THE PRIZE CROSSWORD
WIN £1,500
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 31 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, April 16. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter.
ACROSS
11 To clear or absolve from blame or a criminal charge (9) 12 See 37 13 Japanese dish of vinegared rice often served with raw fish (5) 14 Round, chocolate-based confection (7) 15 Indigenous people of New Zealand, arriving by canoe from Eastern Polynesia (5) 16 German philosopher and political theorist famous for co-writing The Communist Manifesto (4,4) 18 Polish astronomer best known for his theory that the sun and not the Earth is at the centre of the universe (10) 22 Cooked in water until partially cooked, often before further cooking (9) 24 A city in South East France, on the Rhône; seat of the Papacy from 1309 to 1377 (7) 27 Strong, white or blue-veined, cylindrical cheese (7) 28 Early Renaissance Italian artist and sculptor (9) 30 A district of Northern Paris, on a hill above the Seine, home of many artists during the Belle Époque (10) 32 Hunter S. ---, American journalist and author who wrote the novel Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas (8) 35 Mount ---, the highest peak in Canada (5) 37 and 12 British Prime Minister who was born in Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire (7,9) 38 Leather finished with a fine, velvet-like nap (5) 39 Eleanor of ---, medieval queen consort of France and England; the mother of King Richard I and King John (9) 40 Nocturnal mammals which inhabit African grasslands and feed on termites (9)
DOWN
1 A small toggle, often in the form of a carved ivory or wood figure, used to secure a purse or container suspended on a cord from a kimono sash (7) 2 Compulsory military service (12) 3 Another term for abominable snowman (4) 4 An easy, three-beat gait of a horse, between a trot and a gallop in speed (6) 5 An arboreal Madagascan primate with reflective eyes and a long tail (5) 6 Temporary wooden or metal framework used to support workmen and materials during building work (11) 7 Basil ---, Cardinal, Archbishop of Westminster 1976 to 1999 (4) 8 The --- Cometh, play by Eugene O’Neill first performed in 1946 (6) 9 A public place of recreation, including a pool for swimming or water sports (4) 10 The style of unison unaccompanied vocal music used in the medieval Church, especially in Gregorian chant (9) 17 Jean-Paul ---, Swiss-born radical journalist and politician in the French Revolution, killed in his bath tub (5) 19 To praise highly; glorify (5) 20 People with special knowledge or appreciation of a field, especially in the arts (12) 21 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford (5,6) 23 A legal possessor (5) 25 The religion of Muslims (5) 26 A museum attached to Oxford University, founded in 1683 (9) 29 Any of various aromatic substances burnt for their fragrant odour (7) 31 --- Waltz, a piano waltz composed by Frederic Chopin in 1847 (6) 33 Stephen ---, snooker player who became the youngest-ever World Champion in 1990 (6) 34 In Greek myths, a Titan compelled to support the sky on his shoulders (5) 36 A disease characterised by painful inflammation of certain joints (4) 37 Member of an English political party which opposed the succession to the throne of James II (4) 38 In sport, to prevent a goal (4)