CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS: 1 Nautilus. 5 Hotpot. 9 Crevasse. 10 Strain. 12 Eddy. 13 Salad cream. 15 Split decision. 19 Pitched battle. 23 Drawing pin. 25 Omen. 28 Moiety. 29 Obdurate. 30 Canton. 31 Repartee.

DOWN:1 Nickel. 2 Upend. 3 Iran. 4 Upstart. 6 Optic. 7 Peacetime. 8 Tenement. 11 Bare. 14 Blah. 15 Situation. 16 Dub. 17 Iota. 18 Epidemic. 20 Digs. 21 Amiable. 22 Annexe. 24 Intro. 26 Meant. 27 Tuba. ACROSS 1 Relative spotted carrying in

litres, drunk (6-2-3) 9 Lay clues out with a ruler at

first (7) 10 A girl’s clumsy husband is

quite big (7) 11 Green area bound to need

cutting (3) 12 Fussy female in Kentucky

captures Dick’s heart (7) 13 Mislaid letters showing support for builders (7) 14 Some purple irises make

floral garland (3) 15 Second pie cooked a reddish

brown colour (5) 17 Profit that is left between end of May and start of December (5) 18 Nut about to punch writer (5) 20 Polish text editor gathers

pieces (5) 22 Initially take off each digit (3) 24 Posh county upset about head of manufacturing firm (7) 25 Savoury snack available during daytime at pier (4, 3) 26 Lyric Theatre not operating

(3) 27 Cheer count in valley (7) 28 Listener commonly confusing lough with empty lake (7) 29 Master carried over points to

make divisor (11) DOWN 1 Apparently ring deputy (6-2-7) 2 Joins pieces, applying pressure internally (7) 3 Primitive lyre played around

Austrian capital (5) 4 Embarrassed, I put up big artist’s frame unfinished (3,2, 4) 5 Crime nearly solved when

cycle is impounded (7) 6 Quick trip ruined with ruts and potholes — hard going (7-4, 4) 7 Valuable American fuel wasted

(6) 8 Walk round hotel in Strand (6) 16 Mark Twain, say, used nuts in

horse mushrooms at first (9) 18 Dive, taking breather during

exercises (6) 19 Statesman’s granny welcoming return of Cameron? (7) 21 Current game hasn’t finished

(7) 23 Reported small island’s small

hole (6) 25 Crew devour large old fruit

(5)