Sunday, December 16, 2012 - ST 4512

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4512
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, November 18, 2012
Setter Dean Mayer (Anax)
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4512]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, December 8, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, December 15, 2012
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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Times for the Times
Notes This puzzle appears on the Sunday Puzzles pages in the Saturday, December 15, 2012 edition of The Ottawa Citizen.

Introduction

As you can see from the chart above, I made very minimal progress before calling in the reinforcements to help with today's puzzle. Even with their assistance, it proved to be a challenging and mind-stretching exercise — but a lot of fun, nonetheless.

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.

Across

1a   Suit covered in salt sent back to be repaired (9)

6a   Dead fish all over lake (4)

8a   Poet’s house given to nation (6)

Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65 BC – 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace^[7], was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.

9a   End of bit coming down drill (8)

10a   Unknown form of organic nitrate (5,9)

11a   Supply lines for start of military exercise (6)

I learn from Dave Perry that the wordplay — which I completely failed to decipher — is PRO (for) + M (start [first letter] of Military) + PT (exercise; physical training).

13a   Get  a bargain (8)

15a   Road menace obviously gutted if trapped by strong drink (3,5)

Boy racer^[5], is British slang for a youth or young man fond of driving very fast and aggressively in high-powered cars ⇒ (i) the car is the dream of every boy racer; (ii) [as modifier] the company’s series of ‘boy-racer’ machines has proved highly successful.

17a   Chap, apparently owing money, put away (6)

This clue contains a rather devious cryptic crossword device. To solve the clue, one must first replace a phrase appearing in the clue with a phrase having the same meaning. Another term for "owing money" is 'in the red', making the phrase "apparently owing money"  equivalent to 'seen to be in the red'. Thus the wordplay is MAN (chap) contained in (seen to be in) RED.

19a   7 17 — he hurt me a lot? (5,3,6)

The numerals (7 and 17) are cross-references to other clues. To unveil the full clue, one must first solve the cross-referenced clues and then substitute the solutions to those clues in place of the cross-reference indicators. Thus this clue becomes:

• Lunatic remand — he hurt me a lot? (5,3,6)

The wordplay is an anagram (lunatic) of REMAND HE HURT ME. The definition is "a lot?" with the question mark indicating that this is a definition by example — "a lot" (at an auction) being something that is UNDER THE HAMMER.

22a   Dictator, ultimately from animated cartoon (8)

23a   Natural part of black cherry (6)

24a   Sound from bolted shaft (4)

25a   Unite? Yes, and break up midweek (9)

Down

1d   Chicken or duck in a roll (7)

In cricket, a duck^[5] is a batsman’s score of nought [zero] ⇒ he was out for a duck. In cryptic crossword puzzles, duck is used to indicate the letter "O" based on the resemblance of the numeral "0" to this letter.

2d   Lead around locks (5)

Circa (abbreviation c. or ca)^[5] is a Latin word that has been adopted into English. It is a preposition (often used preceding a date) meaning approximately [or around] ⇒ the church was built circa 1860.

3d   Opening of cage after funny line — it’s a stiff! (9)

4d   Island? Oops! (1,5,9)

The definition is "Oops!" — something that one might say upon realizing that they had made a mistake. The wordplay is "island?" — where the question mark is crucial. It indicates that the solution is something that "island" might be. Had one initially misspelled this word as ISTAND, then ISLAND would be ISTAND CORRECTED.

5d   Relief for Australian when mounting copy (5)

I never did find the solution here, as I had never heard of this copying process and I was also convinced that we needed to find some obscure bit of Australian slang.

The wordplay is a reversal (when mounting; it being a down clue) of OZ (Australian) + AID (relief). I hate to reveal how much time I wasted scanning glossaries of Australian slang for a term meaning "relief".

Diazo^[7] refers to a type of organic compound called diazo compound that has two linked nitrogen atoms (azo) as a terminal functional group. Diazo^[5] (also diazotype) is also the name of a copying or colouring process using a diazo compound decomposed by ultraviolet light ⇒ [as modifier] diazo printers. This process also goes by the names whiteprinting^[7] or blue-line process [not to be confused with the blueprint process]. Whiteprinting [blue-lining] replaced the blueprint process in reproducing architect's and engineer's drawings, because the process was simpler, and involved fewer toxic chemicals. A blue-line print [whiteprint] is not permanent and will fade if exposed to light for weeks or months, but for many purposes a drawing print that lasts only a few months is sufficient.

