Mephisto 3353 – John Grimshaw

Posted on Categories Mephisto

Greetings, barred-grid fans

I remember solving this one as soon as it came out, and things falling into place pretty readily. Good puzzle for trusting the wordplay, there’s a lot of unusual words with very clear wordplay.

A reminder that in Mephisto puzzles definitions can be confirmed in Chambers, so if you don’t like a definition, take it out on the Big Red Book.

Away we go…

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Definitions underlined in italics, (ABC)* indicating anagram of ABC, {} deletions and [] other indicators.

Across
1 What makes films run longer? Slumber for some bringing end sooner? (5)
SLO-MO – SLOOM(slumber) with the M at the end moved in a place
5 China locking up referee cheating in the past (7)
MUMPING – MING(China) containing UMP(referee)
10 Fly borne disease — poor horse’s one with it (6)
NAGANA – NAG(poor horse), AN(one), A(it – in dialect A can be any pronoun)
11 Deformed part of engine, not behind ring (6)
CAMSHO – CAMSHAFT(part of engine) minus AFT(behind), then O(ring)
12 Tapestry lacking hems, signs of unwanted modification? (5)
OBELI – GOBELIN(tapestry) minus the outside letters
13 Soldier left in place where Covid arose, missing wife (5)
UHLAN – L(left) inside WUHAN(where Covid arose) minus W(wife)
14 Asians sheltering continental friend with a large tent (8)
SHAMIANA – SHAN(Asians) containing AMI(continental friend), then A
15 Judges approve of a fighter that’s unarmed (6)
JUDOKA – JUD(the book of Judges), OK(approve), A
17 Yielding gum to Julius with many leaflets going out together (11)
MULTIJUGOUS – anagram of GUM,TO,JULIUS
19 Anodyne preference for speech adopting Scots mannerisms? (11)
BALMORALITY – BALM(anodyne), ORALITY(preference for speech)
25 Malcolm Arnold perhaps drops mezzo-piano for Tam O’Shanter’s ride? (6)
COOSER – Malcolm Arnold was a COMPOSER, remove MP(mezzo-piano)
27 Aged rash formed skin fissures (8)
RHAGADES – anagram of AGED,RASH
28 Dipper — another constellation wheeling around us (5)
OUSEL – LEO(a constellation) reversed surrounding US
29 Anzac’s worn-out during following conflict (5)
WARBY – BY(during) after WAR(conflict)
30 Insensitive about one concept in grammar (6)
CRASIS – CRASS(insensitive) surrounding I(one)
31 Waterproof with hood ready inside infant’s cap (6)
CAGOUL – GO(ready) inside CAUL(membrane covering an infant’s head)
32 Holiday drink? God, finally, yes (7)
HALF-DAY – HALF(drink) D(Deus, god), then AY(yes)
33 Mostly idle jester (5)
FESTE – FESTER(idle) minus the last letter. Reference to the fool in Twelfth Night
Down
1 Some may be persuaded by this apple punch favoured by Victoria (7, two words)
SNOW JOB –  SNOW(a white apple), JOB(punch in Australian slang).
2 Warning once about boxer’s top lip (6)
LABRUM – LARUM(warning once) surrounding the first letter of Boxer
3 What’s showing wavy edge round? (5)
OGEED – anagram of EDGE and O(round)
4 Salamander placed under climbing mollusc? Mark of an illiterate activist (8, two words)
MALCOLM X – OLM(salamander) after CLAM(mollusc) reversed, then X(mark of an illiterate)
5 What was highly predatory manner about American president? (11)
MACHAIRODUS – MODUS(manner) surrounding A(American), CHAIR(president)
6 African rebels stealing diamonds from girl more than once (6, two words)
MAU MAU – remove D(diamonds) from MAUD and repeat
7 Might arable land be source of malt? (5)
ISLAY – IS(might), LAY(form of LEA, arable land)
8 Bird, name unknown, round about ten centimetres (6)
NHANDU – NU(name unknown) surrounding HAND(about ten centimetres)
9 Grade apparent risk on a single try (5, two words)
GO NAP –  GON(grade), AP(apparent)
11 State of near neighbours shocked Candace, Cy and Jo (11)
COADJACENCY – anagram of CANDACE,CY and JO
16 Changing money, very little into silver and notes (8)
AGIOTAGE – IOTA(very little) inside AG(silver) and the musical notes G and E
18 Old wretch namely heading family on TV? (7)
SCROYLE – SC(scilicet, namely) then the ROYLE family (heard of them, never watched it)
20 Locally I rush around topping a fast time (6)
ASHURA – A(I, locally), anagram of RUSH, over A
21 Reproduction copy needing light that holds line up (6)
OZALID – DIAZO(copy needing light) containing L(line) all reversed
22 Limited consent though without substantive unanimity at first (6)
YES-BUT – YET(though) containing SB(substantive) and the first letter of Unanimity
23 Tower Bridge has old customs house (5)
BROCH – BR(bridge) and O(old), CH(customs house)
24 Poor man losing a son on tube (5)
VASAL – VASSAL(poor man) minus one S(son)
26 Marathon cycle rails propped up? (5)
SAROS – SORAS(rails, birds) reversed

8 comments on “Mephisto 3353 – John Grimshaw”

  1. Wow, got thru a Grimshaw! And it was pretty amazing, most of the words being heretofore unknown. I do hope to remember them all, after the sometimes laborious process of discovering them. I didn’t parse SNOW JOB until I’d finished, though it was entered long before. Had a couple of write-overs, including HALF-DAY, where I had HOCKDAY, after discovering it in Chambers and finding that it perfectly answered the clue… it just didn’t match the checkers. Remarkable to have an answer that has only two letters different from the word defining it.

  2. 25 was rather neat. The parsing of CAMSHO eluded me because I got hung up on CAM being the engine part then couldn’t explain SH. Turns out to be rather straightforward. I wonder why COADJACENCY exits when ADJACENCY serves?

    1. Great minds: Having seen CAM so often in crosswords, I forgot the “shaft” until my post-finish analysis, and was delighted to finally fully parse that one. COADJACENCY was my first or second in (anagram!) and only after ADJACENCY surprisingly needed COmpany.

  3. Would you believe it. I’ve just picked up Black and Blue by Ian Rankin and BROCH has entered the story – in fact Mousa Broch on Shetland. One less word to look up!

  4. Half done as I dip my toe back into these. Not sure how masochistic it is but the setting of them and the blogs are each impressive. Thanks

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