A stress-free FALCON to begin a hopefully stress-free week…
Well, what can we say? Everything was straightforward (though we had to check on CLARENCE), and there were some nicely written clues. We particularly liked the anagram in 13d.
Thanks FALCON!
Across
1 Stable studies brown head of thoroughbred (8)
CONSTANT
CONS (studies) + TAN (brown) + T[horoughbred] (head of)
6 Demanding to separate, divorce ultimately (6)
SEVERE
SEVER (separate) + [divorc]E
9 Plan amateur dismissed (6)
LAYOUT
LAY (amateur) + OUT (dismissed)
10 Boy in horse-drawn carriage (8)
CLARENCE
Double Definition
11 Warrant ingenuity required to defend rook (4)
WRIT
WIT (ingenuity) to defend R (rook)
12 Listen to what I’m saying in reply, said comic about medium (4,2,4)
READ MY LIPS
(REPLY SAID)* (*comic) about M (medium)
14 One who sits up very late close to wife by lake (5,3)
NIGHT OWL
NIGH (close) + TO + W (wife) + L (lake)
16 Stage one in unhappy retirement (4)
DAIS
I (one) in SAD< (unhappy, retirement)
18 Mystic and I travel back on back of donkey (4)
YOGI
(I GO)< (I travel, back) on [donke]Y (back of)
19 Senior teacher put down cape (8)
HEADLAND
HEAD (senior teacher) + LAND (put down)
21 Racing establishment meeting with success in Kent town (10)
WHITSTABLE
STABLE (racing establishment) meeting (W (with) + HIT (success))
22 Public school board, not good (4)
ETON
[g]ET ON (board, no good)
24 Accepted hot rod crashed round ten (8)
ORTHODOX
(HOT ROD)* (*crashed) + O (round) + X (ten)
26 Go left to get rhubarb (6)
DRIVEL
DRIVE (go) + L (left)
27 Queer fish in dam do (6)
WEIRDO
WEIR (dam) + DO
28 Vessel carrying right flag (8)
STREAMER
STEAMER (vessel) carrying R (right)
Down
2 Broadcasting live, very happily (2,3)
ON AIR
Double Definition
3 Summary treatment of husband after boxers split (5,6)
SHORT SHRIFT
(H (husband) after SHORTS (boxers)) + RIFT (split)
4 Guarding head of embassy, soldier fell over in lobby (8)
ANTEROOM
(ANT (soldier) + MOOR< (fell, over)) guarding E[mbassy] (head of)
5 To meet every requirement, second full article on cases is required (4,3,3,5)
TICK ALL THE BOXES
TICK (second) + ALL (full) + THE (article) on BOXES (cases)
6 Oily sergeant major leading fighting force (6)
SMARMY
SM (sergeant major) leading ARMY (fighting force)
7 Contend with life in France (3)
VIE
Double Definition
VIE = life in French
8 Fraud: Democrat replaced by leader of Republican party (9)
RECEPTION
DECEPTION (fraud) with D (democrat) replaced by R[epublican] (leader of)
13 Terribly ill, advocate in film (2,5,4)
LA DOLCE VITA
(ILL ADVOCATE)* (*terribly)
15 Train in club on gymnastic apparatus (4,5)
IRON HORSE
IRON (club) on HORSE (gymnastic apparatus)
17 Colour of object held by famous tennis player (8)
LAVENDER
END (object) held by LAVER (famous tennis player, Rod Laver)
20 Diligent American leaving for workshop (6)
STUDIO
STUDIO[us] (diligent, American leaving)
23 Honours cheque, finally, for fat (5)
OBESE
OBES (honours) + [chequ]E (finally)
25 That woman in therapy (3)
HER
[t]HER[apy] (in)
3d made me smile. Nice and easy as you say.
Confused for a little while by 21a as I got the answer but couldn’t work out how it worked given w plush the first part of ‘establishment’ is an anagram of Whitstable. The answer was more obvious …
Thanks Falcon and Teacow
The clock said that it was a straightforward but that is certainly not how it felt as it was being done. Had to go back over a few answers to see how the word play worked with them – 12a, 21a, 27a, 2d (understand ‘walk on air’ but not just ‘on air’ for being very happy) and 4d.
Hadn’t come across this wordplay for the overused ETON and nice to see Rod LAVER make an appearance.
Finished in the NW corner with ANTEROOM and LAYOUT as the last couple in.
Thanks to Falcon and Teacow. Great fun. I somehow dredged up CLARENCE from previous puzzles and needed all the crossers to get STREAMER (my LOI) which I should have remembered also. Ordinarily, I might have had trouble here in the US with WHITSTABLE, but I was actually there once visiting a friend.