CROSSWORD

ACROSS 9 Author of The Hundred and

One Dalmatians (5)

10 Month in which cuckoos typically arrive in the UK (5)

11 Used to flavour custard, ice cream..., the second most expensive spice (7)

13 English _; fragrant flowers of ancient woodlands (9)

14 Picturesque, often mockGothic type of building commonly found in gardens created by Lancelot Brown (5) 15 An animal known in French as a chèvre (4)

16 _ Royal Regatta; rowing event held annually on the Thames which forms part of the British Season (6)

18 The national gemstone of Australia (4)

20 General description of old, often valuable collectables listed in any of the Miller’s price guides and handbooks (8)

23 Europe’s highest, most active volcano (4)

25 Fruit simmered in spiced sugar syrup served as a breakfast with Greek yogurt or a pudding with whipped ricotta (7)

26 Board game with charmlike tokens in the form of top hats and thimbles etc. (8)

28 Another word for a collection of literary excerpts (9)

30 Baize-like non-woven material used for textile arts and the tips of colouring-in pens (4)

31 Equivalent to a man or boy’s bow, a woman or girl’s formal genuflection as a traditional way to greet the Queen (6) 33 Italian word for a traditional straw-covered wine bottle/ flask for Chianti (6)

35 Water _; any one of a series of aquatic flowers with floating heart-shaped leaves (4)

36 One of the Lake Poets (9) 39 _ Palace; designed by Sir John Vanbrugh (8)

41 Time of day celebrated in aubades and loved by people nicknamed “larks” (7)

43 Flower _; song in Lakmé (4) 44 Word linking with fashion, interior and web for three occupations (8)

46 A card game; or, a thin, crisp biscuit (4)

47 Any one of the celestial bodies depicted on a clockwork orrery (6)

50 The Greek Muse of history (4)

52 Author of the Iliad and the

Odyssey (5)

53 Music for the Royal _; suite composed by George Frideric Handel (9)

55 Physicist who discovered the electron (7)

56 Form of musical drama performed at Glyndebourne’s annual festival (5)

57 Grandstand host from 1982-91 (5)

DOWN

1 _ et mon droit; words adopted by Henry V for English/British monarchs that feature on the UK’s Royal Arms (4)

2 _ _ in the Striped Pyjamas; film (3,3)

3 Formal type of hall for waltz, foxtrot, tango and quickstep, for example (8) 4 The _; painting, sculpture and other creative activities collectively (4)

5 Geological formation often with a commanding view of an ocean, gorge, mountain or coastline, sometimes used for abseiling or rock climbing (5)

6 “Island of Apples” in Arthurian legend, identified with Glastonbury (6)

7 Mythological Greek shepherd loved by the moon goddess Selene (8)

8 Any one of a series of cloth or paper pieces forming a line of bunting (4)

9 The colour black in heraldry (5)

12 Author who wrote

Watership Down (5)

17 Director whose films include

Kes and The Wind That Shakes

the Barley (5)

19 Kennet and _ Canal; a waterway flowing through parts of Wiltshire and the Cotswolds (4)

21 The _ Hand; sitcom with Joe McGann, Diana Weston and Honor Blackman (5)

22 Number of events comprising a heptathlon (5) 24 Cartoonist who illustrated Lewis Carroll’s book Alice’s

Adventures in Wonderland (7)

25 Abbreviated name of a musical instrument played by Julian Lloyd Webber (5)

26 Phrase on a coat of arms or crest; or, a quote prefacing a book or chapter (5)

27 Italian dish of pasta sheets of the same name baked in layers with ragù or vegetables with passata and béchamel (7) 29 The Limehouse _; 2016

British film (5)

31 Surname of Peter Sallis’ character Norman in Last of

the Summer Wine (5)

32 Austrian artist who painted

Poppy Field (5)

34 General word for the vocalisations of wrens, robins and other birds forming a dawn chorus (5)

37 Country with national emblems including Bengal tiger and Lion Capital of Ashoka (5)

38 Architect who designed St Paul’s Cathedral and parts of Hampton Court (4)

40 A kitchen utensil used in the preparation of pancake batter, various cakes, omelettes and meringues (3,5)

42 Description of a non-metric weight or measure, such as a stone, foot or pint (8)

44 Blue-and-white Dutch pottery in the form of tulipieres, plates, tiles, vases ... (5)

45 Gloucester’s illegitimate son in King Lear; or, a sibling in The

Chronicles of Narnia (6) 47 Author of Dance To The

Music Of Time (6)

48 Town in Surrey whose racecourse hosts the Derby Stakes and the Oaks (5)

49 The constellation whose stars include Rigel and Betelgeuse (5)

51 Any one of the 24 doublereed woodwind instruments used to perform the suite described in 53 Across (4)

53 Born _; a film about Elsa the lioness (4)

54 An area for boxing or circus performances (4)

Solutions will be given next week. The last date for entries is May 26. The winner of this crossword will be announced on June 5. The winner of the March 20 crossword is Kamran Butt