No 14384, Friday 17 Jan 2025, Crescent

RULES FOR POSTING COMMENTS FOR FRIDAY ONLY

All those who are not regular commenters but who are rookie commenters or silent followers of the blog are requested to post answers with annotations in the comments section. In your own interest please avoid looking up the answers from the interactive version. Don't hesitate to post your annotations, in case you make a mistake in the annotation someone will correct it with the right annotation.

PLEASE NOTE, SOLUTIONS WITHOUT ATTEMPTING THE ANNOTATIONS WILL BE DELETED

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Regular solvers/Veterans can post 1 answer each, but after 11 AM only.

Thanks for the response, here's the regular blog.

ACROSS

8   Apply to institute including page with application blowing university's skilled faculty (9) EXPERTISE {EX{P}ERT}{I}{uSE}

9   Repeat performance choir hosts (4) ECHO [T]

10 Offence by the disheartened girl starts church sanction (7,2,6) BENEFIT OF CLERGY {OFFENCE+BY+ThE+GIRL}*

12 Number of left back in hockey entering pitch (6-3) TWENTY-ONE {T{WENT}{h...eY}ONE}

13 Refuse to kill the French revolutionary (5) OFFAL {OFF}{LA<=}

14 Guaranteed term protecting new user (7) ENSURED {EN{USER*}D}

17 Rider is coming in for victory round (7) PROVISO {IS} in {PRO}{V}{O}

19 Shock from a power circuit flipped (5) APPAL {A}{P}{LAP<=}

21 Time to go to California, in retirement plant crops (9) TRUNCATES {T}{RUN}{CA}{SET<=}

24 Silent investor, one of the friends with benefits? (8,7) SLEEPING PARTNER [D&CD]

25 Make sound and listen when king's left (4) HEAL HEA(-r+l)L

26 Hunt primarily, inter alia, running nation (9) LITHUANIA {HUNT+In..r+ALIA}*

DOWN

1   Best three say, not in proper place, steered to row (3,2,3,4) SET BY THE EARS*

2   Dogs lie barking in stretches (8) SPANIELS {SPAN{LIE*}S}

3   Advantage of expert tailor (6) PROFIT {PRO}{FIT}

4   Second portion taken out or taken up in café (6) BISTRO {BI{S}T}{OR<=}

5   Doing things without assistance feels hard, terrible not having a friend backing (4-4) SELF-HELP {FEELS+H}*{PaL<=}

6   Loaded spring retracted over point (4-2-2) WELL-TO-DO {WELL} and {O}{DOT}<=

7   Pay attention to cycles providing crop (6) KHARIF {(+k)KHAR(-k)}{IF}

11 Woke style frequently expressed, airily posturing funky nature (6,6) YELLOW STREAK {WOKE+STYLE+AiRiLy}*

15 Poorly baked without stuffing, lousy pudding (4-4) ROLY-POLY {POORLY}*{LousY}

16 Effect producing goose pimples with excessive love (8) DOTINGLY {DO}{TINGLY}

18 Chanting name occupies one, a lost penitent (8) INTONING {N} in {1}{aTONING}

20 Like better product's first advert (6) PREFER {Pr...t}{REFER}

22 Snobbish at university, shame! (6) UPPITY {UP}{PITY}

23 Literary collection in Arabic or Pushtu (6) CORPUS [T]

Reference List

Page = P, University = U, The in French = LA, Victory = V, Power = P, Time = T, King = R, Left = L, Second = S, Hard = H, Over = O, Name = N, University = UP

No 14383, Thursday 16 Jan 2025, KrisKross

Solution to 3D has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered only by a non-regular / novice commenter, with proper annotation. Those who have answered earlier in the week, please give others a chance. 

Open for anyone to solve, if not solved by 1 PM.

ACROSS

1   Expecting President's ruling (8) PREGNANT {P}{REGNANT}

5   Rodent in Goa - it angrily bites you (6) AGOUTI {GOA+IT}* over {U}

9   Nobody accepts US university? On the contrary, twelve! (8) NOONTIME {NO ON{MIT<=}E}

10 United Germany, say, turning tense (2,4) ON EDGE {ONE}{D}{EG<=}

12 Sleep, overwhelmed by injection filled with drug - its effects are magical (3,6) HEY PRESTO {REST} in {H{E}YPO}

13 Corruption in weightlifting round (5) FILTH [T<=]

14 Birds belonging to the musician (4) EMUS [T]

16 "Sengol" - Cholas' excellent present to rule empire, primarily (7) SCEPTRE Acrostic &lit

19 Indian state in revolt will not welcome organization's head yet (2,2,3) UP TO NOW {UP}{WON{Or...n}T<=}

21 Vessels in bar counter (4) POTS<=

24 Slow mover after cycling gets handy tips? (5) NAILS (-s)NAIL(+s)S

25 Liberal media unfortunately prefers to include editorials lacking in content (4,5) FREE PRESS {PREFERS}* over {Ed...lS}

27 County's old tree chopped (6) EXETER {EX}{TREE*}

28 After brief greeting, wager to win new set (4-4) HELL-BENT {HELLo}{BE{N}T}

29 Indian soldiers spy enemies at first - so cunning (6) SEPOYS {SPY+En...s+SO}* 

30 Island basically not traceable by one going through book of maps (8) ATLANTIS {ATLA{Not}{Tr...e}{1}S}

DOWN

1   Starting to pour…leader heading off to get raincoat (6) PONCHO {Pour}{hONCHO}

2   Fake money to procure power diesel, say (6) EPONYM {E{P}ONYM*}

3   He takes minutes perhaps to tailor one gown ultimately (5) N?T?R (Addendum - NOTER {TO+t...oR+onE+gowN}* - See comments)

4   #1 seed upset, facing second downfall (7) NEMESIS {1}{SEMEN}<={S}

6   Bend knee, leg etc. - fun moves! (9) GENUFLECT*

7   Roll in empty utensil consumed by a French girlfriend (8) UNDULATE {UN}{D{Ut...iL}LATE}

8   Techies working to save earth becoming a cold mass (3,5) ICE SHEET {TECHIES}* over {E}

11 Cheats tame animals (4) DOES [DD]

15 Where you find brothers playing, breaking rule (9) MONASTERY {M{ON}ASTERY}

17 Stout British actor (8) GUINNESS [DD]

18 Start playing uke in band (6,2) STRIKE UP {STRI{UKE*}P}

20 Carry whiskey to rear of ship (4) WAFT {W}{AFT}

21 Gift dispatched beforehand (7) PRESENT {PRE-SENT}

22 Novel about change in America (6) RECENT {RE}{CENT}

23 A model is rejected already (2,2,2) AS IT IS {A} and {SIT}{IS}<=

26 A king cut off retro dance form (5) POLKA{A}{K}{LOP}<=

Reference List

President = P, Germany = D, Drug = E, Old = O, New = N, Power = P, Second = S, A in Fench = UN, Earth = E, Whiskey = W, About = RE, King = K