So, a slightly different solve for me this week: away from Chambers, so with rather more reliance on the Internet for filling in gaps and for word meaning confirmation. One proud moment was looking up TRON using the power of grep through my previous solves, to find that it did indeed mean “market”.

  • 2ac: FLAMBOYANTE: Following former whim, lad gets stake for tropical tree: F + LAM + BOY + ANTE
  • 10ac: SLUMP: Depression about closing of theatrical flop: SUMP around (theatrica)L
  • 11ac: ZABIAN: Semi-Christian sectarian from South Africa, one curbed by taboo: ZA + BAN (taboo) around I
  • 13ac: SUMPIT: Tot given mine delivers devastating darts: SUM + PIT
  • 14ac: OPPO: One’s mate, very low before and after love: PP (pianissimo) before and after O (love)
  • 16ac: KIPPAS: Snooze before action requiring special headgear: KIP + PAS
  • 17ac: STYLOLITE: Sort of stone boundary to till? Yes, laboriously: *(TO TILL YES)
  • 18ac: BEZEL: Elizabeth may make a hit with this oblique stone’s face: *(ELIZABETH - A HIT)
  • 19ac: ELYTRON: Plate of worms appearing in Cambs. city market: ELY + TRON
  • 21ac: REPULSE: Check up showing relapse – reels shakily about that: *(REELS) around UP reversed(?)
  • 23ac: YEZDI: One must give the Devil his due – even features of Azed likely to appear contorted!: *(aZeDlIkElY)
  • 27ac: CASSAREEP: Ingredient of WI cuisine like it is used to stuff toad: AS (like) + SA (?) in CREEP (toad)
  • 30ac: DREDGE: Sprinkle a bit of demerara, a form of greed: D(emerara) + *(GREED)
  • 31ac: GEDS: River fish caught in ringed seines: rinGED Seines
  • 32ac: ITALIE: Palm tree situation? It has its place in Paris: not sure about the parsing, other than Place d'Italie being in Paris
  • 33ac: EGOIST: I’m not interested in what others think or say on ’eight of sail: EG (say) + OIST (HOIST = “height of sail” - H)
  • 34ac: STEER: Guide more obdurate when avoiding lie: STEELIER (more obdurate) - LIE
  • 35ac: BOG STANDARD: Dirk e.g. (not English) edging suit of armour, basic: BOGARDE (ref. Dirk Bogarde - E + STAND (?)
  • 1dn: ASSES’ BRIDGE: Rigs shifting with sea-beds? It blocks progress completely: *(RIGS SEA BEDS)
  • 2dn: FLUATE: Former compound one put into wineglass: FLUTE (wineglass) around A (one)
  • 3dn: LUMMY: Excellent Dickensian upper class, deprived of power initially: PLUMMY (upper class) - P(ower)
  • 4dn: AMPULE: Drug container from Panama secreted by a smuggler thereof?: A MULE (drug-smuggler) around P(anama)
  • 5dn: BOTTLES: Earns by busking what’ll often end in banks: Double Definition
  • 6dn: OZEKI: Heavyweight champ? Little weight put on as turning up with loss of pounds: OZ (little weight) + (LIKE - L) reversed; ref. Ōzeki
  • 7dn: YAKITY-YAK: Gossip? It’s variable with pair tended by Tibetan milkmaids around?: IT + Y (variable) inside YAK twice
  • 8dn: NIPPER: Cracked pipe splitting near wire?: NR (near) outside *(PIPE)
  • 9dn: TAPAS: Pieces of Italian staple exchanged as appetizers: PASTA (Italian staple) rearranged
  • 12dn: NOSENIPPERS: No drinkers will imbibe small measure in these glasses: NO + SIPPERS (drinkers) around EN (small measure)
  • 15dn: COLLAGIST: ‘Scrap merchant’? I irritate when going up in price: I GALL (irritate) reversed in COST (price)
  • 20dn: LESBIAN: Selina, mad about baron? Probably not: *(SELINA) around B(aron) &-sort-of-lit.
  • 22dn: PIE-DOG: Pedigree? No – wild one ne’er displays that: *(PEDIGREE NO) = NE’ER + PIE-DOG
  • 24dn: ERRATA: Slips revealing solver ratability to some extent: solvER RATAbility
  • 26dn: GREGO: More than half of calendar calls for such an overcoat? GREGO(rian) (ref. Gregorian Calendar)
  • 25dn: DEFIED: Was daring exploit interrupted by rising uncertainty?: DEED (exploit) around IF reversed
  • 28dn: SEPTA: Dividers, a pest when broken: *(A PEST)
  • 29dn: EULER: Mathematician requiring rubber in middle of numerals: ULE (rubber) in numERals; ref. Leonhard Euler