Financial Times 14,340 by Mudd

Prize puzzle from the Weekend FT of June 15, 2013

I found this to be a pleasant and easy Mudd. My favourite clues are 13D (GRANNY FLAT), 17D (ON SAFARI) and 19D (STARVE).

ACROSS
1 A page on average about Mudd’s employers that’s insincere (4,4)
SOFT SOAP – FT (Mudd’s employers) in SO SO (average) + A (a) + P (page)
5 Coup rests on companion (6)
PUTSCH – PUTS (rests) + CH (companion)
9 After retraction of single volume, Tory smiley, perhaps? (8)
EMOTICON – I (single) + TOME (volume) together backwards + CON (Tory)
10 Point within atlas worryingly sloping (6)
ASLANT – N (point) in anagram of ATLAS
11 Greek character famous for retreating, set off (8)
DETONATE – ETA (Greek character) + NOTED (famous) all backwards
12 Not entirely inelegant, old cowboy (6)
GAUCHO – GAUCH[e] (not entirely inelegant) + O (old)
14 Acidic fruit with a bitter aftertaste? (4,6)
SOUR GRAPES – double definition
18 From which one might snigger when late? (10)
BEHINDHAND – BEHIND HAND (from which one might snigger)
22 A letter read out as an acknowledgement (6)
AVOWAL – A (a) + VOWAL (homophonic to “vowel”)
23 Panic this year after meltdown (8)
HYSTERIA – anagram of THIS YEAR
24 1980s comedy film amid wrath, simply repellent (6)
ISHTAR – reverse hidden word. This is a movie I know of but have never seen.
25 Fine lord regularly invested in land (3,5)
ALL RIGHT – L[o]R[d] in ALIGHT (land)
26 Niche that is fun (6)
NOOKIE – NOOK (niche) + IE (that is)
27 Light stone’s back with the concrete (8)
ETHEREAL – [ston]E + THE (the) + REAL (concrete)

DOWN
1 Drug with oxygen, one’s affected by applying the gas (6)
SPEEDO – SPEED (drug) + O (oxygen). ‘Speedo’ is an abbreviation for speedometer here. “Applying the gas” is rather American.
2 Insect eating grass that’s light (6)
FLOATY – OAT (grass) in FLY (insect)
3 Emaciated local passing through the heavens (6)
SKINNY – INN (local) in SKY (the heavens)
4 At which point discarded letters left, so thrown back into rubbish heap (10)
APOSTROPHE – PORT (left) + SO (so) together backwards in anagram of HEAP
6 Purist as debauched on another level (8)
UPSTAIRS – anagram of PURIST AS
7 Main work, while in steps to appear ascendant, prose ultimately (8)
SEASCAPE – AS (while) in PACES (steps) backwards + [pros]E. With a nice cryptic definition.
8 Horticulturalist’s building, wetter around you (8)
HOTHOUSE – THOU (you) in HOSE (wetter)
13 Annex state amid flagrant violation? (6,4)
GRANNY FLAT – NY (state) in anagram of FLAGRANT
15 A chest’s covered, bandaging one graze (8)
ABRASION – A (a) + I (one) in BRAS ON (chest’s covered)
16 Train to masticate repeatedly, say (4-4)
CHOO-CHOO – homophone (“chew, chew”)
17 Trouble for Asian holidaying in Africa? (2,6)
ON SAFARI – anagram of FOR ASIAN
19 Not hard in poor harvest – to do this? (6)
STARVE – anagram of [h]ARVEST (not hard, harvest)
20 Accent afoot? (6)
BROGUE – double definition
21 Drawer in chalet’s apparently turned upside down (6)
PASTEL – reverse hidden word