CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1. Struck snooker ball wrongly and made a mistake (7)

5. Flighty young thing of the 20s, Flo didn’t finish crumpling paper (7)

9. He goes down with aqualung (Verdi’s kin is different) (4,5)

10. Exploded right in the middle of the head-and-shoulders model (5)

11. It will make one happier to shout hurray (5)

12. He’s on the move, this rep! (9)

13. Like a look in a different order for one’s double (4-5)

16. Pondered on American presence in the Med (5)

17. Being old-fashioned, made an appointment to go out (5)

18. They drive, sir, to most characters (9)

20. High officer will issue orders with hesitation (9)

23. RA, see, will rub it out like this (5)

25. Passage between seats is swamped in ale (5)

26. Sold under the hammer, do in a cute form (9)

27. It’s an error one young woman is about to accept (7)

28. Like clockwork soldier? (7)

DOWN

1. Sort of show will claim us to be wrong (7)

2. Flavoursome thing used in aspic especially (5)

3. A way to bowl surreptitiously? (9)

4. Something to lie under the vet following half-duty (5)

5. The sky has company at getting men in (9)

6. Blame one for taking a stroll? (5)

7. It stops one moving from Paris when about to slay, upset (9)

8. Stopped working and went to bed (7)

14. They take a rosy view of posts: I’m it! (9)

15. Straight-away one mate is about to change dime (9)

16. Finding outlets for product, get Mark in to arrange it (9)

17. Medical disorder made one spout poetry (7)

19. Slim Len in Red’s awkward embrace (7)

21. Where there’s fighting it takes an era to turn up (5)

22. Happen another time to put ecu in posh car (5)

24. Cancel the annual after a loss (5)

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTION: Across: 1. Microscopic 8. Overdraw 9. Ogre

10. Wedge 13. Hour 16. Step 17. Helm 18. Rend 20. Oddly 24. Tone

25. Ignorant 26. Hell-raising

Down: 2. Idea 3. Ridge 4. Slang 5. Pooch 6. Commiserate

7. Recriminate 11. Dingo 12. Edged 14. Obey 15. Mean 19. Dwell

21. Dogma 22. Looks 23. Yawn