Solving time: 28 minutes. I don’t know that having 6 double defintion clues is excessive, but having 5 of them in the Down clues in close proximity made blogging them very repetitive.
As usual definitions are underlined in bold italics, {deletions and substitutions are in curly brackets} and [anagrinds, containment, reversal and other indicators in square ones]. I usually omit all reference to positional indicators unless there is a specific point that requires clarification.
| Across | |
| 1 | Object vaporised after mixing around phosphorus (10) |
| DISAPPROVE | |
| Anagram [mixing] of VAPORISED containing [around] P (phosphorus) | |
| 6 | Short race on your bike (4) |
| SHOO | |
| SHOO{t} (race) [short]. ‘On your bike’ means ‘Go away! Clear off!’ and dates from the 1960’s | |
| 9 | Rogue swimmer in sport (7) |
| CURLING | |
| CUR (rogue), LING (swimmer – fish) | |
| 10 | Power tool put back beside table, initially requiring support (7) |
| RELIANT | |
| NAILER (power tool) reversed [put back], T{able} [initially] | |
| 12 | If I die, sadly, start to sob after sun sets (10) |
| SOLIDIFIES | |
| SOL (sun), anagram [sadly] of IF I DIE, then S{ob} [start] | |
| 13 | Pick up cash for fur (3) |
| DOE | |
| Sounds like [pick up] “dough” (cash – slang). I thought first of doe as a deer and had difficulty equating that with fur but of course doe is also a female rabbit and that accounts for the fur. | |
| 15 | Corrosion wore away wheel (6) |
| ROTATE | |
| ROT (corrosion), ATE (wore away) | |
| 16 | Possible cause of upset in cabaret, I suspect (8) |
| BACTERIA | |
| Anagram [suspect] of CABARET I | |
| 18 | Briefly cook bird in wine (8) |
| SAUTERNE | |
| SAUT{é} (cook) [briefly], ERNE (bird) | |
| 20 | Important, flat device with push-button controls (6) |
| KEYPAD | |
| KEY (important), PAD (flat – apartment) | |
| 23 | Bird flying east or west just the same? (3) |
| TIT | |
| Indicated as a palindrome | |
| 24 | All so fine after splitting say (10) |
| EVERYTHING | |
| VERY (so) + THIN (fine) contained by [splitting] EG (say) | |
| 26 | Jumper for summer sport (7) |
| CRICKET | |
| Two definitions, the first vaguely cryptic | |
| 27 | Fashion on street, not so hot? (7) |
| AVERAGE | |
| AVE (street – avenue), RAGE (fashion). ‘Not so hot’ is neither good not bad. | |
| 28 | Construction of planks and beams etc abandoned (4) |
| SHED | |
| Unless I’m missing something this is a double definition, the first of which is decidedly loose | |
| 29 | Snake chasing tick finding renewed energy (6,4) |
| SECOND WIND | |
| SECOND (wait a tick), WIND (snake) | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Weed moor (4) |
| DOCK | |
| Two meanings. A handy relief from nettle stings acquired when tying up your boat by the river bank. | |
| 2 | Remedy, golden beer bottles (4,3) |
| SORT OUT | |
| STOUT (beer) contains [bottles] OR (golden – heraldry) | |
| 3 | Trial — result of whiplash? (4,2,3,4) |
| PAIN IN THE NECK | |
| Two meanings, with ‘trial’ in the sense of an annoying person who tests your patience | |
| 4 | Win back article stolen by country after uprising (6) |
| REGAIN | |
| A (indefinite article) contained [stolen] by NIGER (country) reversed [after uprising] | |
| 5 | Spotless old instrument (8) |
| VIRGINAL | |
| Two meanings. The second is an early keyboard instrument resembling a spinet; it’s more usually in the plural. Here’s what it sounds like… | |
| 7 | Magpie in greyish-white, colour seen from below (7) |
| HOARDER | |
| HOAR (greyish-white), the RED (colour) reversed [seen from below]. According to Collins a magpie can be a person who likes collecting and keeping things, often things that have little value. | |
| 8 | Where diamonds may be found in store (2,3,5) |
| ON THE CARDS | |
| Two meanings, the second said of something that is likely to happen. | |
| 11 | Allow one’s mind to drift perhaps and falter as an embroiderer? (4,3,6) |
| LOSE THE THREAD | |
| Two meanings | |
| 14 | Truth of the matter, knickers finally found in piles of underwear? (5,5) |
| BRASS TACKS | |
| {knicker}S (finally) contained by [found in] BRA STACKS (piles of underwear) | |
| 17 | Throw uniform on top of sewer in anger (8) |
| UNSETTLE | |
| U (uniform – NATO alphabet), then S{ewer} [top] contained by [in] NETTLE (anger) | |
| 19 | Loosen tight nut, white perhaps? (7) |
| UNTWINE | |
| Anagram [tight – drunk] of NUT, then WINE (white perhaps) | |
| 21 | Crack shot, one from Southern Asia (7) |
| PUNJABI | |
| PUN (crack – joke), JAB (shot), I (one) | |
| 22 | Live wire turning up in so many devices (6) |
| DYNAMO | |
| Hidden [in] and reversed [turning up] in {s}O MANY D{evices} | |
| 25 | Cattle perhaps caught by the ears, heartlessly (4) |
| HERD | |
| HE{a}RD (caught by the ears) [heartlessly] | |
Thanks setter and blogger.