Across
8 Va (Virginia) + Ca (California) + NT (Northern Territories) = Vacant = free
9 Blow (explode) + pipe (channel) = blowpipe, a weapon
10 Cutting = tart = tat (junk) around r (first letter i.e. tip of rubbish)
11 Anagram (adjusted) of “sauna heat I” = euthanasia = which will kill a person
12 Double definition - Waffle (talk endlessly) + waffle (a type of cake)
14 Inside lAS Palmas (asp) and zamBOAnga (boa) = types of snakes = serpents
15 Nu (sounds like - report - new) + clear (definite) + re (about) actors (performers) = nuclear reactors = producers of power
18 String (series) containing ee (central letters - core - of deep) = steering = directing
20 An (indefinite article) + YH ( youth - young man - removing out) + Ow (that hurts) = anyhow = Even so
22 Anagram (arrange) of “to pay those” = osteopathy = complementary medicine
24 Tell (count as in carry weight) and in poker a tell can reveal the strength of your hand
25 Anagram (spread out) of “can’t” = ntac inside rear (seat) = rent a car
26 Infantry (soldiers) less (abandon) ry =end letters (extremes) of RevolutionarY = infant = child
Down
1 Ra (artist) after SAHA = first letters (initial) of Success At Handling Abstracts
2 Cromwell wanted his portrait to be painted “warts and all”
3 The even letters (regularly) of lEtTuCe = etc, short for et cetera which means “and so on”
4 Obit is short for obituary which is a synopsised biography (life) after someone dies
5 Mo (modus operandi - way to work) + h (hard) + air (broadcast) = mohair = material
6 A + rent (slash, rip etc) inside Apply (lobby as in petition) = apparently = by all accounts
7 SPL (Scottish Premier League, where Celtic play) + Inter (Italian side) = splinter = separate
13 Anagram (unstable) of “the sea felt” = false teeth = choppers
14 Spring (source) - n (name) = sprig = stem
16 Anagram (engineer) of “tuned set” = untested = inexperienced
17 Anal (overly particular) + y (young) + sis (short for sister) = analysis = opinion
19 I’m (setter i.e. I am) leading (on top of) pact (alliance as in Warsaw Pact) = impact = shock
21 One (individual) holding lin (nil backwards) = online = connected
23 Triple defintion: Go off (as in spoil, become rotten); revolution (as in spin) and profit (as in your turn on a transaction)
24 Tiff (a minor disagreement) reversed (over) = F (loud as in music) and fit (suit)