Independent on Sunday 1476 Hoskins

Thanks Hoskins for an enjoyable puzzle with clues with good surfaces. Definitions are underlined in the clues.

Across

1 To get round trouble, cut class with southern mates? (7)

SAILORS : AIL(to trouble;to afflict suffering on) contained in(To get round …) “sort”(a class;a type) minus its last letter(cut …) plus(with) S(abbrev. for “southern”).

Defn: … on a ship, say.

5 Greed is a wicked thing, Marx endlessly held (7)

AVARICE : A + VICE(a wicked thing;sinful behaviour) containing(… held) “Marx” minus its 1st and last letters(endlessly).

9 Windy lover sat outside King’s Head is far too gassy! (9)

OVERTALKS : Anagram of(Wind–y;winding) LOVER SAT containing(outside) 1st letter of(…’s Head) “King“.

Defn: …, as with a windbag.

10 Blooming heads of Religious Ed. like some Hoskins clues? (5)

OUTRE : OUT(blooming, as in “the daffodils are out”) + 1st letters, respectively, of(heads of) “Religious Ed.“.

Defn: Hoskins does set some that are unusual and shocking (to some).

11 Musical genre that’s piano driven on occasion (5)

INDIE : 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th and 10th letters of(… on occasion) “piano driven“.

13 Bojo, as his critics might say, is terribly smug on air (9)

IGNORAMUS : Anagram of(terribly) SMUG ON AIR.

Defn: …, Bojo being the nickname for Boris Johnson, English politician who has his share of epithets thrown at him.

14 Giant boar sandwiches detective knocked back (7)

GOLIATH : Reversal of(… knocked back) [ HOG(a wild pig;a boar) containing(sandwiches) TAIL(a detective who shadows a suspect) ].

15 Light service after track blocked by Ford-model car (7)

LANTERN : RN(abbrev. for the Royal Navy, the senior UK military service) placed after(after) [ LANE(a track;a path) containing(blocked by) T(an early model of cars made by Ford Motors) ].

17 Hot or freezing, Papa, you must put that on! (7)

POPULAR : POP(a term, like Papa, for one’s father) + U(“you”, as in mobile phone texting) plus(must put that on) LAR(acronym for Liquid Argon, which is a sub-zero;freezing substance – I’m not sure about this, as it is an uncommon acronym).

Defn: In high demand;in fashion.

19 A book club will be held in small hotel Saturday? (7)

SABBATH : A + B(abbrev. for “book”) + BAT(a club, as used in baseball) contained in(will be held in) [ S(abbrev. for “small”) + H(represented by “hotel” in the phonetic alphabet) ].

Defn: …, being the Sabbath for Jews, as Sunday is for Christians.

21 Dare we run about in it? (9)

UNDERWEAR : Anagram of(… about) DARE WE RUN.

Answer: The “it” in the definition.

A WIWD (wordplay intertwined with definition) clue.

23 Skilful Bill drained pint without spillage in the end (5)

ADEPT : [ AD(short for an advertisement, an example of which is the poster or bill) + “pint” minus its inner letters(drained …) ] containing(without) last letter of(… in the end) “spillage“.

24 Manage clubs with United winger (3,2)

CUT IT : C(abbrev. for the suit of clubs in card games) plus(with) U(abbrev. for “United”, eg. in football club names) + TIT(the bird;winger;one using wings).

Defn: …;handle satisfactorily or successfully.

25 Dear old Hoskins has nurses write last of clues (9)

EXPENSIVE : [ EX-(prefix depicting something of old;former) + I’VE(contraction of “I have”;Hoskins the setter has, self-referentially) ] containing(nurses) [ PEN(to write;to compose) + last letter of(last of) “clues” ].

27 What one might see 5 players wearing in several papers? (3-4)

RED-TOPS : Double defn: 1st: The red shirts;tops that Arsenal (answer to 5 down) football players might wear; and 2nd: Several newspapers, viz. the tabloids in the UK, named after their mastheads.

