Solving time: 39 minutes

Music: Mozart Piano Concertos, Kempff/Leitner






I was quite slow getting started, reading a fair number of clues before lighting on 21 down and wrestling with it for a bit. I'd be surprised if any other solver started with that one, but it broke the ice.

With this grid, it is very helpful if you can get the long ones quickly. I was far from doing so, having only the meal and the second half of the resort for a long time. I needed the top long across to get anywhere with the top half, having completed the bottom in about 10 minutes. Believe it or not, the long one at 2 down was my last in, although I did pause another moment to amend an answer I had marked as possibly incorrect.

Across
1	REPELLENT, REP + ELLEN + T[rip], one of the last ones I entered.
6	VICAR. VI + CAR. I was wrongly thinking of the actual names of the smaller numbers in classical languages, hen, duo, treis, unus, duo, tres.
9	UNINTENTIONALLY, UN(IN TENT)ION ALLY. Got this one from the 'cool wine' part, a cryptic cliche that is very useful to setters and solvers alike.
10	ETHANE, E + THANE.
11	SPECTRAL, [in]SPECT[o]R + AL. I just put this in from the literal, which was probably a wise move. A rather devious cryptic here.
13	SHOP SPOILED. SHOPS + OIL + ED.
14	Omitted - look for it!
16	AVER, [r]AVER. This word is often an element in the wordplay, so should come readily to mind.
17	VIDEO NASTY, anagram of DIES ON TV, SAY. Never heard this expression, must be UK-centric, but easy enough to work out.
19	ASTEROID, anagram of RAISED TO, with a giveaway literal.
20	HAIRDO, HAIR + DO, with a properly deceptive literal.
23	PLOUGHMAN'S LUNCH, P + LOUGH + MANS + L[a]UNCH. I saw the 'lunch' part first, but not really difficult.
24	EPHOD, EP(H[usband])OD. How 'dope' = 'train', I don't quite see, but this must be the answer. Our honorable Australian correspondent has kindly explained this point in the very first comment.
25	NERVOUSLY, anagam of SURELY NO + V[aliant].
Down
1	Omitted.
2	PLIGHT ONE'S TROTH, PLIGHT + anagram of TO SHORTEN. For a long time, I couldn't think of any final word that fit except for 'tooth'.
3	LUTENIST, L + U + TE(NI)ST. I needed to cryptic to get the correct spelling.
4	ERNE, sounds like EARN.
5	TAILPIECES, TAIL + PIECES. Not knowing much about violin construction, I first put 'trimpieces' and then corrected from the cryptic.
6	VENICE, V(E[uropea]N)ICE.
7	COLORADO SPRINGS, COLOR(ADO SPRING)S. The 'in US' goes with 'greens, say', to indicate the US spelling of 'colours', and 'resort' alone is the definition. But Colorado Springs is in fact in the US, so the clue fails to mislead.
8	ROYAL NAVY, re-expansion of R[ecorded] N[ow].
12	MILITIAMEN, anagram of TIME IN LIMA, where the first thing a skilled solver would do is grab the 'milit-' root and try that.
13	STAR-APPLE, ST(AR P)PLE. I was wondering how 'stale' = 'basic', then I saw it. Demerits to anyone who carelessly put in 'pineapple' without thinking.
15	INTAGLIO, IN + TAG + OIL backwards. Easy enough if you've heard of the word.
18	FRIGID, F + RIG + I + D, with a euphemised literal.
21	OCHRY, O + CH(Companion of Honour) + RY. Some hoary cryptic cliches will give you this uncommon word, if you just trust them.
22	KNAR, RANK upside down.

I have written a blog for this, but I have no internet access at the moment other than via my wife's blackberry. I will post as soon as I can. Until then please be patient.

This was one of the most complicated Mephistos for me in recent history. There's some very odd language in here, and a number of wordplay elements that are either new to me or I don't recall them from before.

It's been a while since we've had insipid-sounding foods in the Mephisto (the place where I learned of the existence of CRAPPIT-HEAD, SALOOP and many other delicrazies. Another one enters at 26 across.

I'm posting this in advance, but I probably won't be able to clarify anything on Sunday. I have the enviable task of performing at a guided pub crawl.

