DOUBLE CROSSWORD
CRYPTIC ACROSS
1 Slim half shown to be better (8)
6 Downfall reverses one’s state of mind (4)
10 Goes out and captures ring leader of the monsters (5)
11 Rose to the bait and roped ends off (9)
12 Diplomatically returned papers, secretly altered (10) 13 Order cottontail from the grass (4)
15 Half a mile into purplishbrown rock (6)
17 Realm that’s lost, at last, in battle (8)
19 Doorbell’s out of order in a disorderly house (8) 20 Damage reflected on the grass (6)
23 Smooth and square (4) 24 Fish in pairs with instrument (6,4)
27 Truce after fierce sea battle (9)
28 Some flipping howler or real failing (5)
29 Uncapped fancy mixture of colour (4)
30 Perform enthusiastically like Dorothy’s dog in a dress (2,2,4)
DOWN
2 Communist ideologue’s report on old money (5) 3 Limited credit to be arranged after the balance (10)
4 Diverges from Virgo’s original coupling with another sign (6)
5 Forlorn miss is held up by escort (8)
6 Give up drive before work (4)
7 Amateur lost dream of being a great painter (3,6) 8 Slow down and carry the weight (4,2)
9 Handsome fellow made inroads without any resistance (6)
14 New name tag includes workers and bosses (10) 16 Crooks earn acceptance in quarter of the hired gun (9) 18 Bearing in mind everything overdue (8)
19 Tail end buried in sandy shore may become lighter (6) 21 Suffering as skinflint is carried on piggyback (6) 22 Absolute beginner fortunate to be the most skilled (6)
25 Bolt from a never-ending queue (5)
26 Tacked in different directions, one after another (4)
QUICK ACROSS
1 Deeply felt (8)
6 Converge (4)
10 Cuban ballroom dance (5)
11 Antagonism (9) 12 Docklands (10)
13 Road’s edge (4) 15 Illustrate, portray (6) 17 Base of a column (8) 19 Stand with one leg on either side (8)
20 Type of underpants (6) 23 Religious ceremony (4) 24 Glass-walled building for growing plants (10) 27 Fluctuation (9)
28 Main shock of a blow (5) 29 Berserk (4)
30 Basic structural unit of a chemical compound (8)
DOWN
2 Send payment (5) 3 Murder of one’s brother (10)
4 Not injured (6)
5 Exhume (8)
6 Postal service (4) 7 Conventions of social behaviour (9)
8 Gloated (6)
9 Arbitrary sign (6) 14 Fearing or hating foreigners (10)
16 Plant that is the source of an insecticide (9) 18 Unselfish concern for others (8)
19 Made a great effort (6) 21 Covering for a knife blade (6)
22 Aromatic herb with edible seeds and stems (6) 25 Customary (5) 26 Scuppered (4)