Daily Answers

8-across – An expensive buy, but it’s only money – on the contrary! : CASHMERE

9-across – Singer Roy hasn’t a b___ prayer! : ORISON

10-across – To make an impact, walk out : STRIKE

11-across – Seek disturbance around water such as this? : SEAQUAKE

12-across – Stake decapitating infernal poet : ANTE

13-across – A lamb seen frolicking with a sailor : ABLESEAMAN

15-across – A powerful story is pleasant : AFFABLE

16-across – Antelopes slide goat backwards : DIKDIKS

18-across – Cooked with oil around dish, no part is stewed with a thick white sauce : FRICASSEED

19-across – Pen sound, but able to write? : OINK

20-across – Sneak up to players making an impression on the beach : WORMCAST

22-across – Harvey Smith’s chevrons? : VSIGNS

23-across – Hang around with children’s author : POTTER

24-across – Customer in a restaurant? : CONSUMER

1-down – Two to go infra dig, perhaps, in play : WAITINGFORGODOT

2-down – Play Of Mice and Men that he produced to entertain company : THEICEMANCOMETH

3-down – Swedes, possibly in love, get a blessing : VEGETABLES

4-down – Kind of strength in numbers – priest overthrown : TENSILE

5-down – Virtually tax-free star : NOVA

6-down – Terribly industrious : TITUSANDRONICUS

7-down – Play Ankoolger? : LOOKBACKINANGER

14-down – Submarine activity seen in Germany in avoidance of duty : SKINDIVING

17-down – Leaves character, but not the last retiring copper arrested : LETTUCE

21-down – Crooked as a grass, we hear : AWRY

1-across – Cook holding plate in acknowledgment : SALUTE

4-across – Nothing but diamonds after 13 : JUSTICE

9-across – Number 0 in hell, deep and hollow : CAVERNOUS

10-across – Game on the hearth : POKER

11-across – Opera is a standard article : NORMA

12-across – Acknowledgment between god and fool after 4 : PANTALOON

13-across – After 2, I come in to join with iron : SOLDIER

15-across – See 29 : WORLDS

17-across – Part I doing time in the cooler : INFANT

19-across – Northern light with round number in capital : POLARIS

22-across – After 17, he’s inspired by holy Bosco : SCHOOLBOY

24-across – Ruler not of uniform habit? : MUFTI

26-across – Another name for animal, I assume : ALIAS

27-across – Last after singular 1 down, rebuked about funny little old house : CHILDHOOD

28-across – Choose backing of gold plate : ELECTRO

29-across – : ALLTHE

1-down – Time out before rounds : SECONDS

2-down – After 22, 29 15 his : LOVER

3-down – Zaire tram refurbished in poetic form : TERZARIMA

4-down – Recently obtained present at the fair? : JUSTNOW

5-down – Cuttlefish’s relation in water : SEPIA

6-down – Cuttlefish well, perhaps: elk or hind poorly : INKHOLDER

7-down – Message the Queen carried to the Duke : ERRAND

8-down – Port or cocktail causes semi-comatose state : TORPOR

14-down – Midday meal starts inside in the UCL mess : LUNCHTIME

16-down – Part new railway requires exemplar : ROLEMODEL

18-down – Explorer turns up with gas for pipe : TOBACCO

19-down – Film about shy characters taking medicine : PHYSIC

20-down – Warm air sent to the French is a fraud : SWINDLE

21-down – See 29 : ASTAGE

23-down – Beginning to be occupying 21? : ONSET

25-down – Jack’s a disappointment : FROST

8-across – Wellington, for instance, had to show guile : AIRCRAFT

9-across – Stand by for armed robbery? On the contrary : UPHOLD

10-across – 25 with flavour rolled over : GNAT

11-across – 25 on what? In hat? : TREEHOPPER

12-across – A Hackney revolutionary at the Guardian? You can count on it! : ABACUS

14-across – Capitalist recluse entertains Spanish gentleman : LONDONER

15-across – 25 with long legs, for instance? : CRICKET

17-across – 25 offering 25 to beast : ANTLION

20-across – Asian city state crossed by reservists : CALCUTTA

22-across – European city that’s wild and free : MADRID

23-across – 25 thrashing Real 22 : REDADMIRAL

24-across – Consider, some 14s might say, being a spy : FINK

25-across – Creature having been brainwashed? : INSECT

26-across – A hundred left in pretty Devon village : CLOVELLY

1-down – 25 caught drinking, reportedly : CINNABAR

2-down – One such as William Wallace, of course, decapitated : SCOT

3-down – 25 being its mutant : MANTIS

4-down – Play game : OTHELLO

5-down – US President heading off a lot into kind of republic, endlessly : BUCHANAN

