An enjoyable puzzle from Armonie, with some nice surfaces. Thanks to Armonie. Definitions are underlined in the clues. [[The pictures at the bottom have unidentified links to the puzzle.]]
Across
1 One ran admin by arrangement (8)
MANDARIN : Anagram of(by arrangement) RAN ADMIN.
Answer: An influential civil servant/bureaucrat;one who ran the Administration, especially of the old Chinese Empire. A WIWD (wordplay intertwined with definition) clue.
5 Cottage in Connecticut containing well (6)
CHALET : CT(abbrev. for the US state of Connecticut) containing(containing) HALE(well, not sickly, as in “hale and hearty”).
9 Game put back with sympathy and with haste (8)
URGENTLY : Reversal of(put back) RU(abbrev. for the game of Rugby Union) + GENTLY(with sympathy;with tenderness).
10 Overwork old Bob’s followers (6)
STRAIN : S(abbrev. for “shilling”, the former British unit of currency, nicknamed the “bob”) + TRAIN(the followers;the entourage).
12 Guard decapitated contestant (5)
ENTRY : “sentry”(a guard) minus its first letter(decapitated).
13 Detailed discourse follows return of package (9)
ELABORATE : ORATE(to discourse;to treat a subject formally in speech) placed after(follows) reversal of(return of) “bale”(a package;a bundle, eg. of hay, or even, rubber).
14 Fellow flogs cinema (6)
FLICKS : F(abbrev. for “fellow”) + LICKS(flogs;beats, especially with a whip).
Answer: Motion pictures (eg. skin flicks and chick flicks), and by extension, the cinema, as in “what’s on at the flicks tonight?”
16 Formerly stout model (7)
EXAMPLE : EX-(the prefix to indicate “formerly”;once before) + AMPLE(stout;large enough or more).
19 Wrangler does without club (7)
DEBATER : DEER(the animal group whose female is the doe) containing(without) BAT(a club).
Answer: A gentler word for a wrangler;one who disputes, especially noisily and angrily.
21 Ring round to get oriental bird (6)
HOOPOE : HOOP(a ring;a circular band of metal, wood or other stiff material) + O(the letter that looks round) + E(abbrev. for “eastern”;oriental).
23 Hark! King receives North European (4,2,3)
LEND AN EAR : LEAR(the king in Shakespeare’s play) containing(receives) N(abbrev. for “north”) + DANE(a citizen of the North European state of Denmark).
25 Plunge into Dutch river (5)
DOUSE : D(abbrev. for “Dutch”) + OUSE(any of the rivers of the same name in England).
Answer: To plunge into water, say, a river. Another WIWD clue
26 Force hospital into consortium (6)
THRUST : H(abbrev. for a hospital) containing(into) TRUST(a group;a consortium of commercial enterprises formed to control the market for a commodity to its members’ advantage).
27 Many admit defeat when depressed (8)
DOWNBEAT : D(Roman numeral for 500, relatively many) + OWN(to admit to;to confess to, as in “to own up to the offence”) + BEAT(to defeat).
Answer: Gloomy, antonym to the happier “upbeat”. A nice surface.
28 Queen turns to cannabis for a new disposition (6)
REHASH : Reversal of(turns) ER(abbrev. for Elizabeth Regina, the Queen) plus(to) HASH(slang for cannabis, shortened from “hashish”).
Answer: To rework, reuse or make over old or already used material. I’m sure the Queen wouldn’t do what the clue suggests.
29 Propositions made in place of business (8)
PREMISES : Double defn: 1st: In logic, statements proposed to be true, as bases for a conclusion; and 2nd: The land and buildings where a business is carried out. A suggestive surface if linked with 17 down.
Down
1 One thinking about a gun (6)
MAUSER : MUSER(one who is musing;thinking) containing(about) A.
Answer: Any of the various models of guns made by the company named after Paul Mauser, German arms inventor.
2 Show venue close to centre of constable’s beat (9)
NIGHTCLUB : NIGH(close to in time or place) + the middle letter of(centre of) “constable” + CLUB(to beat, with, well, a club).
