No 14673, Wednesday 24 Dec 2025, Incognito

Solution to 25D A has been deliberately left unsolved and is to be answered 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

1   It can prevent you from firing a scatty chef at sea (6,5) SAFETY CATCH*

9 & 12 What Adam and Eve do to kick up a fuss? (5,4) RAISE CAIN [DD]

10 People getting net profits? (9) FISHERMEN [CD]

11 Where one may see see-saw and slide? (10) PLAYGROUND [CD]

12 See 9

13 Royal Academician with sports equipment in city (5) RABAT {RA}{BAT}

15 I defame insular person (8) ISLANDER {I}{SLANDER}

17 Wrongly fire European after 10 in largest Canary Island (8) TENERIFE {FIRE+E}*<=>{TEN}

19 Daily exercise in ancient kingdom (5) LYDIA*

22 See a fellow producing a chunk of bread (4) LOAF {LO}{A}{F}

23 Damaged by floating seaplane (6,4) FLYING BOAT*

26 Popping the question, "In favour of sitting for a portrait?" (9) PROPOSING {PRO}{POSING}

27 One who might be happy to find oneself in a cast (5) ACTOR [CD]

28 Female staring excitedly after commencement of night shows Venus, perhaps (7,4) EVENING STAR {EVE} and {STARING}<=>{Ni..t}

DOWN

1   Star from small picture in South Africa (5) SPICA {S{PIC}A}

2   Cargo ship's fighter is bewildered in front of queen (9) FREIGHTER {FIGHTER}*{ER}

3   Often confused about molar latent heat to produce PTFE (6) TEFLON {TEF{L}ON*}

4   Vice in California at large gambling venues (7) CASINOS {SIN} in {CA}{OS}

5   Those people from Perth emporium (4) THEM [T]

6   What the clumsy butcher sometimes was? (3-6) HAM-HANDED [CD]

7   Cloth dealer's daughter runs around simian (6) DRAPER {D}{R}{APE}{R}

8   China nervous? To some extent, that's more silly (6) INANER [T]

14 A new girl appears in torn robe in city (9) BANGALORE {A}{N}{GAL} in {ROBE}*

16 Loyalist soldier following legal arrangement at 1 (9) ALLEGIANT {ANT}<=>{LEGAL}*{1}

17 Erroneously list up flowers (6) TULIPS*

18 Film director dropped in Italy in the beginning (7) FELLINI {FELL}{IN}{It..y}

20 Dress a couple of models with anger (6) ATTIRE {A}{TT}{IRE}

21 Formerly independent zitherist initially gets live performance. Turns out to be a damp squib (6) FIZGIG {Fo...y}{In...t}{Zi...t}{GIG}

24 Animal from Rotterdam (5) OTTER [HIPS]

25 Spy landing place (4) ?O?E ()

Reference List

Royal Academician = RA, European = E, Fellow = F, Queen = ER, Large = OS, Daughter = D, Run = R, New = N, Model = T