a cape (although it is conceivable that the setter had some other meaning in mind, such as the top of a mountain).

24a   It can be smoked — cigarette — before water in France (9)

Gaspereau^[10] is a Canadian name (and a regional one at that) for the alewife (a type of fish). I was a bit surprised to encounter this word in a British puzzle, as this is a term used mainly in Atlantic Canada.

Gasper^[10] is old-fashioned British slang for a cheap cigarette. Eau^[8] is the French word for water.

26a   Weak in one's mind (4)

Nesh^[5] is an English dialect term meaning (especially of a person) weak and delicate or feeble : it was nesh to go to school in a topcoat. Neither Oxford nor Collins specify to which of the more than twenty-five English dialects^[7] this term belongs.

4d   Main hazard when diver starts to cough it up (7)

Even when I managed to find the correct solution, I didn't necessarily know why. The wordplay here is a reversal (up) of {GREBE (diver; i.e., a diving bird) + C + I (the initial letters [starts to] of Cough It)}. Main^[10] is a literary term denoting the open ocean or an archaic short form for the Spanish Main^[10] (the Caribbean Sea). Here it undoubtedly means the former as icebergs hardly constitute a significant shipping hazard in the Caribbean.

6d   Small gift on day you have turkey leg? (8,6)

I missed some of the wordplay here (the latter part). The clue is a double definition, with the two definitions being "small gift on the day you have turkey" and "leg?". In Britain, the stockings hung by the fireplace at Christmas ("the day you have turkey") are stuffed with stocking fillers^[5], whereas in North American they are filled with stocking stuffers. The rest of the year, the stockings would be filled by your leg. The cryptic nature of the second definition is indicated by the question mark.

7d   Nasty meal, assuming cod being cooked (9)

In British and Irish slang, cod^[10] can be a verb meaning (1) to make fun of or tease or (2) to play a trick on or fool or a noun denoting a hoax or trick. Also, in the UK, rag^[10] can be a verb meaning to play rough practical jokes on (someone) or a noun denoting a boisterous practical joke, especially one on a fellow student. I presume that on means "being cooked" in the sense that a chef might inquire of an assistant "Are the potatoes on?" implying 'on the stove'.

17d Official letter — United's in exile (7)

In the UK, United would likely be seen as a reference to the Manchester United Football Club^[7], although it could also seemingly refer to a long list of other football (soccer) clubs^[7].

19   Over finished, but having secured runs (7)

The surface reading is a reference to cricket where an over^[5] is a division of play in which a sequence of six balls is bowled by a bowler from one end of the pitch, after which another bowler takes over from the other end. I was struggling with the wordplay as there seemed to be an extra word present — and in fact there is. The definition is "over" or "finished" — take your pick. They each mean THROUGH. The wordplay is THOUGH (but) containing (having secured) R (runs; an abbreviation that would be found on a cricket scorecard).

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)

Signing off for this week - Falcon

Sunday, July 15, 2012 - ST 4490

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4490
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, June 17, 2012
Setter Jeff Pearce
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4490]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, July 7, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, July 14, 2012

Introduction

I thought there was a not inconsiderable bit of tricky wordplay today. The southwest corner certainly put up a valiant struggle and I needed all the help that I could possibly muster from my electronic reinforcements. However, it was 10a which held out to the very end before finally being vanquished.

Notes 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.

10a   One in six touring hilly area of Italy (6)

I had figured out the solution (based on the definition and checking letters) early in the solving process. Nevertheless, similar to Dave Perry, I only deciphered the wordplay after I had finished the puzzle. Here, "six" is a cross-reference to clue 6d meaning that the solution to the latter clue must be inserted in place of the cross-reference indicator in the present clue. In my experience, spelling out the cross-reference indicator, as today's setter has done, rather than using a numeral is unusual — but not unprecedented.

The definition is "hilly area of Italy" (which is UMBRIA). The wordplay (after substituting for the cross-reference indicator) is "one in RUMBA touring" which parses as I (one) contained in (in) an anagram (touring) of RUMBA.