Away we go!

Across
1	GINGS: G(grand),IN(consisting of - it's in Chambers but I can't think of a common usage),GS(Guineas)
6	OBECHE: E,CH(chestnut) in OBE
11	LOGOGRAM: LOG(a fine),then R(the dog letter) in OGAM(ancient alphabet)
13	DATUM: T in DAU(daughter), M(mobile). One of those words you rarely see used in the singular, particularly in the US, where it's DATA or nothing
14	WAYGONE: GO(success) in John WAYNE
15	JEOFAIL: FOE reversed in JAIL
17	EAMED: BEAMED with the head chopped off - bore as in "gave birth to"
18	IDYLS: SLY, D(ryden), I all reversed
20	MAHARANEE: wonderful clue - take the D's out of MAD(unstable), HARD(firm), AND and DEE(damn)
22	LACERABLE: L(lough), ACER(tree) and then ABELE(poplar) with the middle missing
25	ANTIC: shift the I in AIN'T,C
26	SHCHI: hidden - a sour Russian cabbage soup. Ummm, yum?
30	AYMARAN: A,R,A in (MANY)*
31	INC,LINE
32	CLANG: double def - the complex noise is under KLANG, but CLANG is given as an alternative
33	SKREIGHS: G in (SHRIEKS)*
34	HEXADS: HEX(bewitch) then D(500) in AS(when)
35	ROYST: ROYS(trendies) with the back of fronT
Down
1	GADJE: DJ(spinner) in GAE(give - as in collapse)
2	IDAEAN: A in IDEA, N(knight)
3	NOTONECTA: TO(near) in (ONE,CAN'T)*
4	GRU,FE: GRU is Russian Militry Intelligence
5	GO WITH A BANG: I think I've got this figured out - GO WITH - succeed in court, as in successfully date, A BAN (sentence - banishment), G(end of hanginG)
7	BOY-GIRL: BOYG for a problem was new to me, then IRL
8	EGGY: EG(zB - which I thought was a typo at first), G(german), Y(hostel - the Y)
9	HA'N'T,L(left),E(Spain)
10	EMERSED: Ralph Waldo EMERSON with the ON becoming ED
12	GALLABIYEHS: (HEY,ALI,BLAGS)*
16	GYNOCRACY: GY(gray - the unit),CON reversed, RACY(blue)
19	'S,LAVISH
21	ARCTIID: I in TID(fit condition) under ARC
23	ANANKE: NAN in AKE(e)
24	C,HANTS
27	HALLO: L(latin) in HALO(glory)
28	INGOT: hidden
29	FL,EA(river)

Solving time 25:05, and another real treat on a Saturday morning. There were a lot of tricky clues, with the fiendish 19ac probably the pick of them. There were a few complaints on the forum about that one, but it's perfectly fair in my opinion (just not easy to see). 15ac was also very clever, and took a while to sort out even after I had put in the only possible answer that fit.

Across
1	GRAPHITE - PH1 (of high acidity) inside GRATE (jar). The stuff pencil lead is made of.
5	LOGGER - double definition.
10	POLITBURO - PRO (in favour of) around O (nothing) + (built)*.
11	ARTIC - ART (craft) + I (one) + C (symbol for the speed of light, hence maximum speed).
12	SPAM - MAPS reversed. I'm not sure "thoughtlessly send" is an accurate definition though - spammers know exactly what they're doing!
13	HIGHLANDS - N(ame) inside HIGH (school) LADS (boys). Lots of Bens in the Scottish Highlands!
15	HUNTINGDON - HUNG (mounted) "cops" (inserts) TIN (can), + DON (slip into). Small town in Cambridgeshire.
17	ISLE - IS LE(d) (takes guidance without end). i.e. the Isle of Man, but that's an old chestnut frequently used in wordplay.
19	LAHS - alternate letters of "a lead, he's". In the tonic sol-fa, Lah is equivalent to the note A, with Do being C, etc.
20	BACKPACKED - BACK (returned) + PACKED (full of it?)
22	SAWHORSES - SAW HORSES (witnessed National (i.e. the Grand National steeplechase)).
24	TOTE - TOTE(m). I think that's all this is, although surely it's in or on a pole rather than round it?
26	LYING - double definition.
27	NARCISSUS - SUSS (twig) I (one) RAN (managed), all reversed, around C (circa, roughly).
28	YATTER - (try,eat)*
29	IMAGINED - I'M AGIN ED (I don't toe the editorial line). Exactly the same clue, or at least the same wordplay, appeared somewhere else recently I think.

