| Across | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
| 1 | SCHEMES | |
| Men, before finishing in chess, developed strategies (7) | (ME)n inside anagram of CHESS | |
| 5 | PREAMP | |
| Piano salesperson moved around AM stereo equipment (6) | P + REP outside AM | |
| 9 | A-FLAT | |
| Group of football players engaged in musical production (1-4) | AFL + AT | |
| 10 | CRESCENDO | |
| Finish in soccer rematch is a high point? (9) | END insider anagram of SOCCER | |
| 11 | ESCORTED | |
| Guided business established in redeveloped desert (8) | CO inside anagram of DESERT | |
| 12 | BLOATS | |
| Craft handling large swells (6) | BOATS outside L | |
| 13 | PIPE | |
| Spot butt from cigarette smoker (4) | PIP + cigarett(E) | |
| 14 | INCEPTION | |
| Awkward one on about carbon’s rise (9) | (INEPT + I + ON) outside C | |
| 17 | ABERRANCE | |
| Deviation can be rare in disorder (9) | Anagram of CAN BE RARE | |
| 18 | SCAR | |
| Mark is writing inside Christmas cards (4) | christmaS CARds | |
| 20 | TOP HAT | |
| Surgery conducted in that head gear considered first-class (3,3) | OP inside THAT | |
| 21 | GROUPING | |
| Alcohol banking up in class (8) | GROG outside (UP + IN) | |
| 24 | COLLISION | |
| Company is hostile about active opposition (9) | CO + [(IS + ILL) reversed] + ON | |
| 25 | GREEN | |
| Reduction of energy excited environmentalist (5) | Anagram of (ENERG)y | |
| 26 | STATIC | |
| Steady activist not supporting one against changing (6) | Anagram of ACTIVIST minus (I + V) | |
| 27 | SADNESS | |
| “The Blues Brothers”, at the end, damaged sedans (7) | brother(S) + anagram of SEDANS | |
| Down | Answers and Clues | Explanations |
| 1 | SHAKE | |
| Small fish flourish (5) | S + HAKE | |
| 2 | HELICOPTER PILOT | |
| Rich IT people distributed group’s flyer (10,5) | Anagram of RICH IT PEOPLE + LOT | |
| 3 | MATURE | |
| Experienced amateur, missing start, messed up (6) | Anagram of (a)MATEUR | |
| 4 | SECRETION | |
| Discharge core of bureau in region (9) | bu(RE)au inside SECTION | |
| 5 | PEEL | |
| Remove skin from head of poached fish (4) | (P)oached + EEL | |
| 6 | EUCALYPT | |
| Worried acutely about prominent branch of pine tree (8) | Anagram of ACUTELY outside (P)ine | |
| 7 | MANDARIN CHINESE | |
| Fellow, insincere, had translated language (8,7) | MAN + anagram of INSINCERE + HAD | |
| 8 | LOOSENER | |
| Laxative seen tossed in toilet, right? (8) | Anagram of SEEN inside (LOO + R) | |
| 13 | PLASTICS | |
| Synthetic materials remain fresh in pictures (8) | LAST inside PICS | |
| 15 | CLEARINGS | |
| Pockets of vacant land are not normally enclosed by sticks (9) | Anagram of ARE inside CLINGS | |
| 16 | ORGANIST | |
| Love arrangement of a string instrument player (8) | O + anagram of A STRING | |
| 19 | BULGED | |
| Leg broken in shoot showed signs of swelling (6) | Anagram of LEG inside BUD | |
| 22 | GANGS | |
| Head of government in difficulty upset criminal groups (5) | (G)overnment inside (SNAG reversed) | |
| 23 | ZINC | |
| Sample of quartz in compound is a trace element (4) | quartZ IN Compound |
