Daily Answers

7-across – Initially high flyers sort of crack : HAIRLINE

9-across – After victory sign, steer dad into street interview : VOXPOP

10-across – Used to be poor at the last with little around : WERE

11-across – Master of camouflage worried, if scent found on meadow : LEAFINSECT

12-across – More loved, even if up in price : DEARER

14-across – Star smiles in bright lights : SUNBEAMS

15-across – Avoid being involved in support : STANDBY

17-across – Wave going right through vessel : BREAKER

20-across – In super-busy environment had failed to feed little animal : MADHOUSE

22-across – Cover small moor : SHEATH

23-across – Have an iron prepared for old George : HANOVERIAN

24-across – Heard some pressure in drain : SUMP

25-across – Not very bright, about to father baby : MIDGET

26-across – Happiness in life, moving to big place : FELICITY

1-down – Worthless people finally put in cellar : BASEMENT

2-down – Press for admission to surgery : URGE

3-down – One working the land is used to steer : TILLER

4-down – After starters of tapas, very delightful private meal on lap? : TVDINNER

5-down – To annoy old flame eat pears messily : EXASPERATE

6-down – Starts to run over many classic old movies, this sort typical? : ROMCOM

8-down – Pass bottom of slope and slip : ELAPSE

13-down – In rehearsal hurry from beginning to end : RUNTHROUGH

16-down – Beast about to grab a girl — not fair : BRUNETTE

18-down – Think I’m trespassing in someone’s grounds : ESTIMATE

19-down – Give a wrong idea of felon’s first conviction : BELIEF

21-down – Language of associate academician and writer : ARABIC

22-down – English railways directed up past it : SENILE

24-down – Pouches in which commandos keep cape : SACS

8-across – I usurp, so false as a Pretender : SPURIOUS

9-across – Sailor’s chant you cut short — very funny : YOHOHO

10-across – Turn aside and plunge to the right : DIVERT

11-across – Straighten out the seaweed? : UNTANGLE

12-across – Gone in the end, slug with eyes on stalks : AGOG

13-across – Not very masculine offshoot, strangely rhymes with ‘boot’ : MOTHERSBOY

15-across – A quiet Greek and you turning very pale : ASHGREY

16-across – Sticker back on a container : GELATIN

18-across – His ’n’ hers formal wear? No, just his : DRESSSHIRT

19-across – Fine fabric that looks best green : LAWN

20-across – One helping the cast dance and become exhausted, losing some energy : PROMPTER

22-across – Engineers wooden fret : REPINE

23-across – Rise and call out an email command : ASCEND

24-across – Republican in training not yet a lawyer : ATTORNEY

1-down – Astonish someone who has forgotten it is now April? : SPRINGASURPRISE

2-down – Novel in eg German urges me to translate : GREENGAGESUMMER

3-down – Such an MND performance would be fundamentally defective : BOTTOMLESS

4-down – PM remains, about to resign : ASQUITH

5-down – Endlessly played up in small island : EYOT

6-down – Items Spanish composer has to leave — the centre cannot hold: why not? : THINGSFALLAPART

7-down – What’s that Henry and Eleanor film? Write hint online to get sorted : THELIONINWINTER

14-down – At first, organising lunch etcetera is problematic: there’s a roll for us : ELECTORATE

17-down – Di not Jo’s written in diary every day : DIURNAL

21-down – Holding front of dress beside bustle : TODO

1-across – Audition viably arranged, characteristic of a certain event : UNAVOIDABILITY

8-across – Horizontal surface in which line meets side : LEDGE

9-across – Ridicule resolution to replace Conservative by monarch : DERISION

11-across – Designs in place of words repeatedly found in mathematics : FORMATS

12-across – Using modified ten iron, his pitch changes little : INTONER

13-across – Measure of interest in group of islands, or one : CAPRI

15-across – Activity at club following being swamped in 8-0 disaster : NIGHTLIFE

17-across – Like woeful number produced by adding constant to one third, oddly : THRENODIC

20-across – For this cube, what’s subtracted from vertical measurement when it’s minimised? : EIGHT

21-across – Marine creature’s head swallowed by old fish : OCTOPOD

23-across – Writer of nonsensical verse both sides repeated in song : CARROLL

25-across – Reordered mini, alternating with sailor, to drive : AMBITION

26-across – Numbers around end of score : TEENS

27-across – They can handle distraction as well as 25, 1 down, and 9, according to 23 : ARITHMETICIANS

