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Many thanks Drxx, that really helped. Yes, I can see the connection to the single letter but still can't see why this location- seems pretty random but I'm obviously missing something.

muraria - on 'the phrase' beneath the grid there are only two places that have the 'aspect of his location' in their names - he's included in the first word of both of them but the other one 'should be discounted'.

... geographically, taking the first letter of each of the two 'landmarks' as the precise location for each of them, with the remaining letters acting as the boundaries (top and bottom) of the larger area - the place on 'the phrase' is roughly where it should be, and the captive is there too (I'd colour 'him' either red or yellow, to suggest the place he's in).

Thanks Drxx, I have the phrase and the locations etc. and can see that he appears in both. Maybe it's a reference to some form of symbolism being referred to in the choice of location and phrase?

I looked for something like that muraria - it would be a nice touch.

Drxx, much of the discussion here is rather veiled for very good reasons, so I may have misunderstood your drift. Earlier I think you said that the setter can be found in a single cell in the grid between the two landmarks. However, I've seen a five-letter word which might also be relevant linking the two landmarks. I don't think it's coincidence, but it requires some mental leaps to get from the setter's alias to this word.

I wonder if the setter of this puzzle intended it to be highlighted and the editor rejected it on the grounds that many solvers would be unfamiliar with the name or alias. I think you or someone made a similar point earlier.

I know the setter's real name and five of his aliases - one of which can be represented by a single letter. But this letter appears many times at different locations in the grid.

I can also see the first and last letters of the full alias in a four letter word in one of the rows between the two location.

nelson - The letter appears twice in the upper 'landmark' and once in the lower 'landmark' but it only appears once in the area between the two. In the preamble we're told the captive can see both landmarks, so he must be in the space between them (and 'lonely').

murky - I'm searching for your discovery! I might need another nudge.

I think Ive found it murky (an 'extension' of the alphabet?)
So, another ambiguity to consider! Whoever vetoed the highlighting - if it was originally a part of the solution - made the right decision in my opinion.

Now that I've had a chance to think about it, I quite like your addition murky.
With the right instruction in the preamble the phrase beneath the grid could be represented reasonably well (it could even feature both colours). And it works to link the 'locations' much better than my geographical waffle.