A gentle festive offering from Rufus. Lots of smiles, especially at 12ac, 5dn and 6dn.
Across
1 Stocking up time (9)
CHRISTMAS
Cryptic definition – a time for hanging up stockings
6 Wise man tucked into the turkey (4)
SAGE
=”Wise man”; =”tucked into the turkey”
8 Making a tidy packet for Christmas, perhaps (8)
WRAPPING
Cryptic definition
9 Provides presents (4,2)
PUTS ON
=”Provides”; =”presents” (a show)
10 Ingredients relating to cold mince pie (6)
RECIPE
=”Ingredients”. RE=”relating” plus C[old] plus (pie)*
11 Hymns or carols he arranged (8)
CHORALES
=”Hymns”; (carols he)*
12 Christmas morning? Quietly do a runner (6)
DECAMP
=”do a runner”. DEC[ember] AM=”Christmas morning?” plus P[iano]=”quietly”
15 Made a mess but switched on new tree, finally decorated (8)
LITTERED
=”Made a mess”. LIT=”switched on” plus (tree)* plus [decorate]D
16 Chop up bird cooked and eaten at Christmas (5,3)
MINCE PIE
=”cooked and eaten and Christmas”. MINCE=”chop up” plus PIE=”bird” as in magpie
19 Heavenly sight, delightful to the shepherds (3,3)
RED SKY
‘RED SKY at night, shepherd’s delight’, as the saying goes
21 Secret of crackers not requiring payment (4-4)
SCOT-FREE
=”not require payment”. (Secret of)*
22 Directions are in the mail for making a warming winter drink (6)
POSSET
=”warming winter drink”. S[outh] and E[ast] are “Directions”, inside POST=”mail”
24 A gin’s knocked back in ancient city (6)
SPARTA
=”ancient city”. reversal (“knocked back”) of A TRAP’S=”A gin’s”
25 Came to an all-night party with Edward (8)
AWAKENED
=”Came to”. A WAKE=”an all-night party” with NED=”Edward”
26 Son was first to get a toboggan (4)
SLED
=”toboggan”. S[on] plus LED=”was first”
27 Young Christmas trees carried around in sledges (9)
SEEDLINGS
=”Young Christmas trees”. (in sledges)*
Down
1 Slice the turkey with five in mind? (5)
CARVE
=”Slice the turkey”. V=”five” in Roman numerals, inside CARE=”mind”
2 Parcel I untied reveals an identical one (7)
REPLICA
=”identical one”. (Parcel I)*
3 Pick off the bird (5)
SNIPE
=”Pick off”; =”bird”
4 Wise men state it’s miraculous (7)
MAGICAL
=”miraculous”. MAGI=”Wise men” plus CAL[ifornia]=”state”
5 One cheers up after second drink (9)
SUPPORTER
=”One cheers”. UP after S[econd], plus PORTER=”drink”
6 Stuff to eat, as it is cooked (7)
SATIATE
=”Stuff”. (eat as it)*
7 Christmas meal, followed by kiss and an elegantly carved pipe (9)
GOOSENECK
=”elegantly carved pipe”. GOOSE=”Christmas meal” plus NECK=”kiss”
13 Pepsi Cola provided by the church (9)
EPISCOPAL
=”by the church”. (Pepsi Cola)*
14 Apt phrase describes party wear? (5,4)
PAPER HATS
=”party wear”. (Apt phrase)*
17 Made provisional arrangements for Christmas? (7)
CATERED
Cryptic definition
18 Cheer most of the players at end of pantomime (7)
ELEVATE
=”Cheer”. ELEV[en]=”most of the players” plus AT plus [pantomim]E
20 See Cinders in transformation scene (7)
DISCERN
=”See”. (Cinders)*
22 It looks as though the frost has got this bulb (5)
PEARL
=”It looks as though the frost has got this” [colour]; =”bulb” [of sweat, etc]
23 Level betting how Wenceslas found the snow, heading south (5)
EVENS
=”Level betting”. [deep and crisp and] EVEN=”how Wenceslas found the snow”, plus S[outh]
A tricky task for Rufus today to fit in so many seasonal solutions. It’s the season of goodwill, and I am not going to nitpick, so I’ll simply say ‘Thank you Rufus for the festive crossword and your puzzles through the year’ and best wishes to all setters, bloggers and solvers.