1-down – Things look bad after this fruit lies around area : UGLIFICATION

2-down – Calculating type found in snakes and ladders? : ADDER

3-down – Possibility, over time, for job in theatre : OPERATION

4-down – Oxford mathematician is evasive about subtracting transcendental number : DODGSON

5-down – Save man on board threatened by mate that’s crazy : BARKING

6-down – Learner isn’t turning one letter around for composer : LISZT

7-down – Decisive defeat in ring — count out : TROUNCING

10-down – Circle and lines artist arranged for some language experts : ORIENTALISTS

14-down – Send carriage that’s turned up for one not fully engaged : PARTTIMER

16-down – Article concerning appetite heartlessly impractical : THEORETIC

18-down – Revolutionary movement putting barrier around platform : DADAISM

19-down – Fair target after company falsified count : COCONUT

22-down – Use digit or what may be between digits : POINT

24-down – Nothing tops excellent end of series : OMEGA

9-across – Conservative Party? : WORKEVENT

10-across – Old duke, surprisingly, not originally known to sweat : EXUDE

11-across – Platform Four’s last at Old Street — strange : ROSTRUM

12-across – One day to embellish speech : ADDRESS

13-across – Some hope at first for English breaking such a law : OHMS

14-across – Drink ruined a grocer at sea — he does have loads on his mind : SUPERCARGO

16-across – Having a scholarly manner : DONNISH

17-across – Flipping cheek, about to claim win! : PREVAIL

19-across – Threat of force — Spooner’s spray didn’t work : MAILEDFIST

22-across – Brief case in flat : EVEN

24-across – Old runner backward about money but a quick learner? : CRAMMER

25-across – Clergy ultimately preach nonsense in diocese? : EPARCHY

26-across – Back in flat, celebrating return : ELECT

27-across – Support going up and down : BANNISTER

1-down – A hang-up that’s worrying son — close to collapse following mother’s remark : SWORDOFDAMOCLES

2-down – Say, the Taoiseach is meeting the Queen in foreign country : IRISHMAN

3-down – Drunk author emptied the bottle : HEART

4-down – Maybe it hurt — move awkwardly : VERMOUTH

5-down – Turkey stuffing for Peter’s pepper : STRAFE

6-down – Problems with boss — hard ones to describe : HEADACHES

7-down – Pride march finally banned influential film director : AUTEUR

8-down – Clue to dastardly con followed up here? : NEWSCOTLANDYARD

15-down – Success taking cat : TIGERMOTH

17-down – Points in support of Bill Gates : POSTERNS

18-down – Recommend making an appoint­ment about case shortly : ADVOCATE

20-down – Inn for travellers — it accommodates horse : IMARET

21-down – Found close to Merseyside town : FORMBY

23-down – French artist composed a video feature : DAVID

9-across – Having toilet break, quietly kept in touch : INTHELOOP

10-across – Edge past river; this one? : RHONE

11-across – Nob’s name entered in fifth rank : GRANDEE

12-across – Be fussy in dealing with infestation : NITPICK

13-across – French boy using English measure : EMILE

14-across – Would-be regicide, chap goes two ways in speech : GUYFAWKES

16-across – Old Mac from croft developed novel smallholding : COLDCOMFORTFARM

19-across – No longer a priest? Fabulous — was really good! : DEFROCKED

21-across – Threat of proper illumination? : PERIL

22-across – Initially ready to please, suffering setback : RELAPSE

23-across – Hate speech perhaps gets Mike arrested by police with violence : POLEMIC

24-across – Preferred a thing from Paris : CHOSE

25-across – One dumped on old aircraft — time to see another world : EXOPLANET

1-down – Reserved arena and sportingly fought : RINGFENCED

2-down – Sporting trial includes children’s game: come on, young lady! : ATTAGIRL

3-down – Interfere in award to be announced : MEDDLE

4-down – Appear depressed, but work through debilitating condition : MOPE

5-down – Rely on this unwritten promise? Goodness! : UPONMYWORD

6-down – Lengthen pamphlet after person making regular cuts : PROTRACT

7-down – Hi there, Richard: Hamlet knew him : YORICK

8-down – Quick look as dog is heard : PEEK

14-down – In a match, goalie who has grouse to nurse : GAMEKEEPER

15-down – Tacitly agreed to break heartless spy — no difficulty : SIMPLICITY

17-down – No participant in the betting, but one rakes it in : CROUPIER

18-down – Bad feeling, as I’m taken in by a mate : ACRIMONY

20-down – Idle autumn: nothing before onset of winter : FALLOW

21-down – Drinking beer, work steadily but dimly : PALELY

22-down – Cut of meat for shelf : RACK

23-down – One of two bound for power : PROP