Books Monthly Volume 13 No. 12 | September 2011 | Welcome to booksmonthly.co.uk - I hope you enjoy your visit.

Watching the Detectives - third in a new series

Caroline Graham's Midsomer Murders

by Paul Norman

Midsomer Murders is a British television drama that has aired on ITV since 1997, based loosely on CAROLINE GRAHAM's novels pictured above and published by HEADLINE. Prior to 2011, the chief character was DCI Tom Barnaby, elder cousin of the current character, who left the series when actor John Nettles decided to give up the role. He was replaced by his cousin, also Chief Inspector Barnaby, and played by Neil Dudgeon (see my comments, below). The stories revolve around Barnaby's efforts to solve the numerous crimes that take place in the fictional English county of Midsomer, assisted by successive Detective Sergeants - DS Gavin Troy (Daniel Casey), DS Dan Scott (John Hopkins), and currently DS Ben Jones (Jason Hughes). Editor's comment: Neil Dudgeon's Inspector Barnaby is slow, ponderous, and totally different to John Nettles. There have been four, maybe five episodes thus far and the series has failed to ignite for me. Dudgeon is a comedy actor and although there is an underlying sense of humour visible in Midsomer Murders, Dudgeon is quite out of place, and out of his depth. I can't see it lasting beyond another series, and I really wish they would try to persuade John Nettles to come back.

Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby - A senior member of the Midsomer Constabulary's Causton CID, Barnaby handled the considerable number of murders that occur in the county. A patient, tolerant man whose style of investigation is methodical and fair. However, despite his methodical nature he is an extremely sagacious and perceptive individual, able to recognise seemingly obscure clues in order to close an investigation. He also formerly worked for MI6. Much of his social life seems to revolve around his wife and daughter. In fact, they both often provide a personal connection with the crimes that he is investigating. His other relatives are his parents, who by the episode "Blue Herrings" are both deceased. Though only his mother is referred to, he also has an aunt Alice Bly who appears only in the aforesaid episode, to whom he is devoted. In Barnaby's last appearance ("Fit for Murder") we learn that his father died on his birthday, at Tom's present age.Joyce Barnaby - Barnaby's long-suffering wife. She is enormously tolerant of her husband, despite his being a workaholic who spent their honeymoon solving the case of the 'Pimlico Poisoner', which suggests that they met in London, where they both possibly lived and worked. Joyce is an easy-going and friendly woman who likes to get involved in community activities. She has long possessed a desire to move out of their Causton home and into one of the picturesque Midsomer villages - only to be put off by the grisly murders that occur there.

Cully Dixon - Tom's and Joyce's only child takes her first name from a village on Lake Geneva in Switzerland, where she was conceived during her parents' honeymoon. She is an inquisitive and bold young woman, who seems to have inherited many of her parents' friendly attitudes and community spirit. Early in the series she attended Cambridge University and dated a drama student, Nico. This fell through and she returned to live with her parents in Causton. She is an actress and frequently takes temporary jobs in the Midsomer area when "resting" between assignments. Like her mother, her tendency to do community work often leaves her personally involved with the murders that take place. She meets Simon in the Axeman Cometh, and marries him in Blood Wedding. Actress Laura Howard was said to have left the show after "The Magician's Nephew", but Cully appeared again in "The Glitch".

Detective Inspector Gavin Troy – Barnaby's first deputy. He is a local man and attended a local comprehensive. He is young to be a detective sergeant, a point often commented on. He is very bright and ambitious, though it is usually his boss who solves the crime, often after Troy has made the slightly wrong conclusion. In contrast to the tolerant Barnaby, Troy is one to make non-politically correctremarks. He was promoted to Inspector and transferred to Middlesbrough in the first episode of the seventh series, "The Green Man". His relationship with Barnaby has always been warm and the two make a formidable pair. He makes a one off re-appearance in the Series 11 episode "Blood Wedding", to attend the wedding of Cully Barnaby. Editor's comments: Quite unlike the Gavin Troy in Caroline Graham's books, who is a homophobe and very un-PC. I personally believe that the TV Troy is exceptionally good, and although not quite as brusque and ebullient as in the books, he makes the part his own and complements Barnaby to perfection.

DS Daniel Scott - is a lot cockier than his predecessor DS Troy; he is a Londoner who was not thrilled at being transferred from the Metropolitan Police Service to Midsomer, which he regards as the 'sticks'. His relationship with Barnaby was prickly at first but it mellowed into a slightly awkward marriage of convenience, with Barnaby still disapproving of Scott's methods and Scott grudgingly starting to respect him. In 'The Straw Woman,' Scott develops a love interest who is subsequently brutally murdered. This episode is notable for Barnaby's lack of sympathy with Scott's situation. Scott's departure from the show was also abrupt. In "The House in the Woods", Barnaby describes Scott as being ill. Barnaby invites PC Ben Jones (see below) to assist him on that case. After this incident, no more is heard from Scott and Jones becomes the new assistant.