 

28 Ruddy upset to have gone in river (7)

DERWENT : Reversal of(… upset) RED(ruddy, usually refering to one’s complexion) + WENT(to have gone;departed).

Defn: Any one of rivers in England and Australia with the same name.

Down

1 Go wrong gossiping, primarily about my getting lucky (7)

SCORING : [ SIN(to go wrong;to commit a moral offence) + 1st letter of(…, primarily) “gossiping” ] containing(about) COR!(like “my!”, an exclamation of surprise).

Defn: …;succeeding in attracting a sexual partner for a casual liaison.

2 Kind to get out of head with methamphetamine (3)

ICE : “nice”(kind, as in “how kind of you!”) minus its 1st letter(to get out of head).

Defn: Slang for crystal meth.

3 Where one might see a number in pool being vigilant (2,3,4)

ON THE BALL : In the indoor game of pool, where one might see a number.

4 What a commercial angler might do, I’m told is egocentric (7)

SELFISH : Homophone of(…, I’m told) “sell fish”(what a commercial fisherman might do with his catch).

5 Football team with Butt and the rest of ’em reportedly (7)

ARSENAL : ARSE(British slang for “butt”, one’s posterior) plus(and) homophone of(… reportedly) “and all”(the rest of them, as in “he consumed the whole fruit, seeds and all”).

6 Mother’s upset with yours and my Parisian fling (5)

AMOUR : Reversal of(…’s upset, in a down clue) MA(one’s mother) plus(with) OUR(possessive pronoun for you and I together).

7 Given to drunkenness, I tee parent off about maternity initially (11)

INTEMPERATE : Anagram of(… off) I TEE PARENT containing(about) 1st letter of(… initially) “maternity“.

8 One against soprano touching Hoskins up is a philosopher (7)

EMERSON : Reversal of(… up, in a down clue) [ NO(a vote against;one against) + S(abbrev. for “soprano”) + RE(with reference to;touching on) + ME(the setter, Hoskins, self-referentially) ].

Answer: …, Ralph Waldo, American philosopher.

12 Worn-out dad with ideal tip for restoration? (11)

DILAPIDATED : Anagram of(… for restoration) [DAD plus(with) IDEAL TIP].

16 Bang bishop or Nina and Her Maj? Easy decision! (2-7)

NO-BRAINER : Anagram of(Bang) [ B(abbrev. for “bishop”, in chess notation) + OR NINA] plus(and) ER(abbrev. for Elizabeth Regina, Her Maj;Majesty, the Queen of the UK).

17 I will jump on another quiet, shaven-headed doorman (7)

POUNCER : P(abbrev. for “piano”, musical direction to play quietly) + “bouncer”(the doorman at a club, say, who keeps out undesirables) minus its 1st letter(shaven-headed …).

18 Illegal items English royal kept in off-shore banks (7)

REEFERS : ER(abbrev. for Elizabeth Regina, English royal, more specifically the Queen) contained in(kept in) REEFS(bars;banks of sand, rock, or coral, or similar material lying off-shore beneath the water surface).

Defn: Hand-rolled cigarettes containing the illegal substance, cannabis.

19 Get naked with editor having some lines? (7)

STRIPED : STRIP(to get naked) plus(with) ED(short for “editor”).

20 Most sexy time beneath husband Barney after retiring (7)

HOTTEST : T(abbrev. for “time”) placed below(beneath, in a down clue) { H(abbrev. for “husband”) + reversal of(… after retiring) [SET TO](a noisy quarrel;a barney) }.

22 No female to worry over contrary men, period! (5)

RETRO : “f”(abbrev. for “female”) deleted from(No … to) “fret”(to worry and be anxious about) placed above(over, in a down clue) reversal of(contrary) OR(abbrev. for “other ranks”, men in the military who are not commissioned).

Defn: …, as an adjective, signifying, say, styles and designs, characteristic of a past historical time, as in “period clothing”.

26 One with energy boxing foremost of Romany’s Fury (3)

IRE : [ I(Roman numeral for “one”) plus(with) E(symbol for “energy” in physics) ] containing(boxing) 1st letter of(foremost of) “Romany“.