6d   Problem at the address of sister’s house (9)

While I arrived at the correct solution, I had no idea why. The only piece that was clear to me was NUN (sister). As Dave Perry explains, "at the address of" is used to clue C/O (in care of) and drum^[5] is British slang meaning a house or flat [apartment].

7d   Fifty nuts in a cut fruitcake (7)

L^[5] is the Roman numeral for 50.

12d   The end of it is — in this (5,4)

14d   River mole in simple story (9)

16d   To have an object that the opposition may thank you for? (3,4)

In soccer, an own goal^[5] is a goal scored when a player inadvertently strikes or deflects the ball into their own team’s goal. The term is also used informally in Britain to describe an act that unintentionally harms one’s own interests ⇒ government scores own goal by assisting organized crime in London.

18d   9 November Surrey riots (7)

The numeral 9 is a cross-reference to clue 9a whose solution serves as the definition for this clue. November^[5] is a code word representing the letter N, used in radio communication. I'm not sure whether the surface reading refers an actual instance of rioting in Surrey. A Google search was dominated by hits related to the involvement of individuals from Surrey, British Columbia in the 2011 Vancouver Stanley Cup riot^[7].

20d   Light rug  put on floor (5)

21d   4 by turning into 7 (2,3)

Again we have a clue containing a pair of cross-reference indicators. Fleshed out, it becomes:

• I stand corrected by turning into lunatic (2,3)

The definition is "I stand corrected" — with the solution being a slangy modern day version of something that might be said when one's error becomes evident. The wordplay is a reversal (turning ...) of BY contained in (... into) MAD (lunatic). The phrase "turning into" serves the dual purposes of reversal indicator and containment indicator (which is why I have inserted the ellipses).

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, December 9, 2012 - ST 4511

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4511
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, November 11, 2012
Setter Jeff Pearce
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4511]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, December 1, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, December 8, 2012
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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Times for the Times
Notes This puzzle appears on the Sunday Puzzles pages in the Saturday, December 8, 2012 edition of The Ottawa Citizen.

Introduction

Perhaps I am having an off day, but this puzzle severely tried my 1a. I usually find some redeeming quality about any puzzle but I found that this one really did not provide much enjoyment. What with obscure words (such as the solution to 14a) and wordplay that I couldn't fathom, it was a hard struggle to try and reach the finish line — and, in the end, I collapsed just short of 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.

Across

1a   Meat spread contains nice minced game (8)

In Britain, patience^[5] is any of various forms of card game for one player, the object of which is to use up all one’s cards by forming particular arrangements and sequences. The North American name for this game is solitaire^[5]. In Britain, solitaire^[5] is a game for one player played by removing pegs one at a time from a board by jumping others over them from adjacent holes, the object being to be left with only one peg.

5a   Returning to endlessly taunt and scold somebody (6)

From the latter two checking letters, it seemed that the solution must be either BIGWIG or EARWIG, but,  try as I might, I could make no case for either.

Wig^[5] is an informal and dated British term meaning to rebuke (someone) severely ⇒ I had often occasion to wig him for getting drunk.

10a/11a   Dray- horses like to roam around scenic area (9,5)

The Yorkshire Dales^[7] (also known as simply The Dales) is an upland area of Northern England dissected by numerous valleys. Most of the area falls within the Yorkshire Dales National Park, created in 1954 and now one of the fifteen National parks of Britain.

12a   Batting? Get help with spin if against them! (5)

In cricket, in^[5] signifies batting ⇒ which side is in?. The wordplay is IN (batting) + (get) a reversal (with spin) of AID (help). Although I have underlined the word "them" as being the definition, this word would really seem to be inadequate on its own to serve as a definition. Therefore, I would think that the entire clue must provide the definition. thereby making this a type of all-in-one clue known as wordplay intertwined with definition (WIWD).

