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Thank you Don,
I think 1d is as amusing as 28a. I have only been
doing the Mephisto since March,and I think it is
a source of v amusing answers! I now have to
finish the top right corner.
Regards,
Jerry

10d Does anybody know if the following letters I
have entered are correct S?U?ME? FEVER
Any help gratefully received to finish the thing
Jerry

I think I have solved 10d and believe it is
SPOTTED FEVER. The only one left to get is 18a
Hardy types showing flipping bacteria.The solution
(I think) is PERTS which could be construed as
Strep in reverse,the Hardy connection is my only
problem.
J

Could I get some help with 33a "Earth in place of squirrel repelled" (4)? I have Y?RA but can't, for the life of me, get an explanation for the answer.

Oh, I see, it's YARD (dray backwards). Will have to sort out that bad "A" now....

Hi Jim,
Have you got 28a yet,it's very amusing I think.
Do you have a solution to 18a yet as it is the
only one I am not sure about?
Best wishes
Jerry

Sorry for the delayed response - just got in.

28a is a bit funny, as it's not what one might expect from a prestigious newspaper. I wonder if the editor knows?

18a: I put PERTS as, I think, others discussed before, as STREP backwards seems compelling. The way I see it is ... PER (latin 'through' - could have meaning 'hardy' as in 'we will get through this' ?) and TS for types. I wonder what the compiler actually had in mind though; would be interesting to know.

26d led me all around the block. At first I had BREDA (ie braid.. maybe, if concerning hair: dreadlock). Later, I had it as DREDA (diminutive of Eldreda, feminine form of Eldred/Aldred, meaning 'old counsel'). Finally, realising the final 'A' messed up YARD, I had a third shot at it to get the (I hope) correct answer.

Brain hurting! .. Jim

Hi Jim,
I too had a struggle until it struck me it was just an anag. of DREAD. I trust you now have
AREDD. For 19a I have KERF,but can't see the
garden plot bit.
Have you completed yet?
Regards,
Jerry

Have AREDD also.

As for 19a, I agree KERF (bacK + ERF = a cut/slit made by a saw) is probably the answer that the compiler had in mind ('erf' being an old word for a garden plot). But, I quite like an alternative word NERF (N=near/close + ERF = a reduction/cut of something in a computer game). So it will be interesting to see when the solution is revealed!

Oh you also asked ... as to whether I have completed it ... all I can say is that I have letters in every cell of the crossword. Whether or not I have the right letters is entirely open to question.