The Guardian Cryptic by Puck #26,420

That was not nearly as easy as yesterday. Not a bit. This one had me hitting google a lot because I'm not up on my English castles. A few clues I got straight away, like 20D and 18A. Others I could get from the definition but had no idea about the parsing side of the clue. I never got a sense something was unfair or a stretch. Then again I couldn't parse several clues and will need Fifteen Squared to give me some hints. I can get some of the clue, but not all.

In the pic the one's circled red I had to cheat and where the number is underlined, I couldn't parse.

1. 1A -  Primarily, sort of relationships for sentimental people (7)
2. "Sentimental people," is our definition and "primarily Sort" = S, "relationships" = TIES and we're two letters short and there's only one other word in the clue that's two letters: OF, put together to give S(OF)(TIES)
3. 
   
4. 5A -  A setter takes fool round a castle … (7)
5. I knew we wanted a "castle" but I couldn't break down the clue so I cheated. It's "A setter" = A ME (setter referring to who's set this puzzle in first person) and a "fool" = CLOT to give us C(AME)LOT.
6. 
   
7. 9A -  … and another somewhere in West Yorks (5)
8. This means we want another castle somewhere in West Yorkshire. With cross letters I deduced LEEDS.
9. 
   
10. 10A -  Not half bad candelabra prince left in ballroom? (5,4)
11. "Ballroom," is our definition. I can see "half bad CANDElabra" = DANCE from those first five letters being remixed. I had the answer and could get "Left" = L so I had HAL left to figure out and only the word "prince" to work with it. I googled "prince Hal" and got my solution for DANCE HALL. Does Puck put a Shakespeare hint in every puzzle?
12. 
    
13. 11A -  Former cargo ship docked by Russian river outside city walls (10)
14. "Outside city walls," is our definition and "former" = EX and I think "cargo ship" = TRAM leaving the "Russian river" = URAL to give us EXTRAMURAL. A new word for me.
15. 
    
16. 12 See 21
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18. 14A -  We suspect it's a reputed 21-12er in 26 and 20s … (12)
19. Ok I take back my comment about no clues being unfair. This is a made up word...ok just to double check I looked at Dictionary.com and it's fricken there! Ok, this reads as "We suspect it's a reputed LEFT WINGER in BEARD and SANDALS..." becomes another new word for me (come on it's slang) GUARDIANISTA. A disparaging description. My beard is barely noticeable.
20. 
    
21. 18A -  … so 5 across suggests betting I clued "booty" crudely, for all to see (2,5,2,3)
22. Definition is "so CAMELOT suggests betting, " and I did live in the UK long enough to know the Camelot lottery catch phrase IT COULD BE YOU with adverts of giant white gloves pointing and poking people. Working backwards I could see "I clued booty crudely" was fodder and anagrind but it's one letter short and I know it's the letter U which must come from "for all to see" but I needed Fifteen squared to tell me that last bit "U (for all to see, in film classification)" 
23. 
    
24. 21A,12A -  English newspaper has women in underwear? Er … that is taken as read, we hear (4-4)
25. I got this with cross letters and the "check" option on the puzzle. I couldn't parse the clue at all - and no wonder as it contains a "homophonic definition" Not something I've ever encountered before. Fifteen squared helps again: "E + FT (Financial Times) + W in LINGERIE less ER I.E. , with a homophonic definition – “read, we hear” = red" What? LEFT WING is a "red?" That's a bit rude. Left wing does not automatically mean communist.
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28. 22A -  State of repair of small Oklahoma art house (5,5)
29. This clue completely baffles me. The clue itself I couldn't break into, the answer SOUTH KOREA is just as elusive to discern even though I knew that "Oklahoma" = OK, Fifteen squared, again to help by telling us "Oklahoma" = OK - yes got that right! This is an anagram of "OK ART HOUSE. but how "State" = SOUTH KOREA I'm not sure. It's a country. I'm missing something of historical importance here?
30. 
    
