Daily Answers

1-across – Evil master has drink with leaders of Farc in Columbia : MALEFIC

5-across – Bird chewing a pencil : PELICAN

9-across – One giving fellow at university gold : DONOR

10-across – Teams represented by band getting the upper hand : MASTERING

11-across – Minister put instrument into new ranch : CHANCELLOR

12-across – Container for plant covering large part of garden : PLOT

14-across – Search and rescue by operations leader into nasty gasses across large part of the North Atlantic : SARGASSOSEA

18-across – One end of cake covered in stuff from the dairy : SINGLECREAM

21-across – Pressure to leave friendly colleague : ALLY

22-across – Wealthy professionals drinking super old cocktail : PROSPEROUS

25-across – Second small fib about Democrat’s fall from grace : BACKSLIDE

26-across – Jockey free to meet queen … : RIDER

27-across – … left at home with spouse forming connections : LINKING

28-across – Spaces hosting essential part of repeat performances : ENCORES

1-down – Piece of writing about short official order for health professionals : MEDICS

2-down – Get gold carriage : LANDAU

3-down – American forces let out of living quarters for the ship’s crew : FORECASTLE

4-down – Start to chase unruly male animal : CAMEL

5-down – Piece of music over before spoken introduction to evensong : PASTORALE

6-down – Shelter given to base of weak vegetable : LEEK

7-down – Swindler chosen to play Hooray Henry? : CHINLESS

8-down – Drink close to optic found in bar : NIGHTCAP

13-down – One cart adapted to carry troph­ies returned lacking balance : ASYMMETRIC

15-down – Group covering English cloth in tape? : RECORDING

16-down – Saint broadcast short mass in Turkish city : ISTANBUL

17-down – Articles about German left in charge of the Church of England : ANGLICAN

19-down – See 7 : WONDER

20-down – Egyptian god with large flag : OSIRIS

23-down – Vegetable seed scattered around bottom of hedgerow : SWEDE

24-down – Drink in plastic container : ASTI

1-across – Enjoys drink after chum’s come around : LAPSUP

5-across – Tree choked by parasitic plant in a miserable state : MOPINESS

9-across – Guardian boss goes after officer — factual accounts shouldn’t be this! : COLOURED

10-across – Poor cast includes three from Swedish group : SHABBY

11-across – Food enthusiast gobbles starter for lunch : FLAN

12-across – Chase down weak animal round with heart aflutter : RUNTOEARTH

13-across – A pair of females streak, creating disturbance : AFFRAY

14-across – Make familiar sound of a zany : ACQUAINT

16-across – Bombast from silly rich Tories is to be ignored : RHETORIC

19-across – Home help with a superior manner keeping quiet : AUPAIR

21-across – Publicist with gift for concealing decline : PRESSAGENT

23-across – ‘Little river’ one will present here : RILL

24-across – Simple fellow eating nothing gets wind : SIMOON

25-across – A socialist gets to sit back inside, being detained : ARRESTED

26-across – Idiots given notice — such must face the reckoning : ASSESSEE

27-across – Something handed out for daughters to tuck into — it’s child’s play : DODDLE

2-down – Pleasant life or still life? : ABOWLOFCHERRIES

3-down – Tongue-tied Oxford don to make love with hesitation : SPOONER

4-down – Artist dunking pencil into beer : PORTRAYER

5-down – Mother figure spreading heavenly food around party : MADONNA

6-down – What gives some gripes — tomato sauce : PESTO

7-down – A drop of rain once more elevated river : NIAGARA

8-down – Bizarre ban — all I must eat’s a Scotch egg, some claimed : SUBSTANTIALMEAL

