No 14619, Wednesday 22 Oct 2025, Incognito

Solution to 7D 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

8   Star having that lady's ring (4) HERO {HER}{O}

9   Child sick? What one may do with Netflix... (5) CHILL {CH}{ILL}

10 Some trade name for port (4) ADEN [T]

11 Botched affair for manufacturing wine (6) RAFFIA*

12 Tore up ID letter and threw garbage in public place (8) LITTERED*

13 Roll with girl and egg with wife in large house (8) BUNGALOW {BUN}{GAL}{O}{W}

15 Repairs a lunch carrier, perhaps (6) LAUNCH*

17 Indian plane manufacturer gets a message to make bomber aircraft (7) HALIFAX {HAL}{1}{FAX}

19 Cork's device to arrest flow of liquid (7) STOPPER [DD]

22 Cashier's informant (6) TELLER [DD]

24 Reserves mares running around boat (8) EARMARKS {EARM{ARK}S*}

26 Wrongly solve: Ring no good for something to be sung at a serenade (4-4) LOVE-SONG {SOLVE}*{O}{N}{G}

28 Order initially, "East Coast Road to be built in river"! (6) DECREE {D{ECR}EE}

30 Only Indian politician from Jammu and Kashmir? (4) LONE [DD}

31 Temporarily stop ape running amok round America (5) PAUSE {PA{US}E*}

32 Horrible! It may be live! (4) EVIL*

DOWN

1   Letter's estimated time of arrival? After 7th of September (4) BETA {ETA}<=>{s...mBer}

2   Girls appearing in extraordinary files covering love for singing exercises (8) SOLFEGGI {GG} in {FILES}* over {O}

3   Scribble "Supreme court misinterprets law after initial reading" (6) SCRAWL {SC}{LAW}* over {Re...g}

4   Prisoners of war protect sick, giving support for heads (7) PILLOWS {P{ILL}OWS}

5   Part of blood record returned by Attlee is damaged (8) PLATELET {LP<=}{ATTLEE}*

6   Entrance with Australian cake (6) GATEAU {GATE}{AU}

7   Defeated, not dead... That's fair... (4) ?E?E (Addendum - FETE deFEaTEd - See comments)

14 People of all ages can see this wise man's customary practice (5) USAGE {U}{SAGE}

16 Indian king makes water inlet (5) CREEK {CREE}{K}

18 Aerial warfare unit's endless scrap iron thrown away (3,5) AIR CORPS {SCRAP+IROn}*

20 Scheme with Chester to produce blank coin (8) PLANCHET {PLAN}{CHET}

21 Setter leaving European country covers a city in Karnataka (7) BELGAUM {BELGiUM} over {A}

23 Confused lip reader giving up rap for a song (6) LIEDER {LIp+rEaDER}*

25 Tiller having right source of milk (6) RUDDER {R}{UDDER}

27 Instrument playing bolero without use of both hands (4) OBOE BOlErO*

29 Way to leave old sweetheart with sex appeal (4) EXIT {EX}{IT}

Reference List

Child = CH, Roll = BUN, Girl = G, Wife = W, No = N, Good = G, Record = LP, People of all ages = U, King = K, Chester = CHET, Right = R, Sex Appeal = IT