n THE corks will be popping for 10 Herald readers with a real reason to celebrate after winning prizes in our festive season giant crossword competitions.

The lucky winners who demonstrated their word power collect sparkling rewards for their efforts.

There was a sackful of correct entries, showing that Herald readers obviously like to keep their minds active even at the height of the holiday season.

n The winner of six bottles of Herald champagne is Mrs Margaret Allan, Boghead Road, Lenzie.

The runners-up, who each win one bottle of Herald champagne, are:

Miss Euphemia Noakes, Old Station Cottages, Killiecrankie, Pitlochry, Perthshire; Mr Ross Brennan, Hilltop Avenue, Westhill, Aberdeenshire;

Mrs Isobel Hutchings, Eskview Grove, Dalkeith, Midlothian; and Mr Archie Boag, James Street, Lossiemouth, Moray.

In the Christmas puzzle, the title and four across clues gave the first and five down clues the second sentence of St Luke's account of the Nativity in Lorimer's fine Scots version.

n The winner of six bottles of Herald champagne is Mrs Betty McAllister, Lynn Drive, Milngavie, Glasgow. The runners-up, who each win one bottle of Herald champagne, are: Miss Fiona Johnstone, Helenslee road, Langbank; Mr John Cruickshank, Oakhill Crescent, Aberdeen; Mr Hugh Carmichael, Cochno Street, Clydebank; and Mrs Dorothy Aitken, Canniesburn Road, Bearsden.

The key to the New Year puzzle was as follows: ''Death and life are in the power of the tongue,'' as Solomon observed in the book of Proverbs (18.21) and as was confirmed when the ringers of Fenchurch St Paul set a record on a New Year's morning (''The bells gave tongue rioting and exulting high up in the dark tower, wide mouths rising and falling, brazen tongues clamouring, huge wheels turning to the dance of the leaping ropes'') in The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L Sayers (the winner of the #30 book token was Mrs Mary Latham, 37 Rowallan Gardens, Glasgow). The names of the bells were included in the puzzle and their numbers and notes confirmed in the introductory four bars:

1 Gaude, 2 Sabaoth, 3 John,

4 Jericho, 5 Jubilee, 6 Dimity,

7 Batty Thomas, 8 Tailor Paul.

Our heartiest congratulations to our winners, and many thanks to all those who entered.