1-across – Moo from lower player in duet? : SECONDO

5-across – Playing harmoniously, wasting hours with this support : ALIMONY

10-across – Band’s 4 17s : RING

11-across – Two ways round tackling complex issues in evening wear : DRESSSUITS

12-across – Risk engaging nationalist composer : WAGNER

13-across – What’s down-at-heel Solti upset about? Not odd members of sextet : STILETTO

14-across – See 7 : PERPETUEL

16-across – Reportedly studies vibrators for 25 : REEDS

17-across – Some are possibly taken aback by 12’s work : OPERA

19-across – One very wealthy nearly packs 17 house of equal dimensions : ISOMETRIC

23-across – Lead in 12 17 and much else, including Tann­häuser overture : DUTCHMAN

24-across – 12’s Irish girl lives with former principal of ensemble : ISOLDE

26-across – It ends with huge outburst? Bless you : GESUNDHEIT

27-across – Test allegro finale with rallentando intro : ORAL

28-across – Harry Potter stripped etc for group : OCTETTE

29-across – Tenor is German — managed houses for 24’s lover : TRISTAN

2-down – Music publisher fixed price in Dubai, say : EMIRATE

3-down – German in African port stops there : ORGAN

4-down – Encyclopaedist in Germany tried miserably to grasp 10 : DIDEROT

6-down – 18’s sextet, minus 9 : LESSIX

7-down – In piece by 18, Euterpe, volume and tempo vary, new for old : MOUVEMENT

8-down – Having scored, doze off touring gallery : NOTATED

9-down – Arrange tie-ins and mergers to produce 12 work : MEISTERSINGER

15-down – First note after Bach pre­lude removed, cut out? What a let-down : PARACHUTE

18-down – Lemmon finally appears in The Odd Couple as barman : POULENC

20-down – It’s more moving, hence state of audience’s eyes? : MOISTER

21-down – Supreme leader underpins popular state : INDIANA

22-down – Ringed in a cloud shrouding climax to Siegfried : AMIDST

25-down – They’re played by 10 blowers regularly : OBOES

1-across – Ties, possibly black, put in their place : STEINBECK

9-across – His man reformed Jewish law : MISHNA

10-across – Lighted on America : LAMPEDUSA

11-across – Church saint chopped in kitchen : CHIVES

12-across – Invader of systems in river : THACKERAY

13-across – Is setter keeping small boy in Italy? : AMALFI

17-across – Except legal limitation : BAR

19-across – Hermit not quite securely disposed : RECLUSE

20-across – Love a duck! : OATMEAL

21-across – Go down and out as one with fleet? : EBB

23-across – Bird done in way-out jail : TOUCAN

27-across – May taking drug? : HAWTHORNE

28-across – Boy and girl greeting king inside of the people : HILARY

29-across – Part of a horse and a king : PASTERNAK

30-across – Country bird : TURKEY

31-across – Credit increased? : BLACKMORE

2-down – Attempt to keep wood cheap : TRASHY

3-down – Strike is devil’s work : IMPACT

4-down – Little flower to acquire contents of red box : BUDGET

5-down – Tropical plant for making fool in sparkling wine : CASSAVA

6-down – Forger on drugs? : HIGHSMITH

7-down – Knight who sang in French : CHEVALIER

8-down – Male line of country park : MANSFIELD

14-down – Increase a bit at a time in point : PRATCHETT

15-down – Cricket club rules left off : MCCULLERS

16-down – Parliament with unaccompanied messenger : DUMAURIER

17-down – Gathering for busy person : BEE

18-down – Nick the boy? : ROB

22-down – Publicity in fight will make a hole : BRADAWL

24-down – Still interference? : STATIC

25-down – Genocide requires one to leave with backing during concert : POGROM

26-down – It’s not just amusements that won’t start : UNFAIR

1-across – At last censors see cutting of material : SWATCH

4-across – One scheming Darth Vader primarily is ruler over empire on either side : DEVISER

9-across – Han Solo flying around close to Jedi — good fighters in crowd : HOOLIGANS

10-across – Simpson is captured by broadcast turning round for drink : RIOJA

11-across – Swimmer in film, returning at end of Jaws, giving warnings : OMENS

12-across – Toilet breaks with old Higgins: subject of his bet during play? : DOOLITTLE

13-across – Originally, Star Wars has Yoda struggling on the dark side? : SHADOWY

15-across – Flintoff to Ponting, perhaps after line one Australian Fat Lump : LIPOMA

17-across – Star from opening sequence of picture — unusually Luke Skywalker at rest : PULSAR

19-across – Football manager : SEVENUP

22-across – James Bond’s superior said what she’s doing getting a rise? : EMBOSSING

