CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1 Witty colonel drinking mineral (7)

5 Eccentric learner driver, a Parisian with a twitch (7)

9 Cranky duke, led on, wrongly imprisoned (5,4,3,3)

10 When young woman briefly returned for a dance (5)

11 Service his curate arranged (9)

12 At the moment, assume one is in South American national park (9)

14 Lower hood after onset of shower (5)

15 Put off head of team feeding animals (5)

16 Would-be poet met merry with sherry! (9)

18 Innocent mistake concerning vision (9)

21 Secure, having connection at university (3,2)

22 Imitate Cockney at speech indoors, badly (4,4,7)

23 Tiresomely long finish, not so great (7)

24 Set out from Scottish island, gillie initially heading for England (7)

DOWN

1 Disasters involving upper–class holidays at sea (7)

2 Brave person, a Democrat, following heart – frequently moderate, politically? (6-2-3-4) 3 Messenger, out of uniform, going round with culinary herb (9)

4 Unattached miss holding ring (5)

5 Enjoy nuts greatly (4,5) 6 Martial art expert’s home in New Jersey area (5)

7 Suffer defeat stoically, as most boxers do? (4,2,2,3,4)

8 Items of cut glass?

Shed tears, booth having only one left (7)

13 Song, for example, right to be included by tenors performing (2,7)

14 One watches Wall of Sound producer tackling a tango (9)

15 Desperately determined in entrance and exit (2-2-3) 17 Letter I posted contains quick and clever reply (7)

19 Twenty, the full total (5)

20 Jewellery item, article collected by rising Italian artist (5)