Across
Second option mostly involving ultimate academic (10)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
LAST in S CHOICe
Damp, but not the second source of damp (4)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
MoIST
Deduce computer network turned evil (8)
Crab, perhaps, unable to be cracked (6)
Main route all but fixed from here (6)
Island I leave to probe US city villainy (8)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
I (island) then I QUIT in NY
Spoiled girl embracing grand feature of church (7,5)
Token of love in entirety, playing Wagner operas (8,4)
Extremely good, more than once, about British article in winter sports equipment (8)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
B (British) in TOO (extremely) GG (good, more than once) then AN (article)
In the past, you'd backed including place for second-in-command (6)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
PUT (place) in a reversal of YE’D (in the past, you’d)
Play for which actor given licence (6)
Money received by office worker: good, attractive (8)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
TIN in TEMP G
Horrific cut — may result in this (4)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
SCARy
European capital willing to consider form of change externally (10)
Down
Court accommodating former King and old Emperor? (8)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
ONCE (former) R (king) in CT O; referencing Beethoven’s piano concerto no. 5
Lines up one to head paper round (3)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
reversal (‘up’) of ED (one to head paper) O (round); there’s a certain oddness to this clue
Upset PA sees head of team leaving (5)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
tANNOY; ‘tannoy’ was typically a very crackly form of public address system. Not heard much these days, because, I suggest, the word has such a negative prosody.
Significant narration (7)
Close friend cooked and brought in meat dish (9)
Imports business reduced by half reorganised in one-sided arrangement (6,5)
Welcome line in fried food (6)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
L in SAUTE; the noun sauté refers to a dish of fried food. More French cuisine…
A little attention around college regarding office work (5-6)
Not initially unbranded, about to become active (9)
Isn't upset over a new church, for example (8)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
ISNT* followed by A N CE
No poles: circus tent continuing to move? (7)
Descriptive of stones or tablets? (6)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
not sure whether this is a double definition or a cryptic one; anyway, stones are used to make a Roman mosaic, and Moses carried the tablets down from the mountain, not once, but twice, having smashed the first lot because the Israelites were misbehaving. Moving right along…
Energetic figure from cycling world in France (5)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
this is an anagram of the French word for world, i.e. MONDE. Thus an indirect anagram, though clearly marked. Just as well I don’t have any tablets to hand, else I might be chucking them against the wall. Whatever next? A quotation from Shakespeare as a cloze test clue?
Drop of salt water, not right for drink (3)
I haven't cracked this one yet — but Times for the Times have:
TEAr
Type letters or click words in the clue