| CHESHIRE | _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Cat, fictional feline created by Lewis Carroll and noted for its mischievous grin (8) |
| FAT | _ _ _ cat (rich donor) |
| WORDLADDER | Puzzle invented by Lewis Carroll (and a hint to this puzzle's theme) |
| PETE | ___ the Cat (fictional feline of children's books) |
| MONA | Acronym for Hobart's art museum, created by a local businessman and noted for its themes of sex and death (4) |
| INVICTUS | Poem by English poet WE Henley, published in 1888 and noted for its evocation of stoicism (8) |
| SANDWICH | Kent town lying on the River Stour and noted for its golf course, Royal St George's (8) |
| SNARK | Fictional animal species created by Lewis Carroll in his nonsense poem, The Hunting of the ___; Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) was born in Daresbury in 1832 (5) |
| SNEAD | Sam, U.S. golfer born in 1912 nicknamed The Slammer and noted for his straw hat and folksy humour (5) |
| AMANDAOWEN | Real name of the Yorkshire Shepherdess, born in 1974 and noted for her books and TV work (6,4) |
| BOBBYDAVRO | Actor and comedian born Robert Nankeville in 1958 and noted for his pantomime appearances (5,5) |
| ALICE | Girl created by Lewis Carroll |
| BANDERSNATCH | A monster created by Lewis Carroll (12) |
| JABBERWOCK | Fabulous monster created by Lewis Carroll (10) |
| CHESHIRECAT | Grinning character created by Lewis Carroll (8,3) |
| FILIPINO | Nationality of Jose Rizal, born in 1861 and noted for his writing and scholarship (8) |
| ASTI | Neighbouring the tartufo bianco (white truffle) region Alba and noted for sparkling wine, the "city of 100 towers" in the heart of Piedmont (4) |
| ANNING | Mary, English palaeontologist born in 1799 and noted for finding fossils on the Dorset coast (6) |
| ADAIR | Gilbert who wrote 1980s sequels to the works of Lewis Carroll and J.M. Barrie |
| PENNAMES | Lewis Carroll and George Sand, e.g. |
