An elegant puzzle by Phi – solving time 17 mins. A theme/Nina to it, which I refer to after the clue explanations.
* = anagram < = reversed
ACROSS
1 P (L) ACES
5 ROAD TEST O in (started)*
9 AL MON (D) – EYED
10 L U twice i.e LULU
11 RE (PR IS) AL
12 RAP I.E. R (run)
13 SU FI (if US)<
15 PRETORIA e in (airport)*
18 I DOLATE R (to lead)* &lit
19 TEEN(y)
21 FR APP(l)E
23 H AND H ELD (LED)*
25 A ID A ID = name
26 TOUCH AND GO
27 LEAD F(R)EE
28 RESULT Hidden but the ‘ultimately’ nicely misled suggesting last letter.
DOWN
2 LI (LL) E Not sure if there are Indy solvers in Lille to comment on seeing their city defined as a station…
3 CHOIRGIRL (rich Glori)*
4 S A (DI’S) M Had to think a bit before seeing American = am not just a so plumping for sadism not sadist, with the former always looking more likely from the definition.
5 ROYAL OPERA HOUSE (poo rehearsal you)* in London
6 ALDER MEN(d)
7 TU (L I) P p (i l) ut all<
8 SILVE RISE (Elvis)* Tricky as the surface reading at first suggested containment
14 UNDERMINE (ruined men)*
18 OUTSHINES (the sun so I)*
17 AT TEST OveR Good
20 A N(navy) CHOR(e)
22 PL AID
24 LEG AL(l)
Theme and Nina: This blogger is no opera buff and has learned most of his knowledge about it from doing crosswords. I see here in the Left and Right columns PARSIFAL (by Wagner), and TURANDOT (by Puccini) – seeing this with some letters to go helped me complete the solve. The ROYAL OPERA HOUSE in the centre column is therefore thematic too I guess. And I think I see two more, symmetrically placed – 10 across (LULU by Berg) and 25 across (AIDA by Verdi).
Oh! I must get better at spotting these Ninas!
It’s a nice clear one too.
The only answer I didn’t get was AIDA but feel I would’ve if I’d had that opera theme in mind.
As with Dac’s crosswords, very little to say. Nothing controversial, all very good, utterly satisfactory puzzle. I didn’t even look for a Nina until nmsindy mentioned that there was one, and there it was, easy to see when you look. And like Beermagnet, I failed on AIDA but, as he would have done, saw it at once when the Nina became apparent.
I really must stop seeing ‘South America(n)’ as SA, since I couldn’t explain SADISM.