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Ty Tony - that penny would never have dropped!

Cannot see 33down though i think i have all the rest. a-n-x. How does that fit the theme? Grateful for any help.

Annex?

33d is not part of the theme it is a straightforward cryptic clue.
ANNEX - Marry....Sounds like (they say) AN EX

thanks - that'll teach me to be more careful when printing the puzzle!

Phew this has been tough (only my second attempt at the Spectator crossword) and I certainly would not have got as far as I have without the help of this thread. I actually got the theme quite early on but have still struggled - too many obscure words for me I'm afraid. Probably a sign of my poor wordpower.

Just 9d to get. There are others though like the bit in 11a 'I preferred to advance' and 18a that I don't fully understand the wordplay. I'll leave it to you more erudite folk to put me out of my mysery!

Hi Crypto - this was indeed quite a tough one, and I can see that quite a few of us missed the wordplay.

9d One who won't drink - TT, and anoter word for tea - a cup of ?. The result is an Indian word for a pot.

19a brat's bottom = t., and wang is a word for cheek. Twang in the sense of taste.

Keep trying!

Thanks AJT. I did get that answer to 9d but when I googled it it was 'an ancient Germanic tribe' so I thought I must have got it wrong. Didn't know wang was cheek - but then there were several words I hadn't heard of previously in the answers. I can go and sit in the garden now. Cheers again.

A very appropriate theme for me as a Kiwi, as the South Island has recently experienced a 27 ACROSS one.