Gravest by Stick Insect
In each clue, two letters (not necessarily consecutive) must be removed from a word before solving, always leaving a real word. In clue order, one letter contributes to a message showing how to find a cryptic representation of the theme; the other contributes to two instructions which solvers must obey to produce the final grid, which contains all real words or proper nouns. Chambers Dictionary (2016) is recommended.
Across
1 Pretending to piracy, perhaps not on the level (7)
7 Happen to replace panther’s head for one rousing game (6)
11 Fabric hood recycled by Tati (6)
13 Criminal inmate Mal makes propositions (7)
15 Hair-remover stung in odd application at first (5)
16 Cubicle building in ocean a U-boat periodically supplies (5)
18 Tweet seaports, not with head (4)
19 Drupel covers left shoe (4)
20 Lessee ashamed housing band (4)
21 Advanced heptads of Georgian recitals excited whistles (4)
23 Skier badly lusted for vessels (5)
25 Nine remoulades in very European French department (6)
27 Carer follows stink, finding fabulous bird (4)
29 Church half rueing of a bag in canal (5)
30 Nabobs, baron died in arrests (4)
31 American Norse disturbed about mother’s stinks (6)
34 EOKA pursuing South African piece of armour (5)
36 Lacking energy, recce west in compere’s car (4)
37 Opening by Lehar shows pace (4)
39 Complain in Scotland about obscene musical tenutos (4)
41 Look! Part of castle refound (4)
43 Ian and mate resolved to be as a friend (5, two words)
44 Baronne recruits fresh muscle (5)
45 Native American stung in Perth grasping heather (7)
46 Compounds fade and wane with entropy (6)
47 Listener entry about revolutionary (6)
48 Apparatus for webchat, perhaps, in TV farces before (7)
Down
2 With sails furled, a hand’s starting tug jettisoning pawpaw (5)
3 Singular fillies vote against you for French poems (6)
4 Scan cat, dog, head trout and sheep (8)
5 Blinks at his scent wrongly (8)
6 Expressionless, Faith and Gary less troubled, strangely after being dumped (6)
7 Bating hot heat for Ed (5)
8 Involves one lasting in sombre novel (8)
9 Upset cleric within tannah’s eating place (7)
10 Curly with enthusiasm undressing Native American warriors (4)
12 American checks thrombi, cycling (4)
14 Bing supports male rug (3)
15 Stress amateur producer of earth in books (7)
17 Alien rent old giant (4)
22 Royal tip: back movie (7)
24 Beware Iona tin goddess hunt (8)
25 One dossing in prophet’s cave did it badly, ignoring God (8)
26 American charmed Edna, chaste for another, keeping diamonds to the end (8)
28 A Mexican polacre is blackish, Sian discovered (7)
32 Were editor’s grass (4)
33 Empty arums in thaw supply heat (6)
35 Striding in Jerusalem, Anselm finds old lovers (6)
37 Egg white dad and girl cooked (5)
38 Relabel island’s sock (4)
40 Little support for neon good for Zambian currency (5)
41 Spinal marrow is source of costal hurt initially (4)
42 Understanding martial art lacking skills (3)
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