Daily Answers

1-across – 24, extremely late after period of 20 hours? : MONDALE

5-across – Project concealing road defect : FAILING

9-across – Bound books, note inside : LIMIT

10-across – Democrat in backing 24, out of bounds : FORBIDDEN

11-across – Bill’s encapsulated by combination of corn and bean stew : CARBONNADE

12-across – By the sound of it, puzzle 5 across : FLAW

14-across – Noisy battle developing in stubborn manner : OBSTINATELY

18-across – 24, English man on pitch : ROCKEFELLER

21-across – 24 last to return : EVIL

22-across – Embellished passage actual, or doubly fanciful : COLORATURA

25-across – European revolutionary following queen in this short play : THERIVALS

26-across – Authority to get broadcast? : SAYSO

27-across – Aardvark — this beast originally coming in close behind start of alphabet : ANTBEAR

28-across – Mundane letters from listener : TERRENE

1-down – Venom in cobras initially collected by boy, say? : MALICE

2-down – A thousand in African country abandoning river on the rise, departed : NOMORE

3-down – Sign reader lost, ergo a lost traveller, ultimately : ASTROLOGER

4-down – Slight mistake: all of Saudi Arabian conclusions : ELFIN

5-down – Shoot monkey in safety procedure : FIREDRILL

6-down – One put on gravy, but not to bird : IBIS

7-down – Pampers: sticky glue in diapers emptied : INDULGES

8-down – Passages mob considers, recited : GANGWAYS

13-down – Terrifying thing that may skin something like a rabbit, did you say? : HAIRRAISER

15-down – Old herbivore wiggling ears with gusto : STEGOSAUR

16-down – Time to feed author a drink : GREENTEA

17-down – Part of the mind hampered by stress — that’s unfortunate : ACCIDENT

19-down – 24 listening to shrink : QUAYLE

20-down – Everywhere, 24 pinching himself? : GALORE

23-down – Working class beginning : ONSET

24-down – Tool 5 across : VICE

7-across – Old blue tit losing it with one on an egg? : THATCHER

9-across – A shoe merchant’s last piece of luck : AMULET

10-across – Keep flat away from Cornish town : STOW

11-across – Killjoy in battle knew to yield : WETBLANKET

12-across – Close to fence, look for each individual who’s run away : ELOPER

14-across – Echoes, hollow echoes within circles : RESOUNDS

15-across – Pedestrian 7’s man : WALKER

17-across – 7’s man got a grip after risk backfired : TEBBIT

20-across – In expression of sur­prise, peer round a state : COLORADO

22-across – 7’s man drops the issue for cake : PARKIN

23-across – Head of lovely flower laid back, in image I relish : PICCALILLI

24-across – Shaved man, close : NIGH

25-across – Grass skirts like that for 7’s man : LAWSON

26-across – Model is with artier collector’s items : RARITIES

1-down – Code of the Klan, perhaps, for 7’s man : WHITELAW

2-down – Cook a little paste, wasabi : STEW

3-down – 7’s man right to support leader in shady mob : SHOWER

4-down – Thread under machine exhausted in border town : CARLISLE

5-down – Speed deciding game beneath Scottish water : BURNRUBBER

6-down – Story for Foot? : LEGEND

8-down – English author not starting to get up, go to bed : RETIRE

13-down – Down in special stuffed item of bed linen : PILLOWCASE

16-down – Hillary Clinton’s problem was Bill ultimately — imagine it’s awkward : EMAILING

18-down – Package finally received by soldiers deprived of rations — their names unknown : THINGIES

19-down – 7’s man more repulsive, they say? : FOWLER

21-down – I see I love an American statesman : OHIOAN

22-down – Religious community like 7’s man? : PRIORY

24-down – Loud tie for 7’s man : NOTT

1-across – Hopelessly busk in sparse industrial area : BUSINESSPARK

8-across – Sale of uniform needed in armed conflict : AUCTION

9-across – Stretcher, only one left in the city? : ELASTIC

11-across – Not so clever comparing blood to water : THICKER

12-across – Contraceptive best on back seat : PILLION

13-across – Contributor to obesity, odd portions of soup and fish : SUGAR

14-across – Just nip back east for such ethical products : FAIRTRADE

16-across – Carefully nurtured in island, amusing priest : INCUBATED

19-across – Daughter curious about manufacturer : DYSON

21-across – Reflects what is deceptive with smoke : MIRRORS

23-across – He takes a risk, flipping over side of ulcer : CHANCER

24-across – Succeeded with computer access, quaffing energy drink : SLOEGIN

25-across – Rooms regularly needed in good condition, where visitors reportedly crashed : ROSWELL

