Solving time:  22 minutes

A lovely cinematic experience from Brummie today.  Many of the clues shared the solution to 9 as a definition.  The usual smattering of clever and nudge nidge wink wink clues as well.

 ACROSS   (*)= anagram    (CD)= Cryptic def   (R)= Reversal

1  MAFIOSI    AIMS OF* + I

5  BROOKS     (Mel) Triple definition if you include 9.

9  DIRECTOR   DIRE (Awful) + T inside COR (Gordon Bennett!)

10 ASTHMA   Nice def (”No jolly wheeze”)  AS (like)  + TH(E) + MA(ID)

12 BODY SNATCHER  BODY (Corporation) + SNATCHER (Grasping type)

15 FATHER’S DAY Another nice def.   HAYES’ DRAFT *

17 LEE    Ang or Spike (K) + LEE

19 RAY  Indian director Satyajit.  (G)RAY

20 SYNTHESIZE   SYN+THE  (said “Evil” + article) + SIZE (Takes me back to my childhood! - a type of wallpaper paste)

22 ASTROPHYSICS  SOPHISTRY* inside AC (Bill) + S (Gates’ end)

26 ISOLDE  IS OLD + E

27 VOCALISE   (VASE + CLEO) *

29  ENTERED  TREE* inside END

DOWN

1  MODE    MOD + E

2  FORD    John -  FOR + D

3  ONCE OVER  Def =Butcher’s (Cockney Rhyming slang -  Butcher’s Hook = Look)   ONCE (L)OVER

4 IVORY  Linked with 18 -  O R inside IVY

7  OPHTHALMIC  CHIMP LOATH*

8  STARRY EYED   CD  If you get hit on the head, you’d see stars!

11  IN FACT  IN + FACT

13  OFF ROADING  OFF + GORDIAN*

14 STAY AT HOME

15 SCYTHE    CHESTY*

18 MERCHANT  R + C inside MEANT

21  JORDAN  Neil.   RD inside JOAN (La Stupenda)

23 STONE  Oliver

24  WEIR   Peter  sounds like We’re

25  REED  Sir Carol   DEER (R)

I raced through this puzzle much more quickly than usual for Phi. Then I hit the buffers with 11 and 13. I’m sure I’m missing something very simple.

Dac is well-known amongst Indy solvers but we’re used to seeing him on a Wednesday so it was something of a surprise to see his name next to the Saturday prize puzzle. This was a little more difficult than the Wednesday puzzles but still much easier than we’re used to for a Saturday. Lots of fun though, with some very nice clues (12a and 6d were my favourites).

It’s that time of year! “In the Bleak Midwinter” last week and “The Twelve Days of Christmas” this week.

Two of our tiumvirate went to the Temple Church Choir’s carol service at the Royal Courts of Justice this year and one of the readings was the hilarious John Julius Norwich version of the twelve days’ correspondence, ending (appropriately) with the Solicitor’s letter.

So the down clues had letters missing which spelled out MY TRUE LOVE SENT TO ME, and this led to three-letter extracts of eleven of the the twelve presents. The twelfth was derived from the day number and, as such, constitutes a fowl (sic - a lot of birds involved in the presents!), for which one of our number has issued a yellow card!

Each extract was a valid word or name. In diagram order they were:

Across, top to bottom:
A PARtridge in a pear tree
Eleven PIPers piping
Two turtLE Doves
Seven sWANs a-swimming
Twelve dRUMmers drumming
Three fRENch hens

Down, left to right:
FOUR calling birds Yellow card for this one!
Eight mAIDs a-milking
Ten lordS A-Leaping
Nine ladies DANcing
Five gOLD rings
Six geeSE A-laying

Solving time : Done in bits, but completed in a couple of hours (not at Biddlecome speed!) and interrupted by a four-and-a-half-hour drive along the busy A303!