15-down – Put in lodgings right by unusual tree in courtyard : QUARTERED

17-down – Silk suits more crumpled I’m to get rid of : TUSSORE

18-down – Revolutionary with others turning up in compound : CHELATE

20-down – Examined? That’s not new after half-term : PERUSED

22-down – Relations to make trips, heading off : AUNTS

1-across – Old university graduate keeps on penning journal : BOLOGNA

5-across – Problem with a reggae-style drumbeat : RUBADUB

9-across – With some medicine bottles, seek water : DOWSE

10-across – It ensures well-rounded character votes for Boris? : BACKSTORY

11-across – What we get called in explosive contest : TOURNAMENT

12-across – Constituent of Britain, say, lives life on the edge : ISLE

14-across – Fiancé exhibits such intense stress : ACUTEACCENT

18-across – Love to enter race, wanting an achievement : TOURDEFORCE

21-across – Vessel brewery carries back and forth : EWER

22-across – Dog I’m unsure about since barking in pound etc : CURRENCIES

25-across – One jogging without a rest : REMAINDER

26-across – Beater back from reserve overrun by deer : HEART

27-across – Work of satirist failing to secure new agents : DUNCIAD

28-across – It helps climbers in large area with dry rocks : LATTICE

1-down – They clean behind empty drainpipe in segments : BIDETS

2-down – Rough clothing ladies perhaps will be revealing : LOWCUT

3-down – Permits daughter aboard vehicles fit for Greta? : GREENCARDS

4-down – Black-hearted crystalline compound snaps here? : ALBUM

5-down – Err with count badly, needing to engage a teller : RACONTEUR

6-down – Forest’s something eliminated by Brazilian president : BUSH

7-down – Rearing up, tame animals cross threshold : DOORSTEP

8-down – About to dip into novel but Hay Festival’s here : BAYREUTH

13-down – PC still checks on description of stolen goods : SCREENSHOT

15-down – Spotted in nude, wrong is only alleged : UNFOUNDED

16-down – Old king of Spain left in debt-ridden state : ETHELRED

17-down – Star’s welcoming wave in Barnet, meeting a hero : SUPERMAN

19-down – Celebration: a wild, crazy one : DIWALI

20-down – Fly east over the Channel, then again northwards : TSETSE

23-down – Game with two sides touring a country : RURAL

24-down – Curtailed ape’s role in Italian opera : MIMI

7-across – Irritable, as I tangled with four cats : FRACTIOUS

8-across – Entourage play tennis here — and try to win : COURT

9-across – Pointedly, her work keeps her on her toes : BALLERINA

10-across – Ointment’s taken right off tray : SALVE

12-across – Brighter chess player first to resign : WHITER

13-across – Are you sober? One may still find you’re over the limit : SPEEDCOP

14-across – Work on papers is burden : OPPRESS

17-across – Change ‘observe’ into the opposite : OBVERSE

20-across – Wild animal eating half of best legume : LIMABEAN

22-across – To sprinkle with sugar is a drag : DREDGE

24-across – Policeman’s way of cutting hair close : BOBBY

25-across – Description of ‘baritone’ heard in phone message : VOICEMAIL

26-across – Information about a class of art, perhaps : GENRE

27-across – Overseas police turning out seem grand : GENDARMES

1-down – Floral tribute to recollect the war : WREATH

2-down – Artist who is chippy about her work? : SCULPTOR

3-down – Paper offering reflections? : MIRROR

4-down – Supply seafood, holding big container : FURNISH

5-down – Lower away, poltroon! : COWARD

6-down – Priest welcomed by godly prior : PREVIOUS

11-down – Djokovic, for one, involved in tenser battle : SERB

15-down – Spin senior put out is a con : PRISONER

16-down – Small man had erection in the garden : SHED

18-down – Upset, remove lessons in religion for all time : EVERMORE

19-down – Game that could give you your big break? : SNOOKER

21-down – Such hair a golden stream? : AUBURN

22-down – Make sense of Christmas poem? : DECODE

23-down – What protects the ankle from fierce animal, it’s said : GAITER

8-across – Message from public transport: ‘Introduction of electronic support needed’ : TELEGRAM

9-across – For this particular purpose, include white wine, it’s said : ADHOC

10-across – See 24 down : ARMY

11-across – Joy, it’s time to get into breathing out, having dropped an aitch! : EXALTATION

12-across – Joke leg manufactured for rambling group? : GAGGLE

14-across – Winter feature spells end of Christmas present season : SNOWFALL

15-across – Say, rather badly: ‘Bread vs rocks’ : ADVERBS

17-across – One who fancies commercial muck, right? : ADMIRER

20-across – No miser needs special finish on everything : SPENDALL

22-across – Play the bongos again, possibly requiring backing to produce hit : MURDER

23-across – State Republican keen to sup­press independent legislative body : PARLIAMENT

24-across – Has a dated appreciation of accommodation : DIGS

25-across – Spell of cold weather eventually penetrating the joint : CHARM

26-across – Buckle in lid in defect construction : BUILDING

1-down – Rise up and fight daughter at the back : REARWARD

2-down – Drink company : BEVY

3-down – Said ‘Don’t move decoration’ : FRIEZE

4-down – One’s rather old-fashioned cul-de-sac : IMPASSE

5-down – Large amount of clubs needing creative work pack : CARTLOAD

6-down – Brother’s Wi-Fi rather dodgy : WHITEFRIAR

7-down – Give instruction: sun acceptable when hot internally : SCHOOL

13-down – Maybe seaweeds’ improbable general age : GREENALGAE

16-down – Be prepared to shoot transport members : BEARARMS

18-down – Fantastic Mere Man is coming! : EMERGENT

19-down – Quickly passes ‘Men’s Trousers Feature’ — heartless youth! : FLIESBY

21-down – Caper results in country’s leader being replaced : PRANCE

22-down – Art set in amalgam, a rectangular arrangement : MATRIX

24-down – Pop music centre regenerated Mary’s classic sitcom : DADS