Did an about turn as comedian on drugs painted a picture (8)
I believe the answer is:
withdrew
'did an about turn' is the definition.
The answer and definition can be both to do with motion as well as being past participle verbs.
Perhaps they are linked in a way I don't understand?
'comedian on drugs painted a picture' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'comedian' could be 'wit' (I've seen this before) and 'wit' is found within the answer.
'on' could be 're' ('on' can be mean 'with reference to') and 're' is located in the answer.
This explanation may well be incorrect...
'as' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for withdrew that I've seen before include "Scratched" , "Took back" , "retired" , "Took away; retreated" , "Backed away or bowed out" .)