BARE BONES

WIN A COLLINS ENGLISH DICTIONARY AND THESAURUS SET, AND A BRADFORD’S CROSSWORD SOLVER’S DICTIONARY

Our Bare Bones Crossword is unique because you have to complete the grid – numbers and squares – as well. We have inserted four black squares and four clue numbers to get you going. The crossword has a fourway symmetry: both top and bottom and left and right match, so you can fill in 12 more squares straight away.

Across

1 Figures there’s no energy in prestige 5 Survey facial features and point 10 Drinks supplier and common thief (Two words) 11 Mention corrupt military establishment (Two words) 12 Impetuous complaint 13 Fuel for Staffordshire city 14 Predator going backwards in stream 15 Supporter of foul nature 17 Loud note played outside, frequently

18 Flag a recipe containing a thickener 22 Tooth, incorporated, is gold 23 Exact summary, at the end 24 Belief in financial standing 25 Park-keeper gets scope right Down 2 Smart form of transport 3 Long journey, often following star 4 Cooking stir-fry feast without recipe? Caution! (Two words)

5 Gloomy on investment for every condiment (Two words) 6 No arsenal would include sculls 7 Son finding shopping centre unimportant 8 Top student in astronomy? (Two words) 9 Maybe a minor yet vital employee (Two words) 16 Resort on front of Riviera is more pleasant 19 Reported chaps’ appearance 20 Employed American journalist 21 Regarded as part of the play, say