| Across | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
| 1 | SABOTAGE | |
| Expert, checking boat, repaired malicious damage (8) | SAGE outside anagram of BOAT | |
| 5 | PRIMUS | |
| Particular American gas cooker (6) | PRIM + US | |
| 9 | AGREE TO | |
| Accept a welcome by head of organisation (5,2) | A + GREET + (O)rganisation | |
| 10 | DRASTIC | |
| Drive with a puncture briefly? That’s desperate (7) | DR + A + (STIC)k | |
| 11 | DISSIPATED | |
| Is drink poured into old hat wasted? (10) | (IS + SIP) inside DATED | |
| 12 | IRON | |
| Press on after contracting bug (4) | ON after (IR)k | |
| 14 | NIGHT-OWLS | |
| Birds developed with long feathers ultimately (5-4) | Anagram of WITH LONG + feather(S) | |
| 16 | EBAY | |
| Auction site may be redesigned just after opening (4) | Anagram of m(AY BE) | |
| 18 | ROOM | |
| Dock returned usable space (4) | MOOR reversed | |
| 19 | RING A BELL | |
| Jewellery and label oddly seem familiar (4,1,4) | RING + anagram of LABEL | |
| 21 | RUSE | |
| Get through after juggler’s last trick (4) | USE after juggle(R) | |
| 22 | LITTLE JOHN | |
| Hood’s friend left the joint, upset about final letter read in jail (6,4) | L + [anagram of THE JOINT outside jai(L)] | |
| 25 | BANKING | |
| Seize retired bigwig’s financial transactions (7) | NAB reversed + KING | |
| 26 | BREADTH | |
| Sourdough, for example, served with nearly all of the spread (7) | BREAD + (TH)e | |
| 27 | DIESEL | |
| Engine stops working well with limitations removed (6) | DIES + w)EL(l | |
| 28 | MEASURED | |
| A bound taken during medical should be evaluated (8) | (A + SURE) inside MED | |
| Down | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
| 1 | STANDING | |
| Taking part in contest and in good position (8) | conteST AND IN Good | |
| 2 | BIROS | |
| Writers, right, plugging short stories about life (5) | R inside BIOS | |
| 3 | THE BIG TIME | |
| Tie might be needed in audience for highest level of entertainment? (3,3,4) | Anagram of TIE MIGHT BE | |
| 4 | GLOBAL WARMING | |
| Blog implicated capital of Wales in dreadful international problem (6,7) | Anagram of BLOG + (W)ales inside ALARMING | |
| 6 | READ | |
| Understand what’s written on public notice (4) | RE + AD | |
| 7 | MOTORCADE | |
| Procession actor arranged in style (9) | Anagram of ACTOR inside MODE | |
| 8 | SECOND | |
| Endorse company shown in broadcast (6) | CO inside SEND | |
| 10 | DRESSING-TABLE | |
| Ordered art, single beds and bedroom furniture (8-5) | Anagram of ART SINGLE BEDS | |
| 13 | SEDATENESS | |
| Controlled state seat needs changing by 8? (10) | Anagram of SEAT NEEDS + S(econd) | |
| 15 | GOOD SENSE | |
| Sound judgement ends badly in case of foolish person (4,5) | Anagram of ENDS inside GOOSE | |
| 17 | BLANCHED | |
| Chef mostly dressed in boring white (8) | (CHE)f inside BLAND | |
| 20 | PROBED | |
| Page, formally attired, asked questions (6) | P + ROBED | |
| 23 | ORDER | |
| Regulate state lines with no boundaries (5) | b)ORDER(s | |
| 24 | MILE | |
| Corrupted email missing a great deal (4) | Anagram of EMAIL minus A |
I really enjoyed this Stickler. My favourite moment was “needed in audience” in 3d.