Female competent to produce old wives’ tale (5)
I believe the answer is:
fable
'old wives' tale' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'female competent' is the wordplay.
'female' becomes 'f' (abbreviation).
'competent' becomes 'able' (similar in meaning).
'f'+'able'='FABLE'
'to produce' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for fable that I've seen before include "Myth, legend" , "Aesop story" , "Moral tale" , "It's not true" , "Mythological story" .)