1 letter missing and I am well & truly stuck!
23d - does this really start with B?
It is the only word that fits (I think) but I can't make head or tail of the wordplay here.
Jolly startling exclamation over support (6)
Boo + tee
fits with exclamation + support
I was fairly confident that the other answers were correct, however!!!!!
I cannot find such a word as "nootee"
Hi AJT. I've lost the thread of your exchange with aceface - are you saying that your Chambers defines 'bootee' as a Royal Marine, among other things, of course?
I think I understand the reasoning; my ex-husband did his National Service as a Royal Marine, and he used to spend most of his leaves "boning" and polishing his boots, including the eyelet holes and the underside of the insteps. Bootee, indeed