6-down – Sings, getting drunk and worn : SHOPSOILED

7-down – Bit of a jumper, holding the record? : SLEEVE

13-down – 25 sees dog imbibing beverage loudly : COCKCHAFER

16-down – Teatime’s wobbly hazard : ESTIMATE

18-down – 25 continuing to charge 24 down, we hear : ONIONFLY

19-down – Taunt outlaw on instrument of torture : BARRACK

21-down – Getting on a horse, in German one’s restrained : AGEING

22-down – Mature chap, male not female : MELLOW

24-down – 25 and caterpillar grub back to front : FLEA

1-across – Shake off influence of liquid, including beer – no point in it : SOBERUP

5-across – Set of icons as well, giving lawyers their head : TOOLBAR

9-across – 2318 girl: Mog takes her in English : CATHERINE

10-across – God gives consent to German students : JANUS

11-across – 23 18 girl of gentle manners : ANNE

12-across – Acting detective retained by Chandler’s reported in the Riviera : MONTECARLO

14-across – 23 18 girl with characters for scene in Hamlet : ELINOR

15-across – Part of edition with pictures given rough treatment : ILLUSED

16-across – Dogma rigid? : MASTIFF

18-across – See 23 : AUSTEN

20-across – Cricket groundsman with falcon from The Pursuit of Love : LORDMERLIN

21-across – 23 18 girl taking us from New Testament village : EMMA

24-across – 23 18 girl, a fairy without names : FANNY

25-across – 23 18 girl reveals first, third and last of Ashcroft’s involvement with Belize : ELIZABETH

26-across – Worker in companies taken over by Lyttelton : CHANDOS

27-across – Working for ages, makes a lot of progress : GOESFAR

1-down – Bag for artist’s bones : SACRA

2-down – Green 25 shortly reaching terminal conclusion : BETHNAL

3-down – Smell reportedly followed by vengeance? : REEK

4-down – Child arbitrator or, in first coats, the Howard League? : PRISONREFORMERS

5-down – A legit Christian could be making a scene : THEATRICALISING

6-down – Don’t protest so much, there’s no point : OBJECTLESS

7-down – City of the brasen East? : BENARES

8-down – Having to tear about, works up answer : RESPOND

13-down – Lingerie for girl said to be still resolute : UNDISMAYED

16-down – Injurious fellow I found in football club : MALEFIC

17-down – Shrub from Gray’s Inn pruned? : SYRINGA

19-down – Female student maybe coming out in the spring : ELMLEAF

22-down – Not like a sailor to have house on river? : ABHOR

23-down – Writer from East Africa in 10 10 : JANE

8-across – Devil of a translation from this poem! : MEPHISTO

9-across – Market boiler with gold inlay : AGORA

10-across – He provokes fear so on his return : OGRE

11-across – Completely bonkers to deliver club from Spain : REALMADRID

12-across – Corner pieces behind clubs in Staffs : CROOKS

14-across – He’s seen to get up in cowboy show : RODERIGO

15-across – Tale in which feeble fellow replaces a con : TWEEDLE

17-across – Fit trooper dropping into the Communist Machine : APPARAT

20-across – Waiting in the wings, having completed journey from Deadwood? : OFFSTAGE

22-across – Cut society off : SADDLE

23-across – A solid block of cheddar one’s grated : DECAHEDRON

24-across – Fate: Hobson’s choice of number : NORN

25-across – When seasick, does one feel this? Yes and no! : SWELL

26-across – Guides topping fellow into firm : CICERONI

1-down – The way in which one goes around bushy fence : HEDGEROW

2-down – Down-at-heel old solver given hiding! : THEE

3-down – Rising corrosion is added to woe : TSURIS

4-down – Location of the Taj Mahal school, leading the way in gout … : PODAGRA

5-down – … in twist, Medical Unit grew quite animated : WARMEDUP

6-down – Remarkable place, Londres, endlessly changing – stick around! : WONDERLAND

7-down – With redundancy on the increase : WAXING

13-down – Starts taking steps – the problem for the 9-phobic : OPENSPACES

16-down – All in all, vocalic change needed in Wales : LLANELLI

18-down – Seductive beau finally gets pulled in every call! : ALLURING

19-down – Man in authority runs over deed to cause diversion : REFRACT

21-down – About to join in celebration – and that’s as open as I can be : FREEST

22-down – Philosopher almost sent one up : SENECA

24-down – Standard: Christie’s choice in book : NORM