13a   Academic in favour of encasing ship in iron and gold (9)

As is typically the case in cryptic crosswords, the ship referred to in the clue turns out to be a steamship (abbreviation SS^[5]).

The symbol for the chemical element iron is Fe^[5]. Or^[5] is gold or yellow, as a heraldic tincture. In heraldry, a tincture^[5] is any of the conventional colours (including the metals and stains, and often the furs) used in coats of arms.

14a   Virtually complete time machine — order for a many- legged creature (10)

The TARDIS^[7] (Time and Relative Dimension in Space) is a time machine and spacecraft in the British science fiction television programme Doctor Who and its associated spin-offs. A properly maintained and piloted TARDIS can transport its occupants to any point in time and any place in the universe. The interior of a TARDIS is much larger than its exterior, which can blend in with its surroundings using the ship's "chameleon circuit". In the series, the central character (known simply as the Doctor) pilots an unreliable, obsolete TT Type 40, Mark 3 TARDIS. Its chameleon circuit is faulty, leaving it stuck in the shape of a 1960s-style London police box after a visit to London in 1963.

A tardigrade^[7] (commonly known as waterbear or moss piglet) is a small, water-dwelling, segmented animal with eight legs.

17a   Extra  roomy (4)

In cricket, an extra^[5] is a run scored other than from a hit with the bat, credited to the batting side rather than to a batsman. A wide^[5] is a ball that is judged to be too wide of the stumps for the batsman to play, for which an extra is awarded to the batting side.

19a   Spot mole on middle of green (4)

20a   Harsh American requiring strict attention to the rules (10)

22a   Maybe last person to run chilly port has staff for a long time? (9)

I did manage to arrive at the correct solution — once I had sufficient checking letters. Nevertheless, I had absolutely no idea with regard to working of the wordplay.

Anchorage^[5] is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska.

24a   Behind back of loo there’s grim pong (5)

Pong^[5] is British slang which, as a noun, denotes a strong, unpleasant smell • corked wine has a powerful pong and, as a verb, means to smell strongly and unpleasantly • the place just pongs of dirty clothes.

26a   Clubs are things for an evening out (5)

The second definition here ("things for an evening out") is cryptic and means 'things for taking the wrinkles out (of clothing, for instance)'.

27a   Explain salute with weapon to some soldiers at the front (9)

Present arms^[5] means to hold a rifle vertically in front of the body as a salute. The Corps of Royal Engineers (RE)^[5] is the field engineering and construction corps of the British army.

28a   Write note on old healthy drink (6)

Today, we get the common North American spelling ti which, for the Brits, would likely be a variation from the more common spelling in Britain, te^[5]. Sane^[5] has the obsolete or archaic meaning of healthy.

29a   Priest carries coffee and then small dishes (8)

Down

1d   Masseur happiest when relaxing with history (15)

2d   After time, one wine’s stale (5)

3d   Extremely euphoric and still over the moon (8)

4d   Primate takes one elected person beneath holy building (5)

6d   Where bat is put to get discussed? Yes (6)

This is yet another instance in which I got the correct solution without understanding why (at least, until I had read Dave Perry's review).

7d   Flags on top of Headingley anger county (9)

Headingley^[7] is a suburb of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. Its major claim to fame would appear to be as the location of Headingley Stadium^[7], home of home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie (formerly known as Leeds Tykes). Wiltshire (abbreviation Wilts.)^[5] is a county of southern England.

8d   When touring station register complaint (15)

I have seen "touring" (bases on the meaning 'going around') used as a containment indicator. However, today's setter chooses to use it as an anagram indicator, presumably based on "touring" meaning 'moving around'.

9d   Instrument Queen used on an album (8)

By tradition, the ciphers (monograms) of British monarchs use initials formed from the Latin version of their first name followed by either Rex or Regina (Latin for king or queen, respectively). Thus the cipher of Queen Elizabeth is ER^[5] — from the Latin Elizabetha Regina.

15d   Greedy au pair with cos salad (9)

A salad typically being a mixture of ingredients, and thus constituting an anagram indicator.

