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''Midsomer Murders'' is a British
mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' *Mystery, a seahorse that SpongeBob SquarePants adopts in the episode " My Pre ...
television series, adapted by
Anthony Horowitz Anthony John Horowitz (born 5 April 1955) is an English novelist and screenwriter specialising in mystery and suspense. His works for children and young adult readers include the '' Alex Rider'' series featuring a 14-year-old British boy who spi ...
and
Douglas Watkinson Douglas Watkinson is an English novelist, playwright and screenwriter, specializing in crime and mystery. His books feature the hard-bitten, soft-centred Nathan Hawk, a police officer who was 'required to retire' and now works as a private detectiv ...
from the novels in the ''Chief Inspector Barnaby'' book series created by
Caroline Graham Caroline Graham may refer to: * Caroline Graham, Duchess of Montrose (1770–1847), British duchess * Caroline Graham (writer) (b. 1931), English writer * Caroline Graham Hansen (b. 1995), Norwegian footballer See also * Carolyn Graham, Americ ...
. It has been broadcast on the ITV network since its premiere on 23 March 1997. The series focuses on various murder cases that take place within small country villages across the fictional English county of Midsomer, and the efforts of the senior police detective and his partner within the fictional Midsomer Constabulary to solve the crime by determining who the culprit is and the motive for their actions. It differs from other detective dramas in featuring a mixture of lighthearted whimsy and dark humour, as well as a notable soundtrack with a title theme that includes a
theremin The theremin (; originally known as the ætherphone, etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named aft ...
. The programme has featured two lead stars: from its premiere in 1997,
John Nettles John Vivian Drummond Nettles (born 11 October 1943) is an English actor and author. He is best known for his starring roles as detectives in the crime drama television series '' Bergerac'' (1981–1991) in the title role, and ''Midsomer Murders ...
as Detective Chief Inspector (DCI)
Tom Barnaby Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Geoffrey "Tom" Barnaby (born 20 April 1943) is a fictional detective created by English writer Caroline Graham as the protagonist in her ''Chief Inspector Barnaby'' novel series and adapted into one of the main ...
, until his retirement from the drama in February 2011; then
Neil Dudgeon Neil Dudgeon (born 2 January 1961) is an English actor who, since 2010, has played DCI John Barnaby in the ITV drama series ''Midsomer Murders''. He replaced John Nettles in the lead role in 2011. Early life and education Dudgeon is the son o ...
as DCI John Barnaby, Tom's younger cousin, since March 2011. Both main stars have featured a list of supporting actors who worked alongside them, including
Jane Wymark Jane Wymark (born 31 October 1952) is an English actress. The daughter of English actor Patrick Wymark (1926–1970) and the American writer and playwright Olwen Wymark (1932–2013), she is best known for playing Morwenna Chynoweth Whitworth ...
, Barry Jackson,
Daniel Casey Daniel Casey (born 1 June 1972) is an English actor. He is best known for playing DS Gavin Troy, the original sidekick of DCI Tom Barnaby, for the first six series (and the first episode of series 7), with a guest appearance in series elev ...
, John Hopkins, Jason Hughes, and
Gwilym Lee Gwilym Lee (born 24 November 1983) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in ''Midsomer Murders'' (2013–2016), '' A Song for Jenny'' (2015), '' Jamestown'' (2017), '' Top End Wedding'' (2019), '' The Great'' (2020–2023), and for ...
, with Nick Hendrix as the current co-star working with Dudgeon. ''Midsomer Murders'' remains a popular feature in British television schedules and has been broadcast internationally in over 200 countries and territories.


