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An enjoyable puzzle. Thank you TAOH.

Many thanks too to AofH. Shame that IQ gets far fewer comments than it used to on this forum esp. as the recent run has been excellent and more than a match for the Listener.

I think many don't bother with it any more as there's no prize...

Agreed! Nice puzzle. Sad, lack of apparent interest on the forum, combined with complaints Listener is too easy.
I found clues fairly hard, and thematics very hard! But persevered and got there in the end.

Yes i liked it - and agree it has been more than a match for the listener recently. Given i dont submit listener, i take each on their merits as puzzles.

Found it quite tough, and had to use the list of thematics to back solve some of the clues.

Not that it matters because there is no submission, but its a little ambiguous exactly how the final grid is meant to look.

That was certainly a challenge; but very enjoyable. Thank you Ace of Hearts.

Brilliant puzzle, and I concur with the comments about the apparent lack of appreciation for this superb series of puzzles. Any half sane solver would have long ago abandoned the notion that The Listener is the puzzle without peers - that's just silly. The EV often wades in with a sublime offering and even The Spectator can sometimes throw us a curveball!

I just entered the relevant numerals in the six cells.

hello ! sorry if i’m doing this incorrectly as it’s my first time commenting (although have been relying on your discussions for a fair few weeks to help finish off grids haha). got nearly a full grid, know the theme and got all the extra letters but stuck on the last couple. 15a (new state gets all the rights to case in point) - i know it’s a themed clue (with 15d), but just can’t figure it out. also pretty sure i’ve got 19d (minions out of the ark still overlooking judges) and 34a (african musical instruments without likes on ridge) but any help parsing why they are what they are would be greatly appreciated !

15, 3-letter abbreviation for the latin word meaning "take" (not tate); "all the rights" means take the right-hand letters of the words that end the clue. Def = "new".

19, archaic word for "till" followed by slang term for judges

34 = 4 letters "without" + 2 letter "ridge"