Solving time: 8 mins

For Araucaria this was surprisingly straightforward, but that’s probably just as well with a bank holiday special due this week. One of the reasons for the lower-than-average difficulty was the high number of clues which were solvable from the definition, especially the long answers; the mini-theme of photography, possibly inspired by the answer to 27ac, also helped.

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Well a complex preamble this week – certainly one that won’t make sense till 11 down is derived. On first reading it sounds like a puzzle based upon a literary character. Then there’s an adjustment to the “completed” grid with a recommendation to use a pencil first.  Personally I like the satisfaction of watching the grid filling up with black ink! – So it was ink for me on a copy first.

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