Summary

''Midsomer Murders'' is a
detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads the ...
drama set in modern-day England. The stories revolve around the efforts of Detective Chief Inspector
Tom Barnaby Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Geoffrey "Tom" Barnaby (born 20 April 1943) is a fictional detective created by English writer Caroline Graham as the protagonist in her ''Chief Inspector Barnaby'' novel series and adapted into one of the main ...
, and later his successor, cousin John Barnaby, to solve numerous murders that take place in the picturesque but deadly villages of the fictional county of Midsomer. The Barnabys have worked with several different sergeants throughout the run of the show:
Detective Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage from the Brit ...
(DS) Gavin Troy (
Daniel Casey Daniel Casey (born 1 June 1972) is an English actor. He is best known for playing DS Gavin Troy, the original sidekick of DCI Tom Barnaby, for the first six series (and the first episode of series 7), with a guest appearance in series elev ...
), DS Dan Scott ( John Hopkins), DS Ben Jones ( Jason Hughes), DS Charlie Nelson (
Gwilym Lee Gwilym Lee (born 24 November 1983) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in ''Midsomer Murders'' (2013–2016), '' A Song for Jenny'' (2015), '' Jamestown'' (2017), '' Top End Wedding'' (2019), '' The Great'' (2020–2023), and for ...
) and DS Jamie Winter ( Nick Hendrix).


Production

Filming of ''Midsomer Murders'' began in the autumn of 1996, and the first episode, "
The Killings at Badger's Drift ''The Killings at Badger's Drift'' is a mystery novel by English writer Caroline Graham and published by Century in 1987. The story follows Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby investigating the murder of an elderly spinster in a rural village. It is ...
", was broadcast in the United Kingdom on 23 March 1997. This inaugural episode was the highest-rated single drama programme of 1997, watched by 13.5 million viewers. Throughout its run, the feature-length drama has attracted many well-known accomplished actors from the stage and screen in guest-starring roles.
Anthony Horowitz Anthony John Horowitz (born 5 April 1955) is an English novelist and screenwriter specialising in mystery and suspense. His works for children and young adult readers include the '' Alex Rider'' series featuring a 14-year-old British boy who spi ...
and the original producers,
Betty Willingale Betty Kathleen Willingale (27 July 1927 – 15 February 2021) was a British television producer and script editor, best known for her work on BBC Television adaptations of classic literature in the 1970s and 1980s. Early life and education Willin ...
and Brian True-May, created the series. Horowitz adapted the majority of the early episodes from the original works by
Caroline Graham Caroline Graham may refer to: * Caroline Graham, Duchess of Montrose (1770–1847), British duchess * Caroline Graham (writer) (b. 1931), English writer * Caroline Graham Hansen (b. 1995), Norwegian footballer See also * Carolyn Graham, Americ ...
. Current writers include Helen Jenkins, Jeff Povey, Nicholas Hicks-Beach, Julia Gilbert and Maria Ward. Initially
John Nettles John Vivian Drummond Nettles (born 11 October 1943) is an English actor and author. He is best known for his starring roles as detectives in the crime drama television series '' Bergerac'' (1981–1991) in the title role, and ''Midsomer Murders ...
acted in the role of Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby. Nettles' character retired at the end of 2010, after the 13th series of eight episodes; his last episode was "Fit for Murder".
Neil Dudgeon Neil Dudgeon (born 2 January 1961) is an English actor who, since 2010, has played DCI John Barnaby in the ITV drama series ''Midsomer Murders''. He replaced John Nettles in the lead role in 2011. Early life and education Dudgeon is the son o ...
replaced him in the 14th series, playing Tom Barnaby's cousin, DCI John Barnaby, who was seen in a series 13 episode, "The Sword of Guillaume". Dudgeon made his first appearance in ''Midsomer Murders'' in the series 4 episode "Garden of Death", in which he played the role of a tongue-in-cheek gardener, Daniel Bolt, rather interested in sex. Series 20 began in the UK on ITV on 10 March 2019, with episode 1, "The Ghosts of Causton Abbey". In the US, the entire six-episode series was immediately released on the streaming services
Acorn TV Acorn TV is a British-American over-the-top VOD streaming service offering television programming from Australia, Canada, other Commonwealth countries, Spain, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In other countries, it is available on a variety ...
and
BritBox BritBox is a British Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Video on demand#Subscription models, video on demand Streaming television, streaming service founded by BBC Studios and ITV plc, ITV which operates in eight countries across Australi ...
, and became available on
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
after the UK broadcast schedule had finished. The show was removed from Netflix in October 2019; only the first 19 series had been shown on the service. Series 20 onward have never been shown on Netflix in US or Canada. As of January, 2021, series 1–20 can be seen in the US on
IMDb TV Amazon Freevee (stylized as freevee and fv, also shortened as Freevee, formerly known as IMDb Freedive and IMDb TV, and sometimes spelled FV) is an American ad-supported video-on-demand (VOD) streaming service owned by Amazon, with original an ...
and
Tubi TV Tubi (stylized as tubi) is an American over-the-top ad-supported streaming television service owned by Fox Corporation since 2020. The service was launched on April 1, 2014, and is based in Los Angeles, California. In 2023, Tubi, Credible L ...
. The show's official social media confirmed that production of series 21 began in March 2019. As with series 20, series 21 was initially released in the USA. It premiered on Acorn TV and BritBox on 1 December 2019, before airing in the UK in January 2020. Published in "The Cinemaholic" in Aug 2024, they have "learned that the network has joined Acorn TV to renew ''Midsomer Murders'' for its twenty-fifth season. The instalment’s filming began in the United Kingdom in the spring of 2024."


