Mephisto 3120 - Soothing the savage breast
I found this Mephisto a little challenging. I got off to a good enough start, but found the last few a little tough to pin down. Part of my problem is that the letters supplied in 27 are a perfect anagram of two different phrases, only one of which is correct. Normally, if you get a sensible answer and the anagram letters check perfectly, you're home free, so this was very difficult to detect.
If this week's pun is Cornish pasty, then some re-arrangement of the sounds is required. Any other suggestions?
| 1 | Evasive about the Senior Service being old-fashioned (5) |
| CORNY - CO(R.N.)Y, one that should go right in. | |
| 5 | Chap ties up pot-pourri (8) |
| PASTICHE - Anagram of CHAP TIES, another one that is not too difficult. | |
| 11 | Century — Root’s opening without difficulty here (6) |
| CREASE - C + R[oot] + EASE, a bit of a cricket &lit, using a living person, as is allowed on Sundays only.. | |
| 12 | Expect a passage cut when rumpy-pumpy is added (5) |
| AWAIT - A + WA[y] + IT. | |
| 14 | Cologne is where a welder and tavern party (13, two words) |
| LAVENDER WATER - Anagram of WELDER and TAVERN; not a good surface, in my opinion. | |
| 15 | Obsessive about English course (8) |
| ONETRACK - ON + E + TRACK. | |
| 18 | Flipping citation about Isaiah is florid (7) |
| ASIATIC - CiTA + ISA backwards, a surviving specialized meaning of the historically correct form. | |
| 19 | I cut “OAPs” rhyme, “breeze” in sound treatment perhaps (13) |
| MUSICOTHERAPY - Anagram of I CUT "OAPS" RHYME, one I just biffed and then saw was an anagram. | |
| 21 | Most calm surveyor’s right to become name (7) |
| EVENEST - EVE(-r,+N)EST, with a very clearly indicated letter substitution. Referring to Sir George Everest, and not the mountain - although you can get the answer that way too. | |
| 25 | Charlie had a lot in motion going from a terminal (8) |
| CATHODAL - Anagram of C + HAD A LOT. | |
| 27 | It’s likely he hears accent differently (13, three words) |
| THE CHANCES ARE - Anagram of HE HEARS ACCENT, which unfortunately is also an anagram of THERE'S A CHANCE. | |
| 28 | A defunct alliance in Station Zero (5) |
| SEATO - SEAT + O, remembered from the US stamp issued in 1960. | |
| 29 | Try polls in this smart suit (6) |
| HEARTS - HEAR + T[hi]S | |
| 30 | Bearing success Yankee becomes coloured deep-red (8) |
| PORTWINY - PORT + WIN + Y, where a rather archaic meaning of port is required. | |
| 31 | What pinpointed deep problems in Argentina’s dictator? (5) |
| ASDIC - Hidden in [Argentin]A'S DIC[tator]. | |
| Down | |
| 2 | Rob avoiding strengthening worshipper (5) |
| ORANT - [rob]ORANT, which I just biffed. | |
| 3 | What gets you back on poetry — good sense? (11, two words) |
| REVERSE GEAR - RE VERSE + G + EAR. | |
| 4 | In Pandemonium then gain nowt from the Ploughman Poet (8) |
| NAETHING - Anagram of THEN GAIN, presumably the word that the author of Piers Ploughman would use. | |
| 5 | Hamper, in places, set in salon’s craft giving pleasure? (6) |
| PEDALO - I just biffed the obvious answer, thinking I would figure out the cryptic later - but I still don't see it. It must be rather tricky. Evidently, PED + [s]ALO[n], although "set in salon" is a very vague indication of which letters to use. | |
| 6 | Porter, perhaps, on college fellow who's smart (4) |
| ALEC - ALE + C, for a smart alec. | |
| 7 | Tops in special chests (5) |
| SARKS - S + ARKS, tops for the braw laddies up north. | |
| 8 | Foreign waste in ports (7) |
| TAWNIES - Anagram of WASTE IN, which I didn't see until I came to do the blog. | |
| 9 | Spiteful women beat Duke ’arshly — sine qua non for BS? (11, two words) |
| CAT STANDARD - CATS TAN D 'ARD. |
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| 10 | Hospital overlooking deadly device hastened no more (4) |
| HIED - H + I.E.D, improvised explosive device. | |
| 11 | Sets about hostel blokes in excesses in old play (9) |
| CLOYMENTS - CLO(Y MEN)TS, i.e. the YMCA. The literal refers to a single usage in Twelfth Night. | |
| 13 | Stay with cleric rejecting a change for enablers of movement? (9) |
| TRICYCLES - Anagram of STAY + CLERIC - A. | |
| 16 | Spread round colonel’s covert command in trees (8) |
| MARGOSAS - MARG + O + S.A.S, where the spread is more commonly spelt marge. | |
| 17 | Entertainment murders method (7) |
| ICESHOW - ICES HOW. | |
| 20 | Witty remark by child, why in speaking like a jerk (6) |
| HITCHY - HIT + CH + sounds like WHY. | |
| 22 | Is capital based on current sections of columns? (5) |
| SCAPI - 'S CAP + I. | |
| 23 | Mademoiselle’s match is holier-than-thou about crafty conduct (5) |
| PARTI - P(ART)I. | |
| 24 | Against accepting male alternative for Little Ted? (4) |
| THEO - T(HE)O, with the usual specialized use of TO. | |
| 26 | Use coercion losing the top two — I beg your pardon? (4) |
| ANON - [le]AN ON, another archaic usage. | |