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chrise: back to 22d on "MoL": there are other possibilities, but the one mentioned is correct. Think of a very successful pop singer & his real name (btw he was a teacher too originally), then his nickname (originated in striped T-shirt), then past tense ("late") -- got it?

Thanks GK. Nom de plumes and Men of letters now finished.

Chris - was thinking of you when I clued 7D

Got it, thanks, paul. Just missing a few in the SW in this grid. Most of the boudoir done, but the Foreign Legion is still sparsely populated!

Good afternoon all. I have come to grinding halt in the SE corner of the 'foreign legion' and the SW corner of the 'unveiled contingent'. Any oblique hints would be most welcome :)

well done GK re Men of letters 22 dn. I wasn't too sure when I set as to whether it was a bit obscure.

RE: as my fellow-soldiers are off duty, I'll try & help with all 7...
24a last wd is def.;1st part special kind of record (noun);2nd part "not in"
27a:hompphone for seawood + sexy support=etymology of branch of maths.
29: last 5 letters syn. for unchaste (woman-old fashioned);1st 3 prep. for prior to;abb.foot;def."before..."
16d:def. at end;word for self-interest in Latin of 3 letters;?abb for "not" outside it;+a+r.l.pest
21d:modern way of growing plants or indeed letting babies grow without much attention;cd be written 4-3 w hyphen
22d:Kasner's mathematical word for 10 to the power of 100 (think of comp. search machine);1st half = sentimentality;2nd half= cut piece of tree (I would say) reversed
25:(not sure)kind of beer; 2nd mng. "beyond the ****"=unacceptable.
Hope that helps you --- and was not too much for the setters!

jws: I happen to have read his autobiography etc, but it was one of my last two, and I even had two partly justifiable alternatives (but then you can find just about any connection via Google)!I found the "past" bit more difficult actually!

Thanks for that help too, GK. Hope it restarts my solving.

In 25d I think perhaps "soft" gives the first letter, then the drink?

For RE again: I've just got time to help out with 17d in "TUC", which is a brilliant one from Les himself, I thought:
Def. s'thing to avoid exposure etc(in photography); synonym for to advance money (4 letters) outside what you say to get rid of geese!