Sunday Times 4525 (17 Feb 2013) by Tim Moorey

Solving time: 25:31 - with one mistake.

On the whole I found this quite straightforward. I'm not sure if it was easy, or if I just got on to the setter's wavelength quickly. Some of the wordplay was certainly quite clever, maybe even a little too clever in places, and I didn't understand all of it until post-solve. I didn't know KEYPAL at 22d, so I put in PENPAL without really having a good reason to. I guess I didn't want to spoil a decent time by thinking about one last clue for another 15 minutes or something. Besides, like I said, there were other clues I didn't understand at the time as well.

Generally, I'd say I enjoyed it. The pick of the clues for me are probably 25, 28 & 30. Of these, 25 took me the longest to understand, but once I had I rather liked it, so I'll give it my COD.

cd = cryptic def., dd = double def., rev = reversal, homophones are written in quotes, anagrams as (--)*, and removals like this

Across
1	CHELSEA TRACTOR = (A HORSE + CART ETC + London)* - &lit
10	REMIT = TIMER - I wasn't sure about 'forward' as a definition. I can't really see how that works.
11	ACROPOLIS = Athens + CROP + (SOIL)* - another &lit
12	MUSTERED = "MUSTARD"
13	GRUNGE - a type of rock music = Gibraltar in (G + RUN + E)
15	O + KING - I took me a while to work out what word this was supposed to be. Giving something the OK would be Oking.
17	CHARISMA = CHAR (daily, as in cleaner) + IS (lives) + MA (degree)
19	DEFIANCE = DE (of French) + FIANCE (partner before marriage)
20	NOTED = When Ted Heath left there was NO TED
23	EVER SO = (SOIREE)* with V replacing I
25	DOORSTEP - It took about 24 hours post-solve for the penny to drop with this one. A doorstep is a thick slice of bread, and bread to a Frenchman is 'le pain'. Now I've got it, I think it's very clever and I really like it.
28	PUT IN HOCK = PUTIN (Vladimir, Top Russian) + HOCK (wine) - 'pop' is the definition. To pop is to take something to a pawnbrokers, as in the nursery rhyme 'Pop goes the weasel'.
29	MARGE = EG (say) + RAM (jam, as in stuff inside) all rev
30	LONDONDERRY AIR = LONDON + "DERRIERE" - It’s an old gag, but a good one.
Down
2	HAMPSHIRE - The county that contains the River Test.
3	LATTE = FLATTER without the FR around the outside
4	EVANESCENT = (AN + ESC) in EVENT
5	TO(R)E
6	A + S + PERS(I)ON
7	TALe + ON
8	RASHER - dd
9	TROMSO = (MOTORS)*
14	CASEWORKER = (CARER SO WEAK)* without A (one) - &lit
16	GLISSANDO = (LONG SAID)* about S (Sweden)
18	METATARSI = ME (Yours truly) + TATA (so long) + RSI (Repetetive Strain Injury) - Plural of Metatarsus, the little bones so often broken by footballers
21	DAPPER - PAD (block) rev + PAR (a)
22	KEY PAL - This was my mistake. I put in PENPAL without really understanding it, but I couldn't think of anything better. I wasn't overly surprised to find it was wrong. It's KEY (important) + A in PL, a keypal being the modern electronic version of a penpal. There has been a lot of discussion on the forum over the enumeration of this one. The general consensus seems to be that it's one word. I've not come across it before so I can't say.
24	EAT IN = NEAT GIN without the initial letters
26	cRUMMY
27	CO-ED = COACHED without (A + CH)