26-across – Leaves one supplying components : PARTSCOMPANY

1-down – Support going counterclockwise : BACKING

2-down – Quiet pest not pulling his weight : SHIRKER

3-down – No fool engages acad­emic for charity : NONPROFIT

4-down – Creature, small crawler : SHEEP

5-down – Small drama in resolution of tennis controversy? : PLAYLET

6-down – A white stair rail is put up, not black : RETSINA

7-down – Hypocrisy over partnership in the Americas, a persistent theme : CANTUSFIRMUS

10-down – Dishonest sympathiser new in gig, with something on the drums? : CONCERNTROLL

15-down – Popular sort of art leads to weird bad behaviour : INDECORUM

17-down – Wow! Take undergrad­uate course in Spanish city : CORDOBA

18-down – Transported, am out of carriage on time : BROUGHT

19-down – Directly observe in sound a body of water : DEADSEA

20-down – Coy, I set out for the fashionable world : SOCIETY

22-down – Really pleasant, endless sort of boom : SONIC

1-across – Dupe contrived by 13, spurious : TRUMPEDUP

6-across – 13 requiring help to carry gold : SOROS

9-across – 13’s scandal ends? : GATES

10-across – I prefer women, not men, to build strength in the military : FIREPOWER

11-across – General protected side : LEE

12-across – Very primitive voting system dubious American boxing club’s backing : PRECAMBRIAN

14-across – French philosopher produced European nonsense : DIDEROT

15-across – Pastoral poem in English — contrary effort in one of these? : ECLOGUE

16-across – 13 philanthropist’s back on strike : BUFFETT

19-across – Difficult situation as family briefly hampered by rejection of terms : SKIDROW

22-across – Excerpt in story, heading off for settlement : ARBITRATION

23-across – Setter of crosswords, uncensored : SUN

24-across – Talk with composer, 13 : SPIELBERG

26-across – Experience in short, short : INCUR

27-across – Poor choice ultimately in US president lacking knowledge : NEEDY

28-across – Primitive house breaks in a serious way : EARNESTLY

1-down – Fastened to goods, was in the van : TOGGLED

2-down – Gradual increase arguably prudent : UPTREND

3-down – Tense has never been wrong? : PASTPERFECT

4-down – Divert first of lorries in error : DEFLECT

5-down – Sticker put in hole for conveyance : PORTAGE

6-down – Among fools, a prize idiot : SAP

7-down – 13 investing pound in sport : ROWLING

8-down – Funny series following outsiders in secret : STRANGE

13-down – 9, for example, one: one with loaded aura? : BILLIONAIRE

16-down – Supporter and partners working for 13 : BRANSON

17-down – Winter bug, running a temperature : FEBRILE

18-down – Horizontal bar to catch, the showbiz suspense ends : TRAPEZE

19-down – Nightingale possibly biting head of terrified wasp, say? : STINGER

20-down – Not sweet to stuff bags of diamonds, perhaps? : ROSECUT

21-down – Get virtual goddess, 13 : WINFREY

25-down – Arrange song : LAY

1-across – Particular variety of sheep’s head and guts : STRIPE

4-across – What shouldn’t happen on a peninsula? : CRIMEA

9-across – Little cakes turned over — or up? : SNUB

10-across – Imposing boundaries on Mantel’s last copy : LIMITATION

11-across – Interference with musical holding it back : STATIC

12-across – Surgeon, one formerly employed in telephone exchange : OPERATOR

13-across – Fuss after swindle involving return of supporter’s diamond : CARBONADO

15-across – Part of India’s left end : GOAL

16-across – Split up role : PART

17-across – Shout about barren waste yielding fruit : CRANBERRY

21-across – Tom-tom heading off to Belgium for sacrifice : HECATOMB

22-across – Good antique, antiquely precious : GOLDEN

24-across – Backward glance sees traditional religious order originally held in esteem : RETROSPECT

25-across – Backing instrument’s border : ABUT

26-across – Redistribute booze to soprano dropped from higher accompaniment : DECANT

27-across – Decorate journalist receiving summons? On the contrary : BEDECK

1-down – Artisan nobbled crooner : SINATRA

2-down – Nick turned to auto­maton : ROBOT

3-down – Bird, 51, cracked nut : PELICAN

5-down – Lifted supermarket right off : ROTTEN

6-down – Help for addict swamping party in gas : METHADONE

7-down – Look into oxtail soup, fishing out one amphibian : AXOLOTL

8-down – Things beyond our ken … ”: poem lesbian doctor’s rewritten : IMPONDERABLES

14-down – Second endlessly supporting bass solo about weight problems : BARIATRIC

16-down – Falsely claim to nurse in advance? : PRETEND

18-down – Close bond with something to sleep in : NIGHTIE

19-down – Die, held up by mythical bird or stag : ROEBUCK

20-down – Can Oriental money reduce restraint? : LOOSEN

23-down – Contract bridge opponents carrying field : LEASE