[john horscroft]

Bingo.

Because in your second version there wouldn't be any confirmation of your answer. Generally in a cryptic crossword you know when you have the right answer.

Try the Saturday Telegraph crossword - its the easiest of the broadsheets I reckon and the only one I regularly finish. The Times is too hard for me and the Guardian is just weird (and so is the crossword....). You don't have to read the rest of the paper if you don't want to.

....and the Telegraph isn't wierd??   

[Duma]

Try the Saturday Telegraph crossword - its the easiest of the broadsheets I reckon and the only one I regularly finish. The Times is too hard for me.

Ditto. Guardian seems to get more viable once I've got going, but I've never finished one without the family to help. The Quiptics that come out once a week on their website are an ameanable  introduction.

[john horscroft]

Pair calls on mangy scallywag (11)

[tlr]

I've got the answer, but I'll leave it a while for someone else.

[superfurrymonkey]

Deranged rapscallion cuts off head (7)

[tlr]

2 good clues gents.

Adornment for cranial support has filigree. 8

[nik at work]

I swallow broken necklace instrument. (7)

[SA Chris]

I like the idea of these, but like Nik I am struggling to keep up. If anyone has the time can they say how they got to the answer, so dullards like me can follow.

[nik at work]

I think I've got the reasoning behind most of them so far so if there are any specific solutions you want explaining then say which.

As for tlr's last clue:

cranial (i.e. head) support = neck
filigree = lace
combined to give necklace which is an adornment.
Does that make sense?

[Duma]

Oriental revolutionary leaves greedy man drunkenly threadbare. 5

MANGY
Can I get this explained please? Is reed an oriental revolutionary? seems unlikey, esp as its basically undoing what N@W had just done.

-SFM, that's excellent.

[Duma]

Chris:
Pair calls on mangy scallywag (11)
RAPSCALLION
Anagram of "pair calls on", indicated by mangy, meaning scallywag

Deranged rapscallion cuts off head (7)
CRANIAL
rapscallion without (off) lops (cuts) = racalin - anagram (deranged) gives cranial, meaning head

hope this helps.

[tlr]

Oriental revolutionary leaves greedy man drunkenly threadbare. 5

MANGY
Can I get this explained please? Is reed an oriental revolutionary? seems unlikey, esp as its basically undoing what N@W had just done.

Kind of; in crosswordland oriental often gives 'E' and revolutionary usually means 'RED'. Or 'Che' or indicates anagram.

[Duma]

Cheers. I'd got stuck on mao before the answer was posted. Red for revolutionary seems logical, but I was unaware of the oriental E - where does this originate?

[nik at work]

Oriental means Eastern = E
Occidental means Western = W
Can't remember the North and South terms off the top of my head but that would be my guess for the reasoning.

However I too was busy wondering down a Moa type dead end and was bamboozled by mangy, although after the explanation all is crystal clear (as it should be with a good clue I suppose).

[Duma]

Cheers Nik, had just realised my stupidity and come back to edit, but you were too quick and now its too late...

Moa would be way off 

[aLICErOBERTSfANkLUB]

Chris:
Pair calls on mangy scallywag (11)
RAPSCALLION
Anagram of "pair calls on", indicated by mangy, meaning scallywag

Deranged rapscallion cuts off head (7)
CRANIAL
rapscallion without (off) lops (cuts) = racalin - anagram (deranged) gives cranial, meaning head

hope this helps.

Shouldn't that have been "lops off head" - as it's envelope-pushing a bit to use synonyms for things inside your word-play?

[nik at work]

I'm not sure exactly what you mean ARFK? It all seems to work as far as I can tell.

You say Mao I say Moa, lets call the whole thing off....

[SA Chris]

Cheers for explanations guys. Make sense if you think in a wierd enough way.

[tlr]

Looks like we might need a bit more help with yours Nik.

I guess we are looking for an instrument, either musical or scientific, but I can't construct anything intelligent from 'I swallow broken necklace'. I don't recall which part of the orchestra megulpbustpendant plays in....

[nik at work]

You have the wrong meaning of instrument, I could have used the word contraption instead.

Or for a different clue with the same solution:
Contraption goes at the speed of sound to Northumberland. (7)

[john horscroft]

You have the wrong meaning of instrument, I could have used the word contraption instead.

Or for a different clue with the same solution:
Contraption goes at the speed of sound to Northumberland. (7)

machine therefore includes arse!  (6)

[john horscroft]

Damn fine thread ARFK!! Waddage....

[SA Chris]

I can get that from nik's second clue, but not the first?

Explication?

[nik at work]

I swallow broken necklace instrument. (7)

Synonym is instrument (or contraption in later example)
I = me
swallow broken necklace i.e. put whatever broken necklace gives inside me giving:
M _ _ _ _ _ E

broken necklace, actually thinking about it this is a weak part of the clue as you could think it means brek off part of necklace and put that inside me, but that doesn't work. My meaning was a synonym for necklace (chain) broken (mixed up).
 Giving:
M _ _ _ _ _ E containing an anagram of chain and meaning instrument.

MACHINE

In retrospect it would have been better worded as:
I swallow random necklace instrument. (7)

or some other clearer clue to the anagramalisation(??) of the necklace synonym.

I hope that's clear-ish.

Are you allowed to stack clues like that? I.e. find a synonym then reorder it.

The second clue is pretty simple:
speed of sound = MACH I
Northumberland = NE
Contraption = MACH I + NE = MACHINE

[tlr]

Nik, second clue is great, but first clue doesn't really abide by the usual rules - protocol dictates that you never anagram a synonym, and even the having to find ME to put round chain is a bit hard.

'me swallows broken chain device' would work, but doesn't exactly scan nicely!

2nd clue works perfectly though.