Solutions ... clare, friend of esther in bleak house has 3 entries with similar clues

• 6-letter words
• esther........ summerson, heroine of charles dickens' novel bleak house
• 7-letter words
• rantzenEsther ......, TV presenter
• 12-letter words
• andrewdaviesBritish author and screenwriter whose TV adaptations include Pride and Prejudice , Bleak House and Little Dorrit