Daily Answers

9-across – A quaintly pleasing French accent : ACUTE

10-across – He turns up, after all : LATECOMER

11-across – Humorously critical, yet possibly racialist : SATIRICAL

12-across – Old ship under last bit of sail makes slow movement : LARGO

13-across – Blimey! Alec capsized the boat : CORACLE

15-across – Problem with World War I battle citation : SUMMONS

17-across – Bird you shouldn’t be seen with indoors? : CAPON

18-across – Gravestone inscription produces a tear : RIP

20-across – Make a protracted speech : DRAWL

22-across – Agitated ladies : SALLIED

25-across – Inclined to be devious : OBLIQUE

26-across – A bit on the side? : APART

27-across – Unusually bad actors heard on the radio : BROADCAST

30-across – Unusually long title to describe The Wages of Sin? : ILLGOTTEN

31-across – It’s the minister’s place to designate names : MANSE

1-down – Cricketers attempt to get a rise : BATS

2-down – Soft soap and dairy product increased in price : BUTTERUP

3-down – Rush up to see animals : DEER

4-down – No one doubts what this signal means : ALLCLEAR

5-down – Theatre seats or stands : STALLS

6-down – Minor example of proportional representation : SCALEMODEL

7-down – It should grow by more development : EMBRYO

8-down – Small group involved in riot : TRIO

13-down – Game to take the helm, we hear : COCKS

14-down – Firm belief in guilty verdict : CONVICTION

16-down – Prevent a total loss and rescue about 50 : SALVE

19-down – Put the case against the euro : PROPOUND

21-down – Get bill reduced, strange to tell : ACQUAINT

23-down – Fifty-one, competent and responsible : LIABLE

24-down – Be up in time for a serious discussion : DEBATE

26-down – Bring in a number to help — sharpish! : ACID

28-down – Obscure eastern coin : DIME

29-down – Flower pegs : TEES

5-across – Caught god’s part in Sophocles play? : CHORUS

6-across – Boring 13s of play a trial : DRYRUN

9-across – Noted work based on play, say, 12 twice : OTELLO

10-across – Current book in mess distorted playwright’s principles : IBSENISM

11-across – Players from station on the radio : CAST

12-across – Hot, tense leading man — and, for Brecht, plays may be seen thus : INTHEROUND

13-across – Playing eg Willy Loman, retiring chap’s arrested by police : PERFORMANCE

18-across – Way to play with voice, capturing large bird : ALLEGRETTO

21-across – They’re played in Hawaii and here by two card players : UKES

22-across – Sordid party offers something to play : BASEBALL

23-across – Pretty daughter is not back in play : DAINTY

24-across – What Puck will make in play is what happens before PM arrives : AMENDS

25-across – Playmaker, one running round Arsenal’s No 7 : MILLER

1-down – What 17 plays finding obstacle in course : ROULETTE

2-down – Player of monsters to pull old samurai’s clothing : LUGOSI

3-down – Greek plays Brahms and Liszt trio with ease : ORESTEIA

4-down – Healthy food, fare for Hollywood player : BRANDO

5-down – Rest international player, holding six-footer back : CATNAP

7-down – Making slow movement in song that’s playing : NOSING

8-down – Play with Italian footballers lacking freshness : WINTERSTALE

14-down – Contest to put in crosses for these players? : FORWARDS

15-down – Conservative government skewered by revolutionary writer in 25 play : CRUCIBLE

16-down – American player not in love with a shaggy-haired creature : ALPACA

17-down – Race to enter compet­ition with right player : BETTER

19-down – In Barcelona, the regular number of players : ELEVEN

20-down – Ogle diva regularly? I see plays here : OLDVIC

1-across – Last to be dismissed, first catch : HOLDOUT

5-across – An extra drink? Cheers! : PERKSUP

9-across – Moving in/out of team up the valley : COMBE

10-across – Fitful rest before dawn : STOPSTART

11-across – English woman meets House representatives : EMISSARIES

12-across – Food and drink left for daughter : MEAL

14-across – Sign of Labour/Tory grip : CONTRACTION

18-across – Resident champion follows the crowd : HOUSEHOLDER

21-across – Sound horn travelling to and fro : TOOT

22-across – Moving in and out of base : FOUNDATION

25-across – Further strengthen defence on right — Everton’s front two score, if included : REFORTIFY

