Time taken: 9:48, and although that is pretty close to my average time, there are not a lot of faster times in the list right now, so I think this is a bit more difficult than the last few days.
I suspect I had an advantage in that there is a bit of an American flavor to this puzzle. Many of the answers I had to piece together from wordplay, so a good puzzle for worplay fans.
Away we go…
Postscript: The prevailing opinion is that this is tricky, and does contain more Americanisms than I initially through (kiss = buss had slipped by). Lots of head-scratching over SPENT = LED, but ulaca has the best option in comments.
| Across | |
| 1 | With legs bent, run down and demand to be heard (5-5) |
| KNOCK-KNEED – KNOCK(run down) and sounds like NEED(demnad0 | |
| 6 | Censor of old books turned on roughly (4) |
| CATO – OT(books) reversed after CA(roughly) | |
| 9 | Woodcutter’s cat — spotted (7) |
| WHIPSAW – WHIP(cat), SAW(spotted) | |
| 10 | Delighted to have credit spent? (7) |
| TICKLED – I may be missing something here but I have this as if the credit is spent then the TICK is LED – thanks to ulaca for coming up with the best equivalence in comments: “He led a quiet life / He spent a quiet life” | |
| 12 | Light work made of one manager in unresponsive state (5,5) |
| COMIC OPERA – I(one), COPER(managed) inside COMA(unresponsive t | |
| 13 | Idiot forgetting his name is mud? (3) |
| GOO – GOON(idiot) missing the N(name) | |
| 15 | Countenance struggle to contain decline (6) |
| VISAGE – VIE(struggle) containing SAG(decline) | |
| 16 | Valve and set of pipes next to bunk (8) |
| STOPCOCK – STOP(set of pipes in an organ) next to COCK(worthless, bunk) | |
| 18 | Recently turned up unfed, now being spoiled (3-5) |
| NEW-FOUND – anagram of UNFED,NOW | |
| 20 | Marshal reserve force at home after exercises (6) |
| PETAIN – TA(reserve force), IN(at home) after PE(exercises). Got this from wordplay – a French Marshal from World War 1 and 2 | |
| 23 | Poster associated with old pantomime (3) |
| ADO – AD(poster) and O(old) | |
| 24 | American’s sweet, spouting endless foolish hype (7,3) |
|
SHOOFLY PIE – anagram of FOOLIS |
|
| 26 | Who could find water more delightful! (7) |
| DIVINER – double definition | |
| 27 | Mean so much at first, but a little all round (7) |
| AWESOME – SO, and the first letter of Much with A, WEE(little) surrounding | |
| 28 | Prepare line — to catch this? (4) |
| DORY – DO(prepare), RY(line) | |
| 29 | With no will to cross Republican: that’s the US way (10) |
| INTERSTATE – INTESTATE(with no will) containing R(Republican). The town I live in is at the intersection of two of these (40 and 26) | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Fruit turning up every now and then in whisky (4) |
| KIWI – reverse alternating letters in In WhIsKy | |
| 2 | Sinister, nothing less, when cipher’s included (7) |
| OMINOUS – O(nothing), MINUS(less) containing the O(zero) cipher | |
| 3 | Transported sick son using mini — ultimately he’s close enough to be bussed? (7,6) |
| KISSING COUSIN – anagram of SICK,SON,USING and the last letter of minI | |
| 4 | Less well-known owner giving mild rebuke (3,3) |
| NOW NOW – hidden inside kNOWN OWner | |
| 5 | Competitor having to dine in suit (8) |
| ENTREATY – ENTRY(competitor) containing EAT(to dine) | |
| 7 | Go both sides of the channel, overlapping briskly (7) |
| ALLEGRO – interweave ALLER and GO, both terms for go | |
| 8 | Strange to witness revolutionary old party giving approval (3-7) |
| ODD-LOOKING – reverse OLD,DO(part) then OKING(giving approval) | |
| 11 | Famous street’s cathedral clock’s descended on by top team (6,7) |
| CHAMPS ELYSEES – ELY(cathedral) and SEE’S(clocks) after CHAMPS(top team) | |
| 14 | Just the day before, postman finally delivered (4-6) |
| EVEN-HANDED – EVE(the day before), the last letter of postmaN, and HANDED(delivered) | |
| 17 | At least one of two fled from small country (8) |
| ANDORRAN – AND/OR(at least one of two), RAN(fled) | |
| 19 | Anyone could be Women’s President once, with one difference (7) |
| WHOEVER – W(women) then Herbert HOOVER with E replacing one O | |
| 21 | Surprise here Nazi, or a criminal (7) |
| ARIZONA – anagram of NAZI,OR,A. This is pretty obscure – Surprise is a satellite city of Phoenix. I went to a conference there in 2004 or so. | |
| 22 | What blazers are of a fine, glittery fabric? (6) |
| AFLAME – A, F(fine), LAME(glittery fabric) | |
| 25 | Did live show, The Far Side, last of all (4) |
| WERE – last letters of shoW thE faR sidE | |
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