THE PRIZE CROSSWORD

WIN €2,000

There’s an amazing €2,000 prize for the first correct solution drawn at random in our general knowledge Prize Crossword. Entries must arrive by Friday, December 31 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, January 16. You must complete the iSpy box to enter. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter – and good luck!

Across

11 To cause a fluid to change into a soft semi-solid mass (9)

12 A chemical that destroys plants, especially weeds (9) 13 and 36 Down Museum ship

in Greenwich, London (5,4) 14 Lists of ingredients and directions for preparing and making dishes (7)

15 Judi ---, Oscar-winning actress made a dame in 1988 (5)

16 An area of Northwest France; the peninsula between the English Channel and the Bay of Biscay (8)

18 F. Scott ---, American writer whose works include the novel The Great Gatsby (10)

22 A type of German pork sausage (9)

24 One of the three main types of rock, formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or lava (7)

27 A city on the Rhone in Southeast France; seat of the Papacy 1309-77 (7)

28 A state of the North Central US, the capital of which is Saint Paul (9)

30 Swedish-born 20th-Century Hollywood actress whose films include 1935’s Anna Karenina (5,5)

32 To convert from code into plain text (8)

35 Sticky substance produced by some trees (5)

37 The derived SI unit of electric charge (7)

38 A vessel, usually flatbottomed, used for transporting freight, especially on canals (5)

39 The circular horizontal platform of a record player (9) 40 Dizzy ---, 20th-Century

American jazz trumpeter (9)

Down

1 A small square block of frozen water (3,4)

2 Town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, designated a new town in 1947 (4,8)

3 Tyson ---, British boxer; the current WBC heavyweight champion (4)

4 Emmanuel ---, President of France who assumed office in 2017 (6)

5 Edward ---, English pirate better remembered as Blackbeard (5)

6 The act of stealing goods from a store during opening hours (11)

7 In Greek mythology, the god of war; son of Zeus and Hera (4)

8 An informal name for a violin (6)

9 A type of dinghy, designed to be sailed by one person (4)

10 A Protestant Christian denomination that derives from John Wesley’s system of faith and practice (9)

17 Mark ---, American author who created Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer (5)

19 Name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 1997 (5)

20 The use of fragrant essential oils as a treatment in complementary medicine (12)

21 A custard dessert covered with caramelized sugar (5,6)

23 --- Jackson, American singer known as The Queen of Rockabilly (5)

25 In the Old Testament, the mother-in-law of Ruth (5)

26 A mixed drink containing tequila and lemon juice (9)

29 Virginia ---, a woody vine with adhesive-tipped tendrils, bluish-black fruits and red leaves in autumn (7)

31 Related by descent from a common male ancestor (6)

33 To treat a body with preservatives (6)

34 Either of two long-bodied short-legged sturdy breeds of dog, the Cardigan and the Pembroke (5)

36 See 13 Across

37 A section of The Scout Association (4)

38 Situations in which players or teams win a round of a contest by virtue of having no opponent (4)