16d   She got up to get betrothed right away! (8)

18d   Cheeky bathers here off Hampshire? (8)

The Solent^[7] is a strait separating the Isle of Wight from the county of Hampshire on the mainland of England. Thus someone swimming off Hampshire would find themselves "in Solent".

21d   Heart of French fish extracted for toxin (6)

The French word for fish is poisson^[10].

23d   North- eastern China is a hilly part of asia (5)

Nepal^[7] is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India.

In Britain, china^[5] is an informal term for a friend (or, as the Brits would say, a mate^[5]). This comes from Cockney rhyming slang, where china is the shortened form of china plate which rhymes with 'mate'.

25d   Without cycle training Seb Coe would get chubby (5)

Sebastian Coe^[7], often known as Seb Coe, is a British former athlete and politician. As a middle-distance runner, Coe won four Olympic medals, including the 1500 metres gold medal at the Olympic Games in 1980 and 1984. Following his retirement from athletics, he was a Member of Parliament for the Conservative Party from 1992–97, and became a Life Peer in 2000. He headed the successful London bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympics and became chairman of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games. He is currently a vice-president of the International Association of Athletics Federations as well as chairman of the British Olympic Association.

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, December 2, 2012 - ST 4510

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4510
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, November 4, 2012
Setter Tim Moorey
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4510]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, November 24, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, December 1, 2012
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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Times for the Times
Notes This puzzle appears on the Sunday Puzzles pages in the Saturday, December 1, 2012 edition of The Ottawa Citizen.

Introduction

I got off to a slow start but made steady progress once I had established a toehold. However, the last half dozen clues proved to be extremely stubborn and mounted a vigorous challenge that gave me a strenuous workout — even with the aid of my electronic helpers. I could get nowhere against 19a — although it does not seem so daunting in hindsight.

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.

Across

1a   Close relative holding small, prepared fur (8)

I concluded that the definition is "prepared fur" based on sealskin^[10] being the skin or pelt of a fur seal, especially when dressed with the outer hair removed and the underfur dyed dark brown.

5a   Troublesome kid has teaspoonful by mistake (6)

Collins English Dictionary tells us that t.^[10] is the abbreviation for teaspoon(ful). Let's hope no cook mistakes it for ton!

10a   A barrier put around unfinished tomb in compound (9)

11a   Cycle with a couple on island such as this (5)

Capri^[10] is an island off W Italy, in the Bay of Naples that has been a resort since Roman times. Technically, the definition is "this" which, of course, is a demonstrative pronoun referring back to "island". This device allows "island" to effectively perform double duty (serving as part of the word play as well as being the definition) without actually doing so.

12a   Part of chair back left in row (5)

13a   Opener coming from Irish city second team (9)

Cork^[10] is a city and port in S Republic of Ireland, county town of County Cork, at the mouth of the River Lee.

14a   Each walking purposefully in part of Yorkshire (4,6)

East Riding of Yorkshire^[10] is a county of NE England, a historical division of Yorkshire on the North Sea and the Humber estuary.

17a   Fly recklessly leaving Lord behind (4)

In Britain, fly^[5] is an informal term meaning knowing and clever ⇒ she’s fly enough not to get tricked out of it.

19a   Mean adult from the east giving present? No (4)

I guess I developed a severe mental block on this clue as I failed to decipher it even with the help of all the electronic assistance that I could muster. The definition is "present? No" which, of course, denotes the opposite of present — or, in other words, absent.

20a   Ghastliest works? Burns (4,6)

22a   What some alcohol reformers might do in grounds (9)

Note that a superfluous S has sneaked into the solution given in Dave Perry's review. One's position on an issue might be based on specific grounds or a particular rationale.

24a   Course, one that’s not English (5)

Ascot Racecourse^[7] is a famous English racecourse, located in the small town of Ascot, Berkshire, used for thoroughbred horse racing. It is one of the leading racecourses in the United Kingdom, hosting 9 of the UK's 32 annual Group 1 races. The course is closely associated with the British Royal Family, being approximately six miles from Windsor Castle.

"One that's not English" might be a Canadian, or a Dane ... or "a Scot".

