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16A is RA(LL)Y = "ray" but its first letter is a conflict as 6D must be either ASTI or ASCI (not sure which.
12D is "Fallow" which can also mean a mustard colour ; the discarded word is "nursery", not "smear" which is the anagram indicator.
I'm still puzzled by 35dn which is either "carks" or "karks", an Australian word for "dies" as is the phrase "go bung", but what is the other "vessel" and which is the correct first letter? Merry Christmas

For 35dn change k-vas-s to k-ark-s

Thanks very much for that. It would never have occurred to me that "vas" was a word in English as well as Latin (indeed the spell-checker on this page agrees!). A happy new year to you.

Merry Xmas everyone. Like everyone else, this incredibly impressive puzzle has kept m e busy over the festive period. I have finished but have a few loose ends:
1. Where does the 'i' in strife come from?
2.I'm probably being v stupid but can someone help me with the wordplay for lentil and fumet?

1 I haven't got that far yet,
2 A glass can be a LENS ; take off the S (for special) and add TIL (another word for sesame) to get LENTIL which can also mean seed.
I'm totally baffled by the FUMET clue.

Thanks barretter...these clues are really good but are pushing me to the limit of my skills of cruciverbalism...it's taken me all week just to get this far...

strips FUMETTI less s(TI)r

I got the i from the clash between 26ac and 22dn in the final form of the grid

Planks - I had already changed lion to loon before movement so I don't know if that counts. I am struggling with the final words in 24 and 34 down. I am hoping the discarded i and s are in there somewhere. I have ravised and avene before adjustment. Can someone explain the final forms of these words. Many thanks and best wishes for the New Year to all the regulars on these listener posts.

Unclued - discard the 's' of ravised and replace it with another letter to form a real word. Do the same with the middle 'e' of avene. These 'discarded' letters give you the first and last letters of the synonym...

Planks - of course! Doh! Ta...