| BALDRICK | Tony Robinson's Blackadder character famous for his cunning plans (8) |
| BUGSBUNNY | Warner Brothers cartoon character famous for asking, 'What's up, doc?' (4,5) |
| DETONATE | Greek character, famous, returned and set off (8) |
| MELCHETT | Blackadder character played by Stephen Fry * (8) |
| PLAYBOYS | Pleasure seekers with cunning plans involving swimming bay (8) |
| TIMETEAM | Tony Robinson's archaeology show (4,4) |
| ROBINSON | Tony, actor and TV presenter whose memoir No Cunning Plan was published in 2016 (8) |
| ABSTRUSE | Sailor on road with cunning plan is difficult to understand (8) |
| DEPLOYED | Brought into use in action without a cunning plan (8) |
| ARTIFICE | Cunning plan whereby Ed is replaced by painting in imposing structure (8) |
| EMPLOYEE | First person backed cunning plan with extremely erudite worker (8) |
| CALLIDUM | Consilium ____ habeo: I have a cunning plan, cf. Ter. Andria 589 |
| ICARUS | Legendary character, famous tenor, briefly on island |
| NORMAN | Garry McDonald made this character famous (------ Gunston) |
| CON | Mark Mitchell made this character famous on The Comedy Company (--- the Fruiterer) |
| IHAVEACUNNINGPLAN | Catchphrase of the Blackadder character Baldrick |
| EDMUND | ___ Blackadder, character played by Rowan Atkinson (6) |
| LORD | _ Flashheart, Mayall's Blackadder character (4) |
| RUSES | Cunning plans by drunk users (5) |
| INTIMA | Innermost; ____ consilia, the most secret cunning plans |