Guardian Quiptic 1011 Orlando

Thanks Orlando, for a neatly-clued, enjoyable puzzle that fits the Quiptic description. Definitions are underlined in the clues.

Across

7 Everlasting cross goes inside and outside (8)

EXTERNAL : ETERNAL(everlasting/never-ending) containing(… goes inside) X(letter representing a cross, used to mark, say, a ballot paper).

9 A group of directors on a ship (6)

ABOARD : A + BOARD(the group of directors of a commercial company, say).

10 Funny thing, the sound of an owl (4)

HOOT : Double defn: 1st: An amusing situation or person, as in “That incident with Manuel in Fawlty Towers was a hoot!”

11 Thoughtless fat man on throne? (10)

UNTHINKING : UNTHIN(not thin/fat) + KING(man on the throne).

12 Saint having last word in prayer? That’s a bit of a bloomer (6)

STAMEN : ST(abbrev. for “saint”) plus(having) AMEN(last word in a prayer).

14 Doctor Who following teams — not the main event (8)

SIDESHOW : Anagram of(Doctor) WHO placed after(following) SIDES(teams in a contest).

15 Monster devouring old mounted soldier (7)

DRAGOON : DRAGON(a mythical monster) containing(devouring) O(abbrev. for “old”).

17 Red nose turning back (7)

ENDORSE : Anagram of(… turning) RED NOSE.

20 Matins, as sort of devil worship (8)

SATANISM : Anagram of(… sort of) MATINS, AS.

22 Less experienced party leader brought back before September 1939? (3-3)

PRE-WAR : Reversal of(… brought back) [ RAWER(less experienced/greener) + 1st letter of(… leader) “party” ].

Defn: Period before the start of World War 2.

23 Translation of annual said to be Spanish (10)

ANDALUSIAN : Anagram of(Translation of) ANNUAL SAID.

Defn: A dialect of Spanish spoken in, well, Andalusia.

24 Drink kept in percolator (4)

COLA : Hidden in(kept in) “percolator“.

25 Tree abandoned after heading off for Sex and the City (6)

EXETER : Anagram of(… abandoned) TREE placed after(after) 1st letter deleted from(heading off for) “Sex“.

Defn: … located on the River, well, Exe in Devon, England.

26 Boys were excited to produce facial hair (8)

EYEBROWS : Anagram of(… excited) BOYS WERE.

Down

1 Former station employee, one with customers overseas (8)

EXPORTER : EX-(prefix signifying former/once) + PORTER(a station employee to carry your luggage).

2 Those left to take a break (4)

REST : Double defn.

3 Put in prison, we hear, one after the other (2,4)

IN TURN : Homophone of(…, we hear) “intern”(to put in prison/to confine, especially for political or military reasons).

4 Manuel’s employer, Spanish gentleman somewhere in Essex (8)

BASILDON : BASIL(Fawlty, employer of Manuel, the hapless Spanish waiter, in the British sitcom “Fawlty Towers” – in case you’ve never watched TV) + DON(the title for a Spanish gentleman).

Defn: A town …

5 People seen to order port (10)

FOLKESTONE : FOLK(people in general) + anagram of(… order) SEEN TO.

Defn: … in Kent, England.

6 Corporal, say, with little brother on an unbroken horse (6)

BRONCO : NCO(abbrev. for “non-commissioned officer”, an example/say, of which is a corporal in the army) placed below(with … on, in a down clue) BRO(short/little for “brother”).

Defn: An wild or half-tamed/unbroken horse of the western US.

8 Most recent West Coast city trial (6)

LATEST : LA(abbrev. for “Los Angeles”, city on West Coast USA) + TEST(a trial/a procedure to determine something).

13 Reform Act — anagram for historic document (5,5)

MAGNA CARTA : Anagram of(Reform) ACT — ANAGRAM.

Defn: Short for Magna Carta Libertatum, a charter of rights.

16 Feature describing life after death? (8)

OBITUARY : Cryptic defn: A feature/piece in, say, a newspaper, describing someone’s life published after his/her death.

18 Birds start to whistle in pussy willows (8)

SWALLOWS : 1st letter of(start to) “whistle” contained in(in) SALLOWS(willow trees, a species of which is the pussy willow).

19 Taking part in climb, I begin to drink (6)

IMBIBE : Hidden in(Taking part in) “climb, I begin“.

21 A letter marking the spot, we hear, for extension (6)

ANNEXE : Homophone of(…, we hear) [“an X”(a letter marking the spot/a position on a map or diagram) ].

Defn: …, or addition, to a building or document.

22 Fruit container, nearly new, in boat (6)

PUNNET : “new” minus its last letter(nearly …) contained in(in) PUNT(a long, narrow and flat-bottomed boat propelled with a long pole).

24 Find fault with fish (4)

CARP : Double defn.

The big and the small of it….