An absolutely first-rate puzzle to start the year. I felt smug having got the basis of the theme from the first "crowded cell" I came across along with the title, but then there was the small matter...
What a struggle this has been. There is so much going on in the grid that I thought the penny was never going to drop (but it just did with a clang when I read the preamble more carefully). Thank you...
Nice to have a circular one and we were given a very generous hint from the start but the very last two words we had to enter have taken almost as long as the rest of the grid fill. I have had a good...