Down
1	GAPE - G (Gown without own (not to have)) + APE (take off).
2	A SLAP ON THE WRIST - (with a parson's let)*. A compound anagram &lit, the only sort of clue (it seems to me) that ever wins the Azed clue-writing competition. The --- in the clue is where you're supposed to insert the answer. A clue type very rarely seen in the Times.
3	HATE MAIL - cryptic definition.
4	TOUCH - double definition.
6	ORALLY - O.R. (other ranks = men) + ALLY (band together).
7	GET ONE'S SKATES ON - "GET ONE SKATE, SON" (request to boy going to Billingsgate, a famous London fish market) around S(mall).
8	ROCKSTEADY - (York cadets)*. I don't know if this is the same as reggae or not, but Chambers has them both as music styles originating in Jamaica in the 1960s.
9	SONGBOOK - SON (boy) + GB (this country) + OK (fair), around O(ld).
14	CHILD'S PLAY - CHILD (one young) + SPLAY (fan out).
16	GRAY'S INN - (angry)* around SIN (crime). One of the Inns of Court.
18	CASTLING - CAST (players) + NIL reversed (love to mount) + G(rand).
21	TONGUE - hidden in "Wait on guests".
23	SCRUM - SCRUM(p). Scrump is to half-inch (pinch) fruit from an orchard. Traditionally it's always apples, but I suppose any tree-grown fruit will do!
25	USED - USE (milk, i.e. exploit) + D(eparts).

Solving Time:
My clever spreadsheet tells me that this is monthly crossword 20140, the last cryptic I blogged (as I write this, at the beginning of May) was 25140, and this is my blog no.... 40. Spooky, eh? I didn't find it too difficult, about 50mins in all and well up to standard as regards quality, one clue excepted.


cd = cryptic definition, dd = double defintion, rev = reversed, homophones are written in quotes, anagrams as *(--)

