Financial Times 14,706 / Orense

The first appearance by Orense for three months gives us a straightforward puzzle with nothing contentious or particularly difficult.

My first pass through the clues left only a handful of empty lights to return to before the grid was complete.

Across
1 Digital conversion of speech? (4,8)
SIGN LANGUAGE – cryptic def.

10 Ring round being pompous (7)
OROTUND – O (ring) ROTUND (round)

11 Avoid salt dye (7)
ABSTAIN – AB (salt {sailor}) STAIN (dye)

12 Soprano is expecting to admit rumour (5)
NOISE – hidden in (to admit) ‘sopraNO IS Expecting’

13 Agree on international organisation’s worry (8)
UNSETTLE – UN (international organisation) SETTLE (agree)

15 Group at work / dress for bed! (5,5)
NIGHT SHIFT – double/cryptic def.

16 The probability of disaster drives salesmen – initially! (4)
ODDS – initial letters of ‘Of Disaster Drives Salesmen’

18 Cat burglar starts in vault (4)
TOMB – TOM (cat) B[urglar] (burglar starts)

20 Dance at which volunteers are not all prepared to dismiss love (10)
TARANTELLA – TA (volunteers) plus an anagram (prepared) of ARE N[o]T ALL without the ‘O’ (to dismiss love)

22 Wants to work whilst receiving income support (4,4)
WISH LIST – an anagram (to work) of WHILST around (receiving) IS (income support)

24 Hurried, looking embarrassed about bill (5)
RACED – RED (looking embarrassed) around (about) AC (bill)

26 Rioja to start is excessive with nothing but a rice dish (7)
RISOTTO – R[ioja] (rioja to start) IS OTT (is excessive) O (nothing)

27 African city’s offer within a month? (7)
ABIDJAN – BID (offer) in (within) A JAN (a month) – this African city

28 Something worn around house that’s good for density in carpeting (8,4)
DRESSING GOWN – DRESSING dOWN (carpeting) with the ‘d’ (density) changed to ‘G’ (good)

Down
2 Club with gin cocktail by evening (7)
IRONING – IRON (club) plus an anagram (cocktail) of GIN

3 Name a practice consumed by disgust (8)
NAUSEATE – N (name) A USE (a practice) ATE (consumed)

4 Son misses whispered comment from assistant (4)
AIDE – A[s]IDE (son misses whispered comment)

5 Accommodation for flagrant criminal outside New York? (6,4)
GRANNY FLAT – an anagram (criminal) of FLAGRANT around (outside) NY (New York)

6 Man for example after a passage (5)
AISLE – A ISLE (Man for example)

7 Demanded and got true wingers from England (7)
EXACTED – EXACT (true) E[nglan]D (wingers from England)

8 Subs have these doing time with debtors (7,6)
CONNING TOWERS – CONNING (doing) T (time) OWERS (debtors)

9 Informal agreement in accordance with status (13)
UNDERSTANDING – UNDER (in accordance with) STANDING (status)

14 Offensive remarks / coming from the doubles bar? (5,5)
CHEAP SHOTS – double/cryptic def.

17 Sailor taken in by hustle jumping in surprise (8)
STARTING – TAR (sailor) in (taken in by) STING (hustle)

19 Leader of men is employed and badly treated (7)
MISUSED – M[en] (leader of men) IS USED (is employed)

21 Condition of depression enveloping poor Jack (7)
LOCKJAW – LOW (depression) around (enveloping) an anagram (poor) of JACK

23 Coffee – the second of two unfinished (5)
LATTE – LATTE[r] (the second of two unfinished)

25 Raise decent amount of cash with new beginning (4)
DAWN – WAD (decent amount of cash) reversed (raise) N (new)