No 14709, Thursday 05 Feb 2026, Hypatia

Solution to 24A 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   Bounce back and run moving two steps ahead in one’s network? (8) RICOCHET {(+r)R1C(-r)OCHET}

5   Scatters bouquets (6) SPRAYS [DD]

10 Casually pick American or Japanese fish (3,4) KOI CARP {PICK+A+OR}*

11 Italian dish oddly thrown out from trains to station (7) RISOTTO {tRaInS+tO+sTaTiOn}

12 On retirement British Indian owns title (5) SAHIB {B}{I}{HAS}<=

13 Felt fur of bats is pretty tough (9) EFFORTFUL* 

14 Small girl with singer performing in blue robe (8,4) DRESSING GOWN {S+G+SINGER}* in {DOWN}

18 Good run for popular ride in a village mela, say (5,2,5) MERRY GO ROUND {MERRY}{GO ROUND}

21 Found incomplete URL changes essentially goof up to cause conflict (3,4,2) RUN FOUL OF {FOUNd+URL+goOF}* Essentially GOOF would be OO?

23 Relating to bones usually located near arm's radius, primarily (5) ULNAR Acrostic

24 Best and worst grades on impartial school projects (7) A?F?I?S ()

25 Beast managed lying about wife, partly not fully (7) NARWHAL {RAN<=}{W}{HALf}

26 Regularly selected shoe from Men's premium brand (6) HERMES {sHoE+fRoM+mEnS}

27 Combed Tim, especially around sleeping hours (8) BEDTIMES [T]

DOWN

1   Sportingly unconventional anorak is heavily hooded (6) RAKISH [T]

2   Saw bag leaving New England initially (6) CLICHE {CLInCH}{En...d}

3   Cold barren ground rarely cleared out for fruit (9) CRANBERRY {C}{BARREN}{Ra..lY}

4   Dull as an algebra class having no equations? (14) EXPRESSIONLESS {EXPRESSION LESS}

6   Sitter of a puzzle (5) POSER [DD]

7   Fine old cat struggling to lift tail up in unexpected disaster (3,2,3) ACT OF GOD {F+O+CAT}*{DOG<=}

8   Dull student in reasonable fast track? Just the opposite (4,4) SLOW LANE {LOW}{L} in {SANE}

9   Having turned, in effect, car crashing and speeding, for instance (7,7) TRAFFIC OFFENCE {OFF} in {IN+EFFECT+CAR}* 

15 Made U-turn right inside secure defence tower (3,6) GUN TURRET {U+TURN+R}* in {GET}

16 Article of flower put up in holy shrine (8) AMARNATH AM(-a)RN(+a)ATH

17 Coaches drop international football official returning to shift (8) TRANSFER {TRAiNS}{REF<=}

19 Basically any nation's traditional hymn expressed musically! (6) ANTHEM Acrostic &lit

20 Registers after time and irritates (6) TROLLS {ROLLS}<=>{T}

22 Think of love and ache (5) OPINE {O}{PINE}

Reference List

Run = R, American = A, British = B, Indian = I, Small = S, Girl = S, Wife = W, New = N, Cold = C, Fine = F, Old = O, Student = L, Right = R, International = I, Time = T