26a   Stones hit making a comeback on disc (5)

27a   Boldness going wrong in Democrat party (7- 2)

28a   Given recurrent idea in southern sea (6)

From a British standpoint, "the Med" (Mediterranean) would be considered a "southern sea". Unfortunately, I spent virtually all of my time searching for a large body of water in the Southern Hemisphere.

29a   Final courses, flipping tense (8)

In the surface reading, flipping^[5] is an informal British expression used for emphasis or to express mild annoyance ⇒ (i) are you out of your flipping mind?; (ii) [as submodifier] it’s flipping cold today.

Down

1d   Where to find sad train-spotter getting lost? (8,7)

This is a kind of semi all-in-one (semi &lit.) clue that Scchua, one of my fellow bloggers on Big Dave's Crossword Blog, likes to describe as 'wordplay intertwined with definition' (WIWD). The entire clue serves as the definition with a portion of the clue ("sad train-spotter getting lost") constituting the wordplay — an anagram (getting lost) of SAD TRAINSPOTTER.

In Britain, a trainspotter^[5] is a person who collects train or locomotive numbers as a hobby. The term is also used, often in a derogatory fashion, for a person who obsessively studies the minutiae of any minority interest or specialized hobby ⇒ the idea is to make the music really really collectable so the trainspotters will buy it in their pathetic thousands.

Here the setter appears to have based his spelling of "train-spotter"^[2] on Chambers (which spells it with a hyphen). Oxford spells it as a single word^[5], while Collins has it as either a single word or two separate words (without a hyphen)^[10].

London Stansted Airport^[7] is a passenger airport located at Stansted Mountfitchet in the local government district of Uttlesford in Essex, 48 km (30 mi) northeast of Central London. Stansted is a hub for a number of major European low-cost carriers, being the largest base for low-cost giant Ryanair with over 100 destinations served by the airline. In 2011, it was the fourth busiest airport in the United Kingdom after Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester.

The clue indicates that a trainspotter might be rather unhappy should he get lost and find himself at Stansted Airport. However, all might not be lost. He could seemingly engage in his pastime at the Stansted Airport railway station^[7].

2d   Theatre supporter, a name back stage (5)

3d   Leading act is surprise on vessel (4,4)

Star turn is a British name for the person or performance that is the most interesting or exciting^[10] or the person or act that gives the most heralded or impressive performance in a programme^[5] ⇒ (i) he was stopped by the arrival on stage of the star turn; (ii) she was the star turn of the night.

4d   Tax- efficient investment on account for Sarah’s son (5)

In the Bible, Isaac^[5] is a Hebrew patriarch, son of Abraham and Sarah and father of Jacob and Esau. ISA^[10] is an acronym for individual savings account: a tax-free savings scheme introduced in Britain in 1999.

6d   Cop out? Former case of sabotage keeps copper in (6)

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

7d   Recording left in Niger accidentally (9)

8d   It’s a slow train? Ay, change for Charing Cross and Queen Street perhaps (7,8)

Charing Cross railway station^[7], also known as London Charing Cross, is a central London railway terminus in the City of Westminster, England. It is the fifth busiest rail terminal in London.

Glasgow Queen Street^[7] is a railway station in Glasgow, Scotland, the smaller of the city's two main line railway termini and the third-busiest station in Scotland. Cardiff Queen Street railway station^[7] in Cardiff, Wales is the second busiest railway station in Wales.

9d   One finally invested in bank that’s lost sense of direction (8)

Barings Bank^[7] (1762 to 1995) was the oldest merchant bank in London, founded and owned by the German-origined Baring family. The bank collapsed in 1995 after one of the bank's employees, Nick Leeson, lost £827 million ($1.3 billion) due to speculative investing, primarily in futures contracts, at the bank's Singapore office.

Thus, the phrase "bank that's lost" could be interpreted in either of two fashions. It might mean a 'bank that has lost [money] — big time!' or a 'bank that is lost (no longer exists)'.

15d   Type of broadcast that doesn’t get much of a greeting? (5,4)

16d   Fan had rides in blimps (8)

In Britain, a blimp^[10] (or Colonel Blimp) is a person, especially a military officer, who is stupidly complacent and reactionary. The term is based on a character created by Sir David Low (1891–1963), New Zealand-born British political cartoonist. In North America, a blimp^[5] is a fat person ⇒ I could work out four hours a day and still end up a blimp. Diehard^[5] is noun (often used as a modifier) that refers to a person who strongly opposes change or who continues to support something in spite of opposition ⇒ (i) my stepfather was a diehard Republican; (ii)a diehard Yankees fan.

