Greetings, barred-grid fans.
Ready for some more deep dives into Mephisto? Tim Moorey presented a fun puzzle with some unlikely terms, fortunately the precise wordplay gives a way in to the weirdest entries. Fewer pop culture or sport references this time around.
In Mephisto puzzles the definition (I have underlined the one that is the most direct to me) can be confirmed in Chambers, so I will focus on the wordplay here.
Away we go…
| Across | |
| 1 | Ancient Greek marble finally succeeded in America (7) |
| THESEUS – last letter of marblE then S(succeeded) in THE US(America) for the minotaur-slayer | |
| 7 | Piece of music taken from a light part of raga? (4) |
| ALAP – remove the first letter of Music from A LAMP(light) | |
| 10 | In a risky situation having a cracking future? (9, three words) |
| ON THIN ICE – double definition, one alluding to what might actually happen | |
| 11 | Pole mentioned being unskilled (4) |
| RUDE – sounds like ROOD(pole) | |
| 13 | Egyptian girls pretended indeed to get backing (6) |
| ALMAHS – SHAM(pretended) and LA(indeed) all reversed | |
| 14 | Publicity rebuffed after private meetings exposed in the theatre (6) |
| PTERIA – AIR(publicity) reversed after PTE(private) | |
| 16 | Wrap up duck rolls and fish (4) |
| OPAH – HAP(wrap up), and O(duck) reversed | |
| 18 | Tries to contain pressure for sulphides? (6) |
| HEPARS – HEARS(tries) containing P(pressure) | |
| 19 | Small number spoil quarters for religious trainees (9) |
| NOVITIATE – NO(small number), VITIATE(spoil) | |
| 21 | Lime flourishing with one old group of trees (9) |
| MELIACEAE – anagram of LIME, then ACE(one), AE(old, aged) | |
| 24 | Sheet of ratings shocks lecturer (6) |
| STUNS’L – STUNS(shocks), L(lecturer) | |
| 25 | Exclamation from Britain with extremes of bitter winter weather? (4) |
| BRRR – B(Britain) and the last letters of bitteR winteR weatheR | |
| 27 | Day off, climbed high in a tree (6) |
| EMBLIC – remove D(day) from an anagram of CLIMBED | |
| 29 | Miss and one with a Tesla have a breakdown (6, two words) |
| LOSE IT – LOSE(miss), I(one), and T(tesla, the unit) | |
| 30 | Griddle in pub not half advanced (4) |
| TAVA – TAVERN(pub) missing the second half, A(advanced) | |
| 31 | Three notes go with x-ray measurement (9) |
| DOSIMETRY – the musical notes are DO,SI and ME, then TRY(go) | |
| 32 | A certain Republican’s whopper (4) |
| ONER – ONE(a certain), R(republican) | |
| 33 | Fleshy part of leg cut in wound seen on a muscle (7) |
| SCALENE – CALF(fleshy part of leg) minus the last letter inside an anagram of SEEN | |
| Down | |
| 1 | Rising price accepted in lots for very large fish (7) |
| TARPONS – PR(price) and A(accepted) reversed inside TONS(lots) | |
| 2 | Not in good condition after start of home care (4) |
| HOUT – OUT(not in good condition) after the first letter of Home. Think of “giving two hoots” | |
| 3 | Trouble over a nude shot (9) |
| ENDEAVOUR – anagram of OVER,A,NUDE and a clue that raised a smile here | |
| 4 | Went around one part of hospital holding doctor up (6) |
| ENGIRT – ENT(one part of hospital) containing RIG(doctor) reversed | |
| 5 | Middle East ruler brought about government broadcast with a shock (10) |
| SHAG-HAIRED – SHAH(Middle East ruler) surrounding G(government) then AIRED(broadcast) | |
| 6 | Soak clothing with difficulty in tiny stream (6) |
| RILLET – RET(soak) containing ILL(with difficulty) | |
| 7 | Oriental massaging offered by Korean model? (4, two words) |
| AN MO – hidden in KoreAN MOdel | |
| 8 | Star partner of Sonny in a number about right (8) |
| ACHERNAR – CHER(partner of Sonny Bono) inside A, N(number), A(about), R(right) | |
| 9 | Purse empty, urgent call for funds in Latin America (5) |
| PESOS – external letters of PursE containing SOS(urgent call) | |
| 12 | Chef’s papers from past, many in stacks (10) |
| PAPILLOTES – PA(past), then LOT(many) inside PILES(stacks) | |
| 15 | Comparatively weak on the road? Not this ruler (9) |
| TAMERLANE – TAMER(comparatively weak), LANE(road). I knew the poem, did not know it was about a real person | |
| 17 | Coward’s Private Lives primarily about love, romantic or not? (8) |
| POLTROON – first letters of Private, Lives surrounding O(love), then an anagram of OR,NOT | |
| 20 | A bit of cloth advanced by the French? (7) |
| PERCALE – PER(a), the first letter of Cloth, then A(advanced), LE(the in French) | |
| 22 | Sort of dog some like unrestrained for a change (6) |
| ESKIMO – anagram of SOME and the internal letters of lIKe | |
| 23 | Language? Yes, used by many Andeans raising alpacas, originally (6) |
| AYMARA – AY(yes) and the first letters of Many Andeans Raising Alpacas | |
| 24 | Almost convinced about old Italian bread (5) |
| SOLDO – SOLD ON(convinced about) minus the last letter | |
| 26 | Peculiar contracted fence of stakes catching fish (4) |
| WEIR – WEIRD(peculiar) missing the last letter | |
| 28 | Russian in assembly dead detached? (4) |
| IVAN – DIVAN(poetic assembly) minus D(dead) | |
This one took me a while – there were some tricky literals here. Meetings exposed in the theatre? Sheet of ratings? Fortunately, there were some very easy ones to get started on – very easy for Mephisto, that is. I was surprised to find a prominent star I had never heard of, even though it is not visible from the Northern hemisphere.
I found this really hard. I’m not sure how long it took me because I left the timer running at one point but it was the best part of an hour I think.