CRYPTIC CLUES

ACROSS

1 Sleeper needed to pull vehicle over mollusc (3,3,6) 8 Unfinished cupboard nearby (5) 9 Footballer’s brush? (7)

10 Payment cut in the past (4)

11 Shaping a strip of wood (8)

14 Permission as directed (6)

15 Point in wedding is togetherness (6)

17 Alien appears in universal make‑up (8)

18 Row about it returning (4)

21 Sign seen by a number in the harbour (7) 23 Unable to see screen (5)

24 Double what’s lopped off by foreman (12)

DOWN

1 Fast bike referring to vehicle going uphill (5)

2 No grips, so poor medical forecast (9)

3 Copies part of tapestries (4)

4 WI’s function must primarily provide learning (6) 5 Inn ledge broke, annoying (8)

6 Cheek lady in parlour initially (3)

7 Bit of cloth fellow put round monster (6)

12 Being one of many special agents, say, is uplifting (9) 13 Overwhelmed by demand in tower (4‑4)

14 Agree with newly‑formed pact involving Church of England (6)

16 Many drink up, seeing gun (6)

19 Tracking system going up and down (5)

20 Initially a bright graduate formed a group (4) 22 Marsupial right on rings (3)