Mephisto2530

[amtaff]

I think I've finished but would appreciate clarification on the wordplays for two clues. 28ac. Peer round a saloon, having first entered, for me?(9) BA?PE?SO?. Barperson? 17d.Give us a tip for cooking English snack(7, two words) ?EA?PIE. Meat Pie?

[Quizmonster]

Us is often used to mean me as in 'Give us it!' So, anagram of me a tip + e = meat pie.
Peer = baron and - I assume - the per somehow conveys 'for me', though I don't quite know how! A barperson works in a saloon. I hope someone can further justify the per.

[Quizmonster]

Just had a closer look at Chambers and pers is an abbreviation of person(ally)...ie for me. For some reason, I was just looking at per without the s!

[amtaff]

Thanks Quizmonster,

[Quizmonkey]

Slight correction to the above explanation (meat pie): it's ME then A then an anagram of TIP then E. Saying it's an anagram of the whole lot is wrong - that would entail an indirect anagram (me is only indicated by us), which Mephisto would never do, plus the wording of the clue does not suggest that.

[Quizmonster]

Ah, but I got there, didn't I? The Mephisto is not permanently without faults, any more than any of us is, is it? Hence, a claim such as "would never do" is suspect at best.
I even suggested that someone might well come up with a better response and a better response did appear. Yes, it was for the other clue, but what the hey!
Good on ye, QM2! Hang in there!

[Quizmonkey]

I beg to differ! Mephisto, Azed and Beelzebub (as well as the majority of other advanced setters) DO follow the Ximenean guidelines - one of which is that indirect anagrams would render a clue unsound.

[Quizmonster]

Quite, but these crosswords do sometimes contain unsound clues! There was one in this very week's Azed, for a start, where 34 across and 26(28) down crossed.
But, enough.