Across
1	mujik - "recalled one spring" = I + JUM(P) rev., + "bleak in the far east" = K
4	marxisant - MARS + ANT containing cross = X + "interfering initially" = I
9	nose candy - "no sec 'andy" - surely a truly awful clue and quite unworthy of this otherwise fine crossword. And I do object to having drug cant rubbed in our faces by the Times. Last time it was heroin, this time it's cocaine. Are they all on it, do you suppose?
10	goety - YeT wE lOnG, rev.
11	zingiberaceae - buzz = ZING, + I, + BEE containing RACE + A. A very clever clue, though not hard if you look up ginger in a dictionary..
14	ells - ExceptionaL LewdnesS
15	weak sister - woolly top = (S)WEATER, containing *(KISS)
18	animadvert - train = AIM containing nitrogen = N, + trailer = ADVERT
19	etat - polish off = EAT containing beginning to turn = T
21	indian tobacco - *(CACTI ON BONDI + A). Another very ingenious clue.
24	hoick - (C)HOIC(E) + K
25	de integro - OR + GET + NI + ED, all rev. Lovely surface
27	minim rest - MINIST(ER) containing M + RE
28	umiak - superior = U + exploit = MILK, with the L replaced by area = A. A umiak is a large kayak, essentially.
Down
1	muntz metal - MUM containing NT + Z, with others = ET AL. I have come across muntz metal before. It was patented as an improved method of cladding ships' hulls, cheaper and stronger than the copper-bottoming it replaced. And Muntz Metals ltd eventually became an early component of ICI..
2	jus - dd. Latin for law, and nowadays a pretentious word for gravy..
3	kochia - KO + tea = CHA containing I
4	Mendeleev - MEND + E + LEE + V. Ah, now we're talking, a chemistry (and physics) superstar, the inventor of the periodic table. Those who believe Nobel prizes go only to the deserving should read this link. You can go round his house, if you happen to be in St Petersburg - much more interesting than some boring old art gallery ;-)
5	rhyta - vodkA aT partY witH partneR, rev. Plural of rhyton, a horn or similar shape with a hole in the bottom to drink from. Messy..
6	in gremio - Yet more latin, INGRI(D) + 0, containing ME
7	atelectatic - A + LET rev., + EC(S)TATIC, ie "this finally" is removed.. I have come across "without let or hindrance," pompous, redundant legal phraseology, but have never spied an unaccompanied let in the wild. Except in tennis, now that I think about it..
8	tryp - touchdown = TRY + "plane avoiding road" = P(LANE), a deceptively difficult clue. Trypanosomes, or tryps, cause sleeping sickness and are a Bad Thing, unless you're playing scrabble in which case they may be a godsend
12	nullifidian - hidden, rev., in westerN AID IF ILL UNder. Another one that took me forever to find. With hidden clues I either see them straight away or have endless trouble with them. This, the latter..
13	grotto work - ROT + TOW + OR inside Greek = Gk.
16	karateist - *(TAKES T(O) AIR). I suppose "chopper" is adequate as a definition, but if I were a proponent of what is one of the more august and long standing sports, I don't suppose I'd be too happy
17	zaddikim - maiden = M + I KID + DAZ(E). A word I've come across before, but as Tzaddiq. The word means "righteous," a compliment in religious circles apparently
20	abattu - sailor = AB, + *(TAUT). The word is a French one, meaning pissed off - or blue
22	addle - This was my last one in and took me forever to work out. I think it is "how to make two" = ADD + LE(SS) and the def. is "confused." But. Shouldn't it be confuse, not confused? And how does "small sons less" = LE? Is the "less" somehow doing double duty here? I think I must be missing something..
23	shim - pipe down = SH + "the middle in time" = IM. Chambers defines a shim as "A thin slip of metal..."
26	ghi - So, fed the wrong way is DEF, and the three characters in a row after that are of course GHI. Another neat clue

Solving time: 69:00

I found this a mammoth struggle, much like my last daily blog two weeks ago. I went through the bottom half fairly steadily, but then found the top half much harder. I still thought I was going to finish comfortably within the hour, but came completely unstuck on the last 2 (1d/11a) which I stared at for a good 20 minutes before finally seeing the light. On another day, I probably would have given up and gone to the blog!

In my defence though, I was very tired, and I had to go for a power nap halfway through.

cd = cryptic def., dd = double def., rev = reversal, homophones are written in quotes, anagrams as (--)*, and removals like this

Across
1	SMALL-TOWN = ST (street) + OWN (to have) about MALL (sheltered avenue)
6	cHASTE
9	AIRTIME = (AIM + RITE)* - I liked the well-disguised definition 'a spell on the waves'
10	BAR + KING
11	THU + MP - My LOI - I failed to see the separation required for Boxing / Day
12	PETTY CASH - cd, 'ready' being slang for money, and 'damage' for cost
14	BOD = Blues Or Disco
15	PREMIERSHIP = (REP)* + MInERS + HIP
17	ABSURDITIES = (I BURST + IDEAS)*
19	BE + D
20	ST ANDREWS = STREW about AND + S
22	RA(TurreT)Y
24	cAN'T cHILL
26	ANAEMIA = AI + MEAN + A all rev
27	DUN(C)E
28	BUTTERNUT = RET (soak) in between TUN & TUB all rev
Down
1	SLA(N)T - A slat is a section of a window blind. I'm sure why it took me so long to see this. Maybe I was just tired.
2	AGROUND = Glenlivet in A ROUND
3	LAID PAPER = REAP + DIAL all rev about P - The PAPER part was easy enough, but I didn't know the term so LAID took longer to come.
4	OVER-PRECISE = (PERCEIVES OR)*
5	NUB = BitUmeN rev
6	tHORNY
7	S + PIN(A)CH
8	EGG-SHAPED = (HEDGE GAPS)*
13	THIS INSTANT = SINS (evils) + TAN (beat) all in saTan + HIT (to beat). Although I didn't fully understand this wordplay until post-solve.
14	BRASS BAND - dd - My FOI
16	RESURFACE = F (following) + RUSE (scheme) all rev in RACE (career)
18	SP(ART)AN
19	BIT + U + MEN
21	DR + I'VE
23	YEAST = YEATS with the final pair of letters switched
25	LAB - dd - short for both laboratory and labrador

