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Actually I mean the Hardy boys clue is unlikely to be solved from the definition but the parsing is clear.

Puzzle all complete apart from 5a. I have answers for all the type 2 clues except that one, but haven’t understood the parsing of any of them! A nudge would be much appreciated. Thanks

That might be difficult now that you’ve flagged that you want type 2 clues revealed. People tackling the puzzle may not necessarily wish to be told the clue type…

Bodhere, read the preamble and consider the ways in which the description of type 2 clues can be interpreted. I can think of at least three.

This is off topic and refers to a comment by Qusiling (I think) last week about the dumbing down of the Listener. I first started solving in 2002, and for most of that time I have maintained a personal assessment of each puzzle's difficulty, using Excel to give me the year's average. there have been fluctations, but I don't think there has been a general dumbing down. For instance, the last three years have been significantly harder than 2006, 2007, and 2008, all of which had an annual average that was on the Magpie B/C borderline.

Perhaps the Listener was a lot harder before I started solving it.

Murky - one way to find out about pre-2002 Listeners and to use the Book Tokens Santa gave you would be for you to seek out the Penguin books of Listener Crosswords (there are, I think, three, all long out of print). I started in the 1970s and I don't think they are much different (although I'm a lot dodderier and the brain may be giving out).

Cockie, I do have The Times Listener Crosswords published by Chambers. It has puzzles from the eighties.

Can I ask how Y =55 when I feel it should be 35. Additionally do I add the (paired) clue numbers together to give the letters for the message? I seem to be getting nonsense using this system.

You only use the digits 1 to 5, mullingar. You pair the clues, not sum them. So if 5a was type 2 and 9a was type 5 the letter would be J

Mulligan, the only possibly number combinations are 11,12,13,14,15, 21, 22, 23,24,25, 31, 32, 33 etc

So 35 would be O