Cryptic Crossword - The Scotsman 07/12/13

ACROSS

1 Footballer takes part, ‘e will speak evil in the absence of another (8)

5 Unfortunately let rip a number of times (6)

10 Turning out in a suit in a hot country (7)

11 Press forward not on so leave hastily (4,3)

12 Animal entered many a large enclosure (5)

13 Bring to an end inter-team movements (9)

14 Biggest and best progenitor? (5,2,4,3)

17 Station’s literary works from Scottish books! (8,6)

21 Motorist’s halo? (9)

23 Tree having problem with current (5)

24 Indian Ocean island gathering (7)

25 Bombardment from balloon? (7)

26 European meets disastrously high estimation! (6)

27 People he embarrassed using small aperture (8)

DOWN

1 Half a bottle? Some required for branch of biology (6)

2 Felix accommodated worker before a musical work (7)

3 Looker-on not to sit in tumbledown byre (9)

4 Act of pulling mechanical contrivance by locomotive (8,6)

6 In December I shielded sage (5)

7 Deserter in Malay boat found it in proportion (3,4)

8 Feel been tricked to weaken (8)

9 Basis for theatre work (9,5)

15 Listen behind door to first lady’s said fall (9)

16 Shower to affect this race (3-5)

18 Against one going over a channel bridge (7)

19 Doctor in goal strangely going round the bend with pain (7)

20 Plan he took into South Carolina and Maine (6)

22 Look with anger at banker (5)

Yesterday’s solution:

Across: 8 Down to me, 9 Alpine, 10 Ketone, 11 Username, 12 Coke, 13 Prescience, 15 Imitate, 17 Beastly, 20 Hard astern, 22 Alga, 24 All right, 26 Hiking, 27 Palely, 28 Preserve.

Down: 1 Forego, 2 Insolent, 3 Homeopaths, 4,5 Reduced rate, 6 Sponge, 7 Inimical, 14 Clean sheet, 16 Meat loaf, 18 Sparkies, 19 Gestapo, 21 Darted, 23 Geneva, 25 Guys.

Last week’s solution:

Across: 1 On the cards, 7 Sole, 9 Two, 10 Passed over, 11 Damp, 12 Interspersed, 15 Inland, 17 Evidence, 18 Holistic, 20 Go west, 21 Lady’s-slipper, 24 Nick, 26 Generality, 27 Ida, 28 Snap, 29 Red herring.

Down: 2 Noah, 3 Hospitality, 4 Cadet, 5 Reverie, 6 Stripling, 7 Sod, 8 Lame excuse, 13 Reed warbler, 14 Invocation, 16 Date-sugar, 19 Cairned, 22 Purge, 23 Sten, 25 Kip.