Across
- 4. – Home improvement without outside help
- 5. – Gift received on a birthday
- 7. – Contest that brings two opponents together
- 8. – Party decorations filled with air
- 9. – Anniversary or age symbol, valued at 60
- 12. – What hides a gift until opened
- 15. – Month that bridges winter and spring
- 17. – Begrudging sort, unimpressed by celebrations
- 18. – Centrepiece of many birthday tables
- 21. – Classic “bah humbug” character
- 23. – Famous guitar-makers, informally
- 25. – Party kept secret until the door opens
- 27. – What remains after the party ends
- 28. – Stockport side, or people driven mad
- 31. – Time just before Christmas or the first woman
- 32. – Name shared by a plant and a film actress
- 35. – Bootmakers — or something that isn’t true
- 36. – They multiply with age on a cake
- 38. – Surname of an Irish political campaigner
- 40. – Toast heard at celebrations
- 41. – Something given before cutting the cake
- 42. – Birthday greeting, often signed by many
- 43. – Request to attend a party
- 44. – Milestone age, often celebrated in style
- 45. – City known for a famous opera house
Down
- 1. – Person who says “bah humbug” to festivities
- 2. – Content rather than ecstatic
- 3. – Significant birthday marker
- 6. – One who begrudges spending, even on a birthday
- 9. – Space cleared once the music starts
- 10. – Girl’s name meaning lovable
- 11. – Sound that fills a good party
- 13. – Music chosen for a celebration
- 14. – Male name meaning “supplanter”
- 16. – Those who arrive bearing gifts
- 19. – Sport whose courses have 18 holes
- 20. – Word meaning “against”, often shortened
- 22. – Day that comes around again each year
- 24. – Name of a king and a martyr
- 26. – Game where promotion and relegation matter
- 29. – Greater Manchester town once famed for hat-making
- 30. – Age between sixteen and adulthood
- 33. – Country associated with kangaroos and the Outback
- 34. – Something served in courses
- 37. – Midlands town with a boot-making past
- 39. – Raise glasses for this
- 40. – Small pieces scattered in celebration