This was a satisfying mix of relatively easy and difficult clues. Of particular note were 5 down, 13 across and 25 across, all of which had clever cryptic definitions.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Uzbekistan: (bet uk’s + nazi)* |
| 11 | Obnoxious: Didn’t get this. There’s (bono)* following “Indian trading ends”, which appears to “xious”. |
| 13 | Aladdin: (And laid)* + cryptic def (light rubber in jewellery store). |
| 18 | Comrade: Cunning &literal. Com + (dear)* and comrade being used as a non-specific form of address in the same way as “dear”. |
| 22 | Attorney General. (rotten)* in “ay” (a vote for) + general. The “for” initially looked redundant until I realized an “ay” is a vote for something. |
| 24 | Opium: “Odium” with “d” (denarius) swapped with p (pence). Odium also fits, so it’s possible I’ve misinterpreted it. |
| 25 | Ewes: Soundalike (“yous” being used dialetically in Liverpool instead of “you”) + cryptic def. |
| 26 | Close Shave: Another one I didn’t quite get. Appears to be “plane” + “sh” + “ave”, but I’m not sure why plane would be close. |
| Down | |
| 2 | Bristol: tol(l) on bri(dge) + “s”. |
| 5 | Auntie: “A” + untie. Cryptic def “broadcaster” for Auntie (slang for BBC). |
| 8 | Respect: “Re” + “p” in “sect”. Respect is a small political party. |
| 15 | Congress: Cryptic def with a double meaning, “union” being used in both a trade union and marital sense. |
| 19 | Derrida: (Red) reversed + id(e)a after “r”. |
| 20 | Derail: “Er” inside “Dail” (name of the Irish parliament). |
| 21 | Flambe: &lit + “lamb” replacing centre of “fire”. |
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