The Sunday Crossword No 3152, Sunday 30 May 2021

Lockdown Day 32 of 40 Stay Safe at home

ACROSS

1   Zodiac sign contains 50 building blocks: they're to be read symbolically (10) ALLEGORIES {A{L}{LEGO}RIES}

6   Lying back, soaks in hot and steamy state (4) STEW<=

9   Drive time breaking Everyman in France; holiday about to be cancelled (10) MOTIVATION {MO{T}I}{VAcaTION}

10 No intro for jazz instruments (electric guitars) (4) AXES sAXES

11 Cartoon rodent drinking up brine mixed with a component of gin (7,5)  JUNIPER BERRY {JERRY} over {UP+BRINE}*

15 Bangkok: in a way, largely Asian city (7) OKINAWA [T]

16 Country's spies turned, lust comes first (2,5) ST LUCIA {CIA}<=>{LUST}*

17 On the phone, one who sells rings; for engagement, he needs a second (7) DUELLER (~jeweller)

19 Pray to tree, having taken hallucinogens (7) BESEECH {B{ES}EECH}

20 Italian football team stuck in lavatory with German man. Unknown? This is perennial! (6,6) WINTER CHERRY {W{INTER}C}{HERR}{Y}

23 In Oz, to get intimate with cricket captain (4) ROOT [DD]

24 Did gin and went berserk for tenth anniversary (3,7) TIN WEDDING {DID+GIN+WENT}*

25 Conceal whip (4) HIDE [DD]

26 Stands for peers, stern, jumped-up (10) REPRESENTS*

DOWN

1   Cockney causes injury with weapons (4) ARMS hARMS

2   I'd like to take part in ballet sometime (4) LETS [T]

3   Suspect vague cliques with forgotten question: help me out here! (4,2,1,4) GIVE US A CLUE {VAGUE+CLIqUES}* 

4   Some regrets in absorbing strong booze (7) RETSINA [T]

5   Australia missing 'reformed' parolees (they've run away) (7) ELOPERS PaROLEES*

7   HMRC device seeing dodge after unknown amount slipped into bill (3,7) TAX BRACKET{TA{X}B}{RACKET}

8   Feeble hope, year after year: getting clean (5-5) WISHY-WASHY {WISH}{Y}{WASH}{Y}

12 50% of global occupations involving American household fittings (11) BALUSTRADES {gloBAL}{US}{TRADES}

13 Wistful odist, romanticizing daffodils, seen wandering o'er rises toward host, primarily! (10) WORDSWORTH Acrostic &lit

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

In such a jocund company:

I gazed—and gazed—but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

14 With inward feet, slob takes long time to execute dance at first (6-4) PIGEON-TOED {PIG}{EON}{TO}{Ex...e}{Da..e}

18 Search for intelligence ... focus lacking, Everyman has to admit (7) RECEIVE {REcCE}{I'VE}

19 Conflict when Duke rejected redesigned wardrobe (4,3) BOER WAR WARdROBE*

21 Poster in which function's announced (4) SIGN (~sine)

22 Hi-tech Tokyo corporation on the rise for very long time (4) AGES<=

Reference List

50 = L, Time = T, I in French = MOI, About = CA, Lavatory = WC, Unknown = Y, Question = Q, Australia = A, Unknown amount = X, Year = Y, Duke = D