Apologies if I seemed contentious. I guess the key point is that although I really enjoyed this Puck puzzle, it seemed to me quite a few posts here reflected negative attitudes. I just got a bit carried away taking potshots at anyone who didn’t praise it to the skies.

I’m much heartened by the even more recent posts from Bob & Huw above. In particular it’s good to know I’m not the only person on the planet who wrote TICKED OFF instead of the (less correct?!) PISSED OFF.

If every crossword were of this calibre that would suit me fine. Even more so if they were all of this difficulty level (i.e. – the level where on my own I can usually solve most of each puzzle, and sometimes all of it).

I ended up with a basically empty NW corner, with TICKED OFF penciled in.

I never would have figured out “conks out” = NOSES, but I did have NOSHED written next to the clue.

Lots of fun in the end, and thanks for the blog!

I am afraid my ‘smut’ detector did go off when seeing GREAT TIT in a distant combination with ‘large breasts’, and I found it amusing.

I withdraw my criticism on the reggae clue – did already after seeing Mister Sting’s post (#37).

Re “I”=”one”, of course, I know that it’s common ground.
But 9 out of 10 times, it is “one” in the clue and “I” in the solution [and not the other way around, as it is here].
I still think that the “I” in these 9/10 cases stands for a ‘letterfication’ [nice word, isn't it?] of the number “1″.
And – I’m sorry, but maybe my problem – I am still not convinced by transforming “I’d” into “one had” [so, the other way around], even though I fully understand your reasoning. If you are right, the identity “I”=”one” has two different explanations, depending on from which side you start. Could be, but doesn’t fully work for me.

“VACANT and EMPTY don’t need definitions because they match the 2nd sense of dis-contented literally and commonly. The others are more figurative and don’t normally occupy the same semantic space, so Puck helps us out with definitions. Inconsistent? Just helpful where needed, IMHO”

Well, that is a way to look at it – and it didn’t stand in the way of solving, but in combination with (apart from the surface (?), superfluous) words like ‘for’(in 7ac) and ‘that’s’ (in 8ac and 25ac), it made it all a bit ‘improvised’ for me.

I am not arguing about the cleverness of it all – as I [or 'one' (but not me) ] said, I can see the thoughts Puck put into this crossword and I appreciate that.
But – as it sometimes is – I am (or better: we were) not on his wavelength.
My post was more to express this than to criticise the setter or his brainchild.

‘now sadly’ is required. It provides the fodder and anagram indicator for the OWN in ‘down’.

My “smut detector” doesn’t go off at GREAT TIT, and I’m not even an ornithologist!

VACANT and EMPTY don’t need definitions because they match the 2nd sense of dis-contented literally and commonly. The others are more figurative and don’t normally occupy the same semantic space, so Puck helps us out with definitions. Inconsistent? Just helpful where needed, IMHO.

Um… Er… it’s just hestitation… erm… it could go on much longer without needing to be pluralised!

Reggae singers DO actually come out with “I and I” (or “Aye-and-aye” as I hear it) quite often. I have the phrasing on several records, and I’m now stuck with earworm by a particular track from “I Jam Man”.

“one” frequently substitutes for “I” – well, one could hardly say it never happens, surely? I realise “one” would often be interpreted as “you” there, but let’s face it, it could just as well be “we”. Or “people”. One becomes vague…

Returning to my original point, I can’t see that any of your criticisms stand, Sil

But apart from that (sort of) one that I now know I didn’t see, I’m unaware of anything ‘smutty’ about what I thought was a very refreshing puzzle.