| Across | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
| 1 | BIG TOP | |
| Dance around one great entertainment centre (3,3) | BOP outside (I + GT) | |
| 5 | PARABLE | |
| Lesson given by expert following average golf score (7) | ABLE after PAR | |
| 10 | AFTER SCHOOL CARE | |
| Teacher of carols organised child-minding service (5,6,4) | Anagram of TEACHER OF CAROLS | |
| 11 | SURFER | |
| Board rider is certain about fellow rider at the back (6) | SURE outside F + ride(R) | |
| 12 | DEPARTED | |
| Property document containing deception, in retrospect, should be left (8) | DEED outside (TRAP reversed) | |
| 14 | NORM | |
| Standard selection from Lennon or McCartney (4) | lennoN OR Mccartney | |
| 15 | FEATHERBED | |
| Spoil meal containing 50% meat and herb (10) | FEED outside [me(AT) + HERB] | |
| 18 | PETITIONER | |
| Claimant favoured one written in Italian and Irish (10) | PET + [ONE inside (IT + IR)] | |
| 19 | ARCH | |
| Most important parade started late (4) | (m)ARCH | |
| 22 | CONTEMPT | |
| Disregard kid, one not always at work before time (8) | CON + TEMP + T | |
| 24 | ARMADA | |
| A river and a barrier held back fighting force (6) | A + R + (A + DAM) reversed | |
| 26 | SURFERS PARADISE | |
| Irrational fears surprised a Gold Coast resort (7,8) | Anagram of FEARS SURPRISED A | |
| 27 | PIEBALD | |
| Mongrel that is restrained by lead, unsettled lad (7) | IE inside PB + anagram of LAD | |
| 28 | EXTENT | |
| Reach links contained in hypertext entry (6) | hypertEXT ENTry | |
| Down | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
| 2 | INTERPRET | |
| Printer worked with alien to translate a foreign language (9) | Anagram of PRINTER + ET | |
| 3 | TARGET | |
| Teller turned up to achieve objective (6) | RAT reversed + GET | |
| 4 | PACE | |
| Pressure applied with great speed (4) | P + ACE | |
| 5 | PROPERTIES | |
| Holdings – suitable bonds (10) | PROPER + TIES | |
| 6 | RELEASES | |
| Issues are not connected to a landlord’s official documentation (8) | ARE minus A + LEASE | |
| 7 | BOAST | |
| Show off pole fitted inside craft (5) | S(outh) inside BOAT | |
| 8 | EMENDED | |
| Workers, flanked by two editors, made changes (7) | MEN inside (ED + ED) | |
| 9 | RAISIN | |
| Dried fruit is bagged in wet weather (6) | IS inisde RAIN | |
| 13 | DECOMPOSED | |
| Competition overseas, in actual fact, is in rotten condition (10) | (COMP + OS) inside DEED | |
| 16 | BARBARIAN | |
| Dig short song recorded by an occasional rugby player (9) | BARB + ARI(a) + AN | |
| 17 | ST HELENA | |
| Sort of lanes going around the Atlantic island (2,6) | Anagram of LANES outside THE | |
| 18 | PICKS UP | |
| Young boxer, say, boxing sick, somehow gradually improves (5,2) | PUP outside anagram of SICK | |
| 20 | HEALED | |
| He had, after consuming beer, recovered (6) | ALE inside HED | |
| 21 | TRUANT | |
| Runaway honestly cut short meeting with social worker (6) | TRU(e) + ANT | |
| 23 | NERVE | |
| Daring leader of regiment in uniform returned (5) | (R)egiment inside (EVEN reversed) | |
| 25 | FARE | |
| Go some distance east (4) | FAR + E |
