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I actually wrote some code to go through all 2316 thematic possibilities, and only the SW and NE corners are options.

Sounds like breaking a butterfly on a wheel, but each to their own. I counted 2315 possibilities, not 2316. As it’s an IQ crossword, one would expect it to conform to its standard reference dictionaries, Chambers and the ODE, as well as the “thematic” one. Are those options in those dictionaries too? Perhaps you could write some code and let us know 😉

You may be right. I should have said 2317 actually.

Search for the non-existent "Dec 32/33" in the page I suspect you're looking at.

I pretty much had to guess via Wiktionary in the end, as I can't afford Chambers - the IQ is pretty much the extravagance of my week.

(Although I had a lovely interaction at the newsagents a couple of nights ago where I asked to have a look at the Listener before deciding to buy it, right before closing time.

I was simply told to rip the page out, as they'd only send it back to be pulped, and it was silly to charge £3 for a crossword.

Faith in some people after all.)

I hope the 'solution' words are not unique - mine don't agree with what others are implying: my NE is 'fine', and my SE is 'a piece of cake'.
(It's very possible that I've cocked up.)

That was very clever. Thank you, Artix. I was in the dark for much of the gridfill and when the PDM came I guffawed so loudly that my wife came in at a run, convinced I’d had a major seizure.

For what it’s worth, I checked through Quinapalus which gave me 3 valid options for the SE (chemistry, computing/architecture, geography) - I had already gone for the computing/architecture one - and 2 options for the NE, one of which fell foul of the letter placings, leaving “the sound of mass” which is what I had entered.

Belay my last pipe. Glaring error in my grid entry has just struck me. There is only one valid option (chemistry) for the SE.

Well that was fun! I guess the instructions could have been a little more clear but with a lot of poring over Chambers (plus a LOT of help from the hints on here I finally made it (I think!)