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I was going to say that, after yesterday's monster Prize, this Everyman is a thoroughly more relaxed affair - but then I thought, compared to yesterday's Prize, everything is a more relaxed affair!!

FOI was 1a followed by 1d.

As I said, this didn't seem too difficult, at least not compared to some we've had, but there were a few that caused a bit of head-scratching. I hadn't heard the phrase in 18a, at least not in this context, and I'm not sure what "empty sign" is doing in 19d. I'm also not sure how 27a is supposed to be parsed.

If you do get stuck there are two long anagrams in the downs and a hidden in the acrosses.

COD - I had initially written down 14a and 1d for their smooth surfaces, but then I came across 15d "Love pretentiousness? No thanks (9) - which is just excellent 😃

Thanks to Everyman for a most enjoyable way to kick off our Sunday - and anticipate an even more important kick-off 😉

We had more new posters join our friendly Everyman blog last week, so welcome to Paul from New Zealand, GravyAnecdote (you'll have to tell us what this anecdote is 😜), and Pjb825 from Alabama whom I mistakenly called Jasper but, after a bit of Googling, I see that Jasper is, in fact, in Alabama - what a cosmopolitan group we are 😃

And remember, if you get stuck, don't hesitate to ask for a hint.

Stay safe:-)

Thanks to Everyman. Well structured puzzle, but definitely a break after the Prize labors.
FOI 1a, LOI 20, COD 20 over 15 and 13.
Phrase in 18 was new, but parsing clear. Google required to parse the write-in 27, and I learned another new phrase from Wiki.
19 is "conks out" (4) + 1-letter abbrevs for 2 pairs of consecutive words in the clue. "Wanting" seems superfluous.

Yes, I agree Brendan, very different to yesterday's prize (I gave that up after only getting a few clues). Enjoyed this one, though sad not to see the usual intial letters type clue. But they have stuck with the rhyming pair :) 27a refers to 2 people - a statesman and a singer.
LOI was 23a. I liked the hiddens and 25a because it reminded me of a childhood holiday (the answer not the clue!) Happy Sunday.

Sorry, meant to say COD 5 over 15 and 13. Tim, good observation about the absence of "first letters" clue. Everyman has been coming up with improbably long ones of late!

Hi Geeker, hi Tim,

How did I miss the Aretha reference!! 🥵🥵🥵

Thanks Geeker for the E = 'empty sign' - it's not in Chambers but, of course, E does mean 'empty' on a fuel gauge so all's good:-)

Oh, good grief! Aretha never crossed my mind. 😭

Hi all,
Agree with the above mentioned hints. No sign of an “initial” this week, but we had enough of them yesterday. Good to see another kiwi on board too.

First go at Everyman last week was tough. This was a relative walk in the park. I too completely missed the Aretha angle on 27, which was my LOI. Like geeker, 18a was a phrase I was not familiar with. Is it a common British expression? Also, still not sure of the parsing of 21.

HI MPRS,

I can't recall ever coming across 18a before, at least not in the sense meant in the clue.

21a - Is an anagram with a letter for "king" inserted.

Following on from VinnyGrey's excellent "head-scratcher" post in relation to the "dandruff" clue in last week's Guardian Prize, I think we should add a new acronym to the usual COD, FOI etc.

JOW - Joke Of the Week:-)