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geeker and bren: re the slang term, I knew the term but wasn’t aware (or had forgotten) that it was specifically Australian

It is a comfort Rog, I can assure you. I even initially wrote that
wrapped seems to be doing double-duty, but I'm a terrible tinkerer with my posts - it's why they always take so long (well, that and I still type with one finger) and are usually garbled messes containing accidentally left in bits of previous iterations:-)

Ouch! Not as sharp as the last Enigmatist Prize puzzle, but difficult all the same. 2d, which is taking up most of the comments, is strecthing things a bit. Otherwise some very clever clues, 16a and 1d being favourites.

Whereas Enigmatist can feel overly painful in the midweek slots, his puzzles are more at home in the Prize space (where solvers will generally know what to expect).

Gentlemen, I saw “wrapped” in 22 as meaning wrapped around, as in say Pac-Man.

I’m also having trouble reconciling the parsing of 2. I see it the same way as you all, and while “daybreak” is very clever, I don’t see how the two letters work either.

Ouch not this fiend again so soon! Not quite as horrendous as last time, fave so far 25a.

2d cont.....

Okay, after watching my main man Lewis win the Sprint race in China, I've given this some more thought and come up with two possible but, to be frank, ludicrous explanations. These both assume we are all correct regarding the 3 letter ""at daybreak?".

1. The answer was originally meant to include a different 2 letter abbreviation meaning "is" (maybe even 'it is', at a stretch) but there was a late rewrite and it wasn't caught by either setter or editor. This doesn't, however, explain the inclusion of the "it" after "is".

2. This is where I really delve into the realms of fantasy, but hey, it's late and I'm trying to keep my mind occupied until the F1 qualification begins.... and it's too late to start strumming my guitar - one must be considerate of the neighbours (will you get on with it!!!)
Right, this one requires that we apply the same crypic manoeuvre to the 2 letters as we do to the 3. If we do this and consult Chambers, we see that it's an accepted spelling of a "personification of the earth" in Greek mythology. So now look at the answer and you'll note that "at daybreak?" is spelling out exactly what 3 does to to 2 - All nonsense I know but still,

What usually happens at in instances like these, at least to me, is that, at some time during the day, someone will post the most blindingly obvious explanation as to why the clue makes perfect sense as it is.

Make that 18d..

Last day in Puglia today so quite busy and trying to get the lions share done before getting up but without too much success to date.

Despite numerous mentions still struggling to parse 22d. Can anyone explain the 'shameful act' reference in 24a. If I have the right answer it refers to the first 3 letters I think.

Hi Rocky,

24a - Yes and no. "Shameful act" does refer to that 3 letter word but you have to remember that "finally Brutus moved to pierce".

Enjoy your remaining time in Puglia:-)