How is the mother country and how are crosswords getting on it my absence? Well I hope! Many thanks to the setter, and let me just say I’m glad I wasn’t timing this one properly, because even under conditions of concentration, I think it might have taken Quite A While….
ACROSS
1 Landlord’s agent has trouble stopping strike (7)
BAILIFF – AIL [trouble] “stopping” BIFF [strike]
5 Backing for some recalcitrant heavyweight on the way (5)
ARTIC – hidden reversed in {recal}CITRA{nt}. Heavyweight on the way = substantial road vehicle
9 Fellow setter from Coleraine? (5)
NIGEL – a GEL [setter] from NI [and possibly Coleraine]
10 Bore with patter? One’s cracked, finally (9)
PUNCHLINE – PUNCH [bore] with LINE [patter]. A punchline is cracked at the end of a joke
11 Patent I quietly reward inappropriately (7)
OVERTIP – OVERT I P [patter | I | quietly]
12 Right-winger in London ignoring position taken by Brussels chap (7)
EUSTACE – {Londo}N ignored in in EU STA{n}CE [position taken by Brussels]
13 The King and I sets make for stirring musical! (4,2,4)
KISS ME KATE – (K I SETS MAKE*) [“for stirring”]
15 Story a fraction, as it were, of what the writer possesses? (4)
MYTH – 50% of MY TH{ings}
18 What the French would make of UK newspaper expert (4)
DEFT – DE FT [French for “of | UK newspaper”]
20 Cleaner turned over communists holding pensioner captive (4,6)
SOAP POWDER – REDS reversed, “holding” OAP POW [pensioner | captive]
23 Whack doing no harm at all? (7)
HELPING – double def
24 Rumpus after champion gets three out of fifteen (4,3)
BACK ROW – ROW [rumpus] after BACK [champion]. Three out of the fifteen players in a rugby union team
25 A wrestling champion maybe boxes following change in direction (5-4)
ABOUT FACE – A BOUT ACE [a wrestling champion, maybe] “boxes” F [following]
26 Pop to Eton finally for meeting with Head (5)
PATER – {fo}R, meeting with PATE [head]. What an Eton pupil might call his dad
27 A number of things conveyed by Morse? (5)
DITTY – Morse being composed of dits and dahs, “of things conveyed by Morse” could be dit-ty.
28 Look on stick to support (5-2)
STAND-BY – triple def, I think?
DOWN
1 Certain players from GB cavalier with rules (7)
BUGLERS – (GB + RULES*) [“cavalier”]
2 One allowed to cut money for American when not working (4,4)
IDLE TIME – I [one] + LET [allowed] “to cut” DIME [money for American]
3 Contribution falling short, paper’s head about to drop setter? (2,3)
IN PUP – INPU{t} [contribution “falling short”] + P{aper}
4 Altered print, eg if manipulated digitally (9)
FINGERTIP – (PRINT EG IF*) [“altered”]
5 Experiences in a luxury car leaving one horrified (6)
AGHAST – HAS [experiences] in A GT [a | luxury car]
6 Having quite a crowd of partners in crime! (7)
TRIGAMY – cryptic def
7 Light food, cold, before short drive back (5)
CREPE – C [cold] before REPE{l} [“short” drive back]
8 Remarkable for Scotland to get sanctioned: it’s just not done! (8)
UNCOOKED – UNCO [remarkable for Scotland] to get OK’ED [sanctioned]
14 It’s blooming strong: ask for a fresh brew (9)
KNOTGRASS – (STRONG ASK*) [“for a fresh brew”]
16 One extracting pardon from base rebel once (8)
HEREWARD – DRAWER EH [one extracting | pardon?] from base = read from bottom to top
17 Suspicion protection is needed for computer device (8)
TOUCHPAD – TOUCH PAD [suspicion | protection]
19 Military command’s unpleasant consequences (7)
FALLOUT – or FALL OUT, the military command
21 Note Yankee keeps corrupt prairie girl in work (7)
DOROTHY – DOH Y [note | Yankee] keeps ROT [corrupt]. The work being The Wizard of Oz
22 Maybe hailing judge after victory (6)
WINTRY – TRY [judge] after WIN [victory]
23 White deposit on tail of red squirrel (5)
HOARD – HOAR [white deposit] on {re}D
24 Produced article (in English) in place of Dutch (5)
BREDA – BRED [produced] + A [English article]
Interesting that there was another easily parsed but wrong with Dole Time – same thought process, just O(ne) instead of I, and inside rather than outside the Dime.