An anniversary (1A, three words) today offers ten unclued entries, all of whose unchecked and cross-checking letters spell out HAHA! DRY GINS ASSURING TRASHY ANAGRAMS. Across 9 State welcome hosted by Oscars (4) 11 Stanza in excessive, unending Ave Maria delaying mass (6,4) 12 Bash old boy, a grass (4) 18 Pulling evenly, stripped part of
22 5 42 14 25 31: 29-40, 10-26. Across 1 Hidden by grass, squad joined after separation (8) 9 Most of scenery framed by brainbox movie maker (10) 16 Will’s interest in America essentially sprang (6) 17 Region outside northern stadium (5) 18 Dread being tense after fringe cut by bishop (5) 20
Six unclued entries comprise systematically ordered non-words thematically linked by a normal entry, itself unclued. Across 1 Awaiting consideration, poor hippie teen holding nothing back (2,3,8) 11 Most of back pain almost leaves (7) 12 Some over-50s right about Hindu music? (5) 14 Small section of foreign letter penned by French novelist (6) 16
Eight unclued entries comprise four pairs whose thematic ordering is provided by 3, 31, 37 and 41. Across 1 Deft, dry in denial (5) 6 Bitter unit – British back in charge (7) 11 Criminal or liar with cult having three cells (10) 13 Distress furniture suitable for oils? (9) 15 Talks, say, regularly,
Eight unclued lights, arranged symmetrically, comprise two quartets, one of which makes the other go round. Across 1 How much poor Matthew has aged (14, three words) 11 What’s got blowers regularly engaged? (5) 13 Cheeky make-up (5) 14 Nothing fresh about first social reformer (7) 15 Some change local larder outside flat (10)
Elements of four symmetrically disposed unclued lights confirm the 5 Down. Enumerations indicate lengths of clues’ ‘full’ solutions. Across 1 People are pruning every European tree (6) 6 Cook cut gooey rock cake (7) 11 Bishop leaving foundation unaltered (4, two words) 12 Skywriting? (9, two words) 14 Radical Left holds back boy (5)
Twelve symmetrically disposed unclued entries comprise three distinct interlinked quartets. Across 1 Precise conjecture about coin-flip, oddly (8) 6 Peter out back, eating square meal (6) 10 Hit round ring – rim of upper drum (6) 11 Tiny baby consumed by gas (7) 12 Pedestrian holds back directions to Wick (5) 14 Advert I
Ten unclued lights comprise a septet with a common theme. Across 1 Running article perhaps subject to trial? (7) 5 Again flick back whip (6) 9 Has Olympian formerly lost heart? (4) 11 Ham risotto moulded with cup (10) 12 Muse caught by crude backing (4) 14 Net damages BBC owe (6) 16 Parisian to
Solvers should heed a warning when deducing ten symmetrically placed unclued lights (two of three words and one of two words). Across 1 Poet entertaining Round Table (5)4 Together, brutes briefly help the old order (9)11 Live international back on a roll (6)12 Sting seen in church right by jetty (7)15 Oddly enough, Chloe broke
Eighteen clues contain deficient wordplay, the missing elements of which, when highlighted, confirm the theme. Across 1 Party with a previously haughty man (6) 6 Waste disposal initially declined (7) 11 Small braces (4) 12 Dog has a drink outside well (5, 4) 13 Boozer hugging a member’s tree (5, 3) 14 Old coins from
The seventeen entries with definition-only clues are to be treated according to a symmetrically disposed theme which has to be highlighted. Other clues are normal; all enumerations are of entry lengths. Across 1 Bothers about losing, initially, eight pounds (6)7 Help senior NCO when cutting hair (6, two words)11 Wallop maker (10, hyphened) 13 A
Clues for ten thematically linked entries (all single words) have been left out. Across 9 Hot-rod awry? — fancy not being this (10) 14 Jackass regularly rejected 60s music (3) 18 Behind in award, finally going ahead (5) 20 Get better poet to enter competition (7, two words) 22 Venture around the City, not
All unclued entries are, unusually, not all unclued; all are different and there are no proper nouns. A repeated cryptic clue fixes not only once such entry, but also the central 2×2 block and, as a result, another such entry. Ignore one accent. Doc writes: we welcome Cheese-Cracker to the compiling team. Across 1