13a   People on the estate, say, in the pink (9)

In Britain, a station wagon^[5] is known as an estate car^[5] (which is often shortened to just estate^[5]). Pink^[5] is often used as another name for a carnation although it is properly a family of plants that includes the carnations.

14a   Ramsay is one taking break with influential film director outside art institution (12)

Gordon Ramsay^[7] is a British chef, television personality and restaurateur. Devotees of the Food Channel will recognize him as the foul-mouthed host of a number of cooking shows.

RA^[5] is the abbreviation for Royal Academy (in full, the Royal Academy of the Arts^[5]), an institution established in London in 1768, whose purpose is to cultivate painting, sculpture, and architecture in Britain.

18a   Sailor with a collection of spices volunteers dip (12)

Masala is a mixture of spices ground into a paste, used in Indian cookery. Taramasalata is a creamy pale pink pâté, made from the roe of grey mullet or smoked cod and served as an hors d'oeuvre.

In the UK, the Territorial Army (TA)^[5] is a volunteer force locally organized to provide a reserve of trained and disciplined manpower for use in an emergency.

23a   One resting Python star gets runs (5)

Eric Idle^[7] is an English comedian, actor, author, singer, writer, and comedic composer. He was a member of the British surreal comedy group Monty Python, a member of the The Rutles on Saturday Night Live, and is the author of the Broadway musical Spamalot.

24a   Heading for The Sun — "This Maze prisoner ended up in the drink" (6)

To solve this clue, one needs to know a bit about Greek mythology. As Dave Perry explains a bit more fully, Icarus^[7] (having been imprisoned along with his father, Daedalus, in the labyrinth) escaped using wings fashioned from feathers and wax. However, he flew too close the sun, melting the wax, which caused him to fall into the sea and be drowned.

To fall for the misdirection in the surface reading, one needs to have some knowledge of things British. The Sun^[7] is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom. The Maze^[7] was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from mid-1971 to mid-2000.

2d   Almost notice aristo in a state (6)

Aristo^[10] is an informal [seemingly British] short form for aristocrat.

3d   Recently auctioned painting features our dairy product (4,5)

The Scream^[7] is the popular name given to each of four versions of a composition, created as both paintings and pastels, by the Expressionist artist Edvard Munch between 1893 and 1910. Three of the paintings are held by European museums. The fourth was sold at auction in May to a private collector for $119,922,500.

4d   Here one gets exotic foods of a tender texture with Scottish water served up (12)

Loch Ness^[7] is a body of water in the Highlands of Scotland that is reputedly home to a famous sea creature.

6d   Steps taken for sport and business qualification (5)

Think dance steps.

Rugby union (RU)^[5] is a form of rugby played in teams of fifteen, in contrast to rugby league^[5], which is played in teams of thirteen.

7d   Inmate becomes unruly without right disciplinarian (8)

The word "without" is used in the sense of 'outside of' rather than 'lacking'.

11d   Ivan's money and dope found in extremely treacherous areas of conflict (7,5)

In cryptic crosswords, Ivan is a Russian gent — just as Ian is a Scotsman and Paddy is an Irishman.

19d   Soldier carrying old instrument displays muscles (6)

This showoff soldier is American — not British.

22d   Condiment well spoken of (5)

The condiment is SAUCE and the wordplay is sounds like (spoken of) SOURCE (well; in the sense of a spring). To understand this homophone, remember that the Brits do not pronounce (or pronounce indistinctly) the final R on words — and to compensate, they like to insert an R into words where none exists. Thus "sauce" is pronounced the same as (or very similar to) "source". I have been told by former Brits that there are in the order of 50 regional dialects in Britain. It is therefore not surprising that these homophone-type clues often do not play well in various regions of the UK — let alone travel well across the Atlantic.

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)

Signing off for this week - Falcon

Sunday, July 8, 2012 - ST 4489

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4489
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, June 10, 2012
Setter Tim Moorey
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4489]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, June 30, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, July 7, 2012

Introduction

I thought that this puzzle was a bit less difficult than some recent ones. However, I still needed to use my electronic assistants to complete it.

Notes 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.

1a   Heroin and cocaine increase quickly in intensity (8)

Snowball^[10] is a slang term for a mixture of heroin and cocaine.

