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, August 24 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, September 9. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter.

ACROSS

1 1938 novel by Graham Greene featuring the character Pinkie Brown (8,4) 8 A fishing port and resort in East North Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk (6) 11 A port in East Spain on the Mediterranean, Spain’s third-largest city (8) 12 Another name for the gorse plant (5) 13 ––– Bay, bay on the West Coast of the Isle of Wight famed for its multi-coloured cliffs (4) 14 John –––, English poet whose works included the Ode On A Grecian Urn (5) 15 The ––– –––, rock band fronted by Mick Jagger, formed in London in 1962 (7,6) 17 The proverbially scolding and quarrelsome wife of Socrates (9) 19 The Communist Party organisation in the former Soviet Union and other states (7) 23 Unit of distance equal to 1760 yards (4) 24 Informal term for the conventional postal system, as opposed to email (5,4) 25 A painful spot on the body, such as an ulcer or boil (4) 26 A full-bodied, amber-coloured sherry (7) 28 The process of attracting attention to people and products by the use of the media (9) 31 New England state of the North East US, on the Atlantic (13) 34 David –––, captain of the England cricket team during the 1985 Ashes series (5) 36 In the Old Testament, the twin brother of Jacob (4) 37 A false or assumed identity (5) 38 Christian festival held on January 6, commemorating the manifestation of Christ to the Magi (8) 39 Waterproof, hip-length, usually hooded jacket (6)

40 and 20 Down Royal residence on the River Thames originally built for Cardinal Wolsey (7,5,6)

DOWN

2 The Grim –––, imaginary character who represents death (6) 3 Very large breed of dog with a short, smooth coat (5,4) 4 In Mexican cookery, a tortilla folded or rolled around a filling (4) 5 Ice cream, usually in brick form, with several layers of different colours and flavours (10) 6 The edible internal parts of an animal (5) 7 The standard monetary unit of the Czech Republic (6) 8 A widow’s black mourning clothes (5) 9 ––– Duncan, Americanborn dancer who died in a freak automobile accident in France in 1927 (7) 10 Charles –––, 19th Century French poet who wrote Les Fleurs Du Mal (10) 16 Medical term for a stagnation in the normal flow of bodily fluids (6) 18 An Eastern dish consisting of rice flavoured with spices and cooked in stock, to which meat, poultry or fish may be added (5) 20 See 40 Across 21 Henry –––, British novelist best known for Tarka The Otter (10) 22 Location in Lower Manhattan of the New York Stock Exchange and major banks (4,6) 25 Suffolk site where a 7th Century Saxon longboat containing rich grave goods was unearthed in 1939 (6,3) 27 Person who brings someone or something out of danger or harm (7) 29 Capital of the state of Bavaria, twinned with Edinburgh (6) 30 Edward – – –, English scientist who was the first doctor to introduce and study the smallpox vaccine (6) 32 A soft, fine-grained, white sedimentary rock (5) 33 Surrey racecourse where The Derby is run every June (5) 35 A person’s manner, bearing or mood (4)