CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

ACROSS

1 Fliers or fatheaded convicts! (5) 6 Spell “shape” differently (5) 9 Toss an essayist a flower (7) 10 He’s very efficient, if maybe flashy (5) 11 Quoted as seen? (5) 12 For punishment, ring around mid-morning (5) 13 Accommodated by a deceiver? (5,2) 15 Aeroplane on the way to Gateshead? (3) 17 Saintly, warm-hearted celebrity? (4) 18 Be generous when cheated out of a fast finish (6) 19 He’ll sing a number as an alternative (5) 20 Smoking jacket? (6) 22 In entering the Foreign Office, one gets a sherry (4) 24 Yes, a Pole has a commission (3) 25 It eats fish (possibly plaice, by the way) (7) 26 Wherein to see the art of hairdressing? (5) 27 Hitch a ride with Tom (5) 28 It means less in maths (5) 29 Liquid losses (7) 30 Put down what sounds right (5) 31 A pair royal (of kings?) (5)

DOWN

2 Inspect for what may seem a short time (4,2) 3 A shiner, it seems, will make you scowl (6) 4 A regular elbow bender (3) 5 Lake still in Scotland! (5) 6 Foreign sportsman or cad, drunk on half a pint! (7) 7 Greeting from heaven? (4) 8 Think right, and you can raise fees for it (3,3) 12 Player with puffy cheeks (5) 13 Romanov stars, possibly? (5) 14 Carpenter, female (5) 15 Wonderful bit of reading, I see (5) 16 Become head girl at school? (3,2) 18 Denis touring Australia with a group (5) 19 Plausible woman in a twisted belt (7) 21 Note their confusion, both one and the other (6) 22 The finale sounds like Sibelius, say (6) 23 Mother’s kind (6) 25 Where it’s cold, the police get rid of ice (having a right) (5) 26 Black spot (4) 28 The force sometimes reduced (3)