31. 25A -  Inclined to fight nasty libel case? Ring for answer (9)
32. "Inclined to fight" is our definition and "nasty libel case" is anagrind and fodder but there's a problem - there's a letter wrong. "Ring for answer" I think means to swap out the "ring" = O for an "answer" = A making "libel cose" our fodder to get BELLICOSE.
33. 
    
34. 26A - Role finally penned by Shakespeare for Vandyke? (5)
35. "Vandyke" is our definition and it's sad that I got this because of a recent dictionary.com link to classic beard styles . "rolE final" = E and that is "penned" into "Shakespeare" = BARD to give us B(E)ARD.
36. 
    
37. 27A -  Musical, as Sir Robin's wife might have been (4,3)
38. I got this with cross letters and a bit of google. "Musical" is what we are looking for and "Sir Robin's wife" is asking about Sir Robin Day and his wife would be LADY DAY, a current (recently wound up) musical about Billie Holiday.
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40. 28A -  Win through spin at a live game (7)
41. "Win" is our definition and "spin" = PR and "a live game" is fodder and anagrind to give us PR(EVAIL)
42. 
    

1. 1D -  Over 50s dancing? 18! (6)
2. From the clue, I "18" must be the definition. "over 50s dancing" where 50 = L and the rest is fodder and anagrind we get SOLVER as our answer. What I don't know is what 18 and solver have in common to make them definition and answer. The answer could've been "lovers" until cross letters set us right. **I asked about the 18 at Fifteen squared and Jollyswagman was kind enough to reply "18 refers to 18a – ie its answer – there’s no 18d so the “a” was dropped." I'm relieved it something so simple! Thank you!
3. 
   
4. 2D -  Holiday at sea curtailed, if overturned (6)
5. Lovely clue. "Holiday" is our definition and "at sea curtailed" means to clip the end (-A) from ATSE, add IF and then the whole thing is "overturned" or entered in reverse for a down clue from bottom to top to give us FIESTA.
6. 
   
7. 3D -  Where Francis Rossi plays with only one son, just as before (2,5,3)
8. I had to google "Francis Rossi" and found he's a member of the band Status Quo. So "Where Francis Rossi plays" = IN STATUS QUO but "with only one Son" means to remove one -S and we want the last one gone to leave IN STATU QUO which works to mean "just as before." 
9. 
   
10. 4D -  Religious leader had us fooled (5)
11. "Religious leader" is the definition and "had us fooled," is fodder and anagrind to give us SADHU. Is a wandering monk a "religious leader?"
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13. 5D -  In singing style of Cambridge priest doing a turn (9)
14. I had to cheat here. "In singing style" is the definition and I don't think I would ever have gotten this.  Fifteen squared offers "CANTAB (abbreviation of Cantabrigiensis, “of Cambridge”, e.g. as shown after names of degrees) + ELI<" I googled "Cantabrigiensis," and got nothing but dictionary.com suggested "Cantabrigian" instead and wiki has more info including Cambridge massachusetts's (Ah my neck of the woods!) town seal abbreviating that to CANTAB. The "priest, doing a turn" means we want a three-letter name of a priest and then reverse that and we want ELI = ILE for CANTABILE. How I'm to know it's a priest from a Bible story vs any of the dozens of abbreviation for various religious people I don't know. I'm glad I didn't have to trawl those lists to end in miserable defeat.
15. 
    
16. 6D -  Like a mouse beginning to make fearful sound (4)
17. "Like a mouse" is our definition and "beginning to Make," = M and is you see a mouse you'd make a "frightful sound" = EEK to give us MEEK.
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19. 7D -  Stole a 2, interior part of which is offering best shade of green? (8)
20. I simply did not know what was going on - but now that I know this kind of clueing is a thing I'll be canny next time! Definition is "best shade of green," and Fifteen squared said "Hidden in stoLE A FIESTa" (bold is mine) so for some reason I should have guessed I could use other clues in this fashion but I've only ever used them as ways to create the clue as in 14A, but not to become the new working rewording of a clue. Always learning! LEAFIEST is our answer. More the best for casting some shade as opposed to colour shade.
21. 
    
