A nice puzzle with some elegant clueing. Thanks to Pangakupu.
I noticed that the left and right columns contained the letters KORIPO MARAMA, which I see means bad weather in the Māori language. For those that don’t know, Pangakupu – another Māori word, meaning (roughly) “crossword” – is an alias of Phi, who lives in New Zealand.
| Across | ||||||||
| 1 | KING LEAR | One driven mad by Regan and ilk? (4,4) Anagram of REGAN ILK, and it’s an &lit, also called “clue as definition” by some. Regan is one of Lear’s three daughters in the Shakespeare play |
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| 6 | WISDOM | Weak ideology limiting party intelligence (6) W[eak] + DO (party) in ISM (ideology) |
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| 9 | ON HAND | Prepared location for some nails? (2,4) Double definition |
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| 10 | CREAM TEA | Male brought in to make a meal (5,3) M in CREATE + A |
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| 11 | RECTANGLE | Figure in uncovered sunken ship will be adjacent to seaweed (9) [w]REC[k] + TANGLE (a kind of seaweed); “will be” makes the cryptic reading a bit awkward and I think could be omitted without spoiling the surface reading |
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| 13 | ATTAR | Rosy stuff? Half of that’s black stuff (5) Half of thAT + TAR |
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| 15 | RELIEF | Position that’ll block official aid (6) LIE (position, as in golf) in REF |
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| 17 | KOBOLD | Possible result of punch striking secretly helpful creature? (6) KO (knockout) + BOLD (striking) – it’s a mythical sprite from Germanic folklore |
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| 18 | RAPPEL | Mostly criticised student: letting oneself down? (6) RAPPE[d] + L (learner, student) |
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| 19 | KITSCH | Children pursuing small mammals? Insufferably twee (6) KITS + CH |
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| 21 | IMPEL | Force that is keeping military police liberal (5) MP in I.E.+ L[iberal] |
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| 22 | MELISMATA | Thrash metal’s aim, creating tunes (9) (METAL’S AIM)* |
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| 25 | PENDULUM | Ultimate source of utility in prize clock component (8) END (ultimate) + U[tility] in PLUM (prize) |
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| 26 | OSMIUM | I’m interrupting musician that’s rejected dense material (6) IM in reverse of MUSO |
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| 28 | OSPREY | Hidden observer coming round about in pursuit of ordinary bird (6) O[rdinary] + RE (about) in SPY |
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| 29 | TASMANIA | Tense chap residing in large land mass — or small land mass (8) T[ense] + MAN in ASIA |
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| Down | ||||||||
| 2 | INN | Drinking hole popular with additional number (3) IN + N |
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| 3 | GIANT | Vast expansion of G & T — one tucks in (5) A in GIN +T |
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| 4 | ENDANGERED | Close and hot on the way out? (10) END (close) + ANGERED (hot) |
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| 5 | RECALL | Substantial latitude given about source of computer memory (6) C[omputer] in REAL (substantial) + L[atitude] |
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| 6 | WREN | Source of reconstruction in London, say (4) R[econstruction] in WEN (London is nicknamed the Great Wen); and another &lit, referring to Christopher Wren’s rebuilding of London after the Great Fire of 1666 |
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| 7 | SUMPTUOUS | Rich politician turned out in America, swinging both ways (9) MP + OUT* in SU + US |
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| 8 | OPEN‑AND‑SHUT | Straightforward writer in thousand, possibly (4-3-4) PEN in THOUSAND* |
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| 12 | EAR TRUMPETS | What you’d associate with Beethoven, true master possibly around piano (3,8) P in (EAR TRUMPETS)* – see some examples here |
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| 14 | SOLICITOUS | Historic coins, encompassing old legal tender? (10) O + LICIT (legal) in SOUS (old coins) |
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| 16 | LIP READER | One may get something from television that they couldn’t get from radio (3,6) Cryptic definition |
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| 20 | HELMET | Satisfied after cure’s put paid to a nutcase (6) HEAL less A + MET (satisfied) |
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| 23 | MAMBA | Harm dodged by one sailor that’s turned up a snake (5) MAIM less I + reverse of AB (sailor) |
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| 24 | FLAY | Old horse-drawn vehicle carrying a whip (4) A in FLY |
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| 27 | UNI | Not quite a group study centre (3) A truncated UNIT (group of e.g. soldiers) |
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