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lumen, if you've found your "hoofed beasts" for 40ac add an appropriate letter at the front and you'll have the huge fish which are to be beheaded.

Thanks all. I have grid fill.
There is evil lurking in the SE corner! 33d! 36d! 40a!

Having just managed to parse all clues, I think the comment from drxx @4 is spot on. For me, there are two problems wrt the fairness of the clues. Firstly, some of the definitions used stretch the limits. That in 33d has already been well commented on, but the clue for 22d should have "that" inserted to match the definition used in chambers and 35a & 42a are dodgy IMO. Secondly, it would have been impossible for me to finish this without the internet. I could not parse 15a nor 2d, nor understand the answer to 15a, without resorting to Google and wiki, and even then the descriptors used in both are, IMO, very obscure and would never of surfaced without help. Still, generally a very good crossword with a very neat end game.

Lumen

33d - First word is a very tenuous definition
36d - Can't ad much to posts 32 & 34 without giving you the answer
40a - If you have Bradfords, look at the adjectival form of the answer to 9d.

In a flurry of activity, spurred on by Lumen #38, the grid is now done, except for 21ac, 22d and 30d.
Also, I only have 4 of the 5 specials - including, I think, 31d, which I can't make any sense of from the clue- it seems that the last three words are redundant?

I'm in agreement with you, gitto, about 22d; it should have had a "that". In the case of 33d I feel that the Chambers definition is faulty in not indicating the main application of this answer but working with Chambers is the setter's responsibility.

On the other hand I have no problem with the clues for 42a and 35a except that in the latter the word order is a little odd.

With regard to 2d and 15a, whether they're acceptable or not depends on how much the setter can assume the solver knows about major figures in their fields in the 20th century.

I just think that it is a little presumptuous that you know everything about everything!

dylan, in 31d the last three words are essential.

The only thing I really didn’t understand was the use of “what was” in 12a. It seems to imply an obsolete breed or word, but it’s neither

@gitto even knowing that the last 3 words of 31d are essential and having Googled such things as 'who was the judge of grip' I've drawn a blank!

Never mind, it's all done and, with a sigh of relief, it's on to the Inquisitor! 😄