Solving Time: We won't talk about that, since this is the third and final qualifying puzzle for this year's Times Crossword Championship.. suffice it to say that like the other two, this was not a difficult puzzle. However it did take me some time to solve certain clues that seem very easy in retrospect. Perhaps for that reason, I thought this the most enjoyable of the three qualifiers. It contains an unusually high number of puns, mostly rather dreadful ones, just as a good pun should be.


cd = cryptic definition, dd = double definition, rev = reversed, anagrams are *(--).

ODO means the Oxford Dictionaries Online

Across
1	consider - a footballing reference, m'lud: councillor = CR containing ONSIDE, where one presumably is, if one is not offside..
5	bishop - dd, the second one an oblique (ha ha) reference to the chess piece. Given the amount of chess I've played over the years this took an embarrassingly long time to spot
10	imperial measure - dd, a reminder that the UK has stranded itself pathetically in a semi-metricated no mans land, where you can buy 2x4" timber in 3m lengths, or 8ft wide carpet at £10 per sq. m. Or fill a car that does 40mpg with fuel at £1.40/l. Or buy a pint of beer and a 175ml glass of wine. Talk about shooting ourselves in the foot. I mean 30.48cm...
11	short story - SHORTS + TORY, only a tiny novel. Or perhaps it should just be length-challenged, in this oh-so-sensitive age we now inhabit..
13	this one is only hidden
15	and this one is just too easy..
17	violist - girl = VI + *(TOILS). A violist plays the viol, just as a violinist plays the violin. I seldom have cause to use this word..
18	villain - VAIN containing ILL. You know, ill in vain.. geddit?
19	demotic - DEMO + TIC(K)
21	nose - boy's return = NOS + (HOM)E
22	staff nurse - pole = STAFF + look after = NURSE, a more lowly being than a ward sister
25	green woodpecker - *(POWDER KEG ONCE) + ER = "sappers returned." Though they do very little sapping these days, I believe.
27	rotate - eggs = ROE containing T(O)A(S)T
28	hydrogen - this took me a moment or two to parse.. it is just (SPEEC)H = chemical symbol H which, expanded, is...
Down
1	crimson - clubs = C + *(MINORS)
2	nip - attractive girl, ie a PIN up....
3	irrational - *(LIAR) containing RATION = share
4	exalt - ALT. being the key in question
6	omitted.. the answer's terrible!
7	house-sitter - put up = HOUSE + SITTER = easy catch.
8	pretext - P + RETEXT
9	improved - well, I + MD containing "make certain" = PROVE, but this clue doesn't seem to quite work, since technically it should be "gets one doctor round" rather than "one gets..." - just a typo, maybe
12	obsolescent - OB + SOLE + SCENT
14	commandeer - = "COMMON DEER," a homophone that works for me
16	sanction - S + ACTION containing N = new
18	vinegar - *(GAVE IN) + R = resistance
20	chevron - encourage = CHEER ON, with the second E changed to V. The exactly centre letter, note, The Times is very careful about such things
23	faddy - F + ADD + Y(IELD)
24	knot - dd. A knot is a shore bird, a rather good looking type of sandpiper
26	keg - (DRIN)K + EG = say

Solving time : 23 minutes, though at the end of that I was still feeling a little unsure about a few of the answers, so I got back on to the Crossword Club and entered them in - it came back as a correct entry, so a trip back to the dictionaries was in order, to find how it was I managed to successfully complete it.

This was one of the more difficult ones for me in recent memory, and I was a long way from the setter's wavelength. There's also one very strange bit of enumeration and a few wordplay elements that I don't recall seeing in the daily puzzle.

Away we go!

