A puzzle on the easier side, as reflected in a solving time of 16m 43s. I can’t fully parse 19A so any suggestions would be most welcome.
* = anagram, cd = cryptic definition
| Across | ||
| 1 | BLAZON – BLAZ{e} (fire very nearly) + ON (operating) | |
| 4 | CONSISTENT – SIS (girl) in CONTENT (happy) | |
| 10 | SHRED – SH{a}RED (divvied up with area forgotten) | |
| 14 | FORETELLS – ORE (mineral) + T{itanium} (source of titanium), all inside FELLS (hills) | |
| 15 | LOOK FORWARD TO – LOOK FOR WARD (explore hospital) + TO{o} (as well (though not all)) | |
| 16 | DODDERY – ODDE{r} (mostly less usual) in DRY (one who’s banned alcohol). A “dry” is apparently a prohibitionist. | |
| 17 | TO SCALE – TOSCA (Opera) + LE (article from Paris) | |
| 18 | OBVIOUS – OB{li}VIOUS (out of it, abandoning Long Island) | |
| 19 | LAND OF HOPE AND GLORY – Ruritania is the LAND OF HOPE bit (a reference to the fictional country created by Anthony Hope and the setting for, perhaps most famously, The Prisoner of Zenda) but I can’t satisfactorily reconcile “more than adequate” with AND GLORY, unless it’s that it’s above and beyond simply LAND OF HOPE. Any offers? | |
| 21 | SCAB – C{otswolds} (heading for Cotswolds) in SAB (Opponent of hunt). Collins: “sab – (British, informal) a person engaged in direct action to prevent a targeted activity, esp fox hunting, taking place” | |
| 24 | DUMAS – DUMA‘S (Russian parliament’s) | |
| 26 | FLOUNDER – L (line) inside FOUNDER (One who started) | |
| 27 | OPTICIAN – OPT IN (to choose to cooperate) around CIA (spies) | |
| 29 | PACKAGE TOUR – PACK (cards) + A + GET (bother) + OUR (for us) | |
| 30 | LEPIDOPTERA – (TADPOLE RIPE)* Lepidoptera are an order of insects including moths and butterflies. | |
| 32 | CUT AND DRIED – CUT (Snubbed) + AND + DIED (passed over) around R (Republican) | |
| 35 | BURNT SIENNA – (N (note) + AS IN BRUNET)*. Brunet is the lesser spotted male version of brunette. | |
| 37 | EARPIECE – EARP (American lawman) + ICE (cooler) around {cliqu}E (last of clique) | |
| 39 | UNSUBTLE – (BLUNT USE)* | |
| 40 | TACIT – TAC{k} (riding gear) with the K replaced by IT | |
| 43 | SOHO – OHOS (Gratified comments) reversed (echoing) | |
| 44 | GOLDBERG VARIATIONS – (STAGGER VIOLIN BOARD)*, for the set of harpsichord works written by Bach. This must have come up in my O-Level music syllabus because I can’t think of any other reason why I would have known it. | |
| 47 | ICEPACK – ICE (Reserve) + PACK (forwards, as in rugby) | |
| 48 | POMPOUS – POMPO{m} (decoration cut down) + US (American) | |
| 50 | TSUNAMI – reversal of IT, around SUN (good weather) + AM (in the morning) | |
| 51 | PARTY POLITICS – PARTY (do) + PICS (photographs) around O + LIT (easily seen) | |
| 52 | EX OFFICIO – cd, intended to make you think of the mail rather than a job. Also a brand of travel clothing. | |
| 53 | TURIN – TURN (Act) around I | |
| 54 | MONTEVERDI – (DIVER{ti}MENTO)*, where ti is note, for the composer of some of the earliest (popular) operas | |
| 55 | HEARTY – ART (talent) inside HEY (boisterous cry). Here, hearty is used in the nounal sense. | |
| Down | ||
| 1 | BEFUDDLED – BLED (run) around EFUDD (B. Bunny’s antagonist, i.e. Elmer Fudd, i.e. E. Fudd) | |
| 2 | AERODYNAMIC – (COMEDIAN RAY)* | |
| 3 | ON THE GO – ON (working) + THE (article) + GO (board game) | |
| 5 | ONSET – hidden reversal in laTE SNOwfalls | |
| 6 | SILAS MARNER – (A MISER LEARNS)* minus {Eppi}E (Eppie finally). I’m not familiar with the storyline of Eliot’s work, but a bit of Googling suggests that this is an extended definition. | |
| 7 | SHOW-AND-TELL – (THOSE)* around WAND (cane), + LL (lines) | |
| 8 | ENFEEBLE – reversal of BEEF (complaint) in {H}ENLE{y} (middle of Henley) | |
| 9 | TURBOPROP – TURBO{t} (removing tail of fish) + PROP (shore, as in to shore up) | |
| 10 | STARVE – R (Run) in STAVE (bar) | |
| 11 | RADIOACTIVE – (AVOID IT + CARE)* Nice anagram | |
| 12 | DROSS – DR (Medic) + {l}OSS (failure left to pass on) | |
| 13 | PLAY THE FIELD – PLAY (theatrical item) + THE FIELD (Country magazine) | |
| 20 | PHOTOFIT – cd, where the “shots” refer to photographs rather than bullets. I think we’ve had this a few times in the daily cryptic, but (like with many cryptic definitions) if you’ve never heard of it then you’re going to have to get lucky with your guessing (photokit and photopic might be tempting, for example). | |
| 22 | BANDANA – BANANA{s} (A lot of nuts) around D (daughter). The mind boggles as to what the surface is intended to convey. | |
| 23 | PINPOINT – PIN + PIN (pair of legs) + T{rip} (beginning to trip) around O | |
| 25 | SEA-SNAIL – reversal of IAN‘S (Scotsman’s) inside SEAL (larger one, i.e. larger marine creature) | |
| 28 | OPERETTA – (TO REPEAT)* | |
| 29 | POCKETS – replace the first letter (launch) of ROCKETS (spacecraft) with P (power), definition: “Gathers” | |
| 31 | DO THE DIRTY ON – DO THE DIRTY ON{e} (Tell your blue joke, omitting end) | |
| 33 | TORCH-BEARER – TO (for) + RC (Catholic) + HEARER (member of audience) around B{aptists} (leader of Baptists) | |
| 34 | DUNFERMLINE – DUNE (SF novel by Frank Herbert) around F (fine) + (MERLIN)* | |
| 35 | BOURGEOISIE – BOO (Vocal criticism) + IS around URGE (desire) + IE (that is) | |
| 36 | NECROMANCER – R (runs) after N{ew} (onset of new) + EC (city) + ROMANCE (affair). The “onset of” isn’t strictly necessary to indicate just N, but it maybe helps the surface. I would possibly quibble with the definition, as none of the usual dictionaries (nor my teenage Dungeons and Dragons experience) indicate malevolence as a necessary attribute. | |
| 38 | CLOAKROOM – C{old} + L{onely} (Heads for cold lonely) + OAK (tree) + reversal of MOOR (heath) | |
| 41 | TESTIMONY – I‘M ON (I’m ready) inside TESTY (aggrieved) | |
| 42 | ADOPTION – AD OPTION (suggestion for promotional material) | |
| 45 | TRUFFLE – RUFFLE (Upset) after T{act} (minimum of tact) | |
| 46 | CANYON – N (new) + Y (yard) + O (over), all inside CAN (prison) | |
| 47 | INPUT – I + NUT (obsessive) around P (phosphorus) | |
| 49 | SPEND – END (to cease) after SP (reduced odds, i.e. the shortened version of Starting Price) | |
Good puzzle, maybe not ultra-difficult but certainly tougher for me than your solving time suggested. I think the comments on LAND OF HOPE AND GLORY explain it – not as precisely indicated as some clues but the answer could not be anything else, I guess. Many thanks to blogger and setter.