The wordplay also has a playful quality with a few standouts: I very much liked our canine chum’s RINGER SPAN becoming a “double-cross”, and “Gershwin against himself” in 7dn. My least favourite clue was the one I had to spend some extra time puzzling out after I stopped my timer just before 8 minutes: 8dn, where “ancient arrow” for REED is the kind of definition that I wouldn’t bat an eyelid at in a barred puzzle, but seemed a bit obscure for the 15×15. I’m sure most will have just shrugged and bunged it in, but I found myself unable to shake the feeling that it might somehow be RAED (as in Raedwald, old king of the East Angles?) and if I’d had to make that call in a championship prelim at speed and fallen the wrong way, it’d have been the Devonport Debacle all over again. I’m probably overly touchy about such things as November draws ever closer, though.
Over all a very jolly puzzle though. Thanks setter (and spaniel)!
ACROSS
1 Fashion to drink whiskey where more people are around (4)
TOWN – TON [fashion] to “drink” W [whiskey]
3 Island commander packing angry wound (10)
MADAGASCAR – AGA [commander] “packing” MAD SCAR [angry | wound]
10 Made bishop stop, surprised to be overheard within (9)
ENTHRONED – END [stop], homophone of THROWN [surprised] “within”
11 Man having day to find employment (5)
USAGE – US [man, as in “the human race”] to find AGE [day, as in “this day and age”]
12 Seraphim forced to abandon second tribe (7)
EPHRAIM – ({s}ERAPHIM*) [“forced”, abandoning S]. Ephraim is one of the twelve tribes of Israel, descended from Ephraim son of Joseph.
13 Bring out drug in accordance with law (6)
ELICIT – E LICIT [drug | in accordance with law]
15 Special troops when relaxed are radiant group (10,5)
PRAETORIAN GUARD – (ARE RADIANT GROUP*) [“when relaxed”]. The personal bodyguard of the Emperor in Roman times.
18 Barker having prepared speech about double-cross (8,7)
SPRINGER SPANIEL – SPIEL [prepared speech] “about” RINGER SPAN [double | cross]
21 Beard model put to work (6)
OPPOSE – POSE [model] put to OP [work]. Beard as in “to beard the lion in his den”.
23 Check on heartbeat (7)
REPULSE – RE PULSE [on | heartbeat]
26 Asian city and Greek one without parking (5)
DELHI – DEL{p}HI [Greek city, minus P]
27 Getting louder? Time to exit street party! (9)
CRESCENDO – CRESCEN{t] [street, minus T] + DO [party]
28 Understand when it’s e-mail that’s encrypted (10)
ASSIMILATE – AS [when] + (IT’S EMAIL*) [“encrypted”]
29 Person managing excellent American stud (4)
BOSS – triple definition
DOWN
1 Article on English politician in tax drama (3,7)
THE TEMPEST – THE [article] on E MP [English | politician] in TEST [tax]
2 Keep an eye on hunter? (5)
WATCH – double definition
4 Armenian toyed with European girl (4-5)
ANNE-MARIE – (ARMENIAN*) [“toyed”] with E [European]
5 Two daughters introduced to beer become confused (5)
ADDLE – D D [two daughters] “introduced” to ALE [beer]
6 Answer in contemplation for comic (7)
AMUSING – A MUSING [answer | in contemplation]
7 Row in church turning one Gershwin against himself (9)
CHARIVARI – CH [church] + reversed IRA V IRA [one Gershwin against himself!]
8 Ancient arrow‘s point, bloodied all around? (4)
REED – E [point], RED [bloodied] “all around”
9 Monster devouring rook and chicken part (6)
BREAST – BEAST [monster] “devouring” R [rook]
14 Notice lust with roué contrived such relationship? (10)
ADULTEROUS – AD [notice] + (LUST + ROUE*) [“contrive”], semi-&lit.
16 What might be rice and grain store up in citadel (9)
ACROPOLIS – A CROP [what might be rice] + reversed SILO [grain store “up”]
17 Taking it all in having gone around planet? (9)
ABSORBENT – ABSENT [gone] around ORB [planet]
19 Principal in Number 10 wrong about one element (7)
NIOBIUM – N{umber} 10 + BUM [wrong] about I [one]
20 Poisonous sort given shocking treatment shows face (6)
ASPECT – ASP [poisonous sort] given E.C.T. [shocking treatment]
22 Central characters in Huxley said to stand out? (5)
EXCEL – say the central characters in {hu}XL{ey}, X and L, out loud.
24 Shortening piece of verse, try peculiar vocabulary (5)
LINGO – LIN{e} [“shortened” piece of verse] + GO [try]
25 Certain characters within decide against proposal (4)
IDEA – hidden in {dec}IDE A{gainst}
19dn Why “Principal”? Doesn’t seem to do anything.
21ac My first solution was GOATEE (Go At = put to work, E-type = Model).
Good misdirection.
from Jeepyjay