If you do the Mephisto and the Listener, you gor a double dose of Don Manley last weekend - I found the Listener enjoyable as well (and if you are looking to try out the series, it is on the easier side of Listeners, particularly if you have been solving Don Manley clues here and in the daily/quick cryptics.
This was a pretty steady solve, and another fun grid, with 90-degree symmetry and longer entries around the outside.
In Mephisto puzzles, definitions (the first of which is underlined) can be confirmed in Chambers, so I will be focusing on the wordplay.
Away we go...
| Across | |
| 1 | Horrible person, intellectual of a certain hue? (9) |
| PIGMENTAL - PIG(horrible person), MENTAL(intellectual) | |
| 11 | A Parisian, I had to be member of a church (6) |
| UNIATE - UN(a in French), I, ATE(had) | |
| 12 | Indian animal that’s awful crossing a lake (5) |
| BALOO - BOO(that's awful!) surrounding A, L(lake). I'm going to guess most of us know this word via Kipling | |
| 13 | Phone America for something to help broken bones (6) |
| CALLUS - CALL(phone), US(America) | |
| 14 | Class with Scripture etc making one behave better (6) |
| REFORM - a class with Scripture etc could be a RE FORM | |
| 16 | Plant with bacterial disease — leaf’s beginning to wither (8) |
| WISTERIA - LISTERIA(bacterial disease) with the first letter of Leaf replaced by the first letter of Wither | |
| 17 | A short time entertaining one good chum abroad (5) |
| AMIGO - A, MO(short time) containing I(one), G(good) | |
| 19 | Cent in terrible state, coin no longer usable (6) |
| SCEATT - C(cent) inside an anagram of STATE | |
| 20 | Fabric is brought round to be displayed outside room (6) |
| SHALLI - IS reversed surrounding HALL(room) | |
| 21 | Around home let’s spread cheap decoration (6) |
| TINSEL - IN(home) inside an anagram of LET'S | |
| 25 | Prostitutes having game start to linger repeatedly in back street (6) |
| TRULLS - RU(game), and the first letter of Linger twice in ST(street) reversed | |
| 28 | Sends back a wee amount (5) |
| STIME - EMITS(sends) reversed | |
| 30 | True stories coming from couples once more (8) |
| RE-ALLIES - REAL(true), LIES(stories) | |
| 31 | Good-for-nothing to be stupid as before, having adopted new name (6) |
| DONNAT - DOAT(to be stupid) surrounding N(new) and N(name) | |
| 32 | Distinct political group full of love repeatedly sweet-talking (6) |
| WOOING - WING(distinct political group) containing O(love) twice | |
| 33 | Playful lord in court in charge (5) |
| LUDIC - LUD(lord in court), IC(in charge) | |
| 34 | Initial earnings with a debit to be arranged (6) |
| EBITDA - A with an anagram of DEBIT | |
| 35 | Transvestites in red dancing in parties (9) |
| BERDASHES - anagram of RED inside BASHES(parties) | |
| Down | |
| 2 | Maiden rushed up to meet the first person in embrace (5) |
| INARM - M(maiden), RAN(rushed) reversed after I(first person) | |
| 3 | Highland assistant that is buried under wooded glen (6) |
| GILLIE - IE(that is) under GILL(wooded glen) | |
| 4 | African islander, once a prisoner in crushed condition (8) |
| MALAGASH - A LAG(prisoner) in MASH(crushed condition) | |
| 5 | Indonesian den, one with nothing inside (6) |
| NESIOT - NEST(den) contaning I(one) and O(nothing) | |
| 6 | Sailors coming to American city where saint was born (6) |
| TARSUS - TARS(Sailors) and US(American) for the birthplace of Saint Paul | |
| 7 | Helps when chance has to be seized (5) |
| ABETS - AS(when) containing BET(chance) | |
| 8 | Like colourful festival, free for all (6) |
| FLORAL - anagram of FOR,ALL | |
| 9 | Mountain sheep loves to look down on valley and lake (6) |
| OORIAL - O and O (loves) over RIA(valley) and L(lake) | |
| 10 | Philanderer more prudent going round Arab land (9) |
| WOMANISER - WISER(more prudent) surrounding OMAN(Arab land) | |
| 15 | Corrupt celebrity in ill setting (9) |
| BASTARDLY - STAR(celebrity) inside BADLY(ill) | |
| 18 | Strawberry about to be munched — the fellow’s to eat it (8) |
| HAUTBOIS - anagram of ABOUT inside HIS(the fellow's) | |
| 22 | Ignore little old cutie getting sozzled (6, two words) |
| ICE OUT - anagram of O(little old) and CUTIE | |
| 23 | Non-flying bird needs help — one taken outside to go up (6) |
| NHANDU - HAND(help) inside UN(one) reversed | |
| 24 | What one is looking for in new role is to kill time (6) |
| LOITER - one is looking for IT inside an anagram of ROLE | |
| 25 | Muscular youngster (old-fashioned type) has cut in (6) |
| THEWED - TED(youngster) with HEW(cut) inside | |
| 26 | Early woman, evil ultimately — I left husband, it is gathered (6) |
| LILITH - last letter of eviL, then I, L(left), H(husband) containing IT. Clever clue, as LILITH was the first wife of Adam | |
| 27 | Good material that adds a certain gloss (5) |
| GLACE - G(good), LACE(material) | |
| 29 | African with long hair hugging duke (5) |
| MANDE - MANE(long hair) surrounding D(duke) | |