DS Benjamin Jones - the third character to act as Barnaby's assistant. Unlike the his predecessors (DS Troy and DS Scott), who first appeared on the series as sergeants, Jones was a uniformed police constable when first introduced. He was first appointed as a Detective Constable (after assisting Barnaby in DS Scott's absence), and later promoted to Detective Sergeant by the end of his first series. Jones is considerably less naive than his predecessors, often possessing an insight into cases that neither Scott nor Troy would have. He is Welsh, and remarks about his love for Wales when he and Barnaby travel there in the episode "Death and Dust". He is formerly a Freemason, as revealed in "King's Crystal". In the episode "Death in Chorus" Jones exhibits a remarkable vocal talent and is recruited to sing tenor in the Midsomer Worthy choir. Editor's comments: I really don't like Jones at all, and find him quite irritating. His main fault is his lack of respect for Barnaby, and his failure to support him when Barnaby was suspected of murder. He should have stuck to uniform. He really didn't bring anything to the series.

Doctor George Bullard - Causton's resident pathologist. Bullard goes about his work with a professional skill and a cheery demeanour. He is a good friend of Barnaby. He has been a regular throughout the series (save for a brief spell, when his place was taken by Dr. Dan Peterson played by Toby Jones). In later episodes he has often played a greater role in the plot, even making a sterling appearance in the Midsomer Worthy Choir in "Death in Chorus". In one episode he admits to the "accidental" death of his wife while on tour at a slaughter house.

DC Gail Stephens - a colleague of Barnaby and Jones who often helps them in their cases, sometimes providing valuable insight. Stephens is cheery but emotional, breaking down in tears when, after initially serving as a uniformed Constable, she was appointed as a full-time detective. There was the brief potential for a relationship between her and Jones, but Jones made a decision which went against it on the grounds that she was a work colleague.

Other minor characters have also spanned their appearances across more than one episode. Olive Beauvoisin, the estate agent, (played by Eileen Davies) appeared in "Death's Shadow" and "Dead Man’s Eleven". She also appeared in "Hidden Depths" but in this particular episode she was credited as "Estate Agent". Charles Jennings (played by Terence Corrigan) also featured in the same two episodes. David Whitely (played by Christopher Villiers) appeared in the pilot episode "The Killings at Badger's Drift" and also in "Death's Shadow". John Lightbody has played the role of two different characters. In "Hidden Depths" he is gardener Steve Hope, but in "Death and Dust" he plays the role of Jason Slater. Richard Hope appeared in "Judgement Day" as Gordon Brierly, the local veterinarian and seven years later reappeared in the episode "They Seek Him Here" as local actor and historian Neville Hayward.

Setting

Midsomer is an English fictional county. The county town is Causton, a middle-sized town where Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby lives with his wife and where the Criminal Investigation Department is located. Many of the villages and small towns of the county have the word Midsomer in their name; this is inspired in part by the real county of Somerset, and specifically the town ofMidsomer Norton. The county is notable for its particularly high crime rate, the Midsomer Constabulary inundated with the number of murder cases that come their way. This has even become a running joke among the British public. When Mrs. Barnaby proposed they move out of Causton and suggested various villages, her husband countered with recollections of particularly grisly murders that occurred in each community.

Filming locations

Causton was represented by Wallingford, Oxfordshire. Causton police station was represented by the former RAF Staff College, Bracknell. Favourite filming locations include Hedsor House,Buckinghamshire, Beaconsfield, Amersham, Great Missenden, Prestwood, The Lee, Wendover, Stoke Poges, Princes Risborough, Turville, Long Crendon, Penn, Marlow, Denham, Bledlow, theAshridge Estate, Aldbury, Little Gaddesden, Chesham, Latimer, Folkingham, Chenies, Hambleden, Haddenham, and Waddesdon; in Hertfordshire, Hemel Hempstead town, Chipperfield, Flaunden, Bulbourne, Hadley Wood, Sarratt, and Watford; and, in Oxfordshire, Warborough, Islip, Nettlebed, Henley on Thames, Dorchester, Waterstock, Stoke Talmage, Stonor Park, Thame, Thame Park House and Aston. Bekonscot Model Village in Beaconsfield features in one episode, and Twyford railway station repeatedly features as the fictional Causton railway station.

The Six Bells pub in Warborough, Oxfordshire repeatedly features as the Black Swan pub in the Midsomer village of Badger's Drift.

