Not seeking to answer for Antipodean Mick, but from my perspective, "no oil, no curry". If I need to re-spice a restaurant curry after taking it home, I invariably add more oil, and then remove the excess before serving. It is a fact that the essential oils in spices (which carry the flavour) are lipophilic ("fat loving") rather than hydrophilic ("water loving") and therefore bind to the molecules in oil rather than to the molecules in water; the subsequent chemistry is less clear but they almost certainly emulsify during the cooking of the curry. There is obviously some flavour loss when the excess oil is removed before serving, but since that oil will be re-used in the next curry, overall the flavour level is maintained. My advice is "cook with lots of oil, serve with a little".
** Phil.