I had all but four answers as I reached my half-hour target but needed another 16 minutes to work through the remainder
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 | European resort, flipping empty (8) |
| SPANIARD | |
| SPA (resort), then DRAIN (empty) reversed [flipping] | |
| 6 | Kid given lead part in today’s service (3,3) |
| TEA SET | |
| TEASE (kid), T{oday’s} [lead part in…] | |
| 9 | Injunction applied to key report (4) |
| BANG | |
| BAN (injunction), G (key – music) | |
| 10 | Worthwhile publicity heralding new lifeboat (10) |
| PROFITABLE | |
| PR (publicity – Public Relations), anagram [new] of LIFEBOAT | |
| 11 | Memorabilia from fantastic vacation around Northeastern state (10) |
| VICTORIANA | |
| Anagram [fantastic] of VACATION containing [around] RI (Northeastern state – Rhode Island) | |
| 13 | Initiation perhaps concerned with accepting sex (4) |
| RITE | |
| RE (concerned with) containing [accepting] IT (sex) | |
| 14 | Big group essentially occupying squats from time to time (8) |
| SUPERSET | |
| PER SE (essentially) contained by [occupying] S{q}U{a}T{s} [from time to time]. SOED: (Math. & Linguistics etc.) a set which includes another set or sets M20. | |
| 16 | She worked with men to create trap (6) |
| ENMESH | |
| Anagram [worked] of SHE MEN | |
| 18 | Type of medicine and some other balms (6) |
| HERBAL | |
| Hidden in [some] {ot}HER BAL{ms} | |
| 20 | Bishop back to take on the rest (8) |
| BREATHER | |
| B (bishop), REAR (back) containing [to take on] THE | |
| 22 | Northern city folk picked up from an offshore territory (4) |
| MANX | |
| Sounds like [picked up] “Mancs” (northern city folk – people from Manchester aka Mancunians). Manx relates to the Isle of Man. | |
| 24 | Engineer on-site a lot, in a jam? (4-2-4) |
| NOSE-TO-TAIL | |
| Anagram [engineer] of ON-SITE A LOT. The jam is a queue of traffic. |
|
| 26 | Intimate, strange cognitive dissonance at the end (4,6) |
| GIVE NOTICE | |
| Anagram [strange] of COGNITIVE {dissonanc}E [at the end]. Edit: Thanks to aphis99 for helping me focus on the definition here with ‘intimate’ as a verb meaning ‘proclaim’ or ‘make known’. | |
| 28 | Front of handbag has grey clasp (4) |
| HOLD | |
| H{andbag} [front], OLD (grey) | |
| 29 | Sharp tip of talon removed from bird (6) |
| BITTER | |
| BITTER{n} (bird) [tip of talon removed] | |
| 30 | Heartless movie injected with fresh Disney imagination (5,3) |
| MINDS EYE | |
| M{ovi}E [heartless] containing [injected with] anagram [fresh] of DISNEY | |
| Down |
|
| 2 | Pharmacy initially needing licence to supply bromide (9) |
| PLATITUDE | |
| P{harmacy} [initially], LATITUDE (licence). A figurative definition here: bromide – something or someone boring, commonplace, or conventional; especially. a soothing platitude or trite remark (SOED). | |
| 3 | Outfit for going out in? (7) |
| NIGHTIE | |
| Cryptic definition relying on ‘going out’ meaning ‘falling asleep’ | |
| 4 | According to a sales assistant, goods finally turned up (2,3) |
| AS PER | |
| A, then REP (sales assistant) + {good}S [finally] reversed [turned up] | |
| 5 | Pair of daughters united by love (3) |
| DUO | |
| D (daughters), U (united), 0 (love). I wonder how many people like me immediately thought DOD? | |
| 6 | Volunteer force that is protecting flags from an island nation (9) |
| TAIWANESE | |
| TA (volunteer force), IE (that is) containing [protecting] WANES (flags). ‘Territorial Army’ is now called the ‘Army Reserve’, but historically the abbreviation is fine. | |
| 7 | A couple of animals, or nine cats, for instance? (7) |
| ANAGRAM | |
| A, NAG + RAM (couple of animals), with ‘NINE CATS for instance’ as a definition by example. Amazingly this was my LOI! | |
| 8 | Written up, anecdote contains constant flair (5) |
| ECLAT | |
| TALE (anecdote) reversed [written up] contains C (constant) | |
| 12 | Soldier maybe is about to stay somewhere in France (7) |
| ANTIBES | |
| ANT (soldier maybe), then IS containing [about], BE (stay) | |
| 15 | Half-hearted resentment over dismal show (9) |
| SPLENDOUR | |
| SPL{e}EN (resentment) [half-hearted], DOUR (dismal) | |
| 17 | Work detail supported by current colleague in particular (9) |
| SPECIALLY | |
| SPEC (work detail), I (current), ALLY (colleague) | |
| 19 | Fight to establish comfortable position (3,4) |
| BOX SEAT | |
| BOX (fight), SEAT (establish). I struggled a bit here but I suppose both ‘seat’ and ‘establish’ as verbs can mean to set something up in a particular place. A box seat in a theatre is likely to be more comfortable than a cheaper seat. | |
| 21 | Small children possibly caught dipping into church donations (7) |
| TITCHES | |
| C (caught) contained by [dipping into] TITHES (church donations). ‘Donations’ suggests money or goods given willingly rather than as a form of tax which is what a tithe was. | |
| 23 | Politician taken in by excellent cover story (5) |
| ALIBI | |
| LIB (politician) contained [taken in] by A1 (excellent). Another historial abbreviation, in the UK at least. | |
| 25 | Marketing ploy from e-tailer isn’t occasionally scrapped (3-2) |
| TIE-IN | |
| {e}T{a}I{l}E{r} I{s}N{t} [occasionally scrapped] | |
| 27 | Millions following one singular doctrine (3) |
| ISM | |
| I (one), S (singular), M (millions}. Another suffix which like ‘ology’ has become a word in its own right. | |
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