Clues

8-across – Approach a singer in duet to play : ATTITUDE

9-across – Type of green salad : GENRE

10-across – Top current setter : ACME

11-across – Slow seeing this garden tool used during scourge : BRAKELIGHT

12-across – Hold up basket : HAMPER

14-across – From the East, water containing medicine that’s sweet : LOLLIPOP

16-across – On his own, Simon somehow secures Pacific nation : SOLOMON

18-across – See 16 : ISLANDS

21-across – Last two to score when roaring started? : NINETEEN

23-across – See 21 : TWENTY

24-across – The Guardian may be awfully bad, so there! : BROADSHEET

26-across – Your health features : CHIN

27-across – Only setting for sculptor’s second bust? : SOCLE

28-across – Look at ship’s make-up : EYELINER

1-down – Toccatas played in a halting style : STACCATO

2-down – When rising, change current : TIDE

3-down – Star player to be insensitive or see need to change : NUMBER

4-down – Specifications for docks? : DETAILS

5-down – Hence turned into a nasty person : OGRE

6-down – Papers in close scare : INTIMIDATE

7-down – The conforming kind of music : TECHNO

13-down – Part of France without an origin : PROVENANCE

15-down – City is defeated having welcomed financial backer : LOS

17-down – See 3 : ONE

19-down – I need tea break for prisoner : DETAINEE

20-down – See 15 : ANGELES

22-down – Sudden mass arrival ruins struggling hospital : INRUSH

23-down – Secure? To some extent, quite the reverse! : TETHER

25-down – See 3 : SEED

26-down – See 26 Across : CHIN

1-across – Musician pockets article to cause confusion : MUDDYTHE

5-across – See 1 : WATERS

9-across – Oddly out for free meal including a fresh start : RELAUNCH

10-across – Network’s not OK, crashing all over the place : STREWN

12-across – A shame swirling mist blurred vision : ASTIGMATISM

15-across – Some evidence of contraception : TRACE

17-across – Returning brief essay, scheduled espresso cup : DEMITASSE

18-across – Brazil coverage mad about energy company : NUTSHELLS

19-across – Heron swimming in river : RHONE

20-across – Last of bottled cider items lost and sent to the wrong address : MISDIRECTED

24-across – Press ID : PAPERS

25-across – Musical venue after Spice Girl’s instrument : MELODEON

26-across – Wee-wee one drop at a time? : LITTLE

27-across – See 26 : BYLITTLE

1-down – End of story after philosopher captured by rogue Roman general : MARKANTONY

2-down – Dabbler in French says ‘about the aunt’ : DILETTANTE

3-down – Inexperienced solver nibbling at the edges : YOUNG

4-down – Variety of game with mixed salad snack served in hotels : HACKANDSLASH

6-down – This shows heights change over time : ALTIMETER

7-down – Still essentially hungry? Get service : EVEN

8-down – See 7 : SONG

11-down – In a cavalier fashion, occasionally admits what’s written on political party ends : DISMISSIVELY

