daily double

the hard way

ACROSS 1 She shows skill in carving ham (6) 4 A row of a scarf knitted (6) 9 A case for the government chiefs (7) 10 Work hard to clean some of the tennis courts (5) 11 Agree to execute an order in coded signal (5) 12 Without brakes? Without breaks! (7) 13 A fraction of the money the actor gets (4-7) 18 He gets a countermand to stop at sea (5,2) 20 Allowance that was general in the US (5) 22 Brown arrived and left (5) 23 Community centre for retired ladies (7) 24 Sea air (6) 25 Bluff king and his successor (6) DOWN 1 Scotsman saw strange birds (6) 2 A subject causing trouble? (5) 3 Gift for the poor - a welcome gesture (7) 5 How bread’s gone up! (5) 6 One of the toasts that may be offered with a meal (7) 7 A close shave? (6) 8 Buy drinks and a slice of bread (5,6) 14 Hardly a full-blooded complaint (7) 15 Bright red name-tag perhaps (7) 16 They check the movement of aircraft on the ground (6) 17 Stopped wearing corsets (6) 19 Uplifting story about one port (5) 21 Time has not diminished the spy (5)

the easy way

ACROSS 1 Lax (6) 4 Cordiality (6) 9 Inevitable (7) 10 Different (5) 11 Curb (5) 12 Occupy fully (7) 13 Give less than is due (5-6) 18 Large-billed fish-eating bird (7) 20 To reason (5) 22 To some extent (5) 23 Do away with (7) 24 Overwhelm (6) 25 Chaotic mass (6) DOWN 1 Highly ornamented (6) 2 To combine (5) 3 One who shirks duty (7) 5 Surrounded by (5) 6 Old Chinese game (3-4) 7 Annoy persistently (6) 8 In tents (5,6) 14 Hesitant (7) 15 Fashionable (1,2,4) 16 Impenetrable to sight (6) 17 Gentle breeze (6) 19 Angler’s basket (5) 21 Culpability (5)