Clue: Gleans bits about heavenly beings

'Angels' are heavenly beings, and the word is an anagram of 'gleans'

Clue: Hangings which sound like they might make male cows yawn

'Baubles' sounds like 'bore bulls', which is what happens when you 'make male cows yawn'

Clue: Clubs, maybe, used instead of cash

Credit/debit cards are used instead of cash. Clubs (along with diamonds, hearts and spades) are playing 'card' suits

Clue: Now oddly drench something that glows

If you take every other letter of 'DrEnCh' and add 'ember' (something that glows) you get 'December' - our month of festivities!

Clue: Pipe round middle of that New Year's Twelfth Night

Twelfth Night is the 'Feast of the Epiphany ('revelation')' in churches across the world - although in the East, 6th January is often celebrated as Christmas itself

Clue: Did Guy ping GF to mix up this old dessert?

Figgy Pudding is an older, simpler, version of the more modern Christmas Pudding (well known in Britain and those places to which it has been exported). It's also an anagram of 'Did Guy ping GF' (if you're wondering, 'GF' is textspeak for 'girlfriend')

Clue: Presents, primarily gold, in finely tinselled sack

Gifts are a main feature of the Festive season, with the buying and giving of them being the focus of many people's thinking at this time of year. 'Gifts' is/are also the first letters of the words from 'gold' and onwards in the clue

Clue: Lady who breakfasted at Tiffany's is often seen with ivy

Holly Golightly is the main protagonist in the novella Breakfast at Tiffany's ('Holly' is short for 'Holiday'). In the film version (which included the song 'Moon River') the character was played by Audrey Hepburn. We bring holly (and ivy) into our homes over the Festive Season - its greenery is a reminder of the coming spring.

Clue: Doubly in charge, the French have cold hangers-on

Icicles are a common sight in the festive season, hanging on (or off) the eaves of houses and other places, and feature on many greeting cards. Good ones might even become a snowman's nose! I/c is abbreviation for 'in charge'; we've used that twice and added 'les' (French for 'the' [plural])

Clue: Just starting before fireside nook, ringers do it all the way - fun with a single horse!

Jingle Bells is a favourite song of the festive season. The words "all the way", (oh what) "fun" and "one-" (single-) "horse" open sleigh feature in it. An 'ingle' is a a 'fireside' opening, so put that after the start of 'just'; 'bells' ring, so are 'ringers'

Clue: Seen as part of attack risk? Ring leading man of the hour

Kris Kringle is one of Santa's many names; it's especially used in the US. It's hidden in the words 'attacK RISK RING LEading' and he is, of course, the man of the midnight hour!

Clue: Young animals appear when lights mirror the fourth element

'Lights' are 'lamps'; if you mirror 'p' in the x axis you a 'b'; 'lamps' turns into 'lambs', which the shepherds are traditionally shown as bringing to the crib scene

Clue: Dickens declared he was dead in my real edition

'Marley was dead: to begin with' is the first line of Dickens' A Christmas Carol; Bob Marley (reggae singer pictured above) is nothing to do with that. 'Marley' is an anagram of 'my real'

Clue: Janitor without a rise at the other end of Twixtmas

New Year (Eve and Day) is at the other end of what is known as 'Twixtmas' (the period between Christmas and the New Year). A 'tor' is a hill or rise in the landscape; take that from 'janitor' and you get Jan 1 = New Year!

Clue: Edited to only high notes in this seasonal favourite

O Holy Night is a classic of the Christmas season. It's an anagram of 'to only high'

Clue: A reindeer quietly smuggled regular cheer

Prancer is one of the reindeer pulling Santa's sleigh; in the clue, 'quietly' = 'p' (in music); 'smuggled' = 'ran' (think drugs runner); + regular/odd letters of 'cheer'

Clue: Starter questions usually answered for five with gin cocktail - and what it's used for!

'Quaffing' means 'drinking' - so it's what you do with 'gin' (although quaffing implies a generous amount of drink, so maybe no gin!). The first letters (starters) of the five words from 'questions' + an anagram of 'gin' build up the word

Clue: Rouge, eyeshadow, deodorant? At first, see tint of blusher

Red is one of the most Christmassy colours/colors. Decorations and cards, jumpers and mulled wine all have traces of red. 'Red' is also made of the first letters of the first three words of the clue; if you blush you're a blusher - and you'll be red!

Clue: Santa's opening present with person who will melt one day

Snowpeople are archetypal images of the season. If you take the first letter of 'Santa', add 'now' (which means 'the present time') and 'man' (a person) you'll get snowman!

Clue: Jailer loses number of centrepiece bird

Turkey is the key part of many Christmas feasts. A jailer was once known as a 'turnkey' - take 'n' (for number) out of that

Clue: Delivery from lidless beakers?

'Beakers' are 'cups', and if you remove the first letter of 'cups' you get UPS. Like Amazon and many other companies (which are available), they will deliver a sizeable percentage of the presents gifted this year

Clue: The Dutch wish for new kettle for Vik and Jess, right?

'Vrolijk Kerstfeest' a greeting/wish used in the Netherlands at this time of year. It's also an anagram of 'kettle for Vik Jess r' (where the 'r' = right!

Clue: Be brief and to the point about clot I released after victory on shortest day

The Winter Solstice provides the shortest day/longest night of the year; to be brief is to be terse; put an anagram of 'clot I' into that and precede it with 'win' (or a 'victory'

Clue: Like the tree, axes top - there's nothing in it (You may need to Google this one!)

'Xyloid' might be an uncommon word, but it means 'wooden', which is what a tree is. You find 'x' and 'y' axes on graphs; a top (of a tin, say) is a lid; put 'o' (nothing) in that

Clue: Xmas afternoon feeling after timeless turkey dozen with nothing gone wrong

"You're zonked" is that Christmas afternoon feeling, but it's also an anagram of 'turkey dozen' without the 't' ('t' = 'time' in 'timeless') but with an extra 'o' (= zero = nothing)