Setting

Midsomer is a
fictional Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...
English county The counties of England are a type of subdivision of England. Counties have been used as administrative areas in England since Anglo-Saxon times. There are three definitions of county in England: the 48 ceremonial counties used for the purpo ...
. The
county town In Great Britain and Ireland, a county town is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county, and the place where public representatives are elected to parliament. Following the establishment of county councils in ...
is Causton, a medium-sized town where Detective Chief Inspector Barnaby lives with his wife and where the
Criminal Investigation Department The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is the branch of a police force to which most plainclothes criminal investigation, detectives belong in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth nations. A force's CID is disti ...
is located. Much of the popularity of the series arises from the incongruity of sudden violence in a picturesque and peaceful rural setting. Various clues in several episodes hint that Midsomer might actually cover the areas of
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...
and part of northern
Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...
. This may be supported by the episode "Dead in the Water" where a body is found in the
River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...
. 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 Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
, and specifically, its actual town of
Midsomer Norton Midsomer Norton is a town near the Mendip Hills in Bath and North East Somerset, England, south-west of Bath, Somerset, Bath, north-east of Wells, Somerset, Wells, north-west of Frome, west of Trowbridge and south-east of Bristol. It has ...
, and became a naming convention within the show. Midsomer Wellow and Causton are derived from the names of real Somerset villages Wellow and Corston. Each episode usually contains several murders, the high
body count A body count is the total number of people killed in a particular event. In combat, a body count is often based on the number of confirmed kills, but occasionally only an estimate. Often used in reference to military combat, the term can also r ...
being a well-known feature of the show. Despite this, the culprit is almost never a
serial killer A serial killer (also called a serial murderer) is a person who murders three or more people,An offender can be anyone: * * * * * (This source only requires two people) with the killings taking place over a significant period of time in separat ...
—very frequently the murderer is driven by circumstance to compound his or her crimes, and keeps killing to cover up the original murder. Humour is a main feature of the series. There is often
dark comedy Black comedy, also known as black humor, bleak comedy, dark comedy, dark humor, gallows humor or morbid humor, is a style of comedy that makes light of subject matter that is generally considered taboo, particularly subjects that are normally ...
, such as a woman being murdered with a wheel of cheese, and many scenes are examples of "
dramedy Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...
" (comic drama or dramatic comedy). According to ''Radio Times'' when describing the episode "Death and the Divas" (series 15, episode 4): "''Midsomer Murders'' never takes itself too seriously but here it's got its tongue so far into its cheek, it hurts." Nostalgia has also been a feature of the show, especially in its Nettles era. Most episodes have been set in hermetic rural villages of a kind that were already changing rapidly by the time the series began, Nettles opined in a 2003 interview. The old-fashioned settings are true to the Graham novels: "Although the books are set in the present", wrote one reviewer, Graham's country villages "seem to come from another time". "The spirit is obviously of the '50s", Nettles remarked, and the less crowded, less complicated village/world was clearly part of the books' appeal.


