| VETTING | Checking the background of |
| NASH | Marble Arch designer whose now lost Isle of Wight house, East Cowes Castle, can be seen in the background of two paintings of regattas created by his friend J. M. W. Turner (4) |
| FIELD | Campestral piece of land; the background of a coin, flag or shield; or, the collective runners in a race (5) |
| EMERALD | Like the background of the "Wicked" poster |
| ETNA | Volcano in the background of some shots in "The White Lotus" |
| VETS | Checks the background of |
| EXTRA | Actor in the background of a scene |
| VET | Check the background of |
| MESA | Landform in the background of Road Runner cartoons |
| RANDOS | People in the background of vacation photos, e.g. |
| DELVES | Makes deep research into the background of 500 fairy folk (6) |
| FIELDS | Campestral grounds or tracts of open country also called leas, meadows, paddocks or swards; or, the backgrounds of coins or flags (6) |
| EXTRACOVER | Working in the background of film with disguise hoping to catch someone out perhaps! (5,5) |
| DAM | From "lady", the female parent of a calf, foal or other animal; a barrier or weir checking the downward flow of a river's water; or, a beaver's lodge (3) |
| CHESSBOARD | The chequered background of a scholar's mate? |
| AUDITING | Examining the Book of Numbers by checking the main figures (8) |
| BETTINGMAN | Chap taking a risk by losing the head checking the reliability of Frenchman in bar (7,3) |
| ASTRINGENT | Severe - checking the flow of blood (10) |
| CALIBRATING | Checking the accuracy of Libra acting unusually |
| TESTING | Checking the extremes on the deceptive operation (7) |