9a   Food consists of say, chicken and ham but no starter (4)

In Britain, the first course of a meal is known as a starter^[5].

11a   Stifle supply or a form of it (6)

In the cryptic analysis, "supply" is not a noun meaning the action of providing what is needed or wanted but an adverb meaning in a supple manner.

12a   Friar's short trip for a Charterhouse store (4,4)

In Britain, tuck^[5] is food eaten by children at school as a snack and a tuck shop is a place which provides such items. Friar Tuck^[7] is a character who appears in the legend of Robin Hood. Charterhouse School^[7] is an English collegiate independent boarding school (also referred to as a public school [meaning it is a private school by North American standards]) situated at Godalming in Surrey.

16a   Nurses taking time off in Borders (4)

"Borders" likely refers to an outlet of the Borders bookstore chain. The British branch of this company went out of business in 2009 with the the American parent company following suit two years later.

19a   Check part of theatre sets for a second time (10)

The definition is "sets for a second time".

21a   Old battle-axe is prejudiced (8)

A partisan^[10] is a spear or pike with two opposing axe blades or spikes.

27a   Positive response repellent in fringes of Hackney? (4)

Hackney^[7] is a borough of London, England.

5d   Excuse something fool inserted in building toy (3,2,2)

A tit^[10] is a slang term for a despicable or unpleasant person. Is that the same thing as a fool?

8d   Amateur with two suits in abundance (1,4)

In Britain, a gogo^[4] means as much as one likes or galore • champagne à gogo. In North America, on the other hand, a gogo^[3] means In a fast and lively manner • dancing à gogo.

15d   It could be represented as spent, ate and succeeded (4,5)

In the cryptic analysis, succeeded^[5] must mean to have taken over a throne, office, or other position from (someone) as this is the sense in which it may be abbreviated as s^[5] .

20d   Left out in the cold, shivering in Gironde (7)

Gironde^[7] is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France. The Bordeaux wine region is in the Gironde.

22d   How the olde Tiger's Head may be written — till now (2,3)

The definition is "till now" and the wordplay is AS (how) + YE (the olde; i.e., an old-fashioned word meaning "the") + T (tiger's head; i.e., first letter of the word "tiger") producing the solution AS YET. "How" (in the cryptic analysis is a relative adverb meaning in any way in which • I’ll do business how I like.

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)

Signing off for this week - Falcon

Sunday, July 1, 2012 - ST 4488

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4488
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, June 3, 2012
Setter Dean Mayer (Anax)
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4488]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, June 23, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, June 30, 2012

Introduction

The Brits claim to have found this puzzle a bit on the easy side. That was certainly not true in my case, as Anax managed to stump me today. Even with the assistance of my electronic aids, I found myself unable to solve 1a and 1d. Once I had obtained the solution to 1a from Dave Perry's review, the answer to 1d did belatedly become clear to me (although I still was unable to explain the wordplay until I did some research in my British dictionaries).

Notes 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.

1a   Reality show act mostly profane – pensioner (8)

I don't watch much television in general, and virtually never watch so-called "reality" shows. That may explain my ignorance on the subject. While I was familiar with the term docudrama, I did not recall – while solving the puzzle – having heard of a docusoap (despite the word having appeared as the solution to a clue in a Daily Telegraph puzzle published in the National Post in September 2011). A docusoap^[4] is a television documentary series in which the lives of the people filmed are presented as entertainment or drama.

In Britain, OAP^[5] is an abbreviation for old-age pensioner. Dave Perry questions whether cuss is a synonym for profane (suggesting that they are not the same part of speech). However, profane can be used as a verb meaning to treat (something sacred) with irreverence or disrespect • it was a serious matter to profane a tomb.

5a   Foil "wrapping" to spoil bacon (6)

A flitch^[4] is a side of pork salted and cured.

9a   I'm surprised there's whisky on board this train (4-4)

Coo^[5] is an informal British exclamation used to express surprise • ‘Coo, ain’t it high!’ Mary squeaked. Collins English Dictionary tells us that hooch^[4] is mainly a US & Canadian term.

