An excerpt from a poem (-eleven words, one hyphened, in ODQ) reads clockwise in the perimeter from the top left corner. Each of four clues contains a superfluous word; these words combine to give the poet’s name. The poem’s title, which is concealed in the grid and must be highlighted, indicates the action required to create each of three unclued lights, and 18 plus 24. All these lights are words in Chambers; one is doubly hyphened. Letters in corner squares and those adjacent to them could give POWER I HEAT UP.
Across
10 Struggles, holding weak opinions (5)
12 Theory of earth’s formation, terribly foggy one, lacking force (7)
14 Crazy? Stick around (4)
16 Fine monk duly troubled about base servility (10)
17 Oldest mat remains covered with endless dirt (8)
20 See excited pals embrace (5)
21 Left, after tense hour in trouble, tingling (7)
22 Rails badly askew (5)
27 Swallowed aversion? Not hard (3)
31 Prevents stains returning (5)
33 Candidate’s win in revolutionary period (7)
34 Decay without constant sign (5)
35 Article, mostly cunning, reflected quantities of grey matter (8)
36 Staggering around, legs affected with equine disease (10)
38 In scenes the hero’s tender (4)
39 Pierced belt outside autonomous region (7)
40 Kept special rent day (6)
41 Live drama involving a party (5)
Down
2 River area very acceptable (4)
3 Fossil tree, one in southern ravine, lifeless (10)
4 Strange as news about lecturer without beard (7)
5 Discourage Dutch uncle’s wife? (5)
6 Judges, protecting church, warn quiet separatists (8)
7 Pious person did task differently (7)
13 Takes broken blade (5)
15 Material struggle ending in failure (5)
19 Long occupied by nonsense, old established church member (10)
23 Standard fluttering moth (8, hyphened)
25 Goblin beginning to get into trunk (5)
26 Paint gone in one second (7)
28 Bird’s energy in migration (5)
29 Pulse during awful ado raised (3)
30 Frozen rain completely filling large ground (7)
35 Communist gripped by firm belief (5)
37 Upset touchy god (4)
A first prize of £30 for the first correct solution opened on 9 May. There are two runners-up prizes of £20. (UK solvers can choose to receive the latest edition of the Chambers dictionary instead of cash — ring the word ‘dictionary’.) Entries to: Crossword 2257, The Spectator, 22 Old Queen Street, London SW1H 9HP. Please allow six weeks for prize delivery.
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