1-across – Holding up the Dark Lady’s hat, giving remodelling : DAYLIGHTSAVING

9-across – Not so virile as Gerard Hopkins, say? : UNMANLY

10-across – Send back Swedish settler after the others : RESTORE

11-across – Bloomer one’s seen during return visit to the Old Vicarage : LILAC

12-across – A loud and complicated matter with hard consequences : AFTERMATH

13-across – Finding out by practice : DIAGNOSIS

14-across – Composer of Wordsworth’s Solitude : BLISS

15-across – Such TV has us in stitches : CABLE

17-across – Accompaniment variations al Tito Gobbi? Not it! : OBBLIGATO

20-across – Almost unable to construct a register the wrong way. Capital! : ULANBATOR

22-across – Prince of Hearts demands a drink. It’s his round! : RAJAH

23-across – Travesty when actions speak louder than words : CHARADE

24-across – Oblate loves valid convert : OVOIDAL

25-across – Heavy-handed state of le fast food sent wild : FLATFOOTEDNESS

1-down – With the French badly clued and in doubt, Switzerland might make a change : DOUBLEDECLUTCH

2-down – Putting up a grand chimney. Yes! With a lid for the synagogue : YAMULKA

3-down – Do not, in any wise, speak of Edith Wharton’s age : INNOCENCE

4-down – I hear two wise heads cracked with the times of their lives : HEYDAYS

5-down – Low cloud’s way over desert country : STRATUS

6-down – Without it a guest might lose face! : VISOR

7-down – Resurgent racist borne on a zimmer frame : NEONAZI

8-down – He helps me to sip with the Devil! : MEPHISTOPHELES

14-down – I produce a pipe? That’s right, with wife and family around : BRIERWOOD

16-down – Spending one’s time in a punch-up: it would be boring : BRADAWL

17-down – Full of vigour, but not perhaps hot on self-confidence : ONTHEGO

18-down – Poop of vessel involved in battle : BURNOUT

19-down – Declare a draw with Samson, for one? : ADJUDGE

21-down – Explosive expletive : BLAST

9-across – A link man practising 14 across? : NETWORKER

10-across – Girl painter holding carrier : RHODA

11-across – Operative was first to dance, a touch illegally? : HANDLED

12-across – Time for the news – I left wrapping the food : TINFOIL

13-across – Riding 20 for appeal after appeal : THIRD

14-across – Tree surgery follows a spasm, 1 of 11 : CRICKETER

16-across – Walker at the gate to grow feeble changing 14 across’s heart : LEGBEFOREWICKET

19-across – Ventures into water to see how the land lies? : SOUNDINGS

21-across – C-covering for 20 by 21 down, one may say, not among the 14 acrosses : CHAIR

22-across – House where Peter, drunk, used to flavour American beer : HOPTREE

23-across – Was fast circulating inside, being unable to solve the clue : STUMPED

24-across – Repeat broadcast about 14 across’s achievement : RERUN

25-across – Composer slightly involved with waterway, being in a drunken revel : BACCHANAL

1-down – Revelling overhead? : ONTHETILES

2-down – Very rich and very drunk, which is not to be sniffed at : STINKING

3-down – The front was where it should be: insert egg for bandy : BOWLED

4-down – Child of the South makes an uncontrolled movement : SKID

5-down – Small-minded character without the right to good looks : PRETTINESS

6-down – A tinker’s cursed in former Bantustan : TRANSKEI

7-down – Neither 3, 21 down, 16, 23 across, nor 11 8 etc – I won’t sell you a ticket : NOTOUT

8-down – See 11 : BALL

14-down – China’s royal race : CROWNDERBY

15-down – Dress again with herb: OAPs 23 down, more often 22 down, 7 permanently : RETIREDILL

17-down – Directions in the course of being permanent : ENDURING

18-down – £1,000 for a way to be 21 down breaking stones : KNAPPING

20-down – He won’t raise a finger if you’re 7 : UMPIRE

21-down – Beast saying he feels 23 down inside in a trap : CAUGHT

22-down – Damage to John, the player : HURT

23-down – Not so well written as it should be to a king : SICK

9-across – He plays piano and conducts because Misty inspires knowledge : ASHKENAZY

10-across – Extremist in the sinful tradition : ULTRA

11-across – Ask Pole to change title on letter : ESQUIRE

12-across – Daily newspaper’s gone out of business? : EXPRESS

13-across – Den sounds like hen : LAIR

14-across – Fagin’s boy, Dickens’ Herbert, gets on Dickens’ wick : PICKPOCKET

16-across – Common sight in the park: toe broken with rake : OAKTREE

17-across – Shake a lot during large drink : TREMBLE

19-across – See 2 : THELAZYDOG

22-across – Desert means to leave twice? : GOBI

24-across – Glass flipper : TUMBLER

25-across – Gray’s Inn almost turned lilac : SYRINGA

26-across – Frequently decimal? : OFTEN

27-across – Down these tubes vessel shot – one nil! : CANNELONI

1-down – Faltering train too slow at English end of Channel rail link : WATERLOOSTATION

