16:49 for this one, so I must have found it on the tricky side. I can't remember what held me up now though, seems pretty straightforward going through the clues again this morning. It was my third puzzle of the morning last Monday though, so I was probably just running out of steam.
| Across |
| 1 | Republican follows formal procedure within CIA principles (8) |
| CRITERIA - R(epublican) after RITE (formal procedure), all inside CIA. |
| 9 | Protect from harm criminal shot at court (8) |
| CONSERVE - CON (criminal) + SERVE (shot at court, i.e. tennis). |
| 10 | Something lovely from Rio — samba that rocks! (8) |
| AMBROSIA - (Rio samba)*. |
| 11 | Day inexperienced defender causes problem (8) |
| DRAWBACK - D(ay) + RAW (inexperienced) + BACK (defender). |
| 12 | Opposing and supporting check by social worker (10) |
| PROTESTANT - PRO (supporting) + TEST (check) + ANT (social worker). |
| 14 | Hawk-headed god restrains explosive Titaness (4) |
| RHEA - RA (hawk-headed god) around HE (high explosive). In Greek mythology she was the mother of Zeus, Hera, Poseidon and others. |
| 15 | Sticks from shed are broken (7) |
| ADHERES - (shed are)*. |
| 17 | Couple tours river that is in grassland (7) |
| PRAIRIE - PAIR (couple) around R(iver) + IE (that is). |
| 19 | Flatfish being the only one (4) |
| SOLE - double definition. |
| 21 | Fabric designs record steps taken to banish duke (10) |
| TAPESTRIES - TAPE (record) + STRIDES (steps taken), minus the D for duke). |
| 22 | Framed in mosaic, perhaps, compiler finally becomes immortal (8) |
| TIMELESS - TILES (mosaic perhaps) around ME (compiler), + (become)S. |
| 23 | Histrionic viewer around a long time (8) |
| OPERATIC - OPTIC (viewer) around ERA (a long time). |
| 25 | Agitated wanderer short with son, returned (8) |
ANSWERED - (wanderer, son)*. |
| 26 | Toothless Suez PM at site of hangings (8) |
| EDENTATE - EDEN (Suez PM) + TATE (Gallery, "site of hangings"). |
| Down |
| 2 | Spirit or French wine that's put about (8) |
| RUMOURED - RUM (spirit) + OU (or in French) + RED (wine). |
| 3 | Accelerator and choke (8) |
| THROTTLE - double definition... |
| 4 | Climbing plant / took an upward course (4) |
| ROSE - ... and another. |
| 5 | French settler runs to escape simple rural type (7) |
| ACADIAN - ARCADIAN (simple rural type), minus the R for runs. Acadia is a former name for the part of Canada settled by the French in the 17th century. |
| 6 | Brandt upset with some at daggers drawn (2,3,5) |
| ON BAD TERMS - (Brandt, some)*. |
| 7 | About to puncture swimmer's lung? (8) |
| BREATHER - RE (about) inside BATHER (swimmer). Coincidentally the same word appeared in Monday's Guardian (the same day I solved this) with a very similar treatment. |
| 8 | Make out superb stores close to retail chain (8) |
| NECKLACE - NECK (ake out) + ACE (superb), around (retai)L. |
| 13 | Stormy weather set for ducks? (10) |
| SWEETHEART - (weather set)*. |
| 15 | Barker's penniless friend, one found in Dickens (8) |
| ALSATIAN - (p)AL ("penniless" friend) + I (one) inside SATAN (Dickens, a euphemism for the Devil). |
| 16 | Level of standards dropped in some respect? (4-4) |
| HALF-MAST - cryptic definition. |
| 18 | Troubling girl to fill in old tax office books (8) |
| IRRITANT - RITA (girl) inside IR (Inland Revenue, old tax office) + NT (New Testament, books). |
| 19 | Romantic concept is accepted by officer (8) |
| IDEALIST - IDEA (concept) + IS inside LT (lieutenant, officer). |
| 20 | Happening to find Greek character on turf in Central Greece? (7) |
| EPISODE - PI (Greek character) + SOD (turf), all inside EE (central Greece). |
| 24 | Something inherited comes from Guernsey regularly (4) |
| GENE - alternate letters of Guernsey. |