Weekend Australian, Sunday Times 625

All pretty Zzzzzz this morning.

Across
1. MCGRATH. GR in anag of MATCH. Is "former" appropriate? Bit like describing the author of 21 as a "former playwright".
5. BETIMES. BET + SEMI (rev). Not really "speedily"; rather "before the usual time". I was up betimes this morning -- in fact in time to turn all my clocks back and do this crock of shit along with Times 24,154 (Oz 8341) across the page -- but I was hardly speedy.
9. CONCERT. Double def. Concert = union?
10. CORACLE. CO + anag of CLEAR. Expect the Welsh spelling one of these days: cwrwgl.
11. BIRDSVILLE TRACK. Anag. Neatest clue in months.
12. ELOPED. Cryptic def.
14. JUMBUCKS. JUM(p) + BUCKS.
17. MASTODON. Anag of STOOD inside MAN (staff).
18. GEMINI. EG (rev) + MINI. Dot obviously doesn't know that the Gemini was an Australian/Japanese car. Readers of my blog will know I had one once. Green, automatic, SLX.
21. A COMEDY OF ERRORS. Cryptic def that died in the arse e'en afore it was out of Dot's feeble skull. Image: Dot in her bloomers, chuckling.
24. EROTICA. As above. Wouldn't shag her for practice but.
25. INGRATE. Read as IN GRATE.
26. SEESAWS. Yuk.
27. MALLARD. ALL inside DRAM (rev).

Down
1. MACABRE. MA + RE (about) inc CAB. "Sick" ain't fair as a def.
2. GINORMOUS. GI (soldier -- here?) + anag of SUNROOM.
3. ABETS. BET (back -- which is strictly "bet on") inside AS.
4. HOT AIR. In = HOT.
5. BACILLUS. ILL (crook) inside anag of CUBA + S.
6. TURNTABLE.
7. MOCHA. MO (second) + CHA (tea).
8. SHEIKHS. HE inside SIKHS.
13. ESOTERICA. SE + anag of EROTICA.
15. CHIPOLATA. Go figure.
16. COPYCATS. Straight charade.
17. MOANERS. Anag of A SERMON.
19. INSTEAD. Chic = IN. Give me a sentence where you can use "instead" instead of "rather". It doesn't quite work. Rather, it's poor clue writing.
20. AFFIRM.
22. OZONE.
23. REGAL.

To bed, again, betimes.