6-across – Ian __, author of the Rebus novels : RANKIN

8-across – Thomas __, US pioneer of electronic technologies : EDISON

9-across – Chris __, MP who resigned as Tory deputy chief whip after groping allegations : PINCHER

10-across – River flowing through Dundee : TAY

11-across – Sir __, ceramic artist : GRAYSON

12-across – __ Monsoon, character played by Jennifer Saunders in Absolutely Fabulous : EDINA

15-across – Welsh peninsula reaching into the Bristol Channel : GOWER

16-across – Frederick __, author of The Day of the Jackal : FORSYTH

18-across – Polish national airline : LOT

20-across – Family on whose story Succession is said to be based : MURDOCH

21-across – Asiatic wild ass : ONAGER

22-across – Planet whose rings so fascinated W.G. Sebald? : SATURN

1-down – US publisher owned by the 20’s News Corporation : HARPERCOLLINS

2-down – South Korea’s third city : INCHEON

3-down – See 11 Across : PERRY

4-down – Eartha __, singer who made a hit out of Santa Baby : KITT

5-down – Extraterrestrial beings who invaded Santa Mira, CA in 1956? : BODYSNATCHERS

7-down – Scottish peninsula which ends in its eponymous Mull : KINTYRE

13-down – 1981 German film set on a submarine : DASBOOT

14-down – __ Gump, character played by Tom Hanks : FORREST

17-down – Any one of several characters from a Belgian cartoon franchise by Peyo : SMURF

19-down – Country bordered by Benin, Ghana and Burkina Faso : TOGO

7-across – The B in 15 : BRAZIL

8-across – The R in 15 : RUSSIA

9-across – G.I. __, special operations soldier played by Demi Moore in 1997 : JANE

10-across – Leonid __, president of Ukraine 1991-1994 : KRAVCHUK

11-across – Ravi __, Indian test cricketer and coach : SHASTRI

12-across – The S in 15 : SOUTH

15-across – Transnational alliance whose meeting Putin could not attend in person in 2023 : BRICS

17-across – Boris __, president of 8, 1991-1999 : YELTSIN

20-across – Volodymyr __, president of Ukraine : ZELENSKY

22-across – __ Park – a green space in London but a suburb in Leeds : HYDE

23-across – See 12 : AFRICA

24-across – Type of palm often used to make furniture : RATTAN

1-down – The job of the father of the only man who could move Dusty Springfield? : PREACHER

2-down – Ancient inhabitants of what is now Mexico : AZTECS

3-down – Marvel character and 2005 film starring Jennifer Garner : ELEKTRA

4-down – Trojan king, the father of Cassandra : PRIAM

5-down – Hitchcock psychological thriller starring Janet Leigh and Anthony Perkins : PSYCHO

6-down – African great lake shared by Rwanda and the DRC : KIVU

13-down – The __, Orson Welles film written by Graham Greene : THIRDMAN

14-down – The city so good they named it twice? : NEWYORK

16-down – Long shingle beach in Dorset : CHESIL

18-down – The largest island in French Polynesia : TAHITI

19-down – Hebridean island known for its whiskies : ISLAY

21-down – Plots of land, especially in former Dutch colonies : ERFS

7-across – Biographer of Austen, Dickens and Wollstonecraft, amongst others : CLAIRETOMALIN

8-across – England’s World Cup captain, 2023 : MILLIE

9-across – See 8 : BRIGHT

10-across – Jessica, Bart, OJ or Ashlee? : SIMPSON

12-across – Tower of __, myth accounting for the existence of many human languages : BABEL

14-across – See 4 Down : MOORE

16-across – See 5 Down : WIEGMAN

19-across – England’s World Cup manager, 1966 : ALFRED

20-across – See 19 : RAMSEY

22-across – The Latin title for O Come, All Ye Faithful : ADESTEFIDELES

1-down – The personification of old age in Norse mythology : ELLI

2-down – Ian __, editor of Private Eye : HISLOP

3-down – English and Greek name for the Turkish island of Bozcaada : TENEDOS

4-down – England’s World Cup winning captain, 1966 : BOBBY

5-down – England’s World Cup manager, 2023 : SARINA

6-down – __ Coel, star of I May Destroy You : MICHAELA

11-down – Epithet associated with Margaret Thatcher : IRONLADY

13-down – __ Meloni, Italian prime minister : GIORGIA

15-down – __, legal principle governing gifts; also known as the ‘every effort rule’ : REROSE

17-down – A tool for woodwork, or a cocktail featuring gin and lime : GIMLET

18-down – Small snake, found in heathland : ADDER

21-down – The garden of paradise : EDEN

7-across – The capital of Mali : BAMAKO

8-across – The capital of Niger : NIAMEY

9-across – Celine __, Canadian singer : DION

10-across – The German motorway? : AUTOBAHN

11-across – River running over Victoria Falls : ZAMBEZI

12-across – Eponymous children’s explorer produced by Nickelodeon : DORA

14-across – March 15th? : IDES

16-across – Kenyan port city : MOMBASA

19-across – Royal forest in Nottinghamshire : SHERWOOD

20-across – Supergroup formed by Agnetha, Anni-Frid, Björn and Benny : ABBA

21-across – Stephen King novel and 1990 film starring Kathy Bates : MISERY

22-across – Steve __, creator of Alan Partridge : COOGAN

1-down – Dam on the 11 : KARIBA

2-down – London thoroughfare associated with 1960s fashion : CARNABYSTREET

3-down – Classic TV western series starring Lorne Greene : BONANZA

4-down – Founder of The Body Shop : ANITA

5-down – Fred Flintstone’s catchphrase : YABBADABBADOO

6-down – Religious epic from 1959 starring Charlton Heston : BENHUR

13-down – See 4 : RODDICK

15-down – Bertie Wooster’s preferred aunt? : DAHLIA

17-down – The American underground? : SUBWAY

18-down – The capital of Japan : TOKYO

7-across – Barbara Kingsolver’s novel set partly in the Congo : THEPOISONWOOD

8-across – River linking Ipswich and Felixstowe : ORWELL

9-across – Plant widely used in Chinese medicine : GINKGO

10-across – Rachel and Ross’s daughter in Friends : EMMA

12-across – One of the major languages spoken in the Philippines : TAGALOG

14-across – Year : MDCCCLX

15-across – Satirical TV series starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus : VEEP

17-across – Mount on which Noah’s Ark is said to have come to rest : ARARAT

18-across – Author of No Country for Old Men and The Road, who died in June : CORMAC

20-across – William Faulkner novel featuring Lena Grove’s search for Lucas Burch : LIGHTINAUGUST

1-down – Author of On the Origin of Species : CHARLESDARWIN

2-down – Heavy sword used in fencing : EPEE

3-down – See 7 Across : BIBLE

4-down – Capital of the Isle of Man : DOUGLAS

5-down – Tchaikovsky ballet from 1876 : SWANLAKE

6-down – Long-running BBC series featuring religious music : SONGSOFPRAISE

11-down – See 18 Across : MCCARTHY

13-down – The middle part of the larynx : GLOTTIS

16-down – Andy __, author of Bravo Two Zero : MCNAB

19-down – The capital of Latvia : RIGA