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Ah, right I see what you mean now. I've just sorted the AN across and AN down clash. Must dig out my copy of the book. Thanks for the help.

Thank you to Sabre. And that doesn't mean, as on another site, a patronising thanks for the mental workout before I have to have a glass of expensive wine/ fly out to the Bahamas/engage in a busy week of such an important job.

It means thanks for exceeding by quite some margin the minimum requirements of a Listener puzzle. For me, one of the minimum requirements is that the setter shows me a word or two that is either new to me, or that I have forgotten. And in fairness I could acquire the same benefit simply by reading the scrabble column.

But occasionally the setter shows me a new idea, new to me at least, and that is when he has excelled. Sabre has suggested to me a route by which Schopenhauer may have partially derived his ideas on separating out religious values from other values, the law of the magistrate from the law of the priest/rabbi/imam. Many people know what happened next, a young disciple of Schopenhauer, one Friedrich Nietzsche, took the re-assessment of religious values a good deal further...this kind of thing should be a compulsory subject in every school (of every religious denomination) in the UK - after all John Locke's 'Letter concerning Toleration' is now over 300 years old...

I thought that this was a really excellent crossword, too. Really tough but ultimately doable, and the theme was new to me and interesting.

I hate this them-and-us attitude. I' m a setter - quite possibly one of the second-rate ones Meursault mentions. I like looking at the comments on the Answerbank and, usually, here. They are great feedback and it is really quite nice to know that people are tackling your puzzle and enjoying it - or not as the case may be.

I like the Answerbank's tradition of giving nothing away - the feedback I have had from new solvers is that it lets them gauge the difficulty of a puzzle without stumbling across the theme by mistake. I always take compliments - and criticism - seriously from everyone who submits there. They seem a nice bunch. They're always sincere, and I don't much imagine them gobbling down caviar and quaffing vintage champagne whilst dashing off advanced cryptics, or anything silly like that - that seems a pretty absurd character bash with limited substance to me. I often think I should post there when I particularly enjoy a puzzle - might do for this one.

And this site is brilliant too, certainly when at it's best. I love that people help each other with hints and sorting out tricky clues. I probably don't contribute as much as I should. After all, we all enjoy the same weekly challenge. And there are expert solvers here too - not least Meursault - and feedback of all sorts is always genuinely welcome.

KT has a point - one I've made before - that sometimes people give away the whole theme. As a setter, that' s what I really hate (though I acknowledge it's people's right to give out unasked for information and/or themes). I've got one in the pipeline where I've tried really hard to conceal the "real" theme so that solvers hopefully get a good laugh when they get it. I sort of know already that the theme will leech out here, and that will diminish the fun for some - perhaps. But what can you do. I'll still visit here to see how it's gone down.

Clearly there' s a wide margin of appreciation. I know I' ve balked at giving away too much information (as I see it) in the past - others have eloquently made the point for open discussions. But surely we can all live together in a spirit of mutual appreciation without them thinking everyone here is a cheat, and without everyone here thinking they are stuck-up show offs.

Just a thought - forgive me if it' s too verbose.

If I've stepped on your toes with my general comments about setters, OliverCardo, you'll have to excuse me.

To be fair Meursault, you really haven't, and apologies if I'm being a bit oversensitive - that's my fault, not yours! And aside from anything else - and this just goes to show how great forums like this are - I hadn't heard of John Locke's Letter Concerning Toleration, which your comment caused me to look up - and it's fascinating, so I have to thank you for introducing me to something new and important.

Persevered through my lunch hour and finished off. Thanks to all who offered hints without offering too much - this was an extraordinary crossword and extremely rewarding.

olivercardo, I agree with your comments 100%.

Are you sure about that Unclued ? Surely the first word of the second part is "Don't" ?

Thought I'd finished but then realized I hadn't dealt with the clashing of AA and UA across in the lower half and of SA and SS down in the third column from the left. Any hints appreciated.

AA (6) across clashes with SA (8) down in column 3, 6th cell up.

UA (4) across and SS (6) down are both entered regularly AFAICT.

@olivercardo
It simply isn't the case that the Answerbank lot give nothing away. When stuck, usually by this time of the week, that is the first place I look. The tips and confirmations are usually quite subtle but they are there. Only later do I normally come to this site.
The problem I have with the Answerbank, and a more pious bunch elsewhere who won't even mention the name of the crossword until the solution is published, is that they seem to have forgotten that a crossword is just an amusement never anything more than that.
As for the Friday night finishers, I wonder what pleasure they get from finishing off a Listener that many of us savour all week. I call it PE, and I don't mean physical education!