THE SKELETON CROSSWORD – £325 in prizes

There is a £100 prize for the first correct solution drawn; nine runners-up receive £25.

Send your completed crossword to the address shown in the box below left. In the skeleton crossword, the black squares and clue numbers have to be filled in as well as the words. Four black squares and four clue numbers have been inserted to give you a start. The black squares form a symmetrical pattern; the top half matches the bottom, and the two sides correspond. You can fill in 12 more squares at once to correspond with those given.

ACROSS

1 Flatter pancake opening

up

4 Mark against small prayer,

perhaps

10 Light left on disturbed

tanner

11 Bad time after playing

Hamlet

12 Son once overdue finally

born

13 Job that’s oddly knackered

beginner

15 Male insiders turned to

frequently (2 words) 16 Peripatetic sprite going in

the right direction?

17 A horse sped around a

circuit

19 Grand record invalidates

chart firsts

22 Diamonds cut in front of

curious egghead

24 Impure relative evacuated

again

25 Profligate paragon in

conflict with the Spanish 26 A goddess has not finished

with a god 27 A merchant about to dash

around

DOWN

1 Make it drag by (2 words) 2 A girl turned in is engaged 3 Female lead of diverse cast 5 Competent lady in Lincoln 6 Path back from decent bar 7 Remarkable claps are cut

out

8 Anxiety-inducing

neurectomy?

9 General surveys more than

tipsy wives

14 Family man who rules,

mostly

15 Leaders of antiquity given

extra time

18 Maybe it’s an Aberdonian

place

20 A secretary a communist

cut

21 An emperor or queen in

denial

23 Leader takes after

extremists