Production

Initial filming of Midsomer Murders was undertaken in autumn 1996 with the first episodes transmitted in the United Kingdom on March 23, 1997. Viewing figures for the series are healthy, and the feature-length drama attracts a number of actors from the stage and screen in guest-starring roles. The majority of the early episodes were adapted by Anthony Horowitz from the original Caroline Graham works. Horowitz and the original producers Betty Willingale and Brian True-May, created the series. Current writers include David Lawrence, Michael Aitkens and David Hoskins.

In early 2009, John Nettles announced he would retire after the 13th series of 10 episodes, at the end of 2010. Neil Dudgeon replaced him in the 14th series playing Barnaby's cousin DCI John Barnaby. The character is first seen in the episode 'The Sword of Guillaume'.

Midsomer Murders has been sold to a large number of countries and territories around the world—in 2004 it was among the 3 most sold British TV-shows worldwide whether as either TV Programming or DVD.In Austria, the channel ORF2 airs the series as "Inspector Barnaby".

In Australia, the series originally aired on the Nine Network. First-run episodes from series 11 onwards screened on ABC1, which as of 2009 began showing in prime time older episodes previously screened on Nine Network. Repeat screenings are also aired on the subscription channels UKTV and 13th Street. Series fourteen commenced screening on ABC1 in July 2011.

In Belgium, the series is shown subtitled on Dutch language channel één and dubbed in French on RTL-TVI, Club RTL, where it has also been retitled Inspecteur Barnaby.

In Bulgaria, the literal translation of the title Убийства в Мидсъмър is used. The series first appeared subtitled on the Hallmark Channel, which continues to premiere the newest episodes and repeat the older ones. A Bulgarian distributor has selected the show and it aired dubbed on TV7 and after that on numerous other cable or regional channels.

In Canada, the series is broadcast on public broadcaster TVOntario and the Book Television in Ontario, and on Knowledge in British Columbia, which in 2009 is showing Series 9 through series 10. Season 13 is scheduled to begin showing on October 30, 2010 on Knowledge.

In Croatia, the series is broadcast on public station HRT, typically in the Friday late evening slot, about a year after the original airing, with the title translated as Umorstva u Midsomeru. Most of the seasons have been rerun. Various cable channels that carry the series are also available (such as Hallmark Channel Croatia and BBC Prime).

In the Czech Republic, the series is known as Vraždy v Midsomeru (Murders In Midsomer), and it is broadcast on TV Prima, one of the four major TV channels there. It was also shortly broadcasted by Nova Cinema, 2nd channel of the largest commercial TV company in CZ, Nova TV.

In Denmark, it is called Kriminalkommisær Barnaby and is shown by DR (Danmarks Radio). DVDs are currently being sold with a weekly magazine called Billedbladet.

In Estonia, the series is known as Midsomeri mõrvad (Midsomer Murders) and is broadcast on national public television channel ETV.

In Finland, the series is known by its translated name in Finnish Midsomerin murhat (Midsomer's murders) and shows on the channel YLE1 with Finnish subtitle.

In France, the series is shown on France 3 and has been retitled Inspecteur Barnaby.

In Germany, the channel ZDF airs the series as Inspektor Barnaby, but only in loose connection and not all the shows, especially from the earlier series many are missing.

In Hungary, the series is shown on the Hallmark Channel. It is dubbed in Hungarian, its title is Kisvárosi gyilkosságok (Small-town Murders).

In Iceland, the series is aired as Barnaby ræður gátuna (Barnaby solves the puzzle) on RÚV.

In Ireland, the series is shown on the state broadcaster, RTE.

In Italy, it is called L'ispettore Barnaby (Inspector Barnaby) and is one of the most viewed shows of the private channel La7. Reruns also air on satellite channel Fox Crime.

In India, the series is shown on the BBC entertainment Channel.

In Japan, the series is shown on the "AXN Mystery" Cable Channel. It is called "Bānabi Keibu" (Inspector Barnaby) and shown with Japanese subtitles.

In Lithuania, the series is shown on TV1 and has been retitled Midsomerio žmogžudystės.

In Macedonia, the literal translation of the title Убиствa вo Мидсoмeр is used. The series first appeared (subtitled in Serbian) on the Hallmark Channel, which continues to premiere the newest episodes and repeat the older ones. A Macedonian TV channel Sitel has selected the show and it started to air from the very first episode in June 2011 .

In the Middle East, it airs on the Saudi channel MBC 4.

In the Netherlands, KRO on channel Nederland 1 airs the series as Midsomer Murders, the series is subtitled in Dutch.

In New Zealand, the series has been broadcast for a number of years on free-to-air channel Prime.

