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Could someone give me a very gentle steer on some elements of Coincidence by Mr E?

I have a full grid and understand A, B and C as referred to in the preamble. I've also noticed a coincidental relationship between the parts of the two thematic elements that sit inside the grid. D and E are causing me a bit of headscratching though.

Regarding D, would I be right in thinking a down clue in the bottom left quadrant changes its first letter for another vowel to give the non-word for D (leading to an across answer becoming a synonym as required)? If so, I cannot see how to interpret the non-word at all. Any gentle steers that might get me moving in the right direction again would be very much appreciated.

Don't you know the first rule of Magpie Club...... ;)

fwiw I'm in the pretty much the same place as you but it seems that commenting on Magpie on forums is frowned upon (although not sure by who) - happy to share thoughts 'offline' if you fancy and have an email?

Fair enough, thanks :) Maybe some divine inspiration will hit me at some point before February!

Good luck - I’m hoping for the same!

nxe - because of your question, I dug out my copy and had another go and after about half an hour, I cracked it.

All I will say is that you are on the right path.

Aha got it now, had a eureka moment while chopping parsnips. Relief!

Good stuff!