Across
1	CASINO: A, SIN in CO
4	RANSOMED: SOME in RAND - interesting that RANSOMED can mean both the person doing the ransoming and the one paying for it
10	MOORAGE: or MOO RAGE
11	FILINGS: FILLINGS(work on teeth) with one of the L's missing
12	LI PO: Never heard of him, but obtainable from wordplay - LIP(kiss) before 0(love)
13	JUMBLE SALE: you can get SEAL by jumbling SALE
15	PREDICATE: I put this in as the only word that seemed to fit - the definition is a part of a sentence, and the wordplay is I,C(caught) in PREDATE(batten, prey on)
16	STROP: double definition
18	LASSO: ASS in LO, &lit
19	COTE D'AZUR: surprised no apostrophe in the enumeration - COSTED without S, AZ(map, as in street directory), UR(old city)
21	GO GO DANCER: double definition, though I don't think that was what Father Christmas had in mind when he named a reindeer Dancer...
23	PROP: double definition
26	AQUARIA: AQUA REGIA without EG
27	AMORIST: agonized over this one, but once I looked it up afterwards - AORIST is a tense, so we put M in it
28	ENTRY FEE: cryptic definition
29	our across omission
Down
1	CAMEL: CARAMEL without RA
2	STOP PRESS: ST, OPPRESS
3	NOAH: cryptic definition - he had every creature twice over
5	AFFABLE: F(ire) in A,FABLE
6	SILVER,SIDE
7	out down omission
8	DISTEMPER: TEMP in (DRIES)*
9	MED(sea),USA(land)
14	DISORDERLY: (DRY,SOLDIER)*
15	P,ALS(o),GRAVE: new word to me, got it from wordplay
17	RAZORBILL: double definition
19	CONCAVE: C(chapter), then AV(authorized version) in ONCE
20	TREPAN: REP in TAN(as in "tan one's hide")
22	GAUNT: referring to John of Gaunt
24	POTTY: double def
25	COSH: anagram of SHOCK without the K at the end

Solving time: 29:54 ...

... but not with full understanding of all answers; in particular 24dn which required my phone-a-friend option. Thanks again! Now I have to say that I didn’t like this puzzle much. It brought to mind the expression ‘let the dog see the rabbit’. Far too many puns for me and not enough wordplay to go on. No doubt there will be others who really enjoyed it. That’s how these things are.

Across
1	GUBBINS. Reverse your BUG; then BINS. Never heard this to mean ‘rubbish’. More like ‘kit’ or ‘the makings’ as in roll-your-own.
5	MOBSTER. Get your {gu}N from MONSTER; replace with a B for ‘British’.
9	ROUGH,CAST. Enough said?
10	STOIC. This is SIC with OT reversed inside. He of Citium; not the Eleatic of arrow fame.
11	BIRDS NEST SOUP. The Wik tells me: “A few species of swift, the cave swifts, are renowned for building the saliva nests used to produce the unique texture of this soup”. Culinary advice: don’t mistake a Welcome Swallow for a Cave Swift!
13	HA,RE,BELL.
15	Omitted.
17	ENTAIL. Anagram: late in. A technical legal term meaning “a settlement of the inheritance of property over a number of generations so that it remains within a family or other group”.
19	FROG-SPIT. GO reversed in FR’s PIT. Used by the French to make 11ac.
22	THE OLD HEAVE-HO. First two from ‘elderly folk’. Then HAVE inc {us}E & HO for ‘house’.
25	INDIA{na}. Another spot of humour I could have done without.
26	REFASHION. Anagram: IRON SAFE inc H.
27	GREATLY. AT & L{arge} inside GREY.
28	LIMP,OP,O. It‘s gre(atl)y green and greasy. [O for ‘over’?]

Down
1	GARB{o}. Film star who, every Thursday morning, takes away my gubbins. I sometimes take the time to greet her.
2	Omitted. Another pun.
3	ICHOR. Promote the I in CHOIR.
4	SPARSELY. S{catter} and PARSLEY with EL replacing LE.
5	MATTER. See 2dn.
6	BE,SETTING.
7	TWOSOME. WO (Warrant Officer) and S inside TOME. Well, I suppose there are two of them.
8	RECUPERATE. RE-RATE including E and CUP.
12	SHOESTRING. Two meanings ... again!
14	BRILLIANT. BRIAN & T for ‘temperature’, inc. ILL.
16	DREADFUL. One more pun: cf ‘Penny Dreadful’.
18	TREADLE. And again; this time the pun is on ‘sole’. Chambers, at least, also allows TREDDLE.
20	PRO,VISO{r}.
21	WHERRY. WHY inc. ER (ruler, the Queen) and R for ‘river’. The barge she sat in ...?
23	EPSOM. Hidden, reversed.
24	INFO. This is the one I couldn’t see at first. It turns out to be ‘in for’ (about to suffer, as in ‘You’re in for it’) minus its last letter.

