THE PRIZE CROSSWORD

There’s an amazing £1,500 prize for the first correct solution drawn at random in our general knowledge Prize Crossword. Entries must arrive by Friday, March 03 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, March 19. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter. ACROSS 11 Ancient Greek philosopher; a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great (9) 12 Hampshire town known as the Home of the British Army (9) 13 A small insect which feeds by sucking the sap from plants (5) 14 Princess born in 1990, eighth in line to the throne (7) 15 John ---, American blacksmith and manufacturer who invented the first commercially successful steel plough in 1837 (5) 16 A city in India, in North West Punjab; a centre of the Sikh religion (8) 18 A detailed brochure about a college, school or company (10) 22 A state of the South Western United States, the capital of which is Santa Fe (3,6) 24 --- Falls, waterfall on the border between the United States and Canada (7) 27 Town in central France, the capital of the Yonne department (7) 28 English name for the central Australian sandstone formation Uluru (5,4) 30 The act of adding explanatory notes to a text (10) 32 See 39 35 Franz ---, Austro-Hungarian composer of the operetta The Merry Widow (5) 37 Doris ---, British writer whose novels included The Grass Is Singing (7) 38 A form of light entertainment consisting of a series of topical sketches, songs, dancing or comic turns (5) 39 and 32 The first female US Secretary of State (9,8) 40 Plant typically having small, star-shaped flowers, also known as shepherd’s weatherglass (9) DOWN 1 The capital and largest city of Venezuela (7) 2 The 37th President of the United States; the only American president to resign the office (7,5) 3 A group of pedigree animals, especially horses, kept for breeding purposes (4) 4 In Greek myths, patron goddess of heroic endeavour, known for her calm temperament (6) 5 A twill-weave woollen or worsted fabric, used for clothing (5) 6 Footballer who is England and Manchester United’s all-time top goal scorer (5,6) 7 A heavy hand tool with an arched blade at right angles to the handle (4) 8 See 17 9 Butter clarified by boiling, used in Indian cookery (4) 10 Grandson of King Alfred the Great, whose coronation took place at Kingston upon Thames (9) 17 and 8 Structure spanning the River Thames; an iconic symbol of London (5,6) 19 In anatomy, any bodily cavity or hollow space (5) 20 Annual US holiday observed on the fourth Thursday of November (12) 21 A large, venomous, brightlycoloured lizard inhabiting deserts of the South Western US and Mexico (4,7) 23 Chris ---, American tennis star who won 18 Grand Slam singles championships (5) 25 A love affair, especially a secret or illicit one (5) 26 The former head of the Tibetan government in exile (5,4) 29 Tragedy by William Shakespeare about a general in the Venetian army and his wife Desdemona (7) 31 Aquatic reptile with a flattened shell enclosing its body and flipper-like limbs (6) 33 A dry fruit contained within a shell or a pod, such as peas, beans, peanuts and alfalfa (6) 34 --- Longstocking, fictional creation of Swedish author Astrid Lindgren (5) 36 The skin of an animal (4) 37 A cut of meat from the lower back of an animal (4) 38 Large, fast-running flightless bird native to South America (4)