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I agree with that granama.....and am now a bit confused as to what to do.

Thankfully, I ended up on the right side of the debate with the plectrum!

Having resolved my query at #58 FWIW I am with those in favour of shading 30 cells and agree with smithsax's observation at #108 that the ambiguity could have been removed by providing the correct number in the preamble (as is common).

I didn't give up, finally finished. Needed the endgame theme words to help complete my final few grid entries like 25 and 29a. And 28d too actually.
Great puzzle. So glad I persevered.
There are Listeners I can solve without help; others where I need a few hints from the Forum; and others like this where I have appreciated quite a lot of help!
I have certainly shaded 32!

Nearly there! Quite a challenge, very enjoyable.

I can't see the two groups of letters at all. Reading the comments here, it seems they form words. I'm near certain about what I should shade, but can't make sense of those two groups.

And can't parse 10a - is it just a double definition? If so, don't get the first one.

Incidentally, I am firmly in the 32 cells camp (assuming I've understood correctly at this point). The preamble is careful to distinguish between letters (two groups of them) and cells (one set of which is to be shaded). So the corners can be part of the set of cells, without the letters therein being part of the group. Plus, not shading the corners would be lunacy.

And immediately (and I mean that literally) found the words!

Just need to make sense of them now...

Over a hundred posts and it's only Tuesday morning - this is clearly a very popular and challenging puzz!e.

Like some others, luckily hit on the author early on. So hope it shouldn't be too long before reaching the controversial shading stage.

All done!

Fantastic construction, really well done. Definitely 32 cells.

This was a good challenge. For what it's worth, I usually make liberal use of pattern matching in the Chambers app to solve the Listener. Of course, the jumbled entries in this one made pattern matching of limited use, although the anagram function was very helpful.

There was an article in the Guardian which I found when I first started attempting the Listener in earnest, which "gave permission" to use such aids. Since then, I've solved all bar one I've attempted (the fantastic one involving capital cities and clashes from just before Christmas last year); I'd never solve a single puzzle without them!

Post amended by Admin at the request of Buddy to say

I am now in the 32-cell camp and retract my prior posts!!"

Oh dear. After all that effort ...

Struggling with this so far. About half way through and have the source. Is the relevant quotation in odq? Am struggling to spot one with a force and an imagined world of influence? Just a yes / no in reply please.

Ta