Second thought, re. 22d, I think that ‘pearl’ simply refers to the type of light bulb I.e. pearl glass rather than clear. (This refers, of course to the incandescent light bulbs that actually give the light output they are rated to give, rather than the modern energy efficient ones).
Thanks, manehi.
I don’t know how he keeps doing it. Year after year, Rufus’s pre Christmas puzzle has a festive reference in every clue – and there are some lovely story-telling ones here, producing lots of smiles.
Particular favourites were DECAMP and EPISCOPAL.
I read 22dn as George did.
As usual for Rufus, nothing too taxing, for which I, for one, am grateful, with lots of chores still to do, but a delight to solve on a fairly horrible morning, weather-wise.
Many thanks, Rufus!
Yes, 22, clear and pearl, in the days when we had light bulbs which worked. Bah, humbug.
After having given Rufus a hard time for some of his cluing last week I’ll admit that I thoroughly enjoyed this one.
PEARL was my LOI after I dredged the light bulb association from deep in the old memory banks.
Thanks, Rufus, for a nice and easy one. I’ll offer it to a couple of family members who are trying to break into cryptics.
Done in the back of the car while our son drives us north for Christmas, so it can’t have been too taxing. PEARL LOI for me too, indeed the entire SE corner took me longer than the rest of the puzzle put together.
Had a good time at the centenary on Saturday. I see from the pix that I missed saying hello to many acquaintances old and new. Happy Christmas everybody!
While it may be a feat to fit so many Christmas references in, it would be more impressive if he had also fit a few cryptic clues in. I thought that was the purpose of the exercise, holidays or not.
Hi Trailman @7
What pix? [Sorry to have missed you.]
Hi Eileen
On Facebook, courtesy of Jane Teather. That’s how I know you were there!
Thanks, Trailman. Unfortunately, I don’t do facebook. 🙁
As usual my thoughts coincide with Eileen’s!!
Good seasonal fare; thanks to Rufus and manehi. A bit late today, delayed by my birthday!
Good to meet the great man on Saturday and see some of his card tricks – excellent, had me fooled. I was a bit confused by PEARL as I failed to think of the light bulb connection.
Another Facebook refusenik – the photos are not on Jane’s Flikr page (maybe later?)
Thanks Rufus and manehi
Enjoyable, but I was surprised to see the answer to one clue in the text of another (MINCE PIE) – poor planning, surely?
Thanks to Rufus and manehi and happy birthday to Robi and my mom. Had the same question as
muffin regarding MINCE PIE. Thanks for the PEARL explanation which I couldn’t parse.
Cheers…
Yes, Happy Birthday, Robi – I missed that! [And to grandpuzzler’s mum. 😉 ]
‘Pearl’ definitely a light-bulb moment.
Many thanks Manehi & Rufus.
Very enjoyable, as always.
Now, why try Dante (Rufus alter ego)in today’s FT?
I suspect that there will few complaints of it being ‘too easy’.
http://im.ft-static.com/content/images/db8dded4-6273-11e3-99d1-00144feabdc0.pdf
Thanks all
Ian SW3 ditto.
I was really closing in on this one, until I threw myself with 20d, which I parsed as “in” + (scene)* = INCENSE – a reasonable definition for See Cinders (= ash you’d find at a cathedral) surely?
Bah humbug.
RCW @19
Ditto also 🙂
“Scene” in 20d seems rather unnecessary, no? And I’ll throw in my lot with Ian SW3, RCW, & B(nto), 8ac being a particularly non-cryptic “cryptic definition.”
Happy holidays, all!
Thought 8ac was ok. “Making a packet” has two meanings but found SE tricky with PEARL last in without making the connection between frosted glass and lightbulbs.
Not too keen on 18dn with ELEVATE as a definition for “cheer” but enjoyed the puzzle – thanks, Rufus!
Good stuff from Rufus as expected – lots of wit, lovely surfaces, just right for a busy time. Really enjoyed rereading the clues after a fairly hasty solve.