13-down – Like kind blokes start to tolerate diversity : ASSORTMENT

14-down – Reliance of French on money to cover study : DEPENDENCE

16-down – Help a mere wreck that won’t live long : EPHEMERAL

21-down – Police chief’s left suffering with bug : ECOLI

22-down – At heart not happy, sad Rolling Stone : OPAL

23-down – Span location : SPOT

4-across – Keep home for Englishman : CASTLE

6-across – Worker in Brussels feeds uranium into unsafe reactor : EUROCRAT

9-across – Grudgingly admired, having gone green? : ENVIED

10-across – Modest changes I see announced involving the family : DOMESTIC

11-across – Block of prime importance, but not central : CORNERSTONE

15-across – Going up mountain? : VOLCANO

17-across – Song about an aromatic plant : DITTANY

18-across – Silly remark upset consumer here? : SUPERMARKET

22-across – Series about fungus, not really to catch fire : SMOULDER

23-across – Manager installs a piece of office equipment : COPIER

24-across – Conceded grabbing hand is dead wrong : ADMITTED

25-across – Beer lovers entertain English film maker : CAMERA

1-down – Run from church in warm coat : FLEECE

2-down – Dismissed from religious fraternity for not working : OUTOFORDER

3-down – Campaign to arouse emotions in people over time : MOVEMENT

4-down – Forcing ice cover to crack : COERCIVE

5-down – Critically cut off isle : SEVERELY

7-down – In habitual procedure sent a letter to be read aloud : ROTE

8-down – Nail sailor’s course : TACK

12-down – Sections of musicals, the finest examples : SHOWPIECES

13-down – Returned to launch boomerang : BACKFIRE

14-down – Uncontrollable excitement is unusual this year : HYSTERIA

16-down – Unqualified, sadly bales out : ABSOLUTE

19-down – A maxim with no principles : AMORAL

20-down – Huge area secured by Vespasian : ASIA

21-down – Rush to call over the net : ZOOM

1-across – Essayist beginning to draft a letter : LAMBDA

4-across – Bishop blessing one at the pet service? : BASSET

9-across – Fighter going by Circle Line : OCHE

10-across – One maybe looking at club’s IT device : CARDREADER

11-across – Some of the French are about to be eliminated : ERASED

12-across – Fluctuations in very small silver sign : VAGARIES

13-across – Repeated prohibition is applied to male for bad behaviour : BARBARISM

15-across – First appearance not top-class – a liability! : DEBT

16-across – My children’s hospital initially : GOSH

17-across – After company banquet maybe I have livened up : COMEALIVE

21-across – 18? Peace is truncated by one that’s sacked Gaul : CALIGULA

22-across – Servant absorbing scripture – one laps it up? : POTAGE

24-across – Dad taking coloured liquid with hesitation, swallowing bad medicine? : PAINKILLER

25-across – German composer’s last quartet – it contains some hot stuff? : OVEN

26-across – Checks car, needing test regularly : AUDITS

27-across – Female, just a grotesque person? : FRIGHT

1-down – In carnival, a certain group of stars : LACERTA

2-down – Comes across certain foods in broadcast : MEETS

3-down – Grass turns up to be probed by detectives – that settles things : DECIDER

5-down – Capital city surmounted by gold stars : AURIGA

6-down – Flight path keeps going round it : STAIRWELL

7-down – Time after time goddess of youth’s No. 1 : THEBEST

8-down – Supporting friend taking hold of the dream for now : PROVISIONALLY

14-down – Somehow strengthened, a bed is not falling apart : BASTIONED

16-down – City girl trailing after family member : GRANADA

18-down – Rome is transformed with introduction of a dictator? : EMPEROR

19-down – Least clear, opposing a visiting speaker maybe : VAGUEST

20-down – Queen isn’t twee : QUAINT

23-down – It’s hot in Pacific location – you must discard a bit of clothing : THONG

1-across – Pre-nuptial celebrations touring Hastings, good time : STAGNIGHTS

6-across – Some miss Cameron : SCAM

9-across – But do such tourists just look at eyesores? : SIGHTSEERS

10-across – Who, in France, has penny for pound? : QUID

12-across – Firm of less importance gets chance : COINCIDENTAL

15-across – Ease an age problem which touches Crete : AEGEANSEA

17-across – Cotton thread one’s placed in heart of galleon : LISLE

18-across – Roam around with leading indigenous Polynesian : MAORI

19-across – They melt and oddly increase with these drifting : ICESHEETS

20-across – Spooky tales – Nordic drama for Conservatives : GHOSTSTORIES

24-across – Tops of Egyptian pyramids in colour film : EPIC

25-across – Out most of Saturday getting to a toll-road in Europe : AUTOSTRADA

26-across – Test debacle at home … : SETT

27-across – … which starts camp clearing : SETTLEMENT

1-down – Frame airline before start of hijack : SASH

2-down – Mythical boat with freight first removed : ARGO

3-down – Their country’s champions – like Red Rum and Mon Mome : NATIONALISTS

4-down – Go and putt it there! : GREEN

5-down – Stop rats barring opening in gallery : TERMINATE

7-down – Noble women tot up letters : COUNTESSES

8-down – Centre Point in Levant etc : MIDDLEEAST

11-down – Al cryptically at local surgery : HEALTHCENTRE

13-down – Attractive objects drawn to drink? : BARMAGNETS

14-down – Expert in many fields? : AGRONOMIST

16-down – Raving Jesuit and patron of lost causes : SAINTJUDE

21-down – Marsupial’s time for bed : ROOST

22-down – Join in and act : TAKE

23-down – See 22 : PART