18d   Jump into suits? Not for these cinemas (8)

I must admit that I totally overlooked the containment type wordplay in this clue. Instead, I supposed that it was merely a cryptic definition alluding to the fact that one would not bother putting on a suit before going to such a place of entertainment. I think this could be considered another wordplay intertwined with definition type clue where the entire clue serves as a cryptic definition and a portion of the clue constitutes the wordplay. Fleapit^[5] is an informal British term for a dingy, dirty place, especially a run-down cinema.

21d   Sweet American appearing in some cast (6)

In Britain, sweet^[5] is another name for pudding or dessert.

23d   Look around outskirts of Rimini for a top spot (5)

25d   Smoke fish, one caught up in leading position (5)

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

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, November 25, 2012 - ST 4509

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4509
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, October 28, 2012
Setter Dean Mayer (Anax)
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4509]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, November 17, 2012
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, November 24, 2012
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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Times for the Times
Notes This puzzle appears on the Sunday Puzzles pages in the Saturday, November 25, 2012 edition of The Ottawa Citizen. The Date of Publication in the Toronto Star is unconfirmed as there is no entry for this date on the Saturday Star Cryptic Forum blog.

Introduction

As a glance at the chart above will reveal, I had not made much headway on solving this puzzle when I ordered my electronic reinforcements into action today. I found the puzzle to be both very challenging and very enjoyable — and consequently there was a feeling of immense satisfaction and great accomplishment when it was completed.

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.

Across

1a   Floor covering exchanged for sack cloth? (7)

The definition ("sack cloth") is cryptic (as indicated by the question mark). To defrock^[10] is to deprive (a person in holy orders) of ecclesiastical status; i.e., to fire (or sack) a member of the clergy. The cloth^[10] is another term for the clergy. The clue would seem to be a slight stretch given that the term "the cloth" means the clergy as a profession and not an individual clergyman. However, the setter has inserted a question mark which could be interpreted as an indication that the definition is not only cryptic, but also a little bit loose.

5a   “Blind” is not a word to say (7)

9a   Starts to show girl clothing for baby (5)

Sprog^[5,10] is an informal and humorous British term which can mean (as a noun) a child or baby or (as a verb) to have a baby.

10a   In making 3000 from 1000, 1000 is shaky (9)

11a   Unfriendly person’s absurd rationale (9)

13a   Material written in testimony, longhand (5)

14a   Cause of sand moving around in Lord of the Rings (9,5)

Longshore drift^[10] is the process whereby beach material is gradually shifted laterally as a result of waves meeting the shore at an oblique angle.

17a   A clan held tight wild animals they own? (8,6)

19a   I call on one Catholic to return (5)

20a   Those opening The Van Dyke Show will eat 16 set meals? (2,7)

The number 16 is a cross reference to clue 16 (16d as this is the only clue numbered 16 in today's puzzle). Insert the solution to clue 16d in place of the cross reference indicator to obtain the complete clue.

22a   Regularly issued arrest warrant, lacking initial restraint (9)

24a   A particular diet for one in front (5)

25a   Shock? Not half, having left us extra (7)

26a   Curiosity here — fictional computer guide (7)

Down

1d   Trifling in amateur work, not very well (8)

2d   An MP’s power, given little in advance (7,8)

As a foreign minister is just one particular MP drawn from the ranks of the many who are elected to Parliament, one might have expected the clue to contain some indication that this is a definition by example (DBE).

3d   Sports car maker’s lead-free vehicle (5)

I initially fell for the trap, trying to find an auto manufacturer that I could remove PB from (Pb^[5] being the symbol for the chemical element lead), leaving the name of a vehicle.

The Morgan Motor Company^[7] is a British motor car manufacturer. Morgan is based in Malvern, Worcestershire and employs 163 people. Morgan produced 640 cars in 2007. All its cars are assembled by hand. The waiting list for a car is approximately one to two years, although it has been as high as ten years in the past.

