Weekend Quick Cryptic 136 - Solution

Phil Jordan, Sawbill and I are continuing to produce our series of Weekend Quick Cryptic crosswords. We take turns, publishing one a fortnight, and this week it's my turn. 

You can find a link to the crossword here and the answers below.  Feel free to leave any comments or questions here as you would do on  TfTT .  You can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here. 

Before looking at the answers, if you would like some additional help, click the label below.

Hints and tips...

Here are a few hints and tips.

• 10A is an &lit, where the whole clue is botht the definition and wordplay.
• In 13A "played" in an anagram indicator.
• In 23A "piece" is a bit of American slang.
• For 3D it helps to know the collective noun for owls.
• 13D is a character in Olver Twist.
• The poet in 16D was an Ancient Greek from Lesbos.

And click on this label to get the solution.

Solution and explanation of the answers...

 

Definitions  underlined in bold italics , ( Abc )* indicating anagram of Abc,{deletions} and [] other indicators.

Across
1 Objective of treatment for pimple was just what the doctor ordered? (3,3,4)
HIT THE SPOT – Double definition, the first a cryptic hint.
8 Break in prison term unacceptable (4,3)
TIME OUT – TIME (prison term) OUT (unacceptable).
9 Sweet but unsatisfactory compromise (5)
FUDGE – Double definition.
10 Woman's love? (4)
HERO – HER (woman’s) O (0; love). An &lit clue where the whole clue is bother the definition and wordplay.
11 Small pants, we hear, get scornful laughs (8)
SNICKERS – S (small) NICKERS sounds like, [we hear], KNICKERS (pants).
13 Joan Baez initially played this instrument (5)
BANJO – (Joan B{aez})* [played].
15 Sprays of flowers (5)
ROSES – Double definition.
17 Stars from Lima, Kentucky and Wyoming assembled (5,3)
MILKY WAY – (Lima Ky Wy)* [assembled].
18 Threesome run riot (4)
TRIO – [run] (riot)*.
22 Pride of international team (5)
LIONS – Double definition.
23 Writer associated with piece about one Antarctic resident (7)
PENGUIN – PEN (writer), I (one) in GUN (piece).
24 Surprised because I dropped heavy weight first (10)
ASTONISHED – AS (because) TON (heavy weight) I SHED (dropped).
 
Down
1 Catch a lift (5)
HITCH – Double definition.
2 Worker with wild animals from Rustbelt America (5)
TAMER – Hidden in RustbelT AMERica.
3 House to back call from member of parliament (4)
HOOT – HO (house) TO [back] -> OT, the collective noun for owls is a parliament.
4 Protests son and I can support at first (3-3)
SIT-INS – S (son) I TIN (can) and first letter of Support.
5 Policemen in charge interrupting presentations (8)
OFFICERS – I/C (in change) in OFFERS (presentations).
6 Reads about collecting dead snakes (6)
ADDERS – D (dead) in (reads)* [about].
7 Ultimately relapse during periods of dieting leads to lavish meals (6)
FEASTS – Last letter of relapsE in FASTS (periods of dieting).
12 They reproduce material for printing next to leaders in Independent, Sunday Times and Sun (8) COPYISTS – COPY (material for printing) and first letters of Independent Sunday Times and Sun.
13 Beadle in Dickens book not, originally modest (6)
BUMBLE – B (book) {h}UMBLE (modest) without the first letter [not originally].
14 Naval commander became a London columnist? (6)
NELSON – Double definition with the second a cryptic hint referring to the statue in Trafalgar Square.
16 Poet starts to skip and quietly hop about (6)
SAPPHO – First letters of Skip And, P (quietly), (hop)* [about].
19 Feeling unwell to some extent throughout (5)
ROUGH – Hidden in , [to some extent], thROUGHout.
20 Old swanherd occasionally possessed (5)
OWNED – O (old) and alternate letters, [occasionally], of sWaNhErD.
21 Opposed to Liberal Tina (4)
ANTI – [Liberal] (Tina)*.