Cryptic crossword No 3,168

Much better surfaces certainly encouraged me to give this a go. There are some nice ideas and plenty of solid constructions. You have alerted solvers to the fact there is a theme so it's OK to refer to it here: well done on incorporating some good thematic solutions. Faves inc 1a, 9a, 23a, 4d, 16d and 26d. Thanks. PM