Mephisto 3032 Tim Moorey starring Jack Palance and Lee Marvin

Author   dorsetjimboPosted on Categories Mephisto
Unless you’re very experienced you are unlikely to solve a Mephisto without using Chambers. The idea is that you use the precise wordplay to derive an answer that you then verify in the dictionary. 5A is a perfect example.

This was a very pleasant puzzle of average complexity. It included a memory jog for Saturday Morning Pictures and the cowboy films starring Roy Rogers, Tom Mix, etc. Those were the days!

In the clues, definitions are underlined. Wordplay explanation is followed by very helpful comments.

ACROSS

1 Extremist in bizarre rituals is thrown out (5)
ULTRA: (rituals – is)*;
5 Pleased to keep one favoured cereal ingredient (7)
GLIADIN: GL(I)AD-IN; a protein in gluten;
11 Your setter finally tails off? The reverse, lots on offer here (8)
SALEROOM: MOORE(y)-LAS(t);
12 Matrix ducks accommodating extreme Brazilian state (10, two words)
MATO,GROSSO: MAT-O(GROSS)O;
13 Dislike days without a course of action ending in victory (8)
DYSPATHY: D(a)YS-PATH-(victor)Y;
16 Sheep shelter from sun on hill (5)
STELL: S-TELL; S=sun; hill=TELL;
17 Very good old van for youngster or banger from the Gorbals? (4)
PIOY: PI-O-Y(oungster); a firework in Fife;
18 Two notes on long, decorative braid (8)
SOUTACHE: SO-UT-ACHE;
19 Seattle plant succeeded with present and former President (8)
SNOWBUSH: S-NOW-BUSH;
21 Flies back for boring thing in Scotland (4)
STOB: BOTS reversed;
23 Perfume ingredient: get it in Middle Eastern state, no question (5)
ATTAR: (Q)AT(‘T)AR;
26 Spring roll said to be refined (8)
WELLBRED: WELL-sounds like “bread”;
27 Heraldic animals formerly seen in French city square (10)
LIONCELLES: LI(ONCE)LLE-S;
28 Weapon’s protective covering whitish as mentioned (8)
ARMALITE: sounds like “armour”-“light”;
29 Wyn, once a gorgeous lady is Sorbian (7)
WENDISH: WEN-DISH; WEN= old word for wyn;
30 Fox TV’s latest: 9/11 vacuously presented (5)
VIXEN: (t)V-IX-E(leve)N;

DOWN
1 Clapped-out like a brolly (6)
USED-UP: USED-UP;
2 Seasons in the case of Blackpool: rainy or windy! (12)
LABYRINTHINE: (in the bl rainy)*; bl from B(lackpoo)L;
3 Highland forecaster upset by cuts (5)
REAPS: SPAER reversed;
4 Article about large Mediterranean units (5)
ARTAL: ART-A-L; unit of weight, see rotl in Chambers;
6 Record gambling game in cabin (8)
LOG-HOUSE: LOG-HOUSE; Bingo was once known as HOUSE;
7 Insectivore not popular in a south-eastern state (6)
AGOUTA: AG(OUT)A;
8 Short written treatise on area not special for examiner (9)
DISSECTOR: DISS-(s)ECTOR;
9 Is the outline styled as such? (12, two words)
IN, SILHOUETTE: (is the outline)*; nice clue;
10 Head, / one ending in the soup (6)
NOODLE: two meanings;
14 Film unhappy defeat (9, two words)
SHOOT, DOWN: SHOOT-DOWN;
15 University in turn mocks sexual disease? Supposedly (8)
GOUJEERS: GO-U-JEERS; Waggle-Dagger for VD;
19 Quite filling spread with pasty (6)
SALLOW: S(ALL)OW;
20 Rod reportedly became pale (6)
WANNED: sounds like “wand”;
22 Outlaws second-class guys seeking publicity (6)
BADMEN: B-ADMEN; Jack Palance, Lee Marvin, the ones with the black hats whilst Roy Rogers et al wore white
24 Irishman who’s learned nothing lost office (5)
OLLAV: O-L-LAV; office=slang for toilet; I don’t understand “lost” = L
25 Honour given to lecturer, one showing marks on script (5)
OBELI: OBE-L-I;

8 comments on “Mephisto 3032 Tim Moorey starring Jack Palance and Lee Marvin”

  1. Took this at a leisurely pace, and as I recall, spent quite a while working out the wordplay for LABYRINTHINE. I failed to see “seasons ” as the anagram indicator and wondered where the THINE bit came from.

    I think L for Lost is OK: in any footy team’s recent history chart, it’s matches Won Lost Drawn, so Spurs’ last 6 in all matches reads WLWDWL.

    Edited at 2018-10-14 07:42 am (UTC)

  2. It was the Brazilian state that held me up forever, I’ve been to Brazil twice and never heard of that one. Bottom half filled in very quickly, top took a bit longer (expect that story again next week).
  3. I don’t quite get this one; I assumed the state was QATAR, ‘no question’ deleted the Q, leaving ATAR, and the other T from IT, but I didn’t know what to do with the I. In any case, we need that final R.
    1. Thanks for spotting that the deletion indicator for the “r” of Qatar is missing. I’ve amended the blog

      As to “it”, “‘t” is an abbreviation of “it” (see Chambers) so there is no “i” to lose

      1. What I meant is that the R is missing from your solution, which is ATTAR (it’s a 5-letter solution, after all)! It finally occurred to me that ’tis is IT IS without the I; duh.
        1. Thanks – I’m in another world at the moment. Hopefully the blog is now correct!
  4. Got almost everything, but couldn’t come up with SALEROOM (thought of it, couldn’t see how it worked) and ARTAL, which unfortunately crossed it. Also put in PIOB, which at least was in SOED (I know, use Chambers). Ironically, seeing George’s comment, MATO GROSSO was the only Brazilian state I could think of. I biffed LABYRINTHINE from the L, Y, and last I; took me a while to see how it worked, though.

    Edited at 2018-10-15 04:04 am (UTC)

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