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, April 26 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, May 12. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter.
Across 11 An addition, alteration or improvement to a motion, law or rule (9) 12 Cultural period considered to be the last part of the Stone Age, which ended when metal tools became widespread (9) 13 Daniel –––, English writer whose most famous work was the 1719 novel Robinson Crusoe (5) 14 Hillary –––, Secretary of State during Barack Obama’s first presidential term (7) 15 A strong rush or sweep, sudden increase (5) 16 See 8 Down 18 Tree of the myrtle family widely cultivated for its timber and the medicinal oil in its leaves (10) 22 A smooth-skinned, yellow fruit, also called the carambola (4,5) 24 Style of interiors, jewellery and architecture at its height in the 1930s (3,4) 27 The liquorice-flavoured aromatic seeds of a Mediterranean umbelliferous plant, used to flavour Sambuca (7) 28 In Greek mythology, a beautiful youth who fell in love with his reflection (9) 30 In heraldry, a motif representing a lily with three distinct petals (5-2-3) 32 Charles – – – – – –, French general and statesman who served as President of France 1959-1969 (2,6) 35 The first public appearance of an actor or musician (5) 37 In law, a supplement modifying a will or revoking some provision of it (7) 38 Stringed musical instrument with a long neck and a circular, drum-like body (5) 39 A riddle, especially one whose answer makes a play on words (9) 40 Plants with purplish flowers and forked roots, formerly thought to have magic powers (9)
Down 1 Dick – – – – – –, American entertainer who starred in 1964’s Mary Poppins (3,4) 2 County in East England in which Luton is to be found (12) 3 A brink or verge (4) 4 A fastening consisting of two strips of nylon fabric, one of which has tiny hooked threads and the other a coarse surface (6) 5 A space or room within the roof of a house (5) 6 People who teach a skill such as driving or skiing (11)
7 and 21 The sixth President of the US and the son of the second US President (4,6,5)
8 and 16 Across Nikolai – – – –––, Russian composer of the orchestral suite Scheherazade (6-8) 9 The Norse god of thunder, depicted as wielding a hammer (4) 10 The act of entering upon or attaining to an office or right (9) 17 Traditional saying or proverb (5) 19 Family of Italian violin makers who flourished at Cremona in the 16th and 17th Centuries (5) 20 A port in Northeast Greece, the country’s secondlargest city (12) 21 See 7 23 A soft sweet made from sugar, butter and cream or milk (5) 25 Opera in three acts by Puccini, first performed in 1900 (5) 26 Animated Looney Tunes character originally voiced by Mel Blanc (5,4) 29 A sense of deep regret and guilt for a misdeed (7) 31 The light-sensitive membrane that lines the inner surface of the back of the eyeball (6) 33 A borough of West London, the location of famous film studios (6) 34 A person who is mischievous in a likeable way (5) 36 City on the Rhine which was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 (4) 37 An underground storage organ present in plants such as the crocus and gladioli (4) 38 Protective layer on the outside of the stems of woody plants (4)