Autumn/Winter 2025 Prize Quiz: Winner and Answers

Fingal's Cave, the answer to clue 26. Photo. luxpim, Flickr

Very many thanks to everyone who entered our Scotland-themed quiz and attempted to crack John's cryptic clues. Your support is very much appreciated.

Thank you also for the money sent to Wirral Wildliife for the entry fees, and we are especially grateful for the donations we received.

We received a total of 132 entries, of which 38 were all correct. We had a random draw to select the winner, who is M Twaits of Northwich.

Here are the answers to the clues:

1. Think seriously of oak-apple with nil route for this headland. (4, 2, 8). Mull of Galloway.

2. Inlet with place to shop for a hairpiece, before another year starts. (7, 3). Wigtown Bay.

3. Water for Mr Gosling or Mr Reynolds? (4, 4). Loch Ryan.

4. Originally a naked nurse, a naked doctor, and little else in this valley. (9). Annandale.

5. Water body named after Barbie’s friend? (4, 3). Loch Ken.

6. Get roll-on mixed up here. (4, 5). Glen Trool.

7. Marry Eli Gates and see this waterfall. (4, 5, 4). Grey Mare’s Tail.

8. “I wish you were whisky.” (11, 4). Campbeltown Loch.

9. Need help to mend a puncture?  You’ll find it if you look in “Tyre Repairs” on the peninsula. (7). Kintyre.

10. Capra hircus lost its footing on this mountain. (4, 4). Goat Fell.

11. Poor Clifford, they drowned him in this. (5, 2, 5). Firth of Clyde.

12. Did Baldrick get wet in this? (10, 5). Blackadder Water.

13. Prof Jap, USA, is a “Corbett” and two “Grahams”! (4, 2, 4). Paps of Jura.

14. He’s bats, bad. Should be transformed on this promontory. (2, 4, 4). St Abbs Head.

15. Climb onto Mr Scargill’s Spanish car. (7, 4). Arthur’s Seat.

16. But German Frau (English) initially boasted about youthfulness of this local nature reserve. (8, 3). Aberlady Bay.

17. This stream just missed out on the medals, we hear. (5, 5). River Forth.

18. A mountain, or a fruit dessert with a rich cake-like crust. (3, 7). The Cobbler.

19. Two men or another name for 18. (3, 6). Ben Arthur.

20. Cook Nelly’s offal at this beauty spot. (5, 2, 4). Falls of Leny.

21. Water supply from hole in track? (4, 7). Loch Katrine.

22. A chemist could make a point using two halogens, iron, an inert gas and two helpings of sulphur. (4, 4). Fife Ness.

23. Staple food for Hertfordshire saint, first of English in this region. (11). Breadalbane.

24. Turbulent ivy terra flower. (5, 3). River Tay.

25. Love our Caledonian hills initially and get paid a salary. (4, 4). Loch Earn.

26. Felix wrote a concert overture about this one. (7, 4). Fingal’s Cave.

27. A valley for nuts? (4, 6). Glen Almond.

28. Faith forty displayed. (5, 2, 3). Firth of Tay.

29. Metric weight and Greek letter have a curtailed reply for these mountains. (9). Grampians.

30. Connor Horam lost his way in this boggy upland area. (7, 4). Rannoch Moor.

31. Sebastian’s valley. (4, 3). Glen Coe.

32. Initially, a Russian driver nearly always muddles up roads, coming home after nightfall. (12). Ardnamurchan.

33. Little Benjamin from St. Kitts? (3, 5). Ben Nevis.

34. A magnifying lens, he exclaimed, is needed to see this valley. (4, 4). Glen Shee.

35. There must be a type of smoked haddock in this valley. (4, 6). Glen Finnan.

36. The home of Morag, Nessie’s cousin? (4, 5). Loch Morar.

37. That fiend, Noel, spoiled this gorge. (4, 2, 3). Linn of Dee.

38. Kemi. (8). Badenoch.

39. On the mountain, instruction to terrier: “Take yourself to the small room”. (5, 4). Cairn Gorm.

40. It sounds as though the temperature is droppin’ in these peaks. (3, 8). The Cuillins.

41. Information left inside, easily broken in this valley. (4, 7). Glen Brittle.

42. A Swiss capital next to your woodland. (9, 6). Abernethy Forest.

43. Monstrous water body! (4, 4). Loch Ness.

44. A Scottish country dance. (10). Strathspey.

45. The name of this lengthy feature sounds like a description of Miller, the magnificent band leader. (3, 5, 4). The Great Glen.

46. This area lacks bile, surprisingly. (5, 4). Black Isle.

47. Little Rowan Martyn embraced by King George VI actor north of 46. (8, 5). Cromarty Firth.

48. Wolf runs backwards in this part of the world. (3, 4, 7). The Flow Country.

49. Superhero’s sleeveless garment incurring divine retribution in extremity. (4, 5). Cape Wrath.

50. One of the Small Isles the French initially found listed under Glasgow’s green areas. (6, 6). Muckle Flugga.

Here are some notes of the ones that seemed to cause the most difficulty

1. MULL OF GALLOWAY – To Mull is to think seriously. An oak apple is a Gall.

8. CAMPBELTOWN LOCH – Almost everyone correctly identified the song (apologies if you found it to be a bit of an earworm!) but a lot of answers spelled Campbeltown incorrectly. There were 9 different wrong spellings! And 9 people scored 49 out of 50 because they got this spelling wrong.

9. KINTYRE – “… look in “Tyre” repairs …”

10. GOAT FELL – This is the highest peak on Arran.

11. FIRTH OF CLYDE – A few people missed the anagram in the clue: “Clifford, they”.

12. BLACKADDER WATER – We did not accept “Blackadder River” or “Whiteadder Water”.

13. PAPS OF JURA – These are a set of three breast-shaped mountains on Jura. A “Corbett” is a Scottish mountain between 2,500 and 3,000 feet high; a “Graham” is a Scottish hill between 600 metres and 762 metres (2,500 feet).

14. ST ABBS HEAD – Some people put St Bees Head, but that is in England.

17. RIVER FORTH – We also accepted “Forth River”.

18. THE COBBLER – We did not accept “Ben Cobbler”, which is not a fruit dessert, nor is it the usual name of the mountain.

23. BREAD ALBAN E – Staple food … Hertfordshire saint … first of English.

29. GRAMPIANS – We did not accept “Grampian” as it doesn’t fit the letter count.

34. GLEN SHEE – The answer is hidden in the clue: “… magnifying lens, he exclaimed …”.

39. CAIRN GORM – Cairn … go … rm.

42. A BERNE THY FOREST – A … Swiss capital … your … woodland. BERNE, the French name, used to be the standard English spelling for the capital of Switzerland, although nowadays the German spelling, BERN, seems to be preferred. As Switzerland uses both these languages, either spelling is acceptable.

47. CROMARTY FIRTH – Ro … Marty … C. Firth.

50. MUCKLE FLUGGA – The Small Isles is the name given to the group of Inner Hebrides islands south of Skye and north of Mull. They include Canna, Rum, Eigg, and Muck. It is Muck we want here. Flugga is formed from the initial letters of the words in the clue.