Daily Answers

1-across – Fellow, covered in fur, made Spooner utter a prayer : HAILMARY

5-across – Admitted fellow is inside and not thrown out : LEFTIN

9-across – Nasty scum I fight for vintage entertainment system : MUSICBOX

10-across – Little Scottish creature removes article for close friend : BESTIE

12-across – Nurses on mad rotation means nobody sleeps : NESSUNDORMA

15-across – Fool starts to turn white eating raw prawns : TWERP

17-across – Sextet with talent shows prospect of making it : VIABILITY

18-across – Relaxed performer’s backstage requirement making classic film : EASYRIDER

19-across – Central economic unit some say is indispensable : NOONE

20-across – Steam celery, then turn it into an empty vessel : MARYCELESTE

24-across – Novel little song sounds bare in this state : NUDITY

25-across – Ordinary artist, half cut, becomes shopkeeper : STOCKIST

26-across – Go wrong filling pastry for French chap : PIERRE

27-across – Daily ingestion of sulphur may keep skin looking healthy : CLEANSER

1-down – One of us is taking on relationship type of studies : HUMANITIES

2-down – Popular fiction genre has us on tenterhooks : INSUSPENSE

3-down – Chinese region producing rainwear with gold finish : MACAU

4-down – Driver mood is perturbed delivering mobile furniture : ROOMDIVIDERS

6-down – Delight receiving green car for promotion : ELEVATION

7-down – Sums made by heartless solicitors : TOTS

8-down – Regularly uncovers disagreeable voters : NOES

11-down – Doctor creating oral list of health problems! : ORGANRECITAL

13-down – Petty officials not so important when bidding for bridge : MINORSUITS

14-down – Sort I employed to put words together : TYPESETTER

16-down – Guideline creates safe environment for a strike : PARAMETER

21-down – Material delivered in oily crates : LYCRA

22-down – Cut up nails that are cheap : SNIP

23-down – Chopper used in evacuated annexed zone : ADZE

1-across – Face up to Tony in desperation keeping money – I don’t like it : NOTMYCUPOFTEA

10-across – Old African’s letter to boys : RHODESIAN

11-across – In retrospect, a mistake defending FA’s language : LINGO

12-across – Former Chancellor’s usual way of doing things : MORES

13-across – ‘Quiet!’ Hard to handle French nurse in pub in capital : PHNOMPENH

14-across – Mean to declare how long you’ve been here : AVERAGE

16-across – Bottom of river is experimental site : TESTBED

18-across – I don’t know Vlad’s voice : PASSIVE

20-across – You shouldn’t slip on these : LACEUPS

21-across – Relaxing wear for Hawaii? Of course : LEISURELY

23-across – Assuming one’s a little backbone : TIBIA

24-across – Cheats to get flat : CONDO

25-across – The Pope’s a Pole – look back with upright catholic : APOSTOLIC

26-across – Joke – of kind – sees Trump getting irritated? : PRESIDENTMUSK

2-down – Rarely used loos round side though seemingly hygienic : ODOURLESS

3-down – Joins baseball team touring East : MEETS

4-down – Tradesman’s shop : CHIPPIE

5-down – Seed having nightmare on green, Spooner reported : PINENUT

6-down – Sick of glamour oddly peculiar to some of Dylan’s work : FOLKMUSIC

7-down – Before being put outside, turned up in drawer initially : ERNIE

8-down – Less people from school joining force – they won’t like it : GRAMMARPOLICE

9-down – Hated escorting right away: unfortunate but don’t give up too soon! : GOTHEDISTANCE

15-down – ‘O Claudius’ is wrong? That’s harsh : ACIDULOUS

17-down – Woodland residents keeping alert in Chelsea? : BLUEBELLS

19-down – Stone me! Romeo in wood ignoring women : EMERALD

20-down – Give up on sad song : LAYDOWN

22-down – Spiritual sustenance Duke’s lacking : INNER

23-down – Cat round Egypt raised as sacred object : TOTEM

7-across – Drill then dart for twice-daily pain? : SCHOOLRUN

8-across – Bright element that’s metallic blue : AGLOW

10-across – Rise not right, owed what’s left : RESIDUE

11-across – One of a set with it is cutting well : INCISOR

12-across – Zip has caught a collar : NAIL

13-across – Cream: initial lump briefly whipped : ILLUMINATI

15-across – Hopeful cop bedecked in flag : WANNABE

16-across – Appropriate work of farrier or glazier? : FITTING

18-across – Bloomer putting pot like that on stove : AGAPANTHUS

21-across – Answer every crossword has, ostensibly acronymic : ECHO

23-across – Endless joy filling holes, sow seed? : PIGLETS

24-across – One wearing cap, hot, pull it off : TRIUMPH

25-across – Time in state halved for Greek character : DELTA

26-across – New Yorker, say, organ welcoming satirical voice? : EASTERNER

1-down – Player afterwards grabbing bath into which I dipped : THESPIAN

2-down – Flat arc on doughnut rings : CONDO

3-down – Diehard, both brute and louse, oddly? : TRUEBLUE

4-down – Base unit is placed there : INSITU

5-down – A dude describing life force in instant coffee : MACCHIATO

6-down – State possible response to ‘will she dance with me?’ in the Cavern Club? : ALASKA