24-across – Repeat crackle regularly in early inspection : RECCE

26-across – Picture that is providing cover for Vogue, perhaps : IMAGE

27-across – Respites in rehab: rest drunk : BREATHERS

28-across – Supervised a midwife in the middle after deliveries : OVERSAW

29-across – Chinese letter translator: Good New Year at home : PINYIN

1-down – Trains in small church — Holland having lost leader : SCHOOLS

2-down – Repent immediately, caught out : ATONE

3-down – Workers here might batter police in quiet part : CHIPSHOPS

4-down – Director George Lucas ultimately turning cheek, taking Oscar loot : DESPOIL

5-down – Court missing from its decision, he noted : VERDI

6-down – Tramp’s son playing like Borg? : SPORTSMAN

7-down – Wanderer picked up in Italian capital : ROAMER

8-down – Hot over river — what it did? : RANDRY

14-down – Outline of a silent figure : ADUMBRATE

16-down – Father against shortened Nessun Dorma, perhaps too much butting in for singer : PAVAROTTI

18-down – Coloured beam from lightsaber finally destroying Obi-Wan : RAINBOW

19-down – Dropped something laid up covered in down : SAGGED

20-down – Princess not included — acceptable to continue : PRESSON

21-down – Actor and daughter, topless pair of writers : DENIRO

23-down – Throws up seat on board : SPEWS

25-down – Like toffee cut inside edges of candy : CHEWY

1-across – 25 in balance : SCALES

5-across – See 13 : OPENED

8-across – Ring for fat emperor? Ring off : LARDNER

9-across – Fruit for wader : AVOCADO

11-across – South American stand-off at party in rough clothing to 12 : RAINCATSANDDOGS

12-across – Page of the Guardian — will you do it or shall I? : POUR

13-across – Pull in later: like this writer to the editor, it 12-ed : THEHEAVENS

17-across – Corporal punishment for swigging ale at opera : LEATHERING

18-across – Backing provided for American holy man : SUFI

20-across – Broadcaster about narcissus, it may be, when bands are out : MUSICIANSSTRIKE

23-across – Monument as honour for potential silk : OBELISK

24-across – Honour great leader if parrot’s about : GLORIFY

25-across – Deer with royal putting on performance : STAGER

26-across – Number for insect in residence : TENANT

2-down – Courses of hot food getting cooler, one might say : CURRICULA

3-down – Girl swallowing sodium — it’s madness : LUNACY

4-down – People carrier adding to tension? : STRETCHER

5-down – Scarlet woman said she’s surprised at losing roof of her house : OHARA

6-down – Old gold face is introductory : EXORDIAL

7-down – Inspirer of number at Oxford : ERATO

8-down – See about alternative to saying nothing about friend to developer : LORDPALUMBO

10-down – Bad vibes? Yes, so left off having fanatical concentration : OBSESSIVELY

14-down – Alleged location of deer in retrospect : HINDSIGHT

15-down – Learning the 15-a-side game in book form : ERUDITION

16-down – 12-ing caught Finn in academic dress keeping up government department : CHUCKING

19-down – See 16 : ITDOWN

21-down – Piece of linen, one of those that are 12-ing? : SHEET

22-down – Bilk of singular amount of money : ACKER

1-across – US tip: party is at hotel over the weekend : BAKSHISH

5-across – Having grown attached, had a meal : ADNATE

9-across – Artillery formerly suppressed resistance : ORDNANCE

10-across – Literary doctor’s agenda ignores hospital : WATSON

12-across – After tea, engineer got on at a station in Tennessee : CHATTANOOGA

15-across – Kick out expert right away, then lecturer : EXPEL

17-across – Run into it in need of refreshing food : NUTRITION

18-across – Philip, say, gets excellent backing for business groups : CONSORTIA

19-across – Dame Elisabeth started with indistinct sound : SCHWA

20-across – Irish socialist usurps my credit? It couldn’t be simpler : IRREDUCIBLE

24-across – Challenge inconclusive victory somewhere in Australia : DARWIN

25-across – Jaws writer clutches armpit : MAXILLAE

26-across – On holiday, say, and just up out of bed : AWEIGH

27-across – Least reliable butcher likes wrapping article in paper : FLAKIEST

1-down – 10 and 21’s field, where being concise is silly, when no good comes from it : BIOSCIENCE

2-down – Taking a snooze after a ransom? : KIDNAPPING

3-down – Where deer stores energy? : HEART

4-down – One’s bent perhaps, not broken, kept in safe : SECONDNATURE

6-down – Drastic changes suppress mother’s tantrums : DRAMATICS

7-down – Part of church a priest should enter first : APSE

8-down – Wise to avoid independent Irish banker : ERNE

11-down – Furiously parp to call over last of taximen : TOOTHANDNAIL

13-down – State of beauty with power to captivate the Italian? : DISHABILLE

14-down – English males get sandwiches after a fight : ENGAGEMENT

16-down – Treatment of celeb left clearing the air? : LIONISING

21-down – Neck problem — Kent’s regulars don’t finish game : CRICK

22-down – Dame’s premature end : EDNA

23-down – Slow down bypassing Kelvin Hill in Glasgow : BRAE