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Puzzle by Gila
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Gila writes for the excellent Fifteensquared site, reviewing the Independent puzzle. This is his first puzzle here and it is a corker – one of those puzzles where you really have to think about the clues before the penny fully drops. It's certainly not one of those where you can fill in the answer after reading half the clue. This is a rare example of a puzzle I have published without any editorial intervention at all – not only are all the clues fair and technically sound, but no editorial suggestion I could make could possibly improve on Gila's clues. 27 across is marvellous.

gila.jpg

 
ACROSS
1
Orders from French high street retailer (7)
5 Novel published without single cut (7)
9 Part of this isn’t relative (3)
10 Whoppers are no problem for this grilling machine (3,8)
11 Performing ablutions, he’s very fast (5,4)
12 I care about a girl (5)
13 Fliers may be found here – after the end of the year, that is (5)
15 Small area for driving around southern New York (6)
18 Roland is one adult upset by a very moving image on the Web (6)
21 Son demanding fudge (5)
24 Books showing pictures in great detail (5)
25 Tell nurse to cheer up (9)
27 S Club 7 reforming? It’s hard to comprehend (11)
28 One commanding an oven (3)
29 At a cost, evacuated low-rise tower (7)
30 Ordering article online, like roughly one in twelve people? (7)

DOWN
1 Arguments started and a bloke flipped! (8)
2 Widespread trouble raising absolute carnage (8)
3 Billy Idol finally working on new material (5)
4 Withdraw from participating in beer drinking record (4,3)
5 A dubious individual in charge wanting withdrawal of casualty staff (7)
6 When last orders are called, enjoys heading off for a bite to eat (9)
7 Preserve is nearly about to go bad (6)
8 A fin intrinsic to cod or salmon? (6)
14 The First Lady’s faint, having caught a bug (9)
16 Backing independent place where you can buy jerk beef (8)
17 Worker splits open a banana (8)
19 Mad Hatter pinches Alice’s bottom, creating a scene (7)
20 Brand yet again to stagger to house party (7)
22 French city is boring, we’re told (6)
23 He washed up with no help before Friday! (6)
26 One whose hair is long, mostly grey and a horrible stench (5)


Solution to Puzzle by Gila