A very chewy puzzle, clocking in at 28:09 on the club leaderboard (incidentally, it's lovely when we get a tough puzzle and all the peculiar people who solve the puzzle in the paper version then submit online in lightning times are suddenly absent, so that what you see represents "actual solving time" rather than "typing time"). It's been a long time since such a challenging puzzle fell into my Tuesday slot, but I'm not complaining: this was top class Times setting at the higher end of the difficulty scale.

Across
1	NEWSPRINT - NEW(College) + SPRINT(=run).
6	ASPIC - A SPICE.
9	DOLMA - DO(=cook) + istanbuL + MA. Mmmm...dolma.
10	COTTON GIN - [OTT in CON] + GIN.
11	ELIZABETH TAYLOR - matrimonY in (BETROTHALZEALI)*. The Hollywood star was such a strong believer in marriage that she went down the aisle eight times with seven men, and threw in a couple of broken engagements for good measure.
13	DIGITISE - DIG IT(="like that") + IS + Energy.
14	GOOGOL - GO(=move) + (LOGO)rev. A googol is 1 followed by 100 zeroes. It's big. Really big.
16	SLAVER - balL in SAVER. For non-sports fans, to nutmeg is to put the ball through a defender's legs while running past him, a la Stanley Matthews or Lionel Messi (delete according to your generation). Don't think I've seen it used as an analogy in crosswords to indicate that letters should be put inside another word before, but it works for me (especially with this surface reading).
18	VINDALOO - Very (OILANDOxygen)*. One of the dishes of choice for those who like to live dangerously in Indian restaurants. "Burner" indeed.
21	INSECT REPELLENT - IN SECT(braninwashed) + (LEPER)rev. + LENT(=fast).
23	ASCERTAIN - [C.E. + Rites] in A STAIN.
25	BIDET - BIDE + detergenT.
26	EVENT - SEVENTY.
27	ANCESTRAL - (ASCARLETwomaN)*.
Down
1	NUDGE - Good in NUDE.
2	WALKING BASS - double/cryptic def. Apparently this need not actually be played on a piano, though it often is. I'm not massively expert on music, but my first thought was "boogie-woogie", so I wouldn't quibble with the clue as it stands. Musicologists may differ.
3	PEASANT - PHEASANT.
4	INCREASE - IN + CREASE.
5	TITCHY - Time + ITCHY. I nearly undid my good work by seeing "irritable" and leaping to TETCHY, which is what I would have been if I hadn't paused long enough to parse the clue properly.
6	AVOCADO - CAD in (0 + OVA)rev. The colour of 1970s bathrooms across the land.
7	PUG - PUGILIST without I LIST(lean).
8	CONTRALTO - CON(servative) + (ART)rev. + Left + TO.
12	LEGAL TENDER - perhaps I can't see for looking, but I wrote this in without really thinking at the time, and even on reflection can't see very much cryptic about it. Is it simply that the surface initially appears to suggest that "deposits" is a verb rather than noun? All contributions gratefully received. Thanks to John from L. for being first to enlighten me, it's E.G. ALT (key) in LENDER. That's better.
13	DISSIPATE - [1'S SIP] in DATE. Nice use of a less obvious meaning of "see", i.e. "seeing someone" in the romantic sense.
15	HISPANIC - when the opposite of "her calm" = HIS PANIC.
17	EXCERPT - mahleR in EXCEPT(=but).
19	DELIBES - DELI + BEST.
20	ERRATA - E.R. + (A TAR)rev. Given the lead times of puzzles, I suppose it's just a coincidence that I heard about this story recently...
22	TOTAL - TOT + A Litre.
24	CUE ="QUEUE" and CUE as in "prompt".