26-across – Southern France backs introduction of old patois : IDIOM

27-across – Sisters’ building firm closing, then opening : CONVENT

28-across – Check pulse after shocking incident : SCANDAL

1-down – Cut a couple of journalists : HACKED

2-down – Transparent top worn by Puck? : LIMPID

3-down – Respect one formulating a known unknown : OPENSECRET

4-down – Regret a serviceman carries shocking weaponry : TASER

5-down – I reopened building having laid the foundations : PIONEERED

6-down – Dare to feel up and down, but not at first : RISK

7-down – Well in ground provides source of energy : SHALEOIL

8-down – Ratty and Mole holding up a pick-up truck : PETULANT

13-down – Fever results when small boy touches a girl : SCARLATINA

15-down – Wordsmith finds account is entered in rewritten note : NEOLOGIST

16-down – Chorister arranged to miss first song at oratory : RHETORIC

17-down – Influence catch — switch positions : RUBOFFON

19-down – Regretted it being in black and white : PITIED

20-down – Looking up word for layer: a hen, perhaps : ANIMAL

23-down – 20th-century wordsmith was indecisive : NOYES

24-down – Open with key finally, moving to front : FREE

1-across – See 13 : OFFICE

5-across – Near a swimmer, keeping very quiet : APPROACH

9-across – Mostly stand over tabloid franchise : SUFFRAGE

10-across – See 26 : RISING

11-across – Superior bishop fills in part 10 : INSURRECTION

13-across – Small aristo dislodges line of police in 10’s General HQ : POST

14-across – Old carrier left to absorb another one in bad faith : BETRAYAL

17-across – Chap picked up ball control : GUIDANCE

18-across – Author marks work by Yeats : POEM

20-across – Barrow boy served rotten flounders : STREETVENDOR

23-across – Leader of 10 essentially guarding area : PEARSE

24-across – Loyal politician, one controlling working lives : UNIONIST

25-across – I call for help and stay working for balanced state : ISOSTASY

26-across – Erin is great! — slogan originally spread by its leaders? : EASTER

2-down – Number in favour of surrounding university : FOUR

3-down – Delivered popular short film on time to cutter : INFLICTED

4-down – Apparently different Reserves go by : ELAPSE

5-down – Oxymoron born in 18: 26 1916 : ATERRIBLEBEAUTY

6-down – Powerful society passes round Republican signs : PORTENTS

7-down – Start limited by 10 bêtes noires : ONSET

8-down – Reportedly, churchman assists shelling : CANNONADES

12-down – Offers made by very resolute rebels about noon : VOLUNTEERS

15-down – Colonists jail special heirs of 1916, ambitious types : ASPIRANTS

16-down – Curse a rioting man stealing articles : ANATHEMA

19-down – A scheme abandoned by English 17 : ADVICE

21-down – In 1607 they fled opposing sides in stormy sea : EARLS

22-down – Paisley’s helping Ireland, perhaps : ISLE

5-across – Senior politician, disaster now with him after balls-up? : SHADOW

6-across – Author writing stuff about Swiss canton in war — God he’s extraordinary! : GEORGE

9-across – Duty I had to enter Fleet, say, as hired capitalist? : LONDON

10-across – Check hinge drops from above : RESTRAIN

11-across – March, some springtide month : DEMO

12-across – One in the printing trade yet to be embarrassed about page on the Sun? : TYPESETTER

13-across – See 6 : BERNARDSHAW

18-across – Pictures of a painfully seductive nature in flier : SANDMARTIN

21-across – See 9 : TAXI

22-across – See 5 : MINISTER

23-across – Human right to treasure little time : MORTAL

24-across – Bound to fill shot with it : TRENDY

25-across – That’s used for identifying theme song, perhaps? : SERIAL

1-down – Big is beautiful : HANDSOME

2-down – Issue clear in the Bard’s work : SONNET

3-down – After an upset, bug gripping relative endures : PERSISTS

4-down – Case of disrepair right to bring up — that’s decay : DRYROT

5-down – Scum in bathroom unit : SHOWER

7-down – Breaking the name of the resigned Labour leadership, it changed : EDITED

8-down – Draft list to knock up in hunting target : PREPARATORY

14-down – A little current news not half fitting I would speculate, ultimately : NEAPTIDE

15-down – A substance injected perhaps, one shooting up? : ASTEROID

16-down – Red film screens all orange, initially : MAOIST

17-down – Brush skimmed off something in the soup : OXTAIL

19-down – See 9 : DRIVER

20-down – See 25 : NUMBER