No 14947, Friday 13 Nov 2026, Vidwan

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

Each commenter is requested to post only 5 answers thereby giving others also a chance to participate. Please provide all your answers in one comment.

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

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

ACROSS

1   Arriving quietly, displacing millions for surviving (6)  COPING CO(-m+p)PING

5   Digital version of post, curiously lacking in content perhaps (4,4) SOFT COPY {OF+POST+Cu...lY}*

9   Casting Director - one who makes advances! (8) CREDITOR* 

10 Adore choreographer, every bit from the rear! (6) REVERE [T<=]

11 It's most certainly played by model player (12) CLARINETTIST {ITS+CERTAINLy}*{T}

13 Try India's public transport (4) TAXI {TAX}{I}

14 Continental public transport routes are most exciting (8) EUROSTAR*

17 Heads out with one working for support (8) ADHESION {HEADS*}{1}{ON}

18 No small joke for comrade (4) ALLY sALLY

20 Gold embedded in the leather! Our cute dresses represent high quality fashion! (5,7) HAUTE COUTURE {H{AU}TE*}{OUR+CUTE}*

23 Caribbean city seizes Britain, leaves USA tormented (6) NASSAU {NAbS}{USA*}

24 Tsetse! It can be most nettlesome! (8) TESTIEST*

25 Extremely small first lady avoiding a broadcast (8) SEVERELY {S}{EVE}{RELaY}

26 Most pay attention to faceless British playright's bray (3-3) HEE-HAW {HEEd}{sHAW}

DOWN

2   Part of progress for monster (4) OGRE {HIPS]

3   Causing magnetic effect, kind of divine and almost cute! (9) INDUCTIVE {DIVINE+CUTe}*

4   Georgia beverage with slice of Ukrainian cake (6) GATEAU {GA}{TEA}{Uk...n}

5   Sector of economy scrutinised very casually (7,8) SERVICE INDUSTRY*

6   Withhold leading magazine covering a resistance (8) FORBEARS {FORBE{A}{R}S}

7   I've exchanged a cat for another cat! (5) CIVET {C(-a+ive)IVET

8   Agent from the south is hot, fit and easily spoilt! (10) PERISHABLE {REP<=}{IS}{H}{ABLE}

12 Held apart, a fixed part of mouth (4,6) HARD PALATE*

15 Tide waste, spread across the province (9) STATEWIDE*

16 Medicine can heal over time (8) TINCTURE {TIN}{CURE} over {T} 

19 Violent uprising arising out of Rajput schisms (6) PUTSCH [T]

21 Oddly that's outside the experience (5) TASTE {ThAtS}{ThE}

22 America is also partly backward continent (4) ASIA [T<=]

Reference List

Quietly = P, Millions = M, Model = T, India = I, Small = S, Britain = B, Resistance = R, Agent = REP, Hot = H, Time = T

No 14946, Thursday 12 Nov 2026, Vidwan

Solution to 20A 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 answer, if not solved by 1 PM.

ACROSS

8   Committed detectives taking out time for event (8) INCIDENT {IN{+cid-t)CIDENT

9   Like keeping presented plants (6) AGAVES {A{GAVE}S}

10 Mountain range in Spain is surprisingly rare somehow (6) SIERRA {IS*}{RARE*}

11 Test car by turning it on (8) AUDITION {AUDI}{IT+ON}*

12 Mount finest steer (8) BESTRIDE {BEST}{RIDE}

13 No love? Girl's retreating to place like Venice! (6) LAGOON {NO}{O}{GAL}<=

14 Cruelly pick out and turn a man's colon as an illustration (11,4) PUNCTUATION MARK {PICK+OUT+TURN+A+MAN}*

18 So pain reliever works for basic ego! (3,3) ICE BAG {ICE+BAG+SO}*=BASIC EGO

20 Uses one incessantly in works of little consequences (3-5) N?N-?S?U? (Addendum - NON-ISSUE {USES+ONe+IN}* - See comments)

23 Lady's cryptic clues for macho man (8) HERCULES {HER}{CLUES*}

24 Alien trapped in prey's germ cell (6) GAMETE {GAM{ET}E}

25 Company guy makes sense (6) COGENT {CO}{GENT}

26 A right time and one small endeavour leads to creativity (8) ARTISTRY {A}{R}{T}{1}{S}{TRY}

DOWN

1   Charlie kicked right out in full draw (6) ENTICE ENTI(+c-r)CE

2   Water pill - It cured one's suffering (8) DIURETIC {IT+CURED+1}*

3   Genuine pal, Indian holds as neighbour! (6) NEPALI [T]

4   A tiny slave tends sick when love is celebrated by the world (2,10,3) ST VALENTINES DAY*

5   Devious UCLA idol and Spanish leader (8) CAUDILLO*

6   Makeshift robe, possibly for Greta Garbo (6) RAGTAG {RAGTAG+ROBE}*=GRETA GARBO [CD]

7   Oh! It is moment of truth! (4,4)  ZERO HOUR {0}{H}

15 Cut melon supply to Black American who is too friendly with whites (5,3) UNCLE TOM*

16 Colt's an example of sporting gun suitable for everyone old! (8) UNGULATE {GUN}{U}{LATE}

17 Married his hairy maiden, has turned into quite a mess! (8) MISHMASH {M}{HIS*}{M}{HAS*}

19 Bold cyber-criminal wanting hot sponsor (6) BACKER {B}{hACKER}

21 Revoke work breaks in modern port (6) NEGATE {NEw}{GATE}

22 Put up with bad run leading to positive change in fortune (6) UPTURN {PUT*}{RUN*}

Reference List

Time = T, Alien = ET, Right = R, Small = S, Charlie = C, 0 = Zero, H = HOUR, Suitable for everyone = U, Married = M, Maiden = M, Bold = B, Hot = H, Work = W