I now have the whole of the bottom half and a lot of the top ... and, despite having got most of the themed answers, I still have no idea what the transformations are!
Sorry, but I can't help, dizoz. I've completed the grid now (although I'm not quite sure how 12A is made up cryptically yet). But the rules are very strange. I read it that there is one letter common to all non-thematic solution, which is not possible.
hi pendragon, I think 12a is drawn from touring "unfamiliar" or the word related to the activity that the solution represents , eh ???
only "N" is in all the seven thematic solutions.
You need to look at the Special Instructions again, noting that the letter in question is unique and appears in the thematic solutions before transformation.