Mephisto 2644 by Tim Moorey

Posted on Categories Mephisto
I found this a little on the difficult side and particularly the SW corner where I took a while to see how SAICS worked and to remember that ACRE was a port, something I verified via Google. No queries or quibbles, another good value Mephisto.

Across
1 GREBO – (O-BERG reversed); oxygen=O; mountain=BERG; West Midlands slang for rockers, greasers, etc;
5 TAPIOCA – TAP-I-O-CA; get money from=TAP; one=I; old=O; accountant=CA; school dinners remembered with a shudder;
10 ARGO – AR-GO; Arkansas=AR; say=GO; large constellation Argo Navis spotted by Ptolemy and now split into three constellations;
11 PAVILION – two meanings 1=building by cricket square behind which…. 2=hospital block;
12 BOANERGES – BO(ANE)RGES; Argentian poet=Jorge BORGES 1899-1986; an (old)=ANE; Jesus’ Aramaic name for James and John, sons of Zebedee and friends to Dougal and Ermantrude;
15 PIPI – PIP-I; imagined illness=PIP-5; shellfish from NZ found on the beach at low tide;
16 EATAGE – (n)EAT-(p)AGE;
17 EISELL – E-I-SELL: old word for vinegar;
18 DINANDERIE – DINAN-D(one)-ERIE; Walled Breton town=DINAN; brassware from Dinant, Walloon city in Belgium;
20 TREMOLANDI – (an old timer)*; musical term for a trembling effect favoured by Franz Liszt;
24 SANCAI – (see=C + Asian)*; must=frenzied state=anagrind; colourful Chinese ceramic glaze;
25 DOONAS – SAN-OO-D all reversed; pair=two scores of zero (cricket); had=D; a duvet in Darwin (from a trademark);
26 ACRE – hidden reversed (m)ERCA(ntile); ancient northern Israeli port;
29 PIGNORATE – P-I-G(N)O-RATE; quietly=P; I=I; try=GO; knight=N (chess); value=RATE; to visit uncle;
30 CABOSHED – C(AB)O-SHED; seaman=AB; company=CO; full face (heraldry);
31 ANTI – hidden twice (Byz)ANTI(um) and (Const)ANTI(nople);
32 SEETHES – SEE-THE-S; sun=S;
33 OSCAN – O-SCAN; ordinary=O; old word for judge=SCAN; ancient people of Southern Italy and their language;
 
Down
1 GABFEST – G(A-BF)EST; fool=BF; hoary tale=GEST; WI meeting;
2 EGAL – (r)EGAL; Waggledagger (=Will) for equal;
3 BONSAI – (bosnia)*;
4 OP-ED – (c)OPED; article OP-posite the ED-itorial;
5 TAR-SEALING – TAR’S-EALING; laying the surface of the road;
6 PIERID – (cli)P-IE-RID;
7 OILIER – (b)OIL(I)ER;
8 COMPLICANT – COMPLI(C)ANT; colt=C (horse racing);
9 ANVIL – A-N(V)IL; duck=zero (cricket)=NIL; it’s that ear bone again;
13 ONAGRACEAE – ON(A-GRACE-A)E; about=A; a certain type=ONE; the evening primrose family;
14 GRENADINES – (serenading)*; with St Vincent in the southern Windward Islands;
19 EPSTEIN – (step)*-EIN; Jacob Epstein 1880-1959 controversial sculptor as with his offering called Night and Day at 55 Broadway, St James, London;
21 ENROBE – (no beer)*;
22 OAFISH – OA-FISH; on account=OA; person=(queer) FISH;
23 DOBRAS – (SAR-BOD all reversed); fish=SAR; money (tin) on Sao Tome in Gulf of Guinea;
24 SAICS – projects=sails then double l=50 to c=100 gives SAI-C-S; Mediterranean ships;
27 DODO – DOD-O; clip=DOD; of=O;
28 BANC – B-AN-C; characters next to A=B AN(d) C; a judge’s bench;

One comment on “Mephisto 2644 by Tim Moorey”

  1. The version we got of the Guardian crossword in the Hindu dated 24 july ( newspaper)
    has either the grid or the clues wrong.please send the correct version
    thanks
    1A is “identify one abbreviated US state

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