Daily Answers

1-across – Abel’s murderer? It could be him : THIRDPERSON

9-across – The reverse of fat, the man’s held to be a hero in Athens : THESEUS

10-across – Way to avoid repeated note when having to in musical piece : STRETTO

11-across – Study icon having moved away from general society : INCUSTODY

12-across – Tried to win, sounding disagweeable : WOOED

13-across – Electronic publication about cricket? : GAME

14-across – Work at greyhound stadium to divert from the main point : STARTAHARE

16-across – Pieces can get mixed up left in that school box? : PENCILCASE

19-across – Criticise possible achievement of East-West partnership : SLAM

21-across – Horse’s rump given whip around third part of course : CROUP

22-across – Hesitation about pamphlet before editor’s disowned : RETRACTED

24-across – Nuts fixed to secure centre of wheel — then I left behind tool : UTENSIL

25-across – One knew about lines — something for pupil at school once? : INKWELL

26-across – Like employers waywardly ruling : HOLDINGSWAY

1-down – Announcement of van’s arrival by jingly tune in street play : THEICEMANCOMETH

2-down – Times spinning bits of news? : ITEMS

3-down – Give girl brief call : DISHOUT

4-down – Female tagger-on with philosopher, one making an effort : ESSAYER

5-down – Inexperienced male put into position, inadequate person lacking substance : STRAWMAN

6-down – Gambling system one I try? Not at all, silly : NATIONALLOTTERY

7-down – Looking hard, having lost a thread : STRING

8-down – We hear fish’ll cook : CODDLE

15-down – Girl I had upset, keeping quiet over dumping process : DISPOSAL

16-down – Answer phone in truck : PICKUP

17-down – Musical arrangement leader ignored — bad upset for composer : CORELLI

18-down – Pasquale’s work environment : SETTING

20-down – Many inches around theologian’s waist : MIDDLE

23-down – Presumably having lots of plants wonky? : ASKEW

1-across – What tennis players may be doing in the forces : SERVING

5-across – Whacking hostile delivery at the Oval? : BUMPER

9-across – Swaggering, make better boxing punch first to last : COCKSURE

10-across – In old Rome I love retiring president, a low form of life : AMOEBA

12-across – Pat kindly covers up the foreign head’s negligence : CARELESSNESS

15-across – Remaining board members : OVERCOMMIT

17-across – Malicious utterance damaging leaders, perhaps : MUD

19-across – Endless row over nothing : NIL

20-across – All gibbons gathered in distant watering holes : BILLABONGS

22-across – Band of players celebrate after work for soloists curtailed : CONCERTPARTY

26-across – Unorthodox bishop with answer for society’s hatred : PHOBIA

27-across – Suggestive payment made to landlord in receipt of benefit : REDOLENT

28-across – Vinegary old hermit’s no saint : ACETIC

29-across – Rubbish written about church — editor fired : TORCHED

1-down – Demand for the whole nation to go in fun sports event! : SACK

2-down – See 1 : RACE

3-down – Fashionable carriage, for example : INSTANCE

4-down – Dynamic chaps with energy moving bush : GORSE

6-down – Bare man swimming in river : UNMASK

7-down – Promotion before commotion : PREFERMENT

8-down – Reformed characters in parishes do wax lyrical : RHAPSODISE

11-down – Cheerful servant good for morose leader : GENIAL

13-down – Trouble afoot — temperature’s cold in the Land of More Plenty : CORNUCOPIA

14-down – Purchasing power of earnings in Brazil? : REALINCOME

16-down – Doctor’s sobriety half-gone — either half : MOIETY

18-down – Crowd trouble on the rise after a cricketer’s shambles : ABATTOIR

21-down – Soldier guarding modern artist’s house, one of 12 : GEMINI

23-down – Watch chain not originally belonging on watch? : ALERT

24-down – Fringes of more stylish network : MESH

25-down – Film company dismissing one old boss : STUD

1-across – Ray, perhaps, not entirely mean to eat morsel of food, a scrap : FISTFIGHT