Filming locations

Causton is represented by a number of towns including
Thame Thame is a market town and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, England, about east of the city of Oxford and southwest of Aylesbury. It derives its name from the River Thame which flows along the north side of the town and forms part of the ...
and Wallingford, in
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...
. The Six Bells, a pub in
Warborough Warborough is a village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, about north of Wallingford and about south of Oxford. The parish also includes the hamlet of Shillingford, south of Warborough beside the River Thames. History The toponym has e ...
, Oxfordshire, repeatedly features as the Black Swan in the Midsomer village of Badger's Drift. The Bull & Butcher, the village pub in
Turville Turville is a village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the Chiltern Hills, west of High Wycombe, east-southeast of Watlington, north of Henley-on-Thames and 2 miles (3 km) from the Oxfordshire border. The name is Anglo- ...
,
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...
, featured in both "Murder on St. Malley's Day" (renamed as The Chalk and Gown) and in "Schooled in Murder" (renamed as The Spotted Cow). Filming took place on Sunday 11 August 2013 at
White Waltham Airfield White Waltham Airfield is an operational general aviation aerodrome located at White Waltham, southwest of Maidenhead, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, England. This large grass airfield is best known for its asso ...
, southwest of
Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England. It lies on the southwestern bank of the River Thames, which at this point forms the border with Buckinghamshire. In the 2021 Census, ...
, for episode 4 of Series 16, "The Flying Club". The
Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...
tourism authority announced in 2021 the launching of three themed tours of locations in the county that have been used to film the series. In " The Killings of Copenhagen" - number five in the sixteenth series and the 100th episode overall—several scenes are filmed on location in central
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
, like Rådhuspladsen ("the City Hall Square"),
Nyhavn Nyhavn (; New Haven) is a 17th-century waterfront, canal and entertainment district in Copenhagen, Denmark. Stretching from Kongens Nytorv to the Inner Harbour just south of the Royal Playhouse, it is lined by brightly coloured 17th and early ...
("New Port") with its canal and old colourful houses, a Danish countryside church, and at the circular courtyard inside the
Copenhagen Police Headquarters The Copenhagen Police of Denmark, Police Headquarters building () is located on Polititorvet southwest of the centre of Copenhagen, Denmark. Designed by Hack Kampmann and Aage Rafn in 1924 in the Neo-Classical architecture, Neoclassical style, of ...
building. The murder in Copenhagen is one of three within the entire series (until episode 114, at least) that take place outside the fictional county of Midsomer, the others being in Wales where DCI Tom Barnaby (John Nettles) and DS Ben Jones (Jason Hughes) travel in "Death and Dust" and
Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
where Inspector John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) is introduced.


Characters


Episodes

The pilot episode of ''Midsomer Murders'' was shown on 23 March 1997. 140 episodes have been produced across 24 series. As of 10 November 2024, 136 episodes have been broadcast in the UK, comprising 23 series. New series may air in different territories before the UK. Air dates may vary by region.


20th anniversary special

In June 2019, British-American streaming service
Acorn TV Acorn TV is a British-American over-the-top VOD streaming service offering television programming from Australia, Canada, other Commonwealth countries, Spain, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In other countries, it is available on a variety ...
began streaming a 20th Anniversary Special presented by John Nettles. The one-hour documentary brings together former and current actors on the show as well as producers and others working behind the scene to discuss memorable moments from the past 20 series and the peculiar quirks that have made the show a success.


