CRYPTIC CLUES

ACROSS

1 Right grate fixed loft (6) 4 Superman’s county? (4) 7 Sharp as a group of detectives (4)

8 Trial or trade (6)

9 Complain audibly at tipple (4) 10 Leave out of room itself (4) 12 Spots cane construction (4) 14 Not even peculiar (3)

16 Definitely an article (3)

17 European staff (4)

20 Woman has time for

ingredient (4)

23 Appeased with food (4)

24 Sensitive offer (6)

25 Only a lake (4)

26 Rushed and broke spade, losing heart (4)

27 More sentries get to feel bitter (6)

DOWN

1 German presenter has spirit (5) 2 Prudence gets discourteous (4) 3 Working a lot with new nail (5) 4 King William donated first two fruit (4)

5 Chief rioted unexpectedly (6) 6 Time to tear into fashion (5) 11 Lame sort of dinner, say (4) 13 Manage firm exercise (4) 15 Points to identical seed (6) 16 Pasta turned out to be Spanish food (5) 18 Creature less cold in the East End (5)

19 Rifts develop initially (5) 21 Employed American journalist (4)

22 Lied about being lazy (4)