And the cloud finally lifts
I eventually found the solution in another post
HERE and combined with the recommended <area> function it worked a treat. I probably didn't explain it well enough.
If anyone has the same issue in the future..........
I removed
<area x="0" y="0" width="1013" height="590" /> from my global file.
Added
<area x="-95" y="0" width="100%" height="100%" /> to the images xml file which puts the image exactly in the cutout screen area of the interface plugin .
The trick then as noted in the post was to make sure all the plugins have
parent="STAGE" applied to them so they all stay put but the loaded still image / pano can use the <area> info.
Had me frustrated for several days trying to get to this point.