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Enjoyed that. Another for whom 20d was LOI after which a little research revealed the greater extent of the theme.
Thanks to Qaos.

Enjoyable prize from Qaos. Good to see another Thunderbirds reference and 25a getting a mention as a reminder of days gone by. I haven't explored the theme in any depth and still can't parse 20d yet. Likewise 1d what am I missing?

FOI was 6d. LOI 1d because I had to wait to get 9a so I could put in one of two very likely answers but which neither parsed. And the correct one still doesn't. COD I'm going for 25a.

Counting the works, rather than the individual clues that contribute to them, I get to 7, but there may be more.

Hi Rocky,

1d - 4 letter "listening devices" goes around/'picking up' "lunchtime" (1) + usual "long" and 3 letter "row"

I think there are 14 thematic clues in all, although there may be more. A couple contain two thematic references in the one answer. As I wrote earlier, it’s a rewarding subject to research.

Thanks Brendan. I thought you'd have your head down by now. I don't know who you are rooting for but I was lucky enough to see the Blue Jays at the Sky Dome in the early 90s the year they won the WS. Not the final just a regular game. So I've always had a soft spot for them. It's going to the wire.

I'm having a problem getting 2d and 11a to fit with each other. I have valid =looking answer for both, but the crosser doesn't match! Any pointers on either?

I've not seen 20d yet. Is it a place, a person, of something else?

In 22a, either "sorted" or "collected" seems superfluous.

Thanks Rocky,

To be honest I was just hoping it would go to a game 7, which it has, so tonight's game should be a tense affair.

Up until a couple of weeks ago I didn't even know what teams made the final then, purely because I was at a loose end, I tuned in to game 4 of the NLCS and saw Shohei Ohtani get 10 strikeouts and hit 3 home runs. I used watch baseball back in the 90's when the NY Yankees were in their element with Jeeter, O Neill, Clemens, Rivera et al but I never once saw a starting pitcher to anything close to what Ohtani did. Based on that, and I know it's not really a proper reason, I''d quite like the LA Dodgers to win it.

Morning Brendan.
I am indeed aka rogissimo. For some reason I’ve not been able to sign in under that name recently so have had to revert to a previous ‘handle’.
Thank you very much for your kind concern. I’m fine, but a change of routine has meant that I now generally try to be asleep when the Prize comes out, and by the time I’ve completed it on Saturday everything has usually been said and done here!
It’s nice to be able to check in occasionally though. Best wishes to you and to all.
Rogissimo/Rog

Hi Chris,

2d. You have to split S and Connery into 1,3 with the 3 reversed/'raised. These go around 4 letter "German" (name) - definition is "dishes"

11a - hidden after following instruction.