Cryptic Crossword

Across

1 Something useful for keeping

the bills down (11)

9 Restaurant with pot plants?

(3,6)

10 Hotel last Saturday was

elegant (5)

11 To have gold at front of car (4) 12 State where African oil is

processed (10)

14 Developed some meagre

witticisms (4)

15 Tour places arranged better

(10)

19 Carry jet to another path that

is winding (10)

20 One of five had two-thirds of

the fruit (4)

21 Emerging from cover, excitement will stimulate to an excessive degree (10)

23 Use one’s teeth when about

to cut (4) 25 Cypress hiding Belgian town

(5)

27 Robin near to be solving something that requires little thought (2-7)

28 Remain on duty to defend

stronghold (4,3,4)

Down

1 Observe rules of football?

(4,3,4)

2 Top dog we hear (4)

3 English resort, favourite gets

special treatment on this (3,6) 4 Boredom in most of the night in

France (5)

5 Gareth, go inside with the continental having grotesque appearance (8)

6 Bird, one entering island race

(3)

7 Honest, it is in unbroken

succession (8) 8 Bird some miles up (4)

13 There’s little difference, it

does not hold a lot (3,4,2,2)

16 Indoor playing surface? (4-5) 17 Encircle leech producing

fungal disease! (8)

18 Palindromes are unaffected

by a change for the worse (8) 21 Only pound left with unknown

variety of agate (4)

22 Has power and sex appeal to

record in advance (3,2)

24 Light ring (4)

26 Not much of a cheer coming

from winner ahead (3)

We would like to apologise for the error in Thursday’s crossword, which made the clue for 29 across impossible to solve. We are sorry if this spoiled your enjoyment of the puzzle.