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williamseal, think about what that final letter can also represent

I too found this very easy and Im no great solver - but what I dont understand is the point of the 10 letters spelling out something - all you needed was the 3 obvious unclueds -a simple grid stare and then a google - but I did like the fact that real words remained after the substitution. The brilliance of the title is missed on me Im afraid - I dont get it

Jordan (@ # 40) - on reflection, I should have said "criticism of the puzzle".

I do think people are mistaken if they criticise setters. The target of any criticism should surely be the editors. They are the ones who are sent puzzles and decide what to publish. If they wanted to request them to be toughened up, they surely could.

The nub of the issue is that there has been a deliberate drive to increase the accessibility of the puzzle and recruit new and younger solvers. This has led to far more introductory-level puzzles than in previous years. Understandable, of course, given newspapers’ precarious finances and falling circulations, but a disappointment to those who were brought up on the Listener being “the world’s most difficult thematic crossword”. It’s from this tension that problems arise.

I enjoyed this, but I always appreciate substitutions leaving real words. That's a real skill in grid setting in my view.

Took me a while to figure out 1d and 42a.

The title is a reference to what happened in the thematic work at the time the surprising statement was made.

Thanks to all who assisted above I am nearly there. I would like to complete if I can.
I have eight of the omitted letters identified and can see the nature of the hint. However I cannot see where the missing two would fit. Do they come at the beginning of the phrase?
There are two clues that I cannot erase: 25 across and 26 down. I'd welcome hints on these and whether they contain a missing letter. Sorry to be a pain but some of us find substitutions difficult - my native Wales certainly did on Saturday and I wouldn't like to fail 10 times in a row.

Williamseal, the preamble says that a letter is missing from the wordplay in 10 clues. It doesn’t say there are 10 missing letters. There is a missing letter in 25a, intersecting with 12d.

26d is French Enlightenment

Many thanks Dodgepot - that clears up the mystery.

I agree that this was easier to solve than set, but as has already been said setting is difficult. Having tried myself, the constraint of minimum average length provides a real challenge. So this particular construction is pretty good.

And, zooming out for a moment, the editors have to balance attracting new punters with satisfying a loyal (and demanding) fanbase.

Anyway, next Saturday will be here soon and it will undoubtedly be a monster.