The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 11 letter word GOODFELLOWS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
G
O
O
D
F
E
L
L
O
W
S
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "blithe companions" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case blithe companions = goodfellows.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.