Guardian Quiptic 715 Nutmeg

A nice ‘n’ easy puzzle, as a Quiptic should be, from a regular Quiptic setter.  Thanks to Nutmeg.  Definitions are underlined in the clues. [[The pictures at the bottom have unidentified links to the puzzle. Please enclose any comments on them in double brackets. Thank you.]]

Across

8 Most ancient tiles are in fragments (8)

EARLIEST : Anagram of(in fragments) TILES ARE.

9 Woman spelling … (5)

WITCH : Cryptic defn: A woman who casts spells.

10 … “clique” going wrong with no apparent hesitation (4)

RING : “erring”(going wrong;committing a mistake) minus(with no) “er”(an expression of hesitation).

11 Basil, Rosemary et al in plot? (4,6)

HERB GARDEN : Cryptic defn: A plot of ground where you’ll find basil, rosemary and other herbs.

12 Tool producing tombstone inscription was returned (6)

RIPSAW : RIP(abbrev. for the Latin “requiescat in pace”;the tombstone inscription) + reversal of(returned) WAS.

14 Noel made fizzy drink (8)

LEMONADE : Anagram of(fizzy) NOEL MADE.

16 Periodicals you ultimately put into archives (7)

ANNUALS : Last letter of(ultimately) “you ” contained in(put into) ANNALS(the archives;the record of history).

18 Ridicule garden feature originally made for king (7)

MOCKERY : “rockery”(a garden feature, constructed with, well, rocks) with first letter of(originally) “made” replacing(for) “r”(abbrev. for “Rex”;king).

21 Fighting doctor gets award that’s fitting in House (8)

WARDROBE : WAR(fighting) + DR(abbrev. for “doctor”) plus(gets) OBE(abbrev. for Officer of the Order of the British Empire;a conferred title). Answer: A piece of furniture/fitting in a house/home; or if in a house/theatre, the department that is responsible for fitting the players in costumes.

23 Pool players’ first powwow excludes beginner (6)

PUDDLE : First letter of(first) “players ” + “huddle”(a powwow;a private or impromptu conference) minus its first letter(excludes beginner). Good misdirection with “pool players”, and “beginner”.

24 What’s shown by impudent spiders etc on the move (10)

DISRESPECT : Anagram of(on the move) SPIDERS ETC.

Answer: What’s shown by the impudent.

26 Campbell’s valley (4)

GLEN : Cryptic defn. A valley in Scotland, where “Campbell” is an archetypal name. Or it could be a double defn: 1st: First name of Campbell, country and western singer.

27 Monsieur goes off westward in rage (5)

STORM : M(abbrev. for “monsieur”) + reversal of(westward, in an across clue) ROTS(goes off;spoils).

28 Tired maiden possibly taken advantage of (8)

OVERUSED : OVER(in cricket, an example of which;possibly, is a “maiden”, in which no runs are scored) + USED(taken advantage of;manipulated towards a purpose).

Down

1 Man purchasing a grand old British company’s a charmer (8)

MAGICIAN : MAN containing(purchasing) { A + G(abbrev. for a “grand”, eg. £1000) + ICI(abbrev. for “Imperial Chemical Industries”;once a grand British industrial company – I worked at their Runcorn plant for a while 45 years ago) }.

2 Bullet hit hard (4)

SLUG : Double defn.

3 Relative‘s latest wife leaves, thank goodness! (6)

NEPHEW : “new”(of recent origin, including the latest, as in “the new book from writer….”) minus(… leaves) “w”(abbrev. for “wife”) + PHEW(thank goodness!;an expression of relief – but if expressed differently, an expression of disgust).

4 Rising golfer absorbs sharp shock (7)

STARTLE : Reversal of(Rising, in a down clue) ELS(Ernie, South African champion golfer) containing(absorbs) TART(having a sharp taste).

5 Cotton on stick (4)

TWIG : Double defn. 1: Informal term (like the answer) for “to understand;to catch on”.

6 Drake’s tank slipped out of gear (5,5)

STARK NAKED : Anagram of(slipped) DRAKE’S TANK.

Defn: “Gear” referring to your clothes.

7 Artful wife wears hardly anything (6)

SHREWD : W(abbrev. for “wife”) contained in(wears) SHRED(a very small amount;hardly anything, as in “not a shred of evidence”).

13 Good strength of spirit that’s in a sense impenetrable (10)

SOUNDPROOF : SOUND(good;free from defect) + PROOF(the alcoholic strength of a liquor;spirit).

Answer: Impenetrable to sound, and hence undetectable by the sense of hearing.

15 Meadow regularly cut for old chairman (3)

MAO : “meadow” minus its 2nd, 4th and 6th letters(regularly cut).

Answer: Zedong, former Chairman of the Communist Party of China.

17 What’s written in Cleopatra’s stars (3)

LEO : Hidden in(What’s written in) “Cleopatra’s“. Answer:

A constellation of stars.

19 Glad to stand in for daughter (8)

RELIEVED : RELIEVE(to stand in for one on duty/watch, eg. while he/she relieves him/herself) + D(abbrev. for “daughter”).

Answer: To be freed of distress, pain, or anxiety – phew!

20 Get sick with love working in small department (7)

DEVELOP : Anagram of(working) LOVE contained in(in) DEP(abbrev.;small for “department”). Answer: To contract an illness or disease, eg. “to develop measles”.

22 Surrounded by morning papers on street (6)

AMIDST : AM(abbrev. for “ante meridiem”, the time of the day before noon) + ID(abbrev. for “identity”;the papers you have saying who you are) + ST(abbrev. for “street”).

23 Model’s endless glib talk (6)

PATTER : “pattern”(a model;a template) minus its last letter(…’s endless).

25 Aforementioned heads dismissed in disgrace (4)

SAME : “h”(abbrev. for “heads”?) deleted from(… dismissed in) “shame”(disgrace). “h” for “head” could be found in Internet/texting, eg. LMHO, and in abbreviations like HOD, but otherwise I couldn’t find a reference. Am I missing something?

26 Morose student has to stick around (4)

GLUM : L(abbrev. for a learner driver, as exhibited on a vehicle) contained in(has … around) GUM(to stick together with, well, gum). ====================================================================           

For answers to pics1 and 6 please click here (cf. second paragraph), to pic5 here (what’s in a name, whether stage or birth?).  Each of 1 (and6) and 5 has links to 2 of the crossword’s answers.