Weekend Quick Cryptic 94 - Solution

Although The Times has bowed to pressure and started providing a Saturday Quick Cryptic crossword, my fellow TimesforTheTimes contributors Phil Jordan, Sawbill and I are continuing to produce Quick Cryptic crosswords to fill the gap left by the Sunday Times not having one. The plan is for us to take turns, publishing one a fortnight, and this week it's my turn. 

You can find a link to the crossword here and the answers below. Feel free to leave any comments or questions here as you would do on TfTT. You can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here. 

Before looking at the answers, if you would like some additional help, click the label below.

Hints and tips...

Some hints and tips:

As usual, there is a bit of a hint in the title to some thematic answers. Today's is a well known seasonal song and the ellipsis in the title is followed in the grid by the remaining 8 words to complete the first verse.

• As well as some of the answers completing the first verse, 1A, 20A and 22A are also part of the lyrics, with all being in the order in which they appear in the song. Thematic answers below in red complete the verse and the other thematic answers are in blue.
• Parson Brown in the clue for 22A also features in the song.
• In 9A you need to lift and separate "tree trunk".
• In 15A you need to lift and separate "term time".
• For 1D it helps to know the collective noun for a certain type of bird. The answer is a cricketing one.
• 11D is a less common spelling of this word, but the wordplay and checkers should make the spelling clear.

You can listen to the song as recorded by Bing Crosby here and see the lyrics of the shorter Michael Bublé version here (and hear it here). Which do you prefer?

And click on this label to get the solution.

Solution and explanation of the answers...

Definitions  underlined in bold italics, ( Abc )* indicating anagram of Abc,  {deletions} and [] other indicators.

 

Across
1 They produce jingles for a brand of whisky (5)
BELLS – Double definition.
4 Thing to order for later today (7)
TONIGHT – (Thing to)* [order].
8 Reverse legislation on monarch's mode of travel (7)
WALKING – LAW (legislation) reversed -> WAL, KING (monarch)
9 Roughly following top of tree trunk (5)
TORSO – [Top of] T{ree}, OR SO (roughly). Sneaky setter. You have to “lift and separate” “tree” and “trunk” to get the definition.

10 Agree to conceal awful mess in tax calculation (10)
ASSESSMENT – (mess)* in ASSENT (agree).
14 To a certain extent at home at opponents' ground (2,1,3)
IN A WAY – IN (at home) AWAY (at opponents’ ground).
15 A bit of stew in term time when it's cold (6)
WINTER – Hidden in, [a bit of], steW IN TERm. Another sneaky lift and separate.

17 Speculate on property in imaginary place (10)
WONDERLAND – WONDER (speculate) LAND (property).
20 Invoiced, we hear, for form of construction (5)
BUILD – BUILD sounds like BILLED (invoiced) [we hear].
22 Maybe Parson Brown's son was formerly a woman? (7)
SNOWMAN – S (son) NOW MAN (was formerly a woman),
23 Rebuffed, beheaded and thrown out (7)
EJECTED – {r}EJECTED (rebuffed) without the first letter [beheaded].
24 Grass from southern border (5)
SEDGE – S (southern) EDGE (border).
 
Down
1 British member of parliament to take over at Lords (4)
BOWL – B (British) OWL (member of parliament; parliament is the collective noun for owls). The definition is a cricket one.
2 Calm period essential to quell Ulster uprising (4)
LULL – Reverse hidden in the down clue, [essential to … uprising], in quLL ULster.
3 Send form to orderly (9)
SHIPSHAPE – SHIP (send) SHAPE (form).
4 Identified strange gadget (6)
TAGGED – (gadget)* [strange].
5 Catch insects regularly (3)
NET – Alternate letters, [regularly] of iNsEcTs.
6 Secrete weapon in men's clothes (8)
GARMENTS – ARM (weapon) in GENTS’ (men’s)
7 Horses or pigs feet (8)
TROTTERS – Double definition.
11 French feudal lords coming from south east with mysterious origins (9)
SEIGNIORS - SE (south east) [mysterious] (origins)*. A less common spelling of the word.
12 Contend with a belief occasionally appearing on TV (8)
VIEWABLE – VIE (content) W (with) A, an alternate letters of BeLiEf [occasionally].
13 Spooner's placed bomb on a major route (4,4)
MAIN LINE – Spoonerism of LAIN MINE (placed bomb).
16 Type of shop that's no longer trading (6)
CLOSED - Double definition.
18 In the morning papers (4)
AMID – AM (morning) ID (papers).
19 Joint starts to keep needing extensive exercise (4)
KNEE – Initial letters of, [starts to], Keep Needing Extensive Exercise.
21 Spot a short element of code (3)
DOT – Double definition. The code being Morse code.