Gossip about bash linked to Conservative with headgear (8)
I believe the answer is:
chitchat
'gossip' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'bash linked to conservative with headgear' is the wordplay.
'bash' becomes 'chit' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'linked to' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'conservative' becomes 'C' (UK political abbreviation).
'with' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'headgear' becomes 'hat' (hats are a type of headgear).
'chit'+'c'+'hat'='CHITCHAT'
'about' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for chitchat that I've seen before include "rabbit" , "Idle talk" , "Light informal conversation" , "Informal talk" , "Light social conversation" .)