12a   Remove bone from joint cooked by Tesco and Aldi (9)

Tesco^[7], a British multinational grocery and general merchandise retailer, is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues (after Wal-Mart and Carrefour) and the second-largest measured by profits (after Wal-Mart). It has stores in 14 countries across Asia, Europe and North America and is the grocery market leader in the UK (where it has a market share of around 30%), Malaysia, the Republic of Ireland and Thailand. In North America, Tesco operates some 185 stores in Arizona, California and Nevada under the Fresh & Easy brand.

Aldi (short for "Albrecht Discount") is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany. The two individual company groups forming the chain were originally owned and managed by brothers Karl Albrecht and Theo Albrecht. Karl, now retired, is Germany's richest man. Theo was Germany's second richest man at the time of his death in 2010. Aldi has over 400 stores in the UK and more than 1000 in the United States (as well as several hundred more operating under the Trader Joe's banner).

13a   Bloke securing end of sale bargain (5)

Bloke^[5] and chap^[5] are, surely, well-known British terms for a man.
1d   River split by artificial crack (6)

The River Dee^[7] is a river in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It rises in the Cairngorms and flows through Strathdee (Deeside) to reach the North Sea at Aberdeen. Or, should you prefer, the River Dee^[7] is a river that travels through Wales and England and also forms part of the border between the two countries. This river rises in Snowdonia, Wales, flows east via Chester, England, and discharges to the sea into an estuary between Wales and the Wirral Peninsula in England. Should neither of these suit your taste, there are yet more choices on the River Dee^[7] menu. Cod is an informal British term meaning not authentic or fake • a cod Mittel-European accent.

2d   24 seconds to fill in puzzles like this one (5,6)

The number "24" is a cross reference to clue 24d. To reveal the full clue, insert the solution to 24d in place of the "24" in the current clue.

4d   Asda and Co-op rave about tropical fruit (7,5)

Asda^[7], a wholly-owned subsidiary of Wal-Mart, is a British supermarket chain. It is the UK's second largest chain by market share after Tesco. In December 2010, Asda's share of the UK grocery market stood at 16.5%.

The Co-operative Food^[7] (or Co-op) is a brand used for small shops and convenience stores by The Co-operative Group as well as by other independent consumer co-operatives in the United Kingdom. The Co-operative Group is the fifth largest food retailer in the United Kingdom where it operates over 3,300 stores of various sizes with the biggest geographical spread of any retailer.

In Britain, avocados are also known as avocado pears^[5].

7d   Worthless goods see you going short (3)

Tata^[5] is an informal British exclamation meaning goodbye • well, I’ll say ta-ta, love. Tat^[5] is an informal British term for tasteless or shoddy clothes, jewellery, or ornaments • the place was decorated with all manner of gaudy tat.

11d   Sweat out 21, sir (12)

Similar to what we saw in 2d, the number "21" here is a cross reference.

14d   See Spar and Lidi's casual footwear (11)

Spar^[7] is a retailer based in the Netherlands that operates approximately 12,500 grocery, convenience and discount stores in 35 countries worldwide (but none in North or South America), including more than 2,500 stores in the UK.

Lidl^[7] is a discount supermarket chain based in Germany that operates over 10,000 stores across Europe, including nearly 600 in the UK.

16d   Fine houses for spymaster, of course (2,7)

The definition is "of course" and the wordplay is {NOBLE (fine) containing (houses) PRO (for)} + M (spymaster)} giving NO PROBLEM. Actually, it did give me a problem. I got the solution easily enough – but failed to comprehend the wordplay until I read Dave Perry's review. In Ian Fleming's James Bond series, M^[7] is the fictional Head of the Secret Intelligence Service—also known as MI6.

17d   Posh, intuitive sophistication, according to Spooner (3,5)

For a change, posh is not U. Cut glass^[10] is a seemingly British term denoting (with respect to an accent) upper-class or refined. Reverend Spooner^[7] would undoubtedly have mangled this into GUT (intuitive; as an adjective) + CLASS (sophistication).

22d   Too old for Euro beat (5)

I devoted a lot of fruitless effort in a vain attempt to make PULSE work here.

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)

Happy Canada Day - Falcon