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26a - 2 letters for 'people' (loosely) + 4 letters 'bad' - it's 'bad news for trees'.
27d - 'cocky youth' 3 letters (not heard much these days) + 'bothered'/riled.
I wouldn't make too many assumptions about where the gaps go, gitto.

A few hours after solving all the clues and fitting them in I still can't see how to carry out (5). I know who the victim is, and I know where to put the 9 letters, but I can see no way of fitting them in which fulfils the requirement that real words, based on etc, are obtained. And I can't interpret "match" in (6). I know what happens, because wiki has told me, but how to express this in the grid remains hidden. Hints would be welcome. (I feel sorry for solvers still groping towards having all the clues worked out: too many puzzles these days have an endgame taking longer than the solving, and I fear this is one of them,) But despite that I take my hat off to Craft for a fine piece of construction and some very tricky clues.

I managed to fit the victim’s name (9) jumbled in the 3x3 blank space. It made new words as per preamble, both across and down…

If the ‘match’ is 4 cells and we are to shade the other 43, that gives a total of 47. However, my rather symmetrical drawing of what’s needed amounts to 48 cells in total. Anyone else?

45 cells for the shape (I think) and the preamble tells us that the ''remaining 43 cells'' are to be coloured brown - that suggests a cross-over of orange cells, I think.

...and we only have to show we've found the match - we're not told to highlight the whole thing.

My orange cells are central and reflect a brand name. I am still getting 48 cells total for the entire structure…

My interpretation of the match bit is four letters ijn the right sort of places which result from the application of a match. Even with this the magic number of 43 remains elusive. If everything that has already been coloured - 9 grey, an unspecified (but obvious) number green and 4 orange - are ignored it's hard to see how to fit another 43 inside the structure.

Have you left any headroom (there are no vertical bars in the top row)?

Three answers to go (16a, 9d & 15d), three cells to fill, and stumped. I have answers for 16a and 9d but cannot parse either. I have a name. first word a famous comedian, the second word a supermarket (nearly) but google doesn't give a link. Getting very frustrated at the moment.

Found the name!!