Inquisitor 100

[trastevere]

I've spent a lot of time working out answers to over 50% of clues but cannot get started on grid. To my mind, 'conventional order' is all across clues followed by all down clues. This can't work because third from last clue is 4 letters yet penultimate is 7. Only other things I can think of are 'numerical' or 'alphabetical' orders but surely they would have been specified as such. Assume that this is a somewhat special puzzle as it is #100 but can't decide if colouring is pertinent or simply aesthetic.A little bit of help would be greatly appreciated

[Rollo]

The answers do go in in as you have said. The acroos clues are first, then the down ones. They are in the normal order.

Don't forget that there is one unclued entry - that one is an accross one.

Four of the answers have to have a change made to them before entry into the grid - hence the apparent anomoly you have found.

As far as I could see there is no relevance to the cell colouring.

[Rollo]

And that's twice I could not spell ACROSS correctly.

Doh!!!

[trastevere]

Its now late Saturday night and I think I'll throw the towel in. Thanks for your reply Rollo. Are these Indie Saturday mag crosswords getting harder? If they're not, I should be getting worried about the rate at which my brain cells have been dying recently. Several years ago and before the advent of AB I never ever failed to complete it. Olive oil bottles were lined up in my kitchen and I could win champers to order for special occasions. Now I'm lucky if I finish one in four.