Times 25421: AS MAD ’S MONOD

Solving time: 18:40

Nothing special here except a possibly obscure board game — the one at 23dn that is. There’s a nod in the direction of instruments you blow into but, alas, not the strings (8dn). The three big anagrams helped fill a few squares early on. Then there’s no mean number of straight charades.

Across
1	SALUTARY. SALARY (pay) including TU{c} (unions) reversed.
6	WIDEST. W{eight} + ID EST (i.e., that is).
9	WIND. Two defs.
10	GAME THEORY. Anagram of ‘a geometry’ including H (hard).
11	COURTESIES. Anagram of ‘is to rescue’.
13	Omitted. Our favourite 4-letter opera from Joe Green.
14	MINOTAUR. TAU (first Greek letter of ‘Theseus’) inside MINOR. A pleasant &lit flavour.
16	OTTAWA. Reverse: A,WATT,0.
18	BYE-BYE. Self-evident for the cricket-savvy.
20	ABDUCTOR. DUC (French aristo) + TO, all inside an anagram of ‘bar’. Paris abducted Helen, thus sparking the Trojan War.
22	O,HMS.
24	DISCHARGED. D (duke) + IS + CHARGED.
26	ALTOGETHER. A + L (fifty) + TO + G (good) + ETHER (number, anæsthetic).
28	OBOE. On Back Of Envelope.
29	MAGNET. MANET (artist) including {paintin}G.
30	WAYFARER. Hear: ‘weigh fairer’. My sunnies of choice.

Down
2	ANIMOSITY. Anagram of ‘I say I’m not’.
3	UNDERGO. UNDER (short of), GO (Eastern board game). Def = ‘experience’ (verb).
4	ARGUE. AGUE (a fit) which is thrown around R (monarch; see 8dn).
5	YAM. Read in reverse order.
6	WITHSTOOD. W (wife) + IT + H (husband) + S (son) + TOO (also) + D (daughter).
7	DIE-CAST. Two meanings. (1) Die-casting, founding a metal object in a mould. (2) Alea iacta est: the die is cast, there’s no going back chaps!
8	SHRED. R (for Rex) inside SHED. This is the one I wanted to be STRAD; with Rex inside a Small TAD. But that left ‘cast’ as the definition. Tant pis!
12	INROADS/IN,ROADS. ‘Roads’, short for ‘roadstead’, a stretch of water where ships can ride at anchor. (E.g., Gage Roads, off Fremantle.) And to make inroads into is to make a raid on. The first (roads) looks plural but isn’t. The second (inroads) is plural but acts for something singular.
15	AMENDMENT. Two lots of MEN in A{rmy} D{rill} T{eam}.
17	WHOLESOME. Hear: ‘hole sum’.
19	BASSOON. B{and},AS,SOON.
21	CORDOBA. CO, anagram of ‘board’. And talking of boards ...
23	HALMA. H (hot), ALMA (battle in the Crimean War). Hadn’t heard of the game and, having looked it up, don’t think it’s for me.
25	HARDY. No surprises here.
27	Omitted. (Yes, I’m running out of steam.)