No 9696, Tuesday 24 Nov 09, M.Manna

8D has me clean bowled
ACROSS
 1  - Descriptive of a harassed housewife who might cook this way (5,8) - UNDER PRESSURE [CD]
 8  - May arouse and have a good time (7) - {C}AROUSE
 9  - Girl ran to Ted to have her scholarship bestowed (7) - {G}{RAN}{TED}
11 - Football team (6) - ELEVEN [E]
13 - Lear goes round the North as if tanned (8) - {LEA{THE}R}{N} Never new there was such a word
15 - Caught her making one effort to vomit (5) - RETCH*
16 - Suffer humiliation if wrongly attired (3,4) - EAT DIRT*
18 - Cause conservative accountant to bring charge of an offence (7) - {AC}CUSER or is it {A{C}CUSE*}{R}Anno beats me
19 - Sale of right kind that emitted coherent light (5) - LASE*{D} Never knew Lased was a word. Ever seen a Laser Light show? its beautiful especially when the laser beams are cast on artificial smoke or spray of water
21 - Incurred indebtedness which may be exaggerated (8) - OVERDREW [DD]
23 - Come to an end of a progression (6) - ATTAIN [CD]
25 - Ben to lead in creating opportunity for people to operate software (7) - ENABLED What is software doing here?
26 - Dad takes over to get a quiet formal sanction (7) - {AP<-}{P}ROVE*
28 - One who should be aware of the pressure we are under (13) - METEOROLOGIST [E]
DOWN
 2  - Bet Ron can make him come out (7) - {NOR*}{BE{R}T} Don't know where the second R came from
 3  - I turn out to look at this large Australian bird (3) - {EM<-}{U}
 4  - The appeal of quiet meadowland (4) - {P}LEA
 5  - They can always whip up some food (3,7) - EGG BEATERS [CD]
 6  - Sudden action to begin work (5) - START [DD]
 7  - Monastery bugle call? (7) - RETREAT [DD] See the video at the link. If you ever get an opportunity try and watch the 'Beating Retreat' ceremony at Rasthtrapathi Bhavan on 28 January evening, every year, it is an excellent Band Display by massed Indian Army bands. It is also broadcast live on Doordarshan and other Indian TV channels.
 8  - One more makes a soldier a sailor (6,5) - C?E?R? ??O?E (Addendum - CHERRY STONE [CD] - see explanation in comments section below)
10 - Consumptive affair with ball, perhaps — even entertainment (6,5) - {DINNER} {DANCE}
12 - The in-charge set up a system of moral values (5) - ETHIC*
14 - The paper seller never downs rum (4,6) - NEWS VENDOR* Nice clue
17 - An opening for intake (5) - INLET [E]
18 - The mean state comes with maturity (7) - {AVER}{AGE}
20 - They are often cast as followers (7) - SHADOWS [DD]
22 - Fifty-five in river dig (5) - DE{LV}E
24 - Defence post (4) - MAIL [DD]
27 - Footprint of a wild animal (3) - PUG [E]

GRID