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Odd to find nothing here before lunch-time on Monday! It's a tricky one, but rewarding in the end. I've filled the grid, and established Who and Where, and I imagine I have to join the dots, as it were. But I can't sus out the 3-letter sequence. How small is "small"? It would be annoying to join the dots only to find that the hidden instruction is to do it in red, say.

Less than 6 !

D'oh!

Not getting this one at all, on any points, please can I have a hefty shove in the right direction. Many thanks.

Great puzzle. A prescient point in cockie's opening post....

MM, The message is not needed to start solving.
Many clues are normal and entered in a normal way (15a,16d,27a,28d etc.)
4a is thematic and tribe leaders is the def.

Hope this helps.

Thank you both for your input, still being very stupid....4a you say tribe leaders??
The only ones I have managed to solve are:- 24a/32a/3d/7d/16d/22d & 31d, as they have all fitted, I presume they are normal (if anything in an EV xword is ever normal that is!) The only thematic clue I have managed is 19a and the positioning of the last six letters suggest the three numbers, but maybe I am being too hopeful, and I can't work out what I am supposed to do with this nugget of info. always supposing I am on the right track.

HI manicmary, the instruction gleaned from applying the 3 numbers to clues is only relevant once the grid has been completed and will only become apparent when you have the originator of the theme (and the location) from the letter-pairs.
Of the clues you list, look again at 24a as it will provide a letter-pair. Hope this helps.

Thank you ginge, sadly I don't yet have 5d or 20 d so the choice is rather wide, will persevere.

Hi MM:
4a is 10 letters long. It is an anagram. Two cells with two letters.
24a. Also anagram. Has one cell with two letters.
5d. Normal clue. Anagram.
20d. Anagram. Think about "ugly" prospect. Normal.

Ask if you need more.