THE PRIZE CROSSWORD

There’s an amazing €2,000 prize for the first correct solution drawn at random in our general knowledge Prize Crossword. Entries must arrive by Friday, March 15 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, April 1. You must complete the iSpy box to enter. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter – and good luck!

Across

1 Large strong horse formerly ridden into battle (7)

5 1936 children’s novel by Noel Streatfeild, runner-up for the inaugural Carnegie Medal (6,5)

10 Mark ---, American author who created Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer (5)

11 A fever-inducing substance (7)

13 Relating to the qualities or pitch of a sound (5)

14 A collection of mixed flower petals, dried and preserved to scent the air (9)

15 Characterised by mocking or ironic language (9)

16 A sultanate on the Arabian Sea, the capital of which is Muscat (4)

17 Canadian-born actress who was a co-founder of the film studio United Artists and was married to Douglas Fairbanks (4,8)

20 A large open container for transporting building materials (4)

21 A variety of green sprouting broccoli (9)

22 Type of plant typically growing in dense mats on trees, rocks and moist ground (4)

26 Nickname of the British king who ruled from 1760-1820 (6,6)

27 A group of people sworn to deliver a true verdict in a court of law (4)

29 Substances added to foods to improve them or prevent deterioration (9)

31 --- Islands, an archipelago in the Pacific west of Ecuador, of which they form a province (9)

33 Robert ---, Commanderin-Chief of British India 1756-60 (5)

34 1978 No1 single by The Boomtown Rats (3,4)

35 Set of pots for holding pepper, salt, vinegar (5)

36 Without having looked at the object at issue, especially in terms of an item for sale (5,6)

37 Crayons made of ground pigment, used for drawing (7)

Down

1 Y-shaped implements with a loop of elastic fastened to the ends of the two prongs, used to shoot stones (9)

2 Nautical term meaning behind or to the stern (5)

3 Long narrow flat-bottomed boats traditionally used on the canals of Venice (8)

4 --- Bear, children’s comic strip character created by Mary Tourtel in 1920 (6)

5 Inland republic in West Africa formerly called the Republic of Upper Volta (7,4)

6 The chief port of Nigeria; the most populous city of that country (5)

7 Hitches that reverse progress, hinder or thwart (8) 8 The study of birds (11)

9 Joined two ropes by intertwining the strands (7)

12 Spring-flowering plants with yellow, orange or white trumpet-shaped blooms (8)

16 American soul singer whose biggest hit was (Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay (4,7)

18 Soviet cosmonaut who made the first manned space flight in 1961 (4,7)

19 The delayed aftereffects of drinking too much alcohol (8)

23 Inflammation of the membrane lining the nasal cavities (9)

24 A garment or robe, especially denoting office, authority or rank (8)

25 People believed to be guilty of a specified offence (8)

26 The current Pope, elected in 2013 (7)

28 (Of meals) lavish, excellent (4-2)

30 Erik ---, French composer and pianist whose works include the Gymnopédies (5)

32 A thin, translucent fabric with a loose open weave (5)