THE CROSSWORDS

Across

1 A salesman’s pitch (5)

8 Request certain to give satisfaction (8) 9 Considering getting something for nothing (5) 10 Complaint of untidiness (8)

11 Like prices that have sharply risen? (5)

12 To the southeast there’s a large stretch of water (3)

16 Grab a bit of sleep perhaps (6)

17 Happen to get increased yield (4,2)

18 Still up to date (3)

23 Depended on the French worker (5)

24 Cash exchanged in pure monetary transaction (8)

25 Cast worth going out to see (5)

26 Enthusiast takes charge (4,4)

27 Behind? That’s serious (5)

Down

2 Aiming to improve the outside of the house (8) 3 Do they help one to see what one is eating? (8) 4 Watergate clue is incorrect (6)

5 Fabric that’s light when worn (5)

6 Leader is ridiculed in speech (5)

7 Courage shown by a man with practical skill (5) 12 Afraid to have one’s fling? (3)

13 Work and play (3)

14 How teams are organised to a certain extent (8)

15 Become embittered and go off (4,4)

19 Possibly run and see to make certain (6) 20 Fruit that’s big in New York (5)

21 Fine adjective or a verb maybe (5) 22 Demonstrated method of splitting poles (5)

Across

1 Quick and nimble (5)

8 Short entertaining account (8) 9 A sudden blaze (5)

10 Definitive statement (4,4) 11 Dried grain stalks (5)

12 Rainy (3)

16 Trite expression (6) 17 Deciduous flowering shrub (6)

18 To capture (3)

23 Answer (5)

24 Subject readily understood (4,4)

25 Holy book of Islam (5) 26 Sympathy-seeking tale (3,5) 27 Harass persistently (5)

Down

2 Gossip (4,4)

3 Way of speaking (8) 4 Natural (6)

5 Keen (5)

6 A punctuation mark (5) 7 Intoxicating (5) 12 Network (3) 13 Informative label (3) 14 Pay attention (4,4) 15 Revealing (4-4)

19 On a ship (6) 20 Signalling code (5) 21 Survive (3,2)

22 Subside (5)