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 2 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, March 18. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter.
ACROSS
11 A person who rebels against any authority, established order or ruling power (9) 12 See 33 Down 13 A light cotton, silk or other fabric with a fine ridged or crinkled surface (5) 14 Coarse linen stiffened with gum or paste, used as interfacing and in bookbinding (7) 15 A state of North East India which produces large quantities of tea (5) 16 A winter sports resort in the Cairngorms National Park, Scotland (8) 18 A town in East Lancashire, on the River Hyndburn (10) 22 People who desert one cause or party for the opposition (9) 24 Jean –––, 20th Century French poet, novelist, dramatist, artist and filmmaker (7) 27 Maurice –––, French painter born in Montmartre, known for his cityscapes (7) 28 A highly toxic, radioactive metallic element (9) 30 To place in office formally and ceremonially, induct (10) 32 A collection of containers holding pepper, salt, vinegar or oil at table (5,3) 35 A Caribbean dance in which dancers pass, while leaning backwards, under a bar (5) 37 A short poem, especially a satirical one, with a witty or ingenious ending (7) 38 A lake between East California and West Nevada, in the Sierra Nevada Mountains (5) 39 The –––, collection of 100 novellas by Giovanni Boccaccio, written in the 1350s (9) 40 Leslie –––, author best known for creating Simon Templar, aka ‘The Saint’ (9)
DOWN
1 Of or relating to Passover or Easter (7) 2 The largest lake in Africa by area (4,8) 3 The culminating point of achievement or excellence, summit or peak (4) 4 Colley –––, English actormanager and playwright who was Poet Laureate from 1730 until his death in 1757 (6) 5 Virginia –––, a popular garden plant cultivated for its white-and-pink, fragrant flowers (5) 6 An international yachting trophy, first awarded in 1851 (8,3) 7 A stratagem for gain, a swindle (4) 8 ––– Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer and statesman whose works included The Sorrows Of Young Werther (6) 9 Large containers for holding or storing liquids (4) 10 In Greek myths, a king of Crete who fought on the Greek side in the Trojan War (9) 17 Edible mushroom with a pitted cap (5) 19 The right-hand pages of a book, bearing the odd numbers (5) 20 An atmospheric layer of the Earth, lying between the mesosphere and the exosphere (12) 21 A mountain system of Central and Eastern Europe (11) 23 The part of a cathedral, abbey or church in front of the altar, lined on both sides with benches (5) 25 South American republic on the Pacific, the capital of which is Santiago (5) 26 A simultaneous or rapid continual discharge of firearms (9) 29 A person who does not believe in God or gods (7) 31 People employed to clean and look after horses (6)
33 and 12 Across The first British Labour Party Prime Minister (6,9) 34 An agreement to stop fighting, especially temporarily (5) 36 A spice made from the lacy covering around a nutmeg seed (4) 37 The light beige or offwhite colour of unbleached linen (4) 38 Jacques –––, French filmmaker and comic actor who created Monsieur Hulot (4)