Saturday Times Jumbo Cryptic 1409 Saturday November 9Th 2019

[stevenj]

hello. Another Saturday evening with the crossword and without His Nibs. I DO miss him!
I have eventually finished it, with a lot of difficulty. May I, as usual, ask for help please?
bThere's a few.
21ac Sone me , once having settled in illegal state. I have the letters for "criminality" which is the illegal state. But why the rest?
25ac Most of the time you'll see batter going runny. I think the answer is "thinning" which is, I suppose going runny. But I don't see batter anywhere
11d Words for letters that keep Romeo and Juliet apart I think the answer is "phonetic alphabet " But (shame on me) I don't get the Romeo and Juliet part.
22d Singul;ar design stops heater burning bush
With the letters I have the answer could be either wax plant or gas plant but I don't know why either fits.

Help please!!
steven

[Mamyalynne]

11

R - Romeo

J - Juliet

in the phonetic alphabet.

[stevenj]

oh, sorry. One more. 44d Excuse to read out like a kilt.

I think the answer is "pleated". Plea is easy but why Ted?

[fiction-factory]

Romeo and Juliet are in the phonetic alphabet
Th(e) + inning(s) by a batter in cricket?

[stevenj]

sorry Mamyalynne
I still don't get it
steven

[Mamyalynne]

25 Th(e) + Inning (Cricket ref to batter)

[stevenj]

and fiction factory. Please give me the details.

[Mamyalynne]

As a couple of lovers they are together, in the alphabet they are apart.

[Mamyalynne]

21 Stone me - Criminy

criminy
/ˈkrɪmɪni/
exclamationINFORMAL•US
used to express surprise or disbelief.
"criminy, what is this world coming to?"

round - Settled - Alit

[stevenj]

Thank you for your patience. Criminy is a new one for me. Is it usual?
And forgive me, but I think the Romeo and Juliet clue ( I get it now, thank you) is weak

[Mamyalynne]

22 Cab't see it ll but...

Burning bush and Gas plant are one and the same.

[Mamyalynne]

Criminy is very dated.

[Mamyalynne]

ah

22 S(ingular) plan 'in' Gat (a gun , slang for gun is heater)

[stevenj]

Oh and Burning bush and gas plant being the same. I have been frantically trying to link it to the burning bush in the bible.

[Mamyalynne]

I think we all got there eventually.

[Neveracrossword]

44 The excuse is Plea and TED is a financial 'spread', there's a full definition in Chambers. (You had 'read', so maybe that's why this one got overlooked.)