There were early signs that our setter was about to demonstrate his grasp of the entire alphabet, though I don’t think the assumption made any difference to my speed of solving, which produced a par score of 16.48. There’s also, very nearly, a pretty well complete compendium of clue types for our entertainment, only the &lit being AWOL. As is often the case when it's my turn to comment, I found little to cause any controversy, though that usually means it’s riddled with stuff no-one knows.
As ever, I have identified clues,definitions and SOLUTIONS in my reporting on this rather enjoyable number
Across
1 Presume the setter's improving (8)
POSITIVEA baby’s heavy burpWhat Lady Macbeth drugged Take as a given POSIT plus “the setter’s”: I’ve
5 One bowl, gold-rimmed, sent from East in perfect state (6)
UTOPIA Take 1 (one) POT (bowl) and surround it with AU (gold), and reverse the entire assembly
10 Contestant at late stage put up hand, nursing broken nail (15)
QUARTERFINALIST Put up: QUARTER, hand: FIST, surrounding an anagram (broken) of NAIL. Perhaps the first hint we could be letter counting here
11 Lament in verse is tragedienne's last on English stage (7)
ELEGISE IS plus the last of tragedienne tagged onto E(nglish) stage: LEG
12 Author's daughter revolts, first son having left (7)
DICKENS D for daughter, then what’s left when you take the first S(on) from sICKENS. Ah, there’s the K, then.
13 Temporarily stop working for crook (8)
PROROGUE Usually used of Parliament, so the for: PRO, crook: ROGUE may be particularly apposite wordplay.
15 From time to time Ernie swears he's stopped lying (5)
RISER Taking alternate letters of eRnIe SwEaRs gives you someone who has stopped lying (down)
18 Muscle man in debt, but only just? (5)
POWERSomeone in debt is an OWER, but this one owes just a single P(enny)
20 Pointing out one effect of cold on turning 100 (8)
NOTICING As we in the Southern counties are experiencing at the moment, the cold engenders ICING. Tag it on to NOT, which is a hundred backwards. I had to work quite hard to make “pointing out” mean “noticing”
23 All but one of team fit and sound (7)
TENABLE So you have a team of eleven, of which one has his perennial sicknote. You therefore have ....
25 Sweet that can cause greater exposure of teeth? (7)
GUMDROP as illustrated in the somewhat gruesome TV ads of what happens when you don’t brush your teeth with the right electric toothbrush and the right brand of paste. Leave it long enough and someone rips out what’s left of your teeth, whacks in some stainless steel bolts and screws on plastic replacements.....
......
......
Right, I’ve recovered now. Back to the crossword.
26 High church court set German's eyeballs rolling (7,8)
GENERAL ASSEMBLY The Church in this case is either the Presbyterian or the United Reformed (other brands are available). A “rolling” version of GERMAN’S EYEBALLS. Presbyterian is famously and endearingly an anagram both of best in prayer and Britney Spears.
27 Hit man finds bandage (6)
SWATHE To swathe is to wrap in cloths or bandages “all meanly wrapped in swathing bands”, earworm of the day, from “While Shepherds Watched”. Hit provides the SWAT, man the HE.
28 Suit has hole in it? Times editor gobsmacked (8)
POLEAXED I rather wanted this to be banjaxed, but the wordplay frowns on it. Suit is PLEA, “a hole in it” persuades you (if you feeling compliant) to stick in an O, Times (ignore the capital) gives you X and our esteemed EDitor the rest. Oh, and there’s the X
Down
1 Two characters talked about card game (6)
PIQUET let’s just say P K.
2 Bizarre soccer war alarming one in field (9)
SCARECROW Bizarre suggests an anagram which it is, of SOCCER WAR. Chose your own example.
3 Increasingly seedy gallery, not quite on the level (7)
TATTIER “Gallery” nearly always means TATE (Prado and Hermitage are harder to use in wordplay). Lose the end, and add TIER for level
4 Limit such as priest set up (5)
VERGE Such as: EG, priest: REV. Conjoin and reverse.
6 Vehicle turned up in motor club trading centre (7)
TRAMCAR And another conjoin and reverse, RAC for the motor club and MART for the trading centre.
7 Reward what eavesdropper does on phone (5)
PRIZE An eavesdropper pries. On the phone, it sounds like our solution. And there’s the Z
8 Finesse is lacked by satirist that’s bungled lines (8)
ARTISTRY Take the IS out of SATIRIST, “bungle” the remaining letters and add R(ailwa)Y for lines.
9 Dramatist defending women's case for settlement in lawless US (4,4)
WILD WEST The dramatist is the somdomite Oscar, holding a W(oman) (he did that too) and adding the “case” of S(ettlemen)T
14 Going early, seconds having withdrawn on tiptoe? (8)
GINGERLY. Just do as it says, and withdraw the second letters of GoING EaRLY. Rather nice, this one, sort of hidden in plain sight.
16 Small number of challengers fight where serviceman might retreat (6,3)
SENTRY BOX S(mall), competitors: ENTRY, fight: BOX. For once, serviceman doesn’t mean vicar.
17 Eclipses elated pundits claiming last of credit (8)
UPSTAGES Elated: UP, pundits: SAGES, last of credit gives the T you need to insert.
19 BBC chief gets heads of broadcasting in readiness for current revival (7)
REBIRTH A little bit of history here: Lord REITH was the first Director General and arguably created its iconic principles. You need to replace his I (current) with the first letters of Broadcasting In Readiness.
21 Take part, fixing favourite in advance (7)
COMPETE COME for advance, and PET for favourite, to be assembled.
22 Doctored tax system embraced by Southern Democrat (6)
SPAYED The tax system is Pay As You Earn, as embraced by a right thinking S(outhern) D(emocrat)
24 Fighter contributing to disruption in jail (5)
NINJA Your hidden for today, in disruptioN IN JAil. And the J.
25 Device supplied by medic to US army? (5)
GISMO The US army might well be made up of GI’S, attended by their Medical Officer.