Found this one quite aard. Still a couple I can’t fully explain.
| Across | ||
| 1 | STABLE | Secure pieces of furniture, when relocating south (6) |
| TABLES (furniture) with S (south) moved | ||
| 4 | IMITATOR | Writer’s computing work schedule? Wrong way round, using copier (8) |
| I’M (the writer is) IT (computing) ROTA (work schedule) reversed | ||
| 9 | UNISON | Agreement about new seaman in uniform (6) |
| N (new) OS (ordinary seaman) IN U (uniform) reversed (about) | ||
| 10 | CLEANS UP | Makes a big proft, putting tips inside small container (6,2) |
| LEANS (tips) in CUP (small container) | ||
| 12 | EWER | Pitcher’s terrible throw fnally ending in home run (4) |
| terriblE throW (final letters of) homE (ending of) R (run) | ||
| 13 | PIROUETTED | Performed some of dance stoned, grabbing debauched man (10) |
| ROUE (debauched man) in PITTED (stoned) – definition is ‘performed some of dance’ | ||
| 15 | AS FAR AS I KNOW | Dotty was on safari – beginning in Kenya, to the best of my understanding (2,3,2,1,4) |
| anagram (dotty) of WAS ON SAFARI wth K (beginning of Kenya) | ||
| 18 | BOUNTY HUNTER | Ivory Merchant? One might get a reward after shooting (6,6) |
| Some form of double definition? I’m not sure how ‘Ivory Merchant’ fits in | ||
| 21 | ARCHIMEDES | Greek excitedly reads about percussion instrument (10) |
| CHIME (percussion instrument) in READS* (anagram=excitedly) – definition is ‘Greek’ | ||
| 22 | NAFF | Rubbish bin aroma latterly very strong (4) |
| biN aromA (last letters) with FF (fortissimo, very strong) | ||
| 24 | BERLINER | German barrels regularly near ship (8) |
| B (barrels) nEaR (regular selection from) LINER (ship) | ||
| 25 | TUNDRA | Cold plain fish containing bones (6) |
| DR (doctor, nickname bones) in TUNA (fish) | ||
| 26 | EYETEETH | Canines still in periphery to explore the ground (3,5) |
| YET (still) in ExplorE (periphery of) THE* (anagram=ground) | ||
| 27 | BARDOT | Shakespeare regressive to actress (6) |
| BARD (Shakespeare) TO reversed (regressive, going backwards) | ||
| Down | ||
| 1 | SAUCEPAN | Viewed spread, when discussing kitchenware (8) |
| sounds like (in discussion) ‘saw span’ (viewed spread) | ||
| 2 | A MILE OFF | Way out is about 1.6 kilometres away (1,4,3) |
| double definition – ‘bad guess’ and physical distance | ||
| 3 | LOOM | Can money satisfy textile manufacturer (4) |
| LOO (can, toilet) M (money, abbrev) will satisfy=’will provide a word meaning’ | ||
| 5 | MILTON KEYNES | Children’s author’s maintaining high speed, vital here in Bucks (6,6) |
| TON (100mph, high speed) KEY (vital) in MILNE (A.A. Milne, childrens author) – town in Buckinghamshire | ||
| 6 | TRAVELOGUE | Book about wanderings from French composer written in language not unknown (10) |
| RAVEL (French composer) in TOnGUE (language) missing N (unknown, maths equations) | ||
| 7 | TV SETS | Boxes frantically, vest in coating of sweat when it’s over (2,4) |
| VEST* (anagram=frantic) in SweaT (coating=outsides) reversed (over) | ||
| 8 | RAPIDS | Hard to avoid plant-sucking insects by river – in this section? (6) |
| APhIDS (plant sucking insects) missing (avoiding) H (hard) following (by) R (river) | ||
| 11 | GIBSON DESERT | Rising numbers residing with giant rat here in Australia (6,6) |
| NOS (numbers) by (residing with) BIG (giant) reversed (rising) DESERT (to rat, leave) – a desert in Australia | ||
| 14 | PRIORITISE | Put before all, port is used in religious ceremony by priest (10) |
| RIO (port) and IS in RITE (religeous ceremony) before P (priest) | ||
| 16 | STRANDED | Left behind violin when hosting new low-level classes (8) |
| D and E (low level classes, socia-economic strata) in (hosted by) STRAD (violin) | ||
| 17 | TRUFFAUT | Filmmaker tense around collar (8) |
| RUFF (colalr) in TAUT (tense) | ||
| 19 | MARBLE | Rock, rhythm & blues primarily impresses bloke (6) |
| Rhythm Blues (primarily=first letters of) goes into (impresses, makes an impression in) MALE (bloke) | ||
| 20 | ACCRUE | Increase capital endlessly on vacation in Ukraine (6) |
| 23 | PUMA | In front of mother, lifted winning cat (4) |
| UP (winning) reversed (lifted) before (in front of) MA (mother) | ||
*anagram
Thanks PeeDee.
I think Aardvark’s puzzles have been getting more difficult recently.
20dn: Accr(a) + U(krain)e – as the country has been vacated.
Thanks mike04, I had never heard of ACCRA and ‘on vacation’ was devious!
BOUNTY HUNTER: I’m not sure about this clue either.
Perhaps ‘Ivory Merchant’ is just a play on the title of the film company
Merchant Ivory Productions.
Or is there some connection with the coconut colour in Bounty Bars?!
Can’t anyone explain BOUNTY HUNTER?
Perhaps you get a bounty for shopping an ivory merchant. Sorry, clutching at straws, but I have been pondering this all afternoon and that’s the best I can come up with.