Enigmatic Variations N0. 1604 By Cranberry

[Matakari]

Good day, help with the following would be appreciated, thank you!

8d Satellite tone? Not quite familiar low note ( 7, 2 words ) : OE?????
14d Held onions out of the smoke ( 9 ) : Y?????I?H
32d Maybe Bruce Forsyth, in interviews, offered no answers originally ( 5 ) : ?ILNA
15a Rascal returned to punishment from Mister? ( 5 ) : U????
23a Tokyo exec’s into card game, essentially; is he worried about ego? ( 6 ) : E?????
30a Would evidence lead to stolen vehicles? ( 5 ) : I????

( The unclued entry ( 13, 2 words ) has called for a PROTEST. Every clue either generates an extra letter not in the answer or contains a definition with a single-letter misprint. The extra letters and correct letters of misprints together, in order, spell out the focus of the protest and the names of two protesters, whose efforts should be highlighted ( 33 cells total, in two blocks ) in the final grid. Chambers Dictionary ( 2016 ) is recommended. )

[JJ109]

Thanks Nac -I did half very quickly but then came to a grinding halt as I inserted wrong answers, I did not know the theme at all having been out of the UK for almost 20 years. I found it a bit of a slog to be honest, but as soon as I corrected my errors, everything fell into place, so not too bad.

[Neveracrossword]

Thanks, JJ. It's been years since I had anything to do with the theme, but the.... sort of originator of it has been in the news a lot over the past weeks, and the title is hugely relevant now!

[Matakari]

Help with the following should confirm my guess about the theme! Thanks in advance!
19 Fire in Indonesia forest special trained cops somehow put out ( 9 ) : R?I??????
20 Reject article supporting rustic philosopher’s follower ( 7 ): ??B???N
22 He grew vegetable, last to be pulled up ( 4 ) : KL?E
26 For Biden, perhaps Sudan tough to placate at first ( 7 ): ???D??P

[ProfessorMaisie]

19d misprint - 'fAre in Indonesia' - take 'cops' from 'FoREST spEcIAL' and anagram (it's an alt spelling of rijs...).
20d 'bi(n) an' = 'reject article' - after a 3 letter dialect word for a rustic, beginning with 'h' ['n' is extra].
22d 'he Drew' - a famous artist, Paul ...
26d What an American ('Biden') would call a 'sEdan' automobile - begins with 'h'.

[Matakari]

Grateful for the fabulous hints, ProfessorMaisie, the penny has dropped for the theme! Onward I march!

[Matakari]

Good morning, discovery of the Unclued entry is a pleasant breakthrough and quite hilarious, but the accumulation of extra letters and misprints is proving to be quite challenging. Hints to this final batch should help to unravel the names of the two protesters. Many thanks in advance for another wondrous learning experience!

1a Sign of victory in Wild West, finally the end for General Custer? ( 7 ) : ??A?PE?
12a Rattly, requiring special attention ( 5 ) : S?AR?
16a Scottish bully not protecting wife ( 4 ): N?F?
21a Lamest excuse, total lie, incurring penalty ultimately ( 5 ) : E?E?Y
27d Sheaths a little mediocre – adequate? ( 6 ) : ??C?E?E

[Neveracrossword]

12 The misprint is in the first word. There's the usual Special, followed by an everyday word for 'attention', help, assistance...

27 Hidden in the clue

21 The misprint is in the first word, so your letters should be very helpful.

[Neveracrossword]

1. The misprint is in the final word. The 'sign of victory' is slightly gruesome, a five letter word, followed by the 'finally the' and 'end for General', common crossword devices.

[Neveracrossword]

For 16, your F is wrong. The misprint is in the second word, leading to an unusual word - but it's easily worked, out, if you put the 'wife' inside the 'not'. Your Chambers will confirm it.

[Matakari]

Many thanks, NACW! I think most of your hints have paid off. For confirmation:
12a SHARK, 16a NOWT, 21a ELEGY – misprint S, 27d OCREAE
1a keeps eluding me: ??A?PE? – Answer would be appreciated.

[Neveracrossword]

12 Scare, rattle S+Care
1 Scalpel, cutter.

[Matakari]

Whew! Thanks, NACW, this has been a real brain scorcher! The grid is full, but I have to be sure it’s correctly filled before I can try to discover the two protesters. Some detective work here! After reading over, a confirmation now for the last two, thanks!
20 Damage mouldy Old Master ( 4 ) HARM
41 Somewhat critical of Tory MP ( 5 ) ALOFT ( In the clue? )

[JJ109]

Both correct!

O and U respectively

Goodnight Matakari!

[JJ109]

^^ definition "UP" not "MP"

[Neveracrossword]

Matakari, glad I could help, glad you have got this all finished off now.

PS As a regular EV solver, I wouldn't class this as ' a real brain scorcher' - you'll know when one of those comes along!

[Matakari]

Many thanks, JJ109, I'm having a rollicking time reading through the episodes of the protest, hoping for some pointers to the two names. Have a good night!

[Matakari]

The penny has just dropped! The focus of the protest has been staring me in the face for sometime now, I don't believe it! And I see one of the names, so the other will obviously soon appear before me!

[Neveracrossword]

Matakari, I wondered why, how it was taking you so long to nail down the protesters, as you'd got the unclued entry fairly early on. Still, you have got to appreciate it even more now that you have tied it all together.

[Matakari]

Good day, I thought I had this one wrapped up! I’ve enjoyed discovering the unclued and highlighting the focus of the protest. I believe I have one of the two names, one a three-letter name and I thought the other was bound to be DOUGAL, but am sadly mistaken. Any hints for this? Many thanks in advance!

[JJ109]

It is Dougal followed by his surname and the other one is Ted followed by his surname