Solving time: 22 minutes
A lovely cinematic experience from Brummie today. Many of the clues shared the solution to 9 as a definition. The usual smattering of clever and nudge nidge wink wink clues as well.
ACROSS (*)= anagram (CD)= Cryptic def (R)= Reversal
1 MAFIOSI AIMS OF* + I
5 BROOKS (Mel) Triple definition if you include 9.
9 DIRECTOR DIRE (Awful) + T inside COR (Gordon Bennett!)
10 ASTHMA Nice def (“No jolly wheeze”) AS (like) + TH(E) + MA(ID)
12 BODY SNATCHER BODY (Corporation) + SNATCHER (Grasping type)
15 FATHER’S DAY Another nice def. HAYES’ DRAFT *
17 LEE Ang or Spike (K) + LEE
19 RAY Indian director Satyajit. (G)RAY
20 SYNTHESIZE SYN+THE (said “Evil” + article) + SIZE (Takes me back to my childhood! – a type of wallpaper paste)
22 ASTROPHYSICS SOPHISTRY* inside AC (Bill) + S (Gates’ end)
26 ISOLDE IS OLD + E
27 VOCALISE (VASE + CLEO) *
29 ENTERED TREE* inside END
DOWN
1 MODE MOD + E
2 FORD John – FOR + D
3 ONCE OVER Def =Butcher’s (Cockney Rhyming slang – Butcher’s Hook = Look) ONCE (L)OVER
4 IVORY Linked with 18 – O R inside IVY
7 OPHTHALMIC CHIMP LOATH*
8 STARRY EYED CD If you get hit on the head, you’d see stars!
11 IN FACT IN + FACT
13 OFF ROADING OFF + GORDIAN*
14 STAY AT HOME
15 SCYTHE CHESTY*
18 MERCHANT R + C inside MEANT
21 JORDAN Neil. RD inside JOAN (La Stupenda)
23 STONE Oliver
24 WEIR Peter sounds like We’re
25 REED Sir Carol DEER (R)
27a anagram doesn’t quite work
27a Look what I found … vocalese http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocalese
Sorry, it should have beeen VOCALESE – typo on my part.
27a had to be VOCALESE even though it isn’t in Chambers
19A
I am nit-picking here, but surely American director Nicholas Ray [Rebel without a Cause, etc.] rather than Satyajit Ray. Well done though on the 22 minutes, the wife and I finished it at 23.30 last night having started it some 12 hours earlier. We did though other things in-between though.