Crossword Genius

Shabby Shakespearean fairy employed by school broadcast (4-5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

moth-eaten

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'shabby' is the definition.
(I know that shabby can be written as moth-eaten)

'shakespearean fairy employed by school broadcast' is the wordplay.
'shakespearean fairy' becomes 'Moth' (fairy in A Midsummer Night's Dream).
'employed by school broadcast' becomes 'eaten' (I can't justify this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'moth'+'eaten'='MOTH-EATEN'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for moth-eaten that I've seen before include "Old and worn" , "Old, in bad condition" , "Falling to bits" , "Damaged by insects" , "Threadbare" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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