Azed 2244 – Fifteensquared

A medium-difficulty Azed, I thought – I got through about three-quarters of it with not much trouble, and then took twice as long again to finish it off. Usual remarks about sound, high-quality clueing apply. Thanks to Azed.

Across
1.	SPLIT CAP	Tell, when brought before head? It offers security of various kinds (8, 2 words) SPLIT (tell, as in “split on”) + CAP – short for split capital trust, which is “an investment trust having several kinds of security..”
7.	APPEL	Stamp with foot running lap round gym (5) PE in LAP* – this word is a term in fencing, meaning “a stamp of the front foot in false attack, in order to create an opening for a hit”
12.	COUNT	No. 1 in charts available for sale, including new number (5) C[harts] + N in OUT
13.	MILL-EYE	Channel for ground grain, distance about 80 yards (or more) (7) LEY (a measure of yarn: 80 yards of worsted, or more for other types) in MILE
14.	AMENTA	Hazel’s pretty pendants, ornamental in large measure (6) Hidden in ornAMENTAl – aka catkins
15.	THAUMATURGIST	Misled about gold, might trust a ‘miracle-worker‘ (13) AU in (MIGHT TRUST A)*
16.	COBIA	Stripy fish, caught by sorcery? (5) C + OBIA
18.	NICHE	Opening sought by marketing men, kind that’s hard getting in (5) H in NICE
20.	RESIDUA	Left-overs? Recipe I used cooking with one (7) R + (I USED)* + A
22.	CERES	Asteroid string by the sound of it (5) Homophone of “series” (string)
24.	FRESH	Cheeky underling turned hearts (5) SERF< + H
25.	AVANT-GARDISTE	A trendsetter (13) The competition word
28.	DELTAS	Alluvial deposits from lake filled round fringes (6) L in SATED<
29.	TROOLIE	Palm tree root shifted relative position (7) ROOT* + LIE
30.	VEXED	Vatican hall excluding RA, troubled (5) V + EXED[RA]
31.	SENSE	Variant of disputed Shakespearean term: note received interpretation (5) N in SESE
32.	SPENDERS	One among contemporaries of Auden, W. H? They’re exhausting (8) SPENDER S (Stephen S, 1909-1995, a contemporary and friend of Auden’s)
Down
1.	SCOTCH CARTS	Boer transport to block other vehicles circling junction? (11, 2 words) SCOTCH (to clock) + T in CARS
2.	POTHOLE	Road hazard mostly Scots endure after work’s reversed (7) OP< + THOLE
3.	LUMA	Local units (monetary), Armenian primarily (4) Initial letters &lit
4.	INQUIRENDOS	They grant authority to Crown investigators, upsetting Ironside about new Queen (11) N QU in IRONSIDE*
5.	CAMASS	Edible bulb, coloured, on top of heap (6) C + AMASS
6.	PIN-UP	It’s posted by admirer, youngster that’s burning inside? (5) IN in PUP
8.	PLAGIARISED	After delay I appear, paid to come round, taken from others’ work (11) LAG I ARISE in P[ai]D
9.	PEDICLE	Inspiration for heroic opera record turning up – does it culminate in bloomer? (7) Reverse of EL CID + EP. El Cid was the subject of an opera by Massenet
10.	EYAS	Unfledged bird always reared in centre of nest (4) AY< in [n]ES[t] – an unfleged hawk
11.	LETTERHEADS	Company stationery perhaps, one allowing varied shade (11) LETTER (one allowing) + SHADE*
13.	METRICATE	Convert (in a way) disturbed at CE rite after mass (9) M + (AT CE RITE*)
17.	BORAZON	Shaver mostly made to divide half of sweet exactly – it’s very hard (7) RAZO[r] in half of BON-BON – “exactly” because the two halves are the same
19.	HUSTLER	Cocotte? This woman’s filled with wild lust (7) LUST* in HER – Chambers gives “prostitute” as one of the meanings of both hustler and cocotte
21.	DERATE	Relieve of local tax under a tenancy in part (6) (6) Hidden in inDER A TEnancy
23.	UGLIS	Facile, not born in the States, they’re not much to look at! (5) GLI[b] in US
26.	VARE	Something like conductor’s baton, length reduced in composition of Ravel (4) RAVEL* less L
27.	SAXE	Example of the blues is devastating to the ears (4) Homophone of “sacks” (i.e. ransacks)

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