25th anniversary documentary

In May 2022, ITV announced that there would be a documentary celebrating the show's 25th anniversary. Entitled ''Midsomer Murders – 25 Years of Mayhem'' it featured contributions from cast members including
John Nettles John Vivian Drummond Nettles (born 11 October 1943) is an English actor and author. He is best known for his starring roles as detectives in the crime drama television series '' Bergerac'' (1981–1991) in the title role, and ''Midsomer Murders ...
,
Neil Dudgeon Neil Dudgeon (born 2 January 1961) is an English actor who, since 2010, has played DCI John Barnaby in the ITV drama series ''Midsomer Murders''. He replaced John Nettles in the lead role in 2011. Early life and education Dudgeon is the son o ...
,
Jane Wymark Jane Wymark (born 31 October 1952) is an English actress. The daughter of English actor Patrick Wymark (1926–1970) and the American writer and playwright Olwen Wymark (1932–2013), she is best known for playing Morwenna Chynoweth Whitworth ...
, Fiona Dolman,
Daniel Casey Daniel Casey (born 1 June 1972) is an English actor. He is best known for playing DS Gavin Troy, the original sidekick of DCI Tom Barnaby, for the first six series (and the first episode of series 7), with a guest appearance in series elev ...
, Jason Hughes and
Annette Badland Annette Badland is a British actress known for a wide range of roles on television, radio, stage, and film. She is best known for her roles as Charlotte in the BBC crime drama series '' Bergerac'', Margaret Blaine in the BBC science fiction se ...
, as well as writer Jeff Povey and producer Ian Strachan. It also delved behind the scenes of filming series 23 and highlighted pre-fame appearances by actors such as
Orlando Bloom Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Copeland Bloom (born 13 January 1977) is an English actor. He made his breakthrough as the character Legolas in The Lord of the Rings (film series), ''The Lord of the Rings'' film series (2001–03). He reprised his r ...
and
Henry Cavill Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill ( ; born 5 May 1983) is a British actor. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Superman in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), beginning with '' Man of Steel'' (2013) and reprising the role in '' Batman v S ...
. ITV subsequently announced that the one-hour documentary would air on the channel on Sunday 29 May 2022 at 7pm.


Controversy

In March 2011, the series' producer, Brian True-May, was suspended by
All3Media All3Media Limited is a British worldwide independent television, film, and digital production and distribution company based in London. The All3Media group consists of more than 50 production and distribution companies and labels from the Uni ...
after telling the TV listings magazine ''
Radio Times ''Radio Times'' is a British weekly listings magazine devoted to television and radio programme schedules, with other features such as interviews, film reviews and lifestyle items. Founded in September 1923 by John Reith, then general manage ...
'' that the programme did not have any non- white characters because the series was "the last bastion of
Englishness According to some scholars, a national identity of the English as the people or ethnic group dominant in England can be traced to the Anglo-Saxon period. For Lindy Brady and Marc Morris, Bede's ''Ecclesiastical History of the English People'' and ...
and I want to keep it that way". When challenged about the term "Englishness" and whether that would exclude ethnic minorities, True-May responded: "Well, it should do, and maybe I'm not
politically correct "Political correctness" (adjectivally "politically correct"; commonly abbreviated to P.C.) is a term used to describe language, policies, or measures that are intended to avoid offense or disadvantage to members of particular groups in society. ...
." 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 were investigated by the production company. He was reinstated, having apologised "if his remarks gave unintended offence to any viewers", but subsequently stepped down as producer. ITV said it was "shocked and appalled" at True-May's comments, which were "absolutely not shared by anyone at ITV". True-May's replacement, Jo Wright, confirmed that she was committed to on-screen diversity when she took over the helm of the show, saying: "I feel strongly that a range of ethnic groups should be represented on screen. And that will be reflected in some of the episodes in the new series with key guest casting. I will cast the series in the same way as I always do, by starting with the best script. And a good script will include a variety of different characters." In series 15, Asian actors played central characters in the show for the first time, in the episode "Written in the Stars". Black characters also began to appear starting in that series. Beginning with series 18, the show gained an Asian member for its main cast: pathologist Kam Karimore, played by
Manjinder Virk Manjinder Virk is a British actress, director and writer. She has appeared in the television series ''Holby City'' (1999), '' Doctors'' (2000), ''The Bill'' (2004), '' The Ghost Squad'' (2005), '' Runaway'' (2009), '' Skins'' (2010), '' Monroe' ...
. However, she left the show at the end of series 19.


