THE PRIZE CROSSWORD

WIN £1,500

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, July 10 (photocopies not accepted). Today’s solution will appear next week and the winner’s name on Sunday, July 26. SEE BELOW THE GRID for details on how to enter.

Across

10 A republic in East

Central Africa (6)

11 A toxic condition of pregnancy characterised by high blood pressure (3-9) 12 The burrow of a badger (4) 13 Dishevelled or ungroomed (7)

14 Island state in East Asia, officially the Republic of China (6)

15 A general pardon, especially for offences against a government (7) 16 Brownish European bird with a musical song (11) 20 In the Roman calendar, the 15th day in March, May, July and October and the 13th day of each other month (4) 21 Low-growing evergreen shrub growing on open ground, having clusters of small, bell-shaped flowers (7) 22 An opinion or doctrine contrary to the orthodox tenets of a religious body or church (6)

23 Line on a map connecting places of equal atmospheric pressure (6)

25 Charles –––, American seismologist who created a scale to measure the magnitude of earthquakes (7)

27 Archaic or poetic name for Ireland (4)

28 Ritual recitation of magic words or sounds (11)

29 Central and South American dish of fresh, raw fish marinated in citrus juices (7)

32 City on an island off the mainland of North Norway, location of the Norwegian Polar Institute’s headquarters (6)

35 A method of raising money by selling numbered tickets and giving a proportion of the money raised to holders of numbers drawn at random (7)

36 Lines of seats, as in a cinema or theatre (4) 37 State of the North East US, the capital of which is Harrisburg (12)

38 ––– Bear, children’s comic strip character created by Mary Tourtel in 1920 (6)

Down

1 Fourth American president, who led his country into war against the United Kingdom (5,7) 2 Restaurants attached to factories and schools that provide meals for a large number of people (8)

3 Stately court dance of the 17th and 18th Centuries in triple time (6)

4 A radial member of a wheel, joining the hub to the rim (5) 5 The ––– manoeuvre, first-aid technique used to dislodge a foreign body in a person’s windpipe (8) 6 A thick soup made from mutton, lamb or beef stock, vegetables and pearl barley (6,5)

7 An agreement between two or more parties or nations (4)

8 ––– spaniel, either of two breeds of large spaniels bred to flush and retrieve game (8)

9 Opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi, first performed in Cairo in 1871 (4)

17 In Greek mythology, fluid said to flow in the veins of the gods (5)

18 Actor who played

Ashley Wilkes in Gone With The Wind, he died when BOAC Flight 777 was shot down by the Luftwaffe in 1943 (6,6)

19 Martina –––, tennis player who won the Wimbledon women’s singles title nine times (11)

21 Damien –––, British artist whose works include the statue Verity (5)

24 Bill –––, former captain of the England and British Lions rugby union teams, chairman of World Rugby since 2016 (8)

26 Small pieces of fried or toasted bread, usually served in soup (8) 27 A quotation at the beginning of a book or chapter (8)

30 The horny front wings of beetles and some other insects (6)

31 Donald –––, inaugural

First Minister of Scotland 1999-2000 (5)

33 A strong, offensive smell (4) 34 A variety of chalcedony, used as a gemstone (4)