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Thanks to Picaroon, one of my favorite solvers (aka Rodriguez and Buccaneer at other papers) for a challenging Prize. I found this slow going and feared being unable to finish until the pace grudgingly picked up.
FOI 23, indicating a potential complete shutout!
LOI 20, which is really tough for someone of my nationality.
COD 12 because I like the literary reference. Others considered: 1a, 1d, 25, 27, 2d, 14.
Uncertain about parsing of 24.
I don't see a strong theme, there's one weak candidate I'm not sure enough about to risk a spoiler. But I almost never spot themes.
IMO this Prize should generate a lot of questions. Enjoy!

This weeks puzzle is by Picaroon and is an absolute beast!

That said, it was super enjoyable and the quality of clues throughout was exceptional - rarely have I had so many COD contenders.

At this point I'd normally give a couple of hints about a good place to start if you get stuck but, in this instance, there just aren't any of the usual 'low hanging fruit'.

There were a couple of moments when I genuinely feared a DNF but, thankfully, I got there in the end. I had the most trouble with the NE corner although I didn't find any of it easy.

COD - Several contenders this week with 7d, 12a, 14d, and 21a all worthy of the title, but I'm giving it to my LOI - the brilliant 2d 😉

Thanks to Picaroon for a real tour de force - outstanding:-)

Please feel free to let us know how you got on and, as always, if you get stuck - don't hesitate to ask for a hint.

Stay safe:-)

Hi Geeker,

It's funny, when I finally twigged 20d my first thought was how overseas solvers might find it even more difficult than I did - and that's saying something!

I agree, this should be a busy thread this week:-)

Geeker, re 24a - look at a word in the clue and a word in the answer and think what you might have to do to turn one in to the other:-)

Brendan, relieved to see you also found this difficult.

Apologies for starting on the wrong foot by calling Pickers (as I've seen him termed on either Guardian daily pages or 225) a solver rather than a setter! My brain must have been overheated from the solving effort.

Thanks for clearing up the parsing of 24. I always find that particular wordplay device clever, perhaps because I often miss it!

In the interest of geographical balance, my nationality should have given me a leg up on 5. Not proud to admit it didn't, wound up practically LOI.

Geeker,

I didn't help myself by putting the wrong answer in 10a (unparsed, obviously) and that inevitably caused problems for 5d and 8d - it was a while before I figured out my error.

I meant to say "well done" on getting 26a, I'm amazed you knew ....

Brendan, thanks, but it's pure chance. I was living abroad (Kenya) one year long ago, and 26 figured in many newspaper accounts. Even turned me into a casual (though ignorant) follower of sorts!

Also, 27 was a totally unfamiliar word, but clear from parsing. Consulted Google to make certain.