Crossword and sudoku brain-teasers.

Time to steal a quiet moment and flex your brain with Friday’s puzzle pages

ACROSS

1 Florentine painter who worked for the Medici family throughout most of his life; his works include Primavera and a depiction of a deity standing in a scallop shell in The Birth of Venus (10) 6 Pen name of the author who wrote the Jack Reacher series of novels including Killing Floor, Tripwire, One Shot, A Wanted Man and Night School (5) 9 Evergreen shrub and herb related to hyssop, lavender, mint, rosemary and thyme, Salvia officinalis (4) 14 Hors d’oeuvre or appetiser such as a portion of olives, marinated artichoke hearts, prosciutto, mozzarella or roasted almonds, traditionally served as the first course of an Italian meal (9) 15 With a call said by some to sound like Frankie Howerd, the heaviest and fastestflying species of duck in the UK (5) 16 One-twentieth of a ream; a quantity of 24 or 25 sheets of paper (5) 17 Named after a mythological Greek hunter, the constellation containing the stars Rigel and Betelgeuse (5) 18 Flowing through the Three Gorges and known in China as Cháng Jiāng, the longest river in Asia and third-longest in the world (7) 19 Iron-rich leaf vegetable that can be juiced or served in dishes such as eggs Florentine, saag paneer, spanakopita or smoked haddock tart (7) 20 Banded form of chalcedony that can be carved into cameos, cut and polished into cabochons or used to make toy marbles (5) 22 Austrian capital, birth city of Franz Schubert, home of Mozart, Beethoven and the Strauss family, site of the palace and gardens of Schönbrunn (6) 24 Norwegian chess grandmaster who retained the title of World Chess Champion on his birthday in November this year (7) 27 Sitcom starring Dennis Waterman, Sam Kelly, Jenna Russell and Joan Sims that often featured the catchphrase ‘Just the one, Mrs Wembley’ (2,3,2) 29 German physician, co-recipient of a Nobel Prize in 1908 in recognition of his work on immunity (7) 30 Circumstance/condition traditionally symbolised by a four-leaf clover, horseshoe, rabbit’s foot or wishbone (4) 33 Daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn who became queen in 1558 aged 25 and reigned for 44 years (9,1) 35 Line on a map connecting points where the shocks of an earthquake had equal seismic intensity (10) 38 Fibre traditionally used to make Guernsey, Fair Isle or Aran knitwear (4) 40 Architect said to have designed the Parthenon with Callicrates and the sculptor Phidias (7) 42 ___ ____ and Silver; novel by Lavender and Old Lace author Myrtle Reed (3,4) 44 Country with the capital Kiev (7) 46 Actor who starred in Some Like it Hot, The Odd Couple, The Out-of-Towners and Glengarry Glen Ross (6) 47 Classic ballroom dance; or, a piece of

music for such a dance by Johann Strauss II for example (5) 51 In cricket, a delivery characterised by being slow and easy to hit (4,3) 53 Author who wrote novels including Two’s Company, Rumour Has It and The Unpredictable Consequences of Love (7) 54 Type of old Italian silver coin (5) 55 Traditional Inuit dwelling (5) 56 “If __ _ _ _ be the food of love, play on...” - the opening line in Twelfth Night (5) 57 Receptacle used for cooling bottles of water or soft drinks (3,6) 58 Captain ____; character in JM Barrie’s play and novel Peter and Wendy (4) 59 Any of the postures in hatha yoga (5) 60 With manufacturers including Shimano and Campagnolo, the gearshifting mechanism of a geared bike (10)

DOWN

1 Fashion photographer who diversified into costume design and won two Oscars for his work on the film My Fair Lady (6) 2 Historically, a group of 10 householders, each with responsibility for the behaviour of the rest (7) 3 One full point in judo or karate (5) 4 Trial designs of postage stamps (6) 5 Culinary word describing a dish of potatoes cooked with onions (9) 7 Word linking with row to make a habitat forming part of the countryside (5) 8 “Home of Cricket” in St John’s Wood (5) 10 The _______ of Farthing Wood; book by Colin Dann that was adapted into an animated series for children (7) 11 An animal protected by Tusk Trust (8) 12 100th anniversary of an event (9) 13 __ _ _ _ _ _ _ Nutkin; one of the characters created by Beatrix Potter (8) 21 Eighth letter of the Greek alphabet (5) 23 Zodiacal sign symbolised by a ram (5) 24 In physics, the intermolecular attraction that keeps particles stuck together (8) 25 Novelist who wrote The Last September, The Death of the Heart, The Heat of the Day and Eva Trout (5) 26 Cookery book by Nigel Slater (8) 28 Traditional Japanese drum (5) 31 Nickname of the Last of the Summer Wine character played by Bill Owen (5) 32 Hints, either cryptic, quick or general knowledge, forming integral parts of the puzzles solved by cruciverbalists (5) 34 Any one of the 12 red figures or pieces used in the game Monopoly (5) 36 Country with 22 official languages (5) 37 Study and development of systems used to improve and aid the memory (9) 39 Victorian neoclassical artist whose paintings include Cimabue’s