In Norway, the series is called Mord og Mysterier (Murder and Mysteries) and has developed a steady and loyal fanbase. It is broadcast on the second-largest TV channel, TV 2.

In Poland, the series is called Morderstwa w Midsomer (Murders In Midsomer) and is aired on the Hallmark Channel (currently called 13th Street Universal).

In Romania, the series is called Crimele din Midsomer (Midsomer Murders) and is aired weekly on the Hallmark Channel, Pro TV, and Pro Cinema.

In Russia and Ukraine, it is called A Very English Murder ("Purely English Murder") and has been repeatedly shown on various channels. The reason for such an unusual choice of title is the great success of the 1974 Soviet film A Very English Murder adapted from the novel An English Murder (1951) by Cyril Hare.

In Serbia, the series is called "Ubistva u Midsomeru" and is aired on Fox televizija and the Hallmark Channel.

In Slovakia, the series is aired on JOJ Plus as Vraždy v Midsomeri (Murders In Midsomer).

In Slovenia, the series is aired on POP TV and its sister channel POP BRIO and the Universal Channel and is called Umori na podeželju (Murders in the Countryside). DVDs of the series have been sold via newspapers.

In South Africa, the series is aired every Sunday on the Universal Channel on DStv, channel number 108.

In South Korea, the series is aired every Friday evening on the BBC Entertainment channel on Sky. It has done from series 12 onwards on channel number 334.

In Spain, the series is called Los asesinatos de Midsomer (Midsomer Murders). Only the first episodes were aired on City TV.

In Sri Lanka, the series is aired on Channel Eye every Sunday Night.

In Sweden, the series, translated to Morden i Midsomer (The Murders in Midsomer) and airing on SVT1, is hugely popular and has become a traditional part of summer television schedules. Older seasons are currently aired on TV3 and TV8. DVDs of the episodes were previously sold weekly with copies of a tabloid newspaper.

It is also aired in Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia on the Hallmark Channel every week.

In the United States, the series was aired by Arts and Entertainment Television for a time and is now being broadcast in the San Francisco Bay Area by Public Broadcasting station KTEH, Channel 54 in San Jose. Beginning on October 9, KTEH began airing Midsomer Murders from the first episode, "The Killings at Badgers Drift." Each episode is aired four times a week on Fridays at 9.00pm, Saturdays at 3.00am, Tuesdays at 7.00pm, and Wednesdays at 10.00am.

Controversy

In March 2011, producer Brian True-May was suspended by All3Media after having told the TV listings magazine Radio Times that racial diversity in the programme was non-existent because the series was a "bastion of Englishness". When challenged on the term Englishness and whether that should also include different ethnic minorities, True-May said "Well, it should do, and maybe I'm not politically correct". He later went on to say that he wanted to make a programme "that appeals to a certain audience, which seems to succeed". True-May's comments are now being investigated by the production company Mr. True-May has now been reinstated but will step down as producer after the filming of the remainder of the current series has been completed.

DVD releases

All thirteen series thus far of Midsomer Murders have been released in Australia and New Zealand (Region 4). All 65 episodes that have been aired so far have been released in the UK (Region 2) including the 2008 Christmas Special "Days of Misrule" released 2 February 2009.

In January 2006, Midsomer Murders started a DVD & Magazine Collection, available at newsagents in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Acorn Media has released 18 DVD sets of Midsomer Murders in North America as well as a 19-disc collection available as The Early Cases. This set, which restores the episodes to their UK broadcast order, includes Acorn's set one, two, three, and five, as well as a bonus disc featuring a behind-the-scenes documentary. The North American releases lag well behind UK releases.

Books

The following list is a collection of published works connected with the series.

• Caroline Graham, "The Killings at Badger's Drift", 1987.
• Caroline Graham, "Death of a Hollow Man", 1989.
• Caroline Graham, "Death in Disguise", 1993.
• Caroline Graham, "Written in Blood", 1995.
• Caroline Graham, "Faithful unto Death", 1998.
• Caroline Graham, "A Place of Safety", 1999.
• Caroline Graham, "A Ghost in the Machine", 2004.
• Jeff Evans, "Midsomer Murders: The Making of An English Crime Classic", 2003.

TV 'TEC SCORE 10/10 (John Nettles) 2/10 (Neil Dudgeon)

Missed the others in the series of WATCHING THE DETECTIVES? Catch up here with a look at Jackson Brodie... and Vera. This month's Adult book of the month is Neil Cross's LUTHER, based on the TV series and written to provide some history for this fascinating new TV detective. As there is only as yet one book about Luther, he doesn't get his own WATCHING THE DETECTIVES page, but you can read about the book on the Adult Fiction page here.

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