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Phew! I have to say, I found this really difficult and almost resigned myself to a DNF a couple of times. I think I was still recovering from last week's puzzle!

That said, I stuck with it and, thankfully, got there in the end.

But, s is so often the way when that happens, I look back and it's hard to see what it was that held me up.

My FOI was 5a and that was quickly followed by two long anagrams, one across and one down, which definitely proved helpful.

There is still one I haven't fully parsed, namely 12a where I can't see where the final letter comes from, but I'm sure if I stare long enough I'll see it - either that or get a migraine:-)

COD is 26a which has a truly excellent surface.

It's been great to see so many new contributors joining our friendly discussion thread in recent weeks - everyone is welcome.

Thanks to Nutmeg for an excellent crossword.

Stay safe:-)

....and of course I immediately see the parsing of 12a - why is it that you can stare fruitlessly at a clue for ages and then see the answer within seconds of posting your question!!

Hi Brendan,

Thanks to Nutmeg, but I'm finding this a bit of a slog. Had a (plausible) mistake in NW corner which slowed me down, and still haven't gotten 19, which would be LOI. There were some nice clues; I'll go with 15 as COD.
Going to set the puzzle aside for the night (Eastern US) and hope to get 19 tomorrow.

Hi Geeker,

I'm glad it's not just me that found this quite tricky:-)

12a: though I could parse and get the first five letters, I can’t see where the last four letters come from. I didn’t know that busy is a slang for 4d! Overall, a good puzzle.

Mathi, the last 4 letters of 12a form the surname of a particular rebel.
The def. of 4d. is a new word for me also.

Hi Mathi, hi Mattrom,

12a it was the ending that held me up. I could see a 3 letter word that could sort of mean "rebel" but that's just a coincidence - I hadn't heard of this particular rebel but got him through an online reverse dictionary.

Thanks. I get it now, after looking up Google about this rebel!

I'd be very surprised if the definition of 4d is known to anyone outside the UK - and even many people in it!

Chambers defines it as a detective. Never heard it. I had to look up after getting the answer.