| SUPERNUMERARY | Actor who appears on stage but does not speak (13) |
| LAOTSE | He said "He who knows does not speak; he who speaks does not know" |
| MIME | Performer who does not speak |
| OYSTERCATCHER | A black bird which forages on rocky and sandy shores. Named after oysters but does not have to run after and catch them. Nest on the shore and one good reason why vehicles were banned from beaches. (1 |
| LIEVSCHREIBER | "Ray Donovan" actor who appears in "Spotlight": 2 wds. |
| MICHAELKEATON | "Birdman" actor who appears in the 2015 film "Spotlight": 2 wds. |
| DADDYLONGLEGS | Crane fly in the family Tipulidae which resembles a mosquito but does not bite (5,8) |
| KENNYLYNCH | London-born singer-songwriter and actor who appears on the cover of 1973 record album Band on the Run by Paul McCartney and Wings (5,5) |
| TONURTIS | Actor who appears on the 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' album cover |
| PLAYWORDGAMES | Not speak seriously |
| ALAINDELON | French actor who appears on the cover of the 1986 album The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths |
| PROMPTBOOK | Direct programme that's read on stage but not to the audience (10) |
| BUTTERUP | Flatter "poor, little" woman on stage but get caught out (6,2) |
| BEHINDTHESCENES | May affect the action on stage, but took a back seat (6,3,6) |
| CASTIGATE | I act on stage but they chastise me |
| MARIONETTE | On stage but strings attached (10) |
| ACTING | On stage, but only temporarily it would seem (6) |
| NOISESOFF | What's made by no one on stage, but just outside, so very loud? |
| DANTE | Poet who wrote "Let us not speak of them, but look, and pass on" |
| REENTERS | Appears on stage again, or makes another record (2-6) |
