Beelzebub 1,284 – Fifteensquared

A much tougher puzzle this week, I thought.

I found the right hand side particularly hard going, not least because I’d overconfidently entered THINGUMMYJIG at 1 across, making the long ones at 7 and 8 down impossible. Once that was spotted things finally fell into place, although I still can’t explain 7 down.

*=anag, []=dropped, <=reversed, hom=homophone, cd=cryptic definition, dd=double definition.

Across
1	THINGUMMYBOB – THIN + GUMMY + BOB.
10	DRAINAGE – A in READING*.
11	OLIVE BRANCH – LO< + I’VE + BRAN + CH.
12	MAMMATUS – (M + MAT) in SUM<.
13	HAYLE – LAY* in HE.
16	OCCIPUT – (PI in [s]TUCCO)<.
18	PAREU – PARE + U.
19	SALSA – S in ALAS<.
20	PENSION – PENS + (0 in IN).
23	KIANG – A in KING.
24	HIPPURIC – HIP + PURI + C[oncocted].
25	CONDOTTIERI – CON + DOTTIER + I.
26	RELIANCE – RE + (I in LANCE).
27	EXOPHTHALMOS – (HEALTH + SOM[e] POX)*.

Down
1	TROCHOSPHERE – (R + POOCH*) in THERE.
2	HELIACAL – ACAI< in HELL.
3	NOVELIST – [laur]EL in (TV IS ON)*. The reference being to Thomas Hardy, of course.
4	URBAN – (NAB + RU)<.
5	MARMITE – ARM in MITE.
6	MIAMI – AIM< on M1.
7	BACTERIA BED – Barium, refined but not acceptable, and so on, turing up in part of sewage plant.
8	BEESTUNG LIPS – LUSTING* in BEEPS.
9	BICYCLE POLO – ((Y in CC in BILE) + POOL*.
14	BASIDIAL – BASI[c] + DIAL.
15	LEONARDO – LEO + NARDO[o].
17	UPFRONT – U + PROF* + NT.
21	JUDAH – JUD + AH.
22	DITCH – D + ITCH.

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