Vehicle^[10] is used in the sense of a medium for the expression, communication, or achievement of ideas, information, power, etc.

4d   In strip poker, being completely undressed leads to sex (3)

In this instance, I managed to decipher the wordplay but missed the definition. I knew that, in Britain, kit^[5] means the clothing used for an activity such as a sport (i.e., what North Americans would call a uniform). However, I was not aware that the British refer to the identifying outfit worn by the members of a sports team while playing (i.e., uniform) as their strip ⇒ the team’s away strip is a garish mix of red, white, and blue.

5d   Led, as a bird would in race (11)

6d   University bar near a free city (5,4)

7d   Bumpy or flatter things might conflict? (5,2,8)

8d   Queen of a country in revolution (6)

12d   Matt Newton’s new camping gear (3- 3,5)

15d   Round tours around welcoming hotel at Morecambe (9)

John Eric Bartholomew (1926 – 1984), known by his stage name Eric Morecambe^[7], was an English comedian who together with Ernie Wise formed the award-winning double act Morecambe and Wise. The partnership lasted from 1941 until Morecambe's death of a heart attack in 1984. Eric took his stage name from his home town, the seaside resort of Morecambe.

16d   A child, almost completely offensive? (8)

Here I thought that child was being used as a special instance of person (just as foreign minister was used as a special instance of an MP in 2d). At least here, I said to myself, the setter has indicated the DBE with a question mark. However, Dave Perry points out that the wordplay is, in part, PER (a) + SON (child) — as in "the fee for the school trip is $5.00 a child".

18d   Failed flier is keeping wheels up half- way (6)

In Greek mythology, Icarus^[7] was the son of Daedalus, who escaped from Crete using wings made by his father but was killed when he flew too near the sun and the wax attaching his wings melted.

21d   I refuse runs yet will run around (5)

The solution is how someone might emphatically express their refusal to do something.

23d   Tiller must not feature hard wood (3)

H^[5] is the abbreviation for hard, as used in describing grades of pencil lead ⇒ a 2H pencil.

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, November 18, 2012 - ST 4508

Puzzle at a Glance

Puzzle Number in The Sunday Times ST 4508
Date of Publication in The Sunday Times Sunday, October 21, 2012
Setter Jeff Pearce
Link to Full Review Times for the Times [ST 4508]
Times for the Times Review Written By Dave Perry
Date of Publication in the Toronto Star Saturday, November 10, 2012 [unconfirmed]
Date of Publication in the Vancouver Sun Saturday, November 17, 2012
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 █ - unsolved or incorrect prior to visiting Times for the Times
Notes This puzzle appears on the Sunday Puzzles pages in the Saturday, November 17, 2012 edition of The Ottawa Citizen. The Date of Publication in the Toronto Star is unconfirmed as there is no entry for this date on the Saturday Star Cryptic Forum blog.

Introduction

The Brits would appear to have found this puzzle to be easier than last week's offering. For myself, it was definitely the reverse. Perhaps my mind was overtaxed from having already solved and reviewed last week's puzzle earlier today. I did manage to do quite well in three quadrants, but the southeast was a disaster as I was able to make virtually no inroads there until I ordered my electronic assistants into action.

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.

Across

1a   See 24 down

5a   Food with bread, followed by sponge (7)

A rollmop^[10] is a herring fillet rolled, usually around onion slices, and pickled in spiced vinegar.

9a   Nasty pirate left in base (9)

10a   German painter reveals one of his articles about old city (5)

Albrecht Dürer^[5] (1471–1528) was a German engraver and painter. Der^[7] is a form of the German definite article (used in several declensions). Ur^[5] was an ancient Sumerian city located on the Euphrates, in southern Iraq.

11a   On bed find a collar (6)

Being chiefly an historical term, a bertha^[5] is a deep collar, typically made of lace, attached to the top of a dress that has a low neckline.

12a   In spite of everything, being behind American lines (5,3)

14a   Start to lecture a French rustic without it being rude (10)

Un^[8] is the masculine singular form of the French indefinite article.

