There’s No Place Like Home by Bungo

Puzzle explanation

The extra words in clues were The Flowers of Progress, the subtitle of Gilbert and Sullivan’s Savoy opera Utopia, Limited. In the opera, the South Pacific island of Utopia is ruled by King Paramount, theoretically an absolute monarch, who may be blown up with dynamite by the Public Exploder Tarara, who would then take his place, should the two Wise Men Scaphio and Phantis conclude that the king has lapsed from social or political propriety. The letters omitted in wordplay spelt out “Wise Men order cdeegiir” (regicide). The clashes in the grid formed DYNAMITE under PARAMOUNT; both were cleared by the threatened “explosion” and TARARA replaced PARAMOUNT. The puzzle’s title referred to Thomas More’s coinage of “Utopia” to mean “no place” and the island’s transformation in Act II into a replica of Britain.

Clue explanations

Conventions: * = anagram, < = reversal

No Extra word Answer (unclued letter) Explanation
Across
1   BACK(W)ASH BACK + AS + H
7   ABETS BET in AS
13   RAOUL(I)A R(av)A(ge) O(r g) U(zz)L(e f)A(st)
14   (S)HERIDAN (HEARD IN) *
15 the CRIMP (dis)C RIM P(erhaps)
16   TARTLETS (TRESTLE TABLE I’D) * − EDIBLE *
17   ROOSA ROOS + A
20   RAUN R(etrieve) A(nd) U(ntangle) N(ets)
22   TIRE 2 meanings
24   HAYDN HANDY *
25   MITRE T in MIRE
26   BERE BEE around R
27   R(E)IN REN
30   DRA(M)A AA after DR
31   LEEP PEEL <
32   OLD(E) LO < + D
37   APPUI APP + (s)UI(t)
38   GLACÉI(N)G GIG around LACE
39   HALL homophone of HAUL
40   HEX(O)SE HEX + SE
41 flowers GAMETAL LAT < after GAME
42   TSU(R)IS S(candal) in TUI + S
43   SEABE(D) (BASE + E) *
44   SANCTUARIS(E)S SANCTUS around (p)ARIS(h)
Down
1   BIST(R)E (BEST + I) *
2   AGHA AHA around G
3   (C)HER HER(o)
4   WAIL W + AIL
5   AL(D)ERN RN after ALE
6   HANSOM SHO(w)MAN *
8   BURSTER (RETS + RUB) <
9 of ELIXIR RILE < around XI
10   TIME homophone of THYME
11   SAPHENA (ASHEN +P(erformance) A(nxiety)) *
12   ARTSY SATYR *
15   CONIDIAL CON + I + LAID <
18   OARED (r)OARED
19   PYROPES PY + ROPES
21   MAIDING MING around AID
23   R(E)MOULADE M in ROULADE
24   HE(E)DLESS HEAD − A(sia) + LESS
26   BLI(G)HTY (HIT BY + (shel)L) *
28   ELM(I)EST (h)ELMER − ER + EST
29   NEOGAEA (AGO < + E(ritre)A) after NE
33   EPHEB(I) HEB after EP
34 progress SPATES SS around PATE
35   VILLUS (LIV’S + U(nusua)L) *
36   SCO(R)N SCON(e)
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