1: Mad buccaneer is beheaded (5)
4: Soldier embracing a bawdy Italian patriot (9)
8: Links to some 7-down (5)
9: The joint action of substances is messy; ring doctor! (9)
11: Fifty are returning after the last hemp mixture has a short life cycle (9)
14: Fires partner in investment firm, we hear (5)
15: Someone criticizing _End of Days_: 'Not so hot' (7)
16: About doctor Cliff difficult to leave fine white linen fabric (7)
18: Plots get Cuban revolutionary leader in a terrible mess (7)
19: Saves and secures stranger (7)
20: Pathological bumbler holds a record (5)
21: In hindsight, schedule recorded for a blast (9)
22: Some doctors oust head of Johnson and Johnson? (9)
24: Path of planet - or particle (5)
25: Victor receives this prize literally or decoration (4,5)
26: Excessively sentimental dunderhead in the river (5)