Greetings barred-grid fans.
I thought this was a little easier than the last few Paul McKenna puzzles with fewer tricky wordplay elements. As usual for Paul McKenna there is a little treat in the top row, this time referring to a Rock Hudson/Doris Day movie.
In Mephisto puzzles definitions (the most obvious of which is underlined) can be confirmed in Chambers, so I will focus on wordplay here.
Away we go…
| Across | |
| 1 | Tedious type leading a university course with a taste of Asia (6) |
| PILLAU – PILL(tedious type) before A, U(university) | |
| 6 | Doubt or query masks the thrust behind spin? (6) |
| TORQUE – hidden inside doubT OR QUEry | |
| 10 | Stay prepared in Welsh island prior to a patrol (10, two words) |
| WAIT AROUND – W(Welsh), AIT(island) before A, ROUND(patrol) | |
| 11 | Term for dip and thrust (6) |
| PLUNGE – last letter in diP and LUNGE(thrust) | |
| 14 | SNP’s ultimate objective: a way in for their people (4) |
| PEND – last letter in snP, then END(objective) | |
| 15 | My nose is wrinkled cutting what’s held by heir (7) |
| SHAR-PEI – SHARP(cutting) and the middle letters in hEIr | |
| 16 | Give one times for choices at work? (10) |
| FLEXIHOURS – FLEX(give, ability to bend), I(one), HOURS(times) | |
| 17 | From the north the wife does differing jackets (7) |
| TUXEDOS – T'(the in the North), UX(wife) and an anagram of DOES | |
| 20 | Note market for computers, printers etc dropping one nothing (3) |
| SOH – SOHO(Small Office/Home Office, section of retail) minus one O(nothing) | |
| 21 | Papal bull contains what clerics may wear (3) |
| ALB – hidden inside papAL Bull | |
| 23 | Alien’s no good for force in attack (7) |
| STRANGE – NG(no good) replacing F(force) in STRAFE(attack) | |
| 25 | Knowing softy will dodge line for tipping (10) |
| FLY-DUMPING – FLY(knowing) then DUMPLING(softy) minus L(line) | |
| 26 | Once again spotlight judge over incomplete point (7) |
| REFOCUS – REF(judge) and |
|
| 28 | Bohemian drink (4) |
| CHAI – double definition, the Bohemian one being found in Chambers under CHAL | |
| 29 | Waders for Scots with chances to go round west of Ullapool (6) |
| WHAUPS – W(with), HAPS(chances) surrounding the leftmost letter in Ullapool. Waders being birds here. | |
| 30 | Scuppering piffle about exercises and severe treatment (10) |
| TORPEDOING – ROT(piffle) reversed, PE(exercises) and DOING(severe treatment) | |
| 31 | Fruit which flies in South Africa, beginning from April, spoil (6) |
| SAMARA – SA(South Africa) and the first letter in April surrounding MAR(spoil) | |
| 32 | Saints getting in surprisingly easy attempts (6) |
| ESSAYS – S and S(saints) containing an anagram of EASY | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Penelope’s left virtually superior valet at last — eg, Parker (6) |
| PUPPET – the first letter of Penelope, then UPPER(superior) minus the last letter, and the final letter of valeT. The definition and the whole clue refers to Thunderbirds, a show I could practically recite as a kid. | |
| 2 | Wanton jumper, we hear, that turns freely to tighten belt? (10, two words) |
| IDLE PULLEY – IDLE(wanton), then sounds like PULLY(jumper, sweater). I think this is correct – pullover is in Chambers, but it appears Pully could be a brand name? | |
| 3 | Country relative rolls up for dance among Austrians (7) |
| LANDLER – LAND(country) and then REL(relative) reversed | |
| 4 | Sadly die with courage — that would be bitter-sweet (10) |
| AIGRE-DOUCE – anagram of DIE and COURAGE | |
| 5 | This indigene near Colorado’s capital could be smart (3) |
| UTE – add the first letter of Colorado and you would get CUTE(smart) | |
| 6 | This holds account on Tesla for painter (7) |
| TACHIST – THIS containing AC(account), then T(tesla, the unit) | |
| 7 | Take spoon, say — it’s a hoot (4) |
| ROAR – R(recipe, take) and OAR(spoon) | |
| 8 | Bit of banter mostly lifted superlative mnemonics (6) |
| QUIPUS – QUIZ(a piece of banter) minus the last letter, then SUP(superlative) reversed | |
| 9 | Educated and lovely rector stopped ruddy provender (6) |
| EDDISH – two wordplays – ED(educated) and DISH(lovely) and R(rector) removed from REDDISH(ruddy) | |
| 12 | I popped into new ashram alongside his Hindu teachers (10) |
| MAHARISHIS – I inside an anagram of ASHRAM, then HIS | |
| 13 | Study of weather in unsettled year of rising standard in mercury (10) |
| AEROGRAPHY – anagram of YEAR containing PAR inside HG(mercury) all reversed | |
| 18 | See this fern developing — and use some excitedly (7) |
| OSMUNDA – anagram of AND,USE,SOME minus SEE | |
| 19 | Uproarious hoofing shows Yankee behind cases not specified (7) |
| CANCANS – CAN(US term for the rear), CA(cases), NS(not specified) | |
| 21 | Lifting jug before admitting fine demons of mythology (6) |
| AFRITS – reversal of STIR(jug), A(before) containing F(fine in music) | |
| 22 | Variant way to make rum ruby? (6) |
| BYFORM – if you substitute BY FOR M then ruM becomes ruBY | |
| 24 | Is MCP putting head down? (6) |
| EXISTS – SEXIST(male chauvinist pig, MCP) with the first letter lowered | |
| 27 | In East London grandaddy of a success within (4) |
| OUPA – O(of), A containing UP(success) | |
| 29 | Weight on top of every bale, as it used to be (3) |
| WOE – W(weight), O(on), and the first letter of Every | |
Thanks, George. I think 26A is REF + O + CUS{p}. For 2D, pully seems to be another Collins special.
I found this reasonably gentle. As always the awful pun raised a smile.
I read 26ac as CS above. I’m surprised PULLY isn’t in Chambers: it’s pretty common in my experience and (again as CS points out) it’s in Collins.
I didn’t understand 27dn when solving but then when I looked at it again this morning I suddenly remembered that East London is a city in South Africa.
27d was a write-in, since his wife recently appeared in another context.