6-across – Fraud no PCs will back : SCAM

10-across – Ancient, somewhat wizened looking from the rear : OLDEN

11-across – Debt of £1 on gift : LIABILITY

12-across – God welcoming national state : ROMANIA

13-across – Force out old terrorist leader, boorish : EXTRUDE

14-across – Fair to wash hand : STRAIGHTFLUSH

17-across – Drink in hemlock, it’s poisonous as sweet : MILKCHOCOLATE

21-across – Frank, a cause of irritation : CANDIDA

22-across – Cap removed from element by GP, one releases medicine : DROPPER

24-across – Reversible fasteners pinning baker, European : SLOVENIAN

25-across – Priest managed to screen scrummy entertainment? : DRUID

26-across – Look to get sound from woofer : PEEK

27-across – List including unlimited dance music, OK : TOLERABLE

1-down – Succeed, like something powdery? : FLOURISH

2-down – Biblical city like this, with kind of effect half erased : SODOM

3-down – Pink organ inelastic, if man excited : FINANCIALTIMES

4-down – Climbing back into pig monster : GOLIATH

5-down – Tiny thing bagged for a nicker? : TEALEAF

7-down – Vital force left out of dance, doubly for ankle-biter : CHIHUAHUA

8-down – Chaos, with one of twelve on the brink : MAYHEM

9-down – Flit suggested — so take flight, then? : LIFTOUTOFORDER

15-down – Bad manners with old twins a prominent feature : ROMANNOSE

16-down – Ask Dickensian to feel resentment : BEGRUDGE

18-down – Vehicle in which cups and saucers might be thrown around? : CHARIOT

19-down – Maybe second test outlines racket? : ORDINAL

20-down – Wildcat taking drink is naughty : ACTSUP

23-down – Second fruit? Exactly : PLUMB

8-across – It’s OK for youngsters, but not for when we’re getting on : BADINAGE

9-across – Sauce not right with a prophet : ELISHA

10-across – You can bet here’s a misdemeanour in company : CASINO

12-across – Man of rank struggled with endless greatness : SERGEANT

13-across – Bath chaps reflect some local feature : SPA

14-across – In time, bad type could do with correction : ERRATA

16-across – Prince shortly named over regarding curved surfaces : GEODETIC

17-across – Wherein I might have been patriotic, but you end ferocious : BRUTISH

20-across – Weather in 17 before it changed going to eastern country : UKRAINE

23-across – Difficulty of getting label for minced horse? : SHORTAGE

24-across – 12 with lonely hearts? : PEPPER

26-across – Epidemic brought back from the Gulf : FLU

27-across – Average pest said to produce irrational fear : PARANOIA

28-across – Strong ham, as 79 of 12,087 : FACTOR

31-across – Private words, as over a party : ASIDES

32-across – Dial can be cool : LAIDBACK

1-down – State doubly likely in the elderly? : GAGA

2-down – Tragic heroine in opera, mostly parody : MIMI

3-down – Snack for prophet in Salvation Army : SAMOSA

4-down – Seems artificial silver in cable, say : MESSAGE

5-down – Annual time to arrest : YEARBOOK

6-down – Army officer gives assistance on point to make off : AIDEDECAMP

7-down – Hang about with a Scot from Africa : GHANAIAN

11-down – Gentleman is upright : SIR

14-down – Decline of Thatcherite released from bird : EBB

15-down – Pudding gobbled, drawback later : AFTERWARDS

18-down – Practise 21 in rising Surrey town : REHEARSE

19-down – Ocean mount? : SEAHORSE

21-down – Attention is part of learning : EAR

22-down – It occurs to a shadow minister to keep notes : BEFALLS

24-down – Bird’s taken in by brash advertisement : PUFFIN

25-down – Indulge in huff : PET

29-down – Copper live, solid and regular : CUBE

30-down – Island loses little time over whales : ORCA

1-across – Step down first of stairs to break rule : RESIGN

4-across – Having turned back nearly half way across ocean, explorer leaves from the Americas : TOBACCO

9-across – Where glasses sit precisely : ONTHENOSE

10-across – Thread attaching fringes of lungi and shawl to back of cape : LISLE

11-across – Shroud city featuring shrouds : TURIN

12-across – Islanders on Martinique not once seizing vessel : JAMAICANS

13-across – Snack, Spooner’s filth of the filth? : POPCORN

15-across – See 27 : LIQUID

17-across – Compassion some weeks after conflict : WARMTH

19-across – Some leaves to make cha? : SPINACH

22-across – Like viruses having a rest, lying back inside maple : ACELLULAR

24-across – Tidy, maintained without muck for a start : KEMPT

26-across – See 25 : CARTA

27-across – Fairy, perhaps, raised just over half a ton of cash to support tree strangled by branch : WASHINGUP

28-across – Stop propaganda happening : PREVENT

29-across – The wrong way for TV presenters to pour wine : DECANT

1-down – Upper house covering little Australian paperwork : ROOFTOP

2-down – Dog or worm is up an instrument : SITAR

3-down – No thanks to Garbo, Monroe wandering in space backstage : GREENROOM

4-down – Current king in approach to palace, scratching bottom : THERMAL

5-down – Curry from Lithuania? Not quite! : BALTI

6-down – Nation supporting lead player in Chad every so often : COSTARICA

7-down – Port, after lid removed, passed round the wrong way : ODESSA

8-down – Thug eating up junket for starters — it’s coated in breadcrumbs : GOUJON

14-down – Earth, say, on English sycamore : PLANETREE

16-down – Setter with water living on fruit : QUICKLIME

18-down – Fool Oscar but not Wilde? : HALFWIT

19-down – Most painful? Then put your feet up : SOREST

20-down – Somewhere dangerous, exciting to see : HOTSPOT

21-down – Rash appearing as potty put on head : MADCAP

23-down – Contract required while in shelter : LEASE

25-down – Old document, Reform Act : MAGNA