3 Exasperate with rejection in even the smallest amount (5)
ANNOY : NO(an expression of rejection) contained in(in) ANY(in even the smallest amount, as in “I won’t stand for any nonsense”).
4 It could give one a bad head (7)
ILLNESS : ILL(bad, eg. “ill repute”) + NESS(geographically, a head;a headland;a promontory) . A WIWD clue.
6 Stolen food is a tricky problem (3,6)
HOT POTATO : HOT(slang to describe something that has been stolen) + POTATO(a food tuber).
Answer: Slang for a matter too awkward or delicate for one to figuratively touch.
7 Luxembourg possesses a regional capital (5)
LHASA : L(the International Vehicle Registration code for Luxembourg) + HAS(possesses;owns) + A.
Answer: The capital city of the Tibet Autonomous Region in China.
8 Offered and was inclined to embrace soldier (8)
TENDERED : TENDED(inclined to;disposed towards) containing(to embrace) RE(abbrev. for a member of the Royal Engineers of the British military).
11 Learned a second time (4)
SAGE : S(abbrev. for “second” in time notation) + AGE(a period of time).
Answer: Wise;learn-ed.
15 Has racist agitated for purification? (9)
CATHARSIS : Anagram of(agitated) HAS RACIST.
Answer: A purging of emotional tensions.
17 Madam favouring kippers has seconds (9)
PROCURESS : PRO(in favour of, as in “pros and cons”) + CURES(treats a fish by salting and smoking to obtain, well, a kipper) plus(has) S(abbrev. for “second” in time notation).
Defn. and Answer: A female in charge of a brothel. A popular subject amongst the old painters by the looks of it (there’re more).
18 Grown-up is without artifice, initially, or is a sycophant (8)
ADULATOR : ADULT(grown-up;matured) containing(is without) the first letter of(initially) “artifice” + OR.
20 Not all picture editors rush (4)
REED : Hidden in(Not all) “picture edit”.
Defn: A vegetation.
21 Shelter hospital’s shady retreat (7)
HARBOUR : H(abbrev. for a hospital) + ARBOUR(a quiet place shaded by trees, vines, shrubs, etc.).
22 One wearing underwear wants matches (6)
VESTAS : A(the indefinite article for “one”) contained in( ) VESTS(underwear, specifically undershirts).
24 Thorn’s dealt with in a way (5)
NORTH : Anagram of(dealt with) THORN.
Answer: A direction;a way.
25 I mend damaged material (5)
DENIM : Anagram of(damaged) I MEND.
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Answer to pic#2 please click here.
Many thanks Scchua & Armonie
[[Marlon Brando, who starred in many a flick, is Image No 1]]
[[Yes, Bryan, but there’s another, more indirect link, the same one as for Pic# 4.]]
[[OK … Well, Marlon Brando did play Mark Antony in JULIUS CAESAR and I imagine that he would have said ‘Lend me your ears’ but I’ve no idea about the others.]]
[[You’re right about Marlon Brando.]]
[[I now wonder if it is Laurence Olivier in Image 4 which clearly suggests Hamlet and, alas, poor Yorick?]]
[[pic 4 Burton, who probably borrowed ears at some time. Pics 2 and 3 look a bit like a Funny Thing happened on the Way to the Forum, or Up Pompeii, but I doubt I’m right :-)]]
Thanks to Armonie for the puzzle and scchua for the blog.
[[Picture #4 is Richard Burton who also played Marc Antony. Picture #3 looks like Lynn Redgrave who played Xaviera Hollander in The Happy Hooker (1975) which could relate to 17D PROCURESS.
Can’t help you on the second picture.]]
Cheers…
[[Bryan, NormanLinFrance, grandpuzzler: Right! Both Marlon Brando and Richard Burton played Marc Antony. Lynn Redgrave played the real-life Happy Hooker who made good(?) and worked her way up to being a procuress. I’ve added a link under the pictures to the answer to pic#2.]]