22. 8D -  Message left in note, eg "Castle in the morning" (8)
23. My first thought was "password" but otherwise I couldn't break into this clue. I could see "morning" = AM and "left" = L and did we need another castle? There's no geography hint so it could be "rook" but I had to cheat in the end. Fifteen squared fills in my blanks "L in (TE EG) + R (rook – castle in chess) + AM " ok, I do not have the confidence to just drop the NO from NOTE and only use the TE. This was too difficult for my skill level.
24. 
    
25. 13D -  Nancy's article about Blake contains argument rejected as impractical (10)
26. "Impractical," is our definition and I got from cross letters and definition. "about blake" is anagrind and fodder and "argument rejected" is a ROW reversed to WOR. What I didn't get was "Nancy's article" = UN because I did not understand that it was the French article that was wanted. I know "article" usually is a, an or the but none of those were working and I was not aware "Nancy" was a French signpost...is it?
27. 
    
28. 15D -  Set record unknown to medical science (9)
29. I got this with cross letters and definition "Medical science" and worked this out in reverse. "Set" = RADIO which was new as I'm used to TV sets but not radio sets. "record" = LOG and "unknown" = Y to give us RADIOLOGY.
30. 
    
31. 16D -  Female, about 50, under maiden name in error (8)
32. I had to cheat and even then I had no idea. "Name in error," is our definition and the only bit I did get was 50 = L. Fifteen squared says "M + L in ISABEL – a nicely concealed definition " I'm still none the wiser. How does "female" = M? M is Male right? I've filled in enough questionaries to know I tick the F for female box. How would I know that the "maiden" is ISABEL?! Of all the names of women through history how would I narrow in on that one? It becomes M(IS(L)ABEL) now I'm confused about how the words "about" and "under" are being used. I'm completely perplexed!
33. 
    
34. 17D -  Fought with second copper, getting fine — then ran away (8)
35. "Fought with," is our definition "Second" = S, "Copper" = CU as its atomic symbol, "Fine" = F and "then ran away" = fled to give us SCUFFLED. I stumbled about with "fee" and did "second" = B?
36. 
    
37. 19D -  Fleet Street's third magazine to provide content for adults (6)
38. "Fleet," is our definition and "stReet's third" = R and "magazine" = MAD and this "provided content" for "adults" = AA becomes: A(R+MAD)A.
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40. 20D -  You might have set foot in this bit of West Yorks (and, also, its castle) (6)
41. I had the measure of this "castle" business by this clue. I had cross letters and deduced  from "you might have set foot in this" was likely a shoe that shared its name with a castle from West Yorks: SANDAL.
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43. 23D -  Silly chap with awfully wet way of speaking (5)
44. "Silly chap" is our definition and "awfully wet" is anagrind and partial fodder and "way of speaking" is Received Pronunciation = RP to make (TWE)RP.
45. 
    
46. 24D -  Warm beer (4)
47. My last clue in and I did have to cheat, even though I had the cross letters. This is a double definition: MILD and I can see "warm" being a synonym for mild but beer? I needed to google and found that mild ale is a young ale.

This was definitely a learning experience. I'm not skilled enough to get these puzzles without a lot of cheating and research but that's fine. Eventually It'll be easier. It's got to get easier. How long do we think, a few months? Few years? don't tell me a lifetime...

Apologies for the wordiness of this write up. It is longer than normal. I've even driven myself mad trying to type it all up but there was a lot of information to glean from this puzzle. All that work and knowledge goes into crafting these puzzles, it's only fair and respectful to give them all the attention and appreciation they're due. (That's me justifying to myself as well.  I shouted to myself many times "Stop typing! too much! shut up!")

Now onto Qaos...

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