2-down – In practice, comprehensive type of characters : THEQUICK

3-down – TV and newspapers offering Ken Dodd’s No Con : MEDIA

4-down – Stop for a few minutes jazz by Brubeck : TAKEFIVE

5-down – My word shows where initially to place C for Constraint : BYHECK

6-down – See 2 : JUMPSOVER

7-down – Run out of gear : STREAK

8-down – Isaac N. hit tree; it shook: what : RAISETHETITANIC

15-down – 500 sheets amongst 550 – and that’s heaven in bed : DREAMLAND

17-down – South goes west and Motorway sign’s the same : THOUSAND

18-down – See 2 : BROWNFOX

20-down – Bad feeling of mine aggravated gutless Tony : ENMITY

21-down – Shakespearean character this year in city : YORICK

23-down – Colour of mint with a hole, of course : GREEN

1-across – Ratios accepted with gambles : INDICES

5-across – Too risqué in first half of game at the table? : POTTING

9-across – Not one of the L8, small time art crook disheartened, bagging only first of Utrillos : FRIAR

10-across – Profane abuse of seed box : DESECRATE

11-across – Not one of the L8, I am ordered to take in help and damage name : MAIDMARIAN

12-across – Jill? Not the other one of the L8 before re-christening? : JOHN

14-across – Unprejudiced 19 magazine watching p’s and q’s : COSMOPOLITE

18-across – Not one of the L8, leaves vehicle allowance : WILLSCARLET

21-across – Not a 19 one of the L8! : MUCH

22-across – Meandering writer can dry up round the edges : SERPENTINE

25-across – One of the L8 to plunder incognito? : ROBINHOOD

26-across – Agitated male sheep : HETUP

27-across – Ayesha’s quashed half the rabble from 13, enemy of L8 : SHERIFF

28-across – Radiant essayist visiting hospital department : LAMBENT

1-down – Incestuous one left missing stigma : INFAMY

2-down – 11 in rebuilt side acknowledging personal terms? : DEIXIS

3-down – 5 across expert rewrites Act 1, Sc. 1, to include Queen and Mark : CERAMICIST

4-down – Partisan’s sound accom-paniment for Rosie : SIDER

5-down – I’m employed in Italian restau-rant: see father’s howler after bill’s presented : PASTABOWL

6-down – See 9 : TUCK

7-down – Waits with eagerness, in charge of introduction : ISAGOGIC

8-down – See 19 : GREENMEN

13-down – Sir Bernard clearly enjoys a drink in the home of the L8! : NOTTINGHAM

15-down – Inaccessible quantity of water taken away by guide : SEALEDOFF

16-down – Antony and Lester score, but not 21 – 19 change for Helmut! : TWOMARKS

17-down – Mountain climbing attached to rope that may be put down : PLACABLE

19-down – Paradoxical beings from the big red planet? : LITTLE

20-down – Remove flaws from absolute corrupter : DESPOT

23-down – See 24 : PODAL

24-down – A youngster on ascent outside mine from down under : ANTI

1-across – Bad dress rehearsal? Then there’s another thing – l-light’s out! : ALLRIGHTONTHE

10-across – Prepared to drive without trousers, for all the world to see : TELEVISED

11-across – See 1 : NIGHT

12-across – Recently elevated to indoor post : NEWEL

13-across – Provide me with 50-tonner for the making of joined-up characters : ENROLMENT

14-across – Religious revellers – this includes one American : THIASUS

16-across – Drink embracing a couple returning from fertility god : PRIAPUS

18-across – First lady’s got meat in place of plums : EVESHAM

20-across – Co-operation to show New York’s grey : SYNERGY

21-across – Fabulous bird on the hill: time for Tommy, perhaps : ROCKOPERA

23-across – Bill’s in employment with sheep : JACOB

24-across – Lanolin at a loss in Virginia : WOOLF

25-across – Composer to put on inches and a greater measure : ADDINSELL

26-across – Say part of the word for special delivery : EXPRESSLETTER

2-down – … for the boys I yell with horribly : LILYWHITE

3-down – … for more than this 5 in retreat from below : RIVAL

4-down – … for their makers: leave a lot of enchantments : GOSPELS

5-down – Die, sadly, during excursion – a current affair : TIDERIP

6-down – Large number or small number, nothing to a celebrity : NONILLION

7-down – William of Orange? : HAGUE

8-down – Exclamation applied to scenes worth broadcasting : STONETHECROWS

9-down – Standing at the door after 2, 3 and 4, they are shown off : STATUSSYMBOLS

15-down – Some fish forks partly caught in a shoe by the 3s’ companion : SCHOOLFOR

17-down – Let Dad run round with spirit : PARACLETE

19-down – Despicable commercials for audience of 14 : MAENADS

20-down – See 15 : SCANDAL

22-down – Pastry? Tell it to go away! : CHOUX

23-down – Article grasped by black girl : JANET