I managed almost all of this without opening a dictionary, but a handful of clues put up a fight to the end. Perhaps it was just the constant feline harassment I was having to endure by that point.
*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, cd=cryptic definition, dd=double definition.
| Across | |
|---|---|
| 1 | ICKERS – [t]ICKERS. |
| 5 | SPRANG – (R “to enter” SPAN) + G. “Span” in the sense of “spick and span” took a moment or two to drop in for me. |
| 10 | ISOCHRONAL – CHOIRS* + ON A L. |
| 12 | UNSTRIP – (N in US) + TRIP. |
| 14 | AT SEA – A[nchovies] + (S in TEA). |
| 15 | CYCOSIS – (CISSY SO)*. |
| 16 | GELS – [searchin]G ELS[ewhere]. |
| 19 | ANTAGONISTIC – ANT + AGO + SIN< + TIC. |
| 20 | BUTTERSCOTCH – BOTCH “wrapping” (UTTER + S + C). |
| 22 | BAIL – dd. |
| 24 | UNCLEAR – UNCLE + A + R. |
| 26 | BURNT – BUT “about” RN. |
| 27 | VILAYET – (LAY “consumed by” VIE) + T. |
| 28 | FESTOONERY – (ON TREES OF)* + Y. |
| 29 | SEMTEX – (E + M + T) in SEX. |
| 30 | ENTRÉE – EN[d] + TREE. |
| Down | |
| 1 | IGUANA – U in AGAIN*. |
| 2 | CONTINUANT – CANT “covering” (UNIT + NO)<. |
| 3 | ESTER – [f]ESTER. |
| 4 | SCISSORS – (I + SS) “breaking” SCOR[e]S. I worked this out from the wordplay, without knowing that it can mean a rugby “pass executed on the run to another player who is crossing one’s path”. |
| 6 | PRACTICABLE – (IT + CARP)< + CABLE. |
| 7 | RORO – ROO “catching” R. Apparently “forester” is a large kangaroo. RORO is a “roll-on roll-of” ferry. |
| 8 | ANISETTE – ANTE “to keep” (I + SET). |
| 9 | GLOSS – dd. |
| 11 | ORANGE PEKOE – (RANGE in OP) + (EKE “about” 0). |
| 13 | FILICINEAE – (I C IN EA) in FILE. Last to go in, perhaps not surprisingly. |
| 16 | ATTICISM – A + ((C + IS) in MITT<). |
| 17 | ANSERINE – (IN EARNES[t])*. |
| 21 | HOTTIE – HIE “to eat” OTT. |
| 22 | BUFFS – BUS “packed with” FF. Great surface reading here: Vehicle packed with very loud fans. |
| 23 | QUART – QU + ART. |
| 25 | LATT – LAT + T[rawlers]. |