spectator 1898

[yellow12]

HAVE ordered chambers so hopefully won' need to ask so much in future
stuck on last few-help please
12a child's fun area from LA crypytically?10 2 words
P?AY?E????obviously pLAy to start?
39a ancient people of yemen having fashion shoe 7
SA?A?O? saba something?
7d 10's handle of axe originally found in stone slab 6
S?EA?E-10=edmund spenser
8d bird-life 5 N?LL?
27d boost to crime 3 RA? rap
thanks

[JoolsTwo]

39a Sabaton??

[JoolsTwo]

Sabaton - a foot covering, esp square or round toed, worn as part of a suit of armour; a shoe or half boot made of cloth ect.

[JoolsTwo]

12a Play Legato?? - But can't find anything to back it up. :-((

[Harry-Wragg]

8d - a nelly is a bird - but I don't see exactly how it fits with the clue

[dr b]

12a, PLAY CENTRE since "LA, cryptically" could be clued as pLAy centre. What a good clue.

86, NELLY as in a woman's (bird's) name and "not on your nelly" = "not on your life"

[dr b]

I have 7d as STEALE, mostly from the wordplay of Axe originally in stone slab (STELE) --> STE(A)LE. STEALE is an archaic spelling of "steal", as Spenser would have spelled it, so I am assuming (hoping) that there is a meaning of "handle" that means "steal".

[yellow12]

thyink 27d is ram=boost and ram(raid)?-also handle stolen goods is a phrase=fencing

[Matakari]

dr b, you are right... stele does mean stale ( steal) or handle of anything, like a rake etc...your understanding of the word play seems quite apt to me...

[BigCat8]

12a PLAY CENTRE, it's a cryptic clue giving the answer LA

8d NELLY as in "not on your nelly" meaning life