Broadcast

In 2004, ''Midsomer Murders'' was among the three most-sold British TV shows worldwide, whether as TV programming or DVD. , ''Midsomer Murders'' had been sold to more than 200 countries around the world. In Australia, first-run episodes and repeats are screened on the national free-to-air network
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
with repeats also shown on the
Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...
channel,
9Gem 9Gem is an Australian free-to-air digital television multichannel, launched by the Nine Network in September 2010. The channel provides general entertainment and movie programming, from which the original name "GEM" is derived. History The la ...
. The series was originally only aired on the
Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...
. Repeat screenings are also aired on the subscription channels
UKTV UKTV Media Limited, trading as UKTV, is a British multi-channel broadcaster, which, since 2019, has been wholly owned by BBC Studios (formerly BBC Worldwide), a commercial subsidiary of the BBC. It was formed on 1 November 1992 through a join ...
and 13th Street. A measure of the success of the series in Australia is that repeats of the series still rate highly and often feature in the nation's top twenty shows in national surveys. In Canada, the series is broadcast on
TVOntario TVO (stylized in all lowercase as tvo), formerly known as TVOntario, is a Canadian Public broadcasting, publicly funded English-language educational television network and media organization serving the Canadian province of Ontario. It operates ...
and
Book Television BookTelevision was a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by Bell Media. The channel was originally established in 2001 by Learning and Skills Television of Alberta Ltd., then partially owned by CHUM Limited, airing programming rel ...
in Ontario, on
Knowledge Knowledge is an Declarative knowledge, awareness of facts, a Knowledge by acquaintance, familiarity with individuals and situations, or a Procedural knowledge, practical skill. Knowledge of facts, also called propositional knowledge, is oft ...
in British Columbia, and via American
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
channels available throughout southern parts of Canada. , the first thirteen series are currently available in Canada on
Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...
, while only series 21 is available on
Britbox BritBox is a British Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Video on demand#Subscription models, video on demand Streaming television, streaming service founded by BBC Studios and ITV plc, ITV which operates in eight countries across Australi ...
. The first nineteen series are also available on streaming service/app Tubi and Acorn. In Ireland, the series is aired on
Virgin Media Three Virgin Media Three, also called Virgin Three, is an Irish free-to-air television channel owned by Virgin Media Television. The channel was first launched by Northern Irish broadcaster UTV Media on 1 January 2015 as UTV Ireland; it primari ...
every Monday night at 8 pm. It is one of the channel's highest-rated shows. In
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
, the series was broadcast on
TVNZ 1 TVNZ 1 () is the first national television channel owned and operated by the state-owned broadcaster Television New Zealand (TVNZ). It is the oldest television broadcaster in New Zealand, starting out from 1960 as independent channels in the ...
and it was broadcast for a number of years on the free-to-air channel
Prime A prime number (or a prime) is a natural number greater than 1 that is not a product of two smaller natural numbers. A natural number greater than 1 that is not prime is called a composite number. For example, 5 is prime because the only ways ...
. In the United States, the series was first aired by A&E, which broadcast "The Killings at Badger's Drift" on 28 June 1998 and followed with the next four episodes over the 1998–99 series. The show remained on A&E for many years until it was syndicated by
American Public Television American Public Television (APT) is an American nonprofit organization and syndicator of programming for public television stations in the United States. It distributes public television programs nationwide for PBS member stations and indepen ...
for broadcast on public television stations. All 24 series are currently available on the streaming service
Acorn TV Acorn TV is a British-American over-the-top VOD streaming service offering television programming from Australia, Canada, other Commonwealth countries, Spain, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In other countries, it is available on a variety ...
, which also offers the programme in Canada. The show is also broadcast in the USA on the
Ion Mystery Ion Mystery (formerly Escape and Court TV Mystery, stylized as ESCAPE and MYSTERY; formerly branded on-air as Mystery) is an American free-to-air television network owned by the Scripps Networks subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company. It focu ...
Network, and it has a dedicated channel on the streaming service Pluto TV. The
Paramount Channel Paramount Network is an international television channel brand owned and operated by the Paramount International Networks division of Paramount Global that showcase its selected television productions and the film catalogue of its filming divi ...
broadcasts episode
reruns A rerun or repeat is a rebroadcast of an episode of a radio or television program. The two types of reruns are those that occur during a hiatus and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Variations In the United Kingdom, the word "repe ...
daily.
PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
also occasionally shows Midsomer Murders on some stations from time to time.


Soundtracks

Composed by Jim Parker, the main theme is a moderate-tempo waltz, performed (primarily though not exclusively) on an unusual electronic musical instrument, the
theremin The theremin (; originally known as the ætherphone, etherphone, thereminophone or termenvox/thereminvox) is an electronