Following an easy DA a couple of weeks ago, when the cryptic was nowhere near as strange as today’s, AL sent me a copy of his completed DS from the Saturday. I’ve not attempted a DS in a while, but I do remember from first-hand experience how difficult and entertaining they can be. AL’s example attached example is more proof of this, and the next time DA proves to be unexpectedly easy, I might just do as AL did and have a crack at DS.

Anyway, here are what AL’s highlights:

8 down: Drag the shirty by the binding (5-8)

Hilarious clue here, with shirty = cross and binding = dressing, which gives shirty by the binding = cross-dressing = drag.

5 across: Drink and blunder in backward (6)

Here, the backward might lead a more experienced cryptic solver down the wrong path, because the solution is blunder = err and backward = shy, giving blunder in backward = sherry = drink.

6 down: Stick flipped on top of geometric work (6)

The answer is euclid = geometric work, but I don’t understand why. AL needs to come to the rescue on this one (or anyone else for that matter).

26 across: No speech is reported from the mount (5)

Awesome aural clue here, with no speech is reported = neigh = the mount.