CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1 Method’s restraining bad actor’s interchanges (12) 8 Eastern sculpture, perhaps, bird in clay (7) 9 Flash last of Big Issue (7) 11 Country beginning to launch airline (7) 12 Catching nothing with snooping around (7) 13 Pierced one’s skin (5) 14 Crew’s seizing stern of pirate ship and holds (9) 16 Compact cars brief condensed for cabinet members (9) 19 Initially earnest, agog, great enthusiasm rising (5) 21 Idiots rolling in, dancing twist (7) 23 Concentrate more facing court (7)

24 One obsessively follows speech in sermon, half cut (7) 25 Return tennis stroke with assistance before love game (7) 26 Freezing environment in wild for rare tiger (12) DOWN

1 Pieces of Cheddar are bitten eating this? (7) 2 Interior’s covering explosive fuses (7) 3 Long drink contains very soft fruit (9)

4 Old worked keeping in good heart, say (5) 5 Fat detective assuming a position (7) 6 Trouble filling hospital department’s needs (7) 7 For each upset select man changing substitutes (12) 10 Queen on the up, meaning distribute record (12)

15 One pays to purchase useless underwear article (9) 17 Fertiliser can’s rising cost (7) 18 One posts squad leader on watch (7) 19 Competitor in event ran tiredly (7)

20 Beauty shown by heartless girl French love (7) 22 Slump includes credit squeeze (5)