Crossword Help Forum
Forum Rules

Happy New Year to the Forum!

Some have commented on the January feel of this puzzle, though I think I must be still in December 2023.

The clues are quite generous but enjoyable - liked 11d & 28d in particular.

I have a full grid apart from 32 across. I have 17 clashes and I am fairly certain which alternatives to select for final entry into the grid. Unfortunately, I cannot make any sense of the 17 letters resulting from this process. A hint would be appreciated.

0pt0... A hint might be Miranda.

Jordan, thanks for the hint, but I am no further forward. Miranda means one of three things to me, namely a moon of Uranus, a character from The Tempest or the comedienne, Ms. Hart. Is one of these the Miranda you meant?

Incidentally, I may have unintentionally misled you in my original post: I only have 16 clashes and I suspect that the missing one is in 32 across, which I still cannot solve despite the hints earlier in this thread.

Hi 0pt0

It's another Miranda (originally a person but now a general term)

There is a clash in 32a. The word for light fluctuation I would think of as a verb e.g what light may do across a surface. It's a common word with many meanings

The statement just took me time staring at the letters for an anagram. Helpful to remember there are few 2 letter words that could fit with the letters, and as a clue 'the' appears once.

0pt0 none of your Mirandas are right.

Thanks for the hints Triceratops and Espebe. Solving 32 across gave me the 17th letter and then it was a question of playing around with the letters until the right words emerged. Thanks again.

Hello to the forum! I have filled the grid and identified the (3,4,3,5,2,6,6) statement but am currently struggling to find the (5,9) theme which explains the rationale for the clash resolutions.

A gentle nudge in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.

The 5,9 is the name, often used in films, tv etc, for the 3,4,3,.... . It is also what led to the clashes in the clues/ansers... the 5 underwent 9...

Oh of course! Thank you ever so much. What a neat theme.