Independent on Sunday 1680 Hippogryph

Thank you to Hippogryph.  Definitions are underlined in the clues.

Across

9. Place for a constitutional Liberal and a sleep? (9)

ESPLANADE : Anagram of(Liberal) AND A SLEEP.

Defn: …, a walk by the sea for good health.

10. Temperance society conceals unopened wine vessel (5)

AORTA : AA(abbrev. for “Alcoholics Anonymous”, a mutual aid society helping members recover from alcoholism by practising temperance/abstinence from alcohol) containing(conceals) “port”(a fortified wine) minus its 1st letter(unopened …).

Defn: A blood … in your body.

11. Couples found in bed, most regularly after sex (5)

ITEMS : 2nd, 4th and 6th letters of(… regularly) “bed, most” placed after(after) IT(slang for “sex”).

Defn: … involved in a romantic or sexual relationship. Therefore the whole clue could be the definition.

12. Wants the grass conditioned and nothing planted (9)

SHORTAGES : Anagram of(… conditioned) THE GRASS containing(and … planted) O(letter representing 0/nothing).

13. Gets criminal stashing smuggled rum (7)

STRANGE : Anagram of(… criminal) GETS containing(stashing) RAN(smuggled/brought goods illegally and secretly into a country).

Defn: …/odd.

14. A list published in Whitehall startles (3-4)

ALL-STAR : Hidden in(published in) “Whitehall startles“.

Defn: …, specifically, of A-list/outstanding performers, as in “the film features an A-list cast”. Or it could be a missing hyphen in the clue.

17. Suffer ruin, recklessly taking cocaine (5)

INCUR : Anagram of(…, recklessly) RUIN containing(taking) C(abbrev. for “cocaine”).

Defn: As in “to … losses”.

19. Buttonhole flower people leaving taxi? (3)

CAR : “carnation”(a flower that you wear in the buttonhole or pinned to the lapel of your coat or dress) minus(… leaving) “nation”(a large body of people inhabiting a particular country or territory).

Defn: That which could be/? used as a taxi.

20. Religious rule could anger non-believers over Nature’s origins (5)

CANON : 1st letters, respectively, of(…’s origins) “could anger non-believers over Nature“.

21. Appeal to rent cycles before lunch? (7)

ENTREAT : “RENT” with its 1st letter moved to the end(cycles) plus(before) EAT(to lunch).

22. A prospective partner lands government contract (7)

ABRIDGE : A  + BRIDE(a prospective partner/a wife-to-be) containing(lands) G(abbrev. for “government”).

Defn: …/to condense.

24. Sorry husband entertained by jolly people carrier (9)

TROOPSHIP : [ OOPS!(“sorry!”/an expression acknowledging an error) + H(abbrev. for “husband”) ] contained in(entertained by) TRIP(a jolly/a trip made for pleasure by public official/s at public expense).

Defn: …, specifically people in the armed forces.

26. Old lady hosting company event is hot stuff (5)

MAGMA : MA(informal term for one’s mother, one’s old lady) containing(hosting) AGM(abbrev. for “annual general meeting” of the shareholders of a company).

Defn: … below or within the earth’s crust.

28. Rule breaking, i.e. rebelliously holds back (5)

REIGN : Hidden in(… holds) reversal of(… back) “breaking, i.e. rebelliously“.

29. Stacks fruit vehicles (9)

RICKSHAWS : RICKS(stacks of hay, corn, or similar material) + HAWS(the red fruit of the hawthorn tree).

Down

1. Record set in Kane’s first international cap (4)

KEPI : EP(abbrev. for “extended play”/a disc of recorded audio material) contained in(set in) [ 1st letter of(…’s first) “Kane” + I(abbrev. for “international”) ].

And, in football, Harry Kane has many times been capped an England international.

2. Surface active bum paper (6)

APPEAR : A(abbrev. for “active”) + anagram of(bum) PAPER.

Defn: To …, from being hidden under or behind a, well, surface.

3. Dorset men ploughed over a plum location (6,4)

DAMSON TREE : Anagram of(… ploughed) DORSET MEN containing(over) A.

Defn: On which you might find a fruit similar to the plum.

4. Analyse East Persian dialect (6)

PARSEE : PARSE(to analyse/to resolve a sentence into its component parts) + E(abbrev. for “East”).

5. Elegant young lady making first appearance broadcasting live (8)

DEBONAIR : DEB(short for “debutante”, a young lady making her first formal appearance in fashionable society) + [ON AIR](broadcasting live on the radio or TV).

6. Rush of air from wide behind (4)

WAFT : W(abbrev. for “wide”) + AFT(behind/at the stern).

7. Good French harbours appropriate for seaside resort (8)

BRIGHTON : BON(French for “good”) containing(harbours ) RIGHT(acceptable/appropriate).

Defn: … on the south coast of England.

8. Bolts lawyers’ entrance to Strangeways (4)

BARS : BAR(lawyers/barristers, collectively) + 1st letter of(entrance to) “Strangeways“.

And Strangeways is a prison, where lawyers might visit some of their clients.

Defn:  …/fastens a door or window with sliding bar that fits into a socket.

13. Ill-feeling shown by rejection of on-line advice? (5)

SPITE : Reversal of(rejection of) [ E-(prefix denoting something available on-line/on the Internet) + TIPS(a piece of useful advice) ].

15. Tearing up racy Holmes novel (10)

LACHRYMOSE : Anagram of(… novel) RACY HOLMES.

Defn: …/weeping.

16. Classify mountains (5)

RANGE : Double defn: 1st: …/to put into a specific category, as in “they ranged themselves with the far right movement”; and 2nd: … in a chain forming a single system.

18. Stop tailless pet’s sign of affection outside comprehensive (8)

CATHOLIC : HO(or whoa!, signalling a horse to stop) contained in(… outside) “cat lick”(a sign of affection by your pet cat) minus its last letter(tailless …).

Defn: …/all-embracing.

19. Spooner’s announcement to close Justice Centre is finished early (3,5)

CUT SHORT : Spoonerism of(Spooner’s announcement) [ “shut”(to close) + “court”(a Justice Centre/where justice is dispensed) ].

22. Face mask uncovered and kissed – I say! (6)

ASPECT : “mask” minus its 1st and last letters(uncovered) plus(and) homophone of(… – I say) “pecked”(kissed lightly).

23. Page turned down party clothes (3-3)

DOG-EAR : DO(party/a social gathering) + GEAR(clothes/outfits).

Defn: …, in a book, say.

24. Loud stag gathering upset the horse-racing world (4)

TURF : Reversal of(… upset, in a down clue) [ F(abbrev. for “forte”, a musical direction to play loudly) + RUT(a stag gathering, or more precisely, the time of year when stags gather to fight each other to decide who mates with whom) ].

Defn: A general term for horse-racing and what goes with it.

25. Rolled up joint we’re told is undersized (4)

PUNY : Reversal of(Rolled) UP + homophone of(… we’re told) “knee”(a joint in the leg).

27. Miss the start of Fall recess (4)

APSE : 1st letter deleted from(Miss the start of) “lapse”(a fall/a decline from previously high standards).

Defn: A large … in a church.