Solved in three sittings totalling over 75 minutes.
Quite a tough puzzle by Azed’s standards with a grid that didn’t offer a great deal of help from one section to another. I solved the bottom half of the grid at the first sitting on a train between Euston and Manchester, once I had done and dusted with the recent circular Listener. Thanks to Cathy V for a couple of explanations and solutions.
ACROSS (*) = anagram (CD) = Cryptic def. (R) = Reversal
1 ASPERGILLUMS – ASPER = Rough GUMS = Old Eucalypts with ILL diseased inside.
10 CORTILE TIL inside CORE
12 HUIS I (one) inside HUS(H) [almost complete silence]
13 DIELDRIN IN RIDDLE (*)
14 AREG hidden answer
15 MARONS MS – writing with A R ON [Australian river “concerning”] inside – Marons are similar to yabbies, little crayfish beloved of the TV show I’m A Celebrity, Rescue my Career”
18 TALOOKA “Office” in this clue refers to a slang word for the toilet hence LOO inside TAKA,
19 SACRISTAN Sneaky clue! A CRISTA = a crest inside SN = tin.
22 EPAENETIC AENE(AS) inside EPIC
24 CHADIAN C + HAD(R)IAN
26 AZRAEL In Jewish and Islamic lore, the Angel of Death. LAZARE(T)*
29 MOKI OK inside MI [middle of PEMMICAN].
30 RETINOID Compound anagram A VALET + RETINOID = TREATED A VIOLIN. A signature Azed clue.
31 BUMF UM [bits of unsolicited mail] inside BF [brought forward].
32 OVERLAY LOVER with first letter moved to last + AY
33 REDESCENDING SCREED* + ENDING
DOWN
2 SOUR GAS SO + SUGAR*
3 PRIES Homophone of Prize
4 RIDE Hidden reversal
5 GLINTS (BRATLINGS minus BRA )*
6 LA LA LAND LALAN(G) inside LAD
7 LADRONES EARN O LSD*
8 UNROOST ORNIS OUT less I*
9 MAIN Dbl def
10 CHAISE CART CHAI + TRACES (R)
11 UNSANCTIFY CT + IF [supposition] inside NUN SAY*
16 FREDAINE RED + A inside FINE
17 RIPIENOS Tutti (as in an orchestra) = def. RIP + NOISE*
20 CHARTED EARTH* inside CD
21 MILKMAN http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLKaLvrtn-8 – it’s 37 years old!
23 ENDIVE END + I’VE
25 MOULI OIL + MU*
27 ZEZE Z inside ZEE (A bar of metal shaped like a Z)
28 EDEN (SW)EDEN
For the Azed Book of Crosswords in 1977 Azed made me change my clue to ERNIE because he disliked ‘that awful (or was it dreadful) song’. He must be mellowing!