Finally nailed it. This is the first one for a very long time that we thought of giving up. Very cleverly constructed so thanks to Ace of Hearts, but be more gentle on us next time please. And ....no Scottish words for a change, but “pigment” has cropped up twice since lockdown. All parsing dutifully documented for the records while I watched the Grand Prix.
Lumen. The removed letters, starting from Clue 1 radial and reading clockwise, spell out a sentence from the heroine asking a question. The gist of the conversation can be inferred from my previous entry.
Oh yes, religion and sex, two subjects best avoided.
Thanks simplesimon, I had ignored that quote, thinking wrong length, but I see now it starts in an unusual way.
Right, on with my radials....