7-down – Freud made some noise for da boise, and da crowd out loud – in a film? : SHRINKWRAPPED

9-down – Sequence of items tossed up above man, thousand more for female juggler? : WORKINGMOTHER

14-down – Soldier on with a lawyer initially – and one’s assistant? : PARALEGAL

16-down – Sugar in snacks chilled for Spooner? : FRUCTOSE

17-down – Coin wasted on old Chinese pottery, homeward bound : INCOMING

19-down – A record of events Nigeria cleared up for country : ANGOLA

20-down – Tuft of threads secured in effect, as Sellotaped : TASSEL

22-down – Five in love in Paris, split : RIVEN

1-across – Transfer over a million pounds at first for 17/6 : VAMPIRE

5-across – Last lines of sonnet recalled trapping end of penis in flies : TSETSES

10-across – Bonkers attempt to make a comeback : BATS

11-across – Marx brothers finally check out star of 19 : MAXSCHRECK

12-across – Bird mum keeps at home : MINA

13-across – Are Converse stocked by dispenser of style at Covent Garden? : OPERATIC

14-across – English footballers entertained by Rolling Stone’s version of Don’t Stop Believin’ : KEEPFAITH

16-across – Digger regularly on motorway is a nuisance in Scotland : MIDGE

17-across – Kids swapping sides to make descent : BLOOD

19-across – 17/6 for Austen novel : NOSFERATU

23-across – Hack maybe with Times tucking into top-notch biscuits : AMARETTI

24-across – Walker is one with no answer for parasites : LICE

25-across – Republican heavyweight following game show on Netflix : BRIDGERTON

26-across – Slice from return of Kyle Edmund is like 18 : EELY

27-across – Writer of Lady In Red ultimately inspired by pop duo : WYNDHAM

28-across – Noel Gallagher on vacation abroad eating hot chicken : LEGHORN

2-down – Greed of girl going both ways with 1 author : AVARICE

3-down – Dad consuming endless wine and food : PASTA

4-down – Traveller collecting a stamp in country : ROMANIA

6-down – Shoot gull : SUCKER

7-down – Deeper level supporting cast in audition : THROATIER

8-down – Female leaving attractive impression : ETCHING

9-down – Retired people bending over backwards perhaps to expel Tory 17/6s : EXTORTIONISTS

15-down – Stuck out reminder about pastry’s filling : PROTRUDED

18-down – Sea creature picked up young victim : LAMPREY

20-down – Doctor can feel Banquo’s issue : FLEANCE

21-down – Heart is broken by Brockwell’s latest puzzle : TICKLER

22-down – Attributes of Gaia, the nature goddess : ATHENA

24-down – Old doctor from General Hospital snorting cocaine : LEECH

1-across – Pain initially going, massage heavenly figure : CHERUB

5-across – Couple in Costa repeatedly like hot drinks : COCOAS

8-across – One with needles or fine tip for cotton reels : CONIFER

9-across – Caught a cheat having a fling? : CASTING

11-across – Point of view that’s raised in comment put online : OBSERVATIONPOST

12-across – Make love then get married – terrible fate : DOOM

13-across – Noted movie complex for capital : MONTEVIDEO

17-across – Frank with musician’s backing playing twice with feeling : NONONSENSE

18-across – Despondent: tending to vote Democrat : BLUE

20-across – Doctor then signs letter that deals with stress : TENSILESTRENGTH

23-across – Withdraw soldiers to front territory : RETRACT

24-across – One preparing table, perhaps after opening of Bollinger: it’s bubbly : BLISTER

25-across – Musician in film on piano : PLAYER

26-across – Most in pain, group swallowing tablets : SOREST

2-down – Workers not working easily : HANDSDOWN

3-down – Change what’s taught in school before class : REFORM

4-down – Pub to sing over Christmas karaoke’s final song : BARCAROLE

5-down – A part for erotic acting? Naturally they have fleshy bits in hot scene : CACTI

6-down – Lover with sex appeal turned on cracking open the bubbly? : CASANOVA

7-down – In the morning I pass friend : AMIGO

8-down – See 16 : COORDINATOR

10-down – Become a couple for party : GETTOGETHER

14-down – Bowled in cricket match over one day: they might hold solution : TESTTUBES

15-down – See date go large, initially getting order for seconds : DELEGATES

16-down – Do I monitor racy act in shot? : INTIMACY

19-down – Former partner that is into sister that’s hotter : SEXIER

21-down – Alan confused about time of delivery : NATAL

22-down – Go on stage and record : ENTER