16a   Small can at back of pantry (4)

18a   Biting  a type of pie (4)

19a   Stupid cop alarmed tall African (10)

Camelopard^[5] is an archaic name for a giraffe.

22a   Extremely trendy suit (2,6)

23a   Criticised journo following second drink (6)

Journo^[5] is an informal term for a journalist ⇒ the journos were there in force to see them play.

26a   Goes off when retreating — before military’s first assault (5)

27a   Great painter  soon to leave school? (3,6)

This may be more of a cryptic definition than a double definition. For it to be a double definition, one must infer that the second part of the wordplay is "(someone) soon to leave school". In Britain, a male school teacher is called a master^[5].

28a   Refused to go topless and was thrown out (7)

29a   Ambassador finally visits poor inmate in the Tower (7)

The surface reading seemingly alludes to Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London^[7], is a historic castle (and UNESCO World Heritage Site) on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It was founded towards the end of 1066 as part of the Norman Conquest of England.

Down

1d   Copper carries a bone of small animal (7)

Cu^[5], is the symbol for the chemical element copper. Note that the setter uses the expression "of small" (short for of) to clue the letter O. We see o'^[5] used as a short form for of in expressions such as "a cup o' coffee".

2d   It’s great to drink with the Queen (5)

As a verb, sup^[5] is a dated or Northern English dialect term meaning to take (drink or liquid food) by sips or spoonfuls ⇒ (i) she supped up her soup delightedly; (ii) he was supping straight from the bottle. As a noun, it means (1) a sip of liquid ⇒ he took another sup of wine or (2) in Northern England or Ireland, an alcoholic drink ⇒ the latest sup from those blokes at the brewery.

The cipher (monogram) of Queen Elizabeth is comprised of the initials ER^[5] — from the Latin version of her name and title, Elizabetha Regina.

3d   Man’s surroundings? (5,3)

The Isle of Man (abbreviation IOM)^[5] is an island in the Irish Sea which is a British Crown dependency.

4d   Look happy when dull work is nearly done (4)

5d   Position band may take at the match (4,6)

6d   There’s large snake — run! (6)

In the UK, a ladder^[5] is a vertical strip of unravelled fabric in tights or stockings • one of Sally’s stockings developed a ladder. The term run^[5] is characterised by the Oxford Dictionary of English as being chiefly North American – but apparently not too much so for the Brits to be expected to know it.

7d   A girl put on weight but knocked back drink (9)

8d   Discussion about small plant used in cooking (7)

13d   What a car with speedo going crazy may turn into! (6,4)

In this semi & lit. clue, speedo^[5] is an informal term for a speedometer — not a man’s brief, tight swimming trunks. In Britain, an escape road^[5] is a slip road, especially on a racing circuit, for a vehicle to turn into if the driver is unable to negotiate a bend or slope safely. Slip road^[5] is a British term for a road entering or leaving a dual carriageway^[5] [a road with a dividing strip between the traffic in opposite directions and usually two or more lanes in each direction] or motorway^[5] [a dual-carriageway road designed for fast traffic, with relatively few places for joining or leaving].

15d   Fairies manage tube with mirrors (9)

In Persian mythology, a peri^[5] is a mythical superhuman being, originally represented as evil but subsequently as a good or graceful genie or fairy.

17d   Spring in a futon needs altering (8)

18d   English school in dull Italian port (7)

20d   Philosopher’s leader in daily upset editor (7)

Denis Diderot^[5] (1713–84) was French philosopher, writer, and critic and a leading figure of the Enlightenment in France.

21d   Rodent’s limb carried by climbing cat (6)

24d/1a   Horrific scene with upright actor (5,7)

Peter Cushing^[7] (1913 – 1994) was an English actor, known for his many appearances in films produced by the British studio Hammer Films, in which he played the distinguished-looking but sinister scientist Baron Frankenstein and the vampire hunter Dr. Van Helsing, amongst many other roles, often appearing opposite Christopher Lee, and occasionally Vincent Price.

25d   Invented something to have with crackers (4)

I figured that Edam would go well with crackers but the wordplay eluded me. However, if one were to replace the word "invented" by the equivalent term "made up", the answer would immediately become obvious.

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