Seven unclued lights (all real words) are names of 22 (hyphened) minus one letter. The missing letters give GROWN-UP.
Across
4 Game Charlie (athletic chap with a heart problem) (9)
10 Pro shinned nastily getting painkillers (10)
11 Rosy Lee and fellow almost dance (6, hyphened)
12 Secure university members axed watchman (7, two words)
14 Toast and honey? (5)
23 Cook tiresomely set out fishes (7)
24 Trudge with Yankee over middle of pampas (4)
25 Lass loves unending sleep (4)
27 Dishes possibly containing very Scottish coins (7)
29 Soldiers student doc out of college is meant to heal (8)
32 Poem dear X declaimed (6)
34 Priest bottles whisky for stickybeak (5)
35 Dandy claret (5)
36 Duck on water nibbled one fish (7)
37 Marine cast losing vote (6)
38 Contemporary compère dies (10, hyphened)
39 Maniac had sedate ties (9, hyphened)
40 No women wandered over (5)
Down
1 Dictionary noddy originally used in aviary (10)
2 Ethereal juice created by singers I promoted (5)
3 Some prince destined to advance majestically (6)
4 Less refined huntsman in conversation (7)
5 Monstrous riverboat conveying a tree (10, two words)
6 Starving seven gobbling a couple of humans (7)
7 Hairless Greek bores some (5)
8 Tom inside peddles legwear for birds (9)
13 Evangelicals needled by low winds (7)
15 Bard’s become most adept as hoarder of gold (6)
17 Organ music rendered dope pliant (10, two words)
18 Terrors round chest encloses (7)
19 Unspecified vagrant using sedan (10)
20 Person with medieval fiddle, mechanically copied (9)
26 Where moths may land and look vile (7)
28 Presses extra short dresses (7)
31 Received news of the title earl accepted (5)
33 Woman friend carries cape or cloak (5)
A first prize of £30 for the first correct solution opened on 8 August.
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