Times Crossword 25,989 - Penguin Edition

Solving Time: About 13 minutes. I thought I was heading for a really fast time, but then got a little held up in the NE corner, with 6dn and 8dn last to go in. Some lovely clues here, (I did like 26ac), a little racy in places (is 21dn quite rude, or is it all in my mind?) and a couple our overseas friends might perhaps struggle with - though I think Rod Hull was fairly well-known in Australia

cd = cryptic definition, dd = double definition, rev = reversed, anagrams are *(--), homophones indicated in ""

ODO means the Oxford Dictionaries Online

Across
1	keep back - .. because keep back is PEEK, a sly look, geddit?
5	access - C(onservative) in ACES (ones) + S(ociety)
10	alternative vote - *(VET + VET + RATIONALE). One of the various voting systems the two main parties have always been too scared to consider implementing to replace "First past the post."
11	emulate - EMU + LATE (deceased.) For those unfamiliar with the late lamented Rod Hull & Emu, see here. A lot of people thought he was very funny, but I'm not sure Michael Parkinson did..
12	glory be - RY (line, of the railway type) in GLOBE (the earth). The def. is just "my."
13	stake out- S(ecurity) + TAKE OUT 15 Tosca - hidden in phoTO SCAnning
18	fudge - EG (say) + DUF(f), both rev. A duff is a pudding (unless you are up it)
20	abrasive - BRA (lingerie) in AS (while) + In ViEw. Nice surface!
23	skid lid - KID (child) in SLID(e) (short slippery track). A skid lid being a crash helmet
25	squalor - LO (look) in SQUAR(e) (old fogey, briefly)
26	on top of the world - a dd, penguins (in the wild) being restricted to the southern hemisphere. Beautiful surface
27	trover - (claiman)T + ROVER, the archetypal pet dog. Today's unknown word for me, but not a difficult clue
28	Fosse Way - *(SAY SO FEW). The Fosse Way is a Roman road that goes straight across England, linking Exeter with Lincoln, via Bath & Leicester. No planning enquiries in those days..
Down
1	kraken - RAK(e) (lothario almost) in KEN, (know).
2	entrusted - ENT (hospital department) + RUSTED (degraded through inaction)
3	barrack - ARR (arrives) in BACK, to champion
4	craze - C (clubs) + RAZE (level)
6	cheroot - HERO (leading man) in COT (bed)
7	epoxy - (remov)E + POXY (poor quality). Epoxy, or epoxy resin, is a type of adhesive, Araldite being a well-known example
8	skeletal - LATE (former) + LEKS (Balkan currency, specifically Albanian). My last one in. Leks, you will be interested to learn, are named after Alexander the Great, whose name is LEKA in Albanian
9	fidgeter - *(FIRED GET). This clue took me a while to unravel
14	on and off - dd
16	Savile Row - VILE (obnoxious) + OR (men) rev., in SAW, a proverb. I'm sure Savile Row appears disproportionally often in crosswords. When did we last see Borough High St, or Marylebone road?
17	offshoot - S(pecial Branch) in OFF + HOOT (joker). Presumably to off is a US euphemism for murder
19	eclipse - C(old) + LIPS (feature), in E(xpensiv)E. A clever clue
21	squawks - SQUA(t) (short dumpy) + W(ife) + K(isse)S. I suppose kissing someone's toes is not all that rude..
22	Friday - I + D(uke) in FRAY (brawl)
24	intro - R(iver) in INTO, digging, ie appreciating
25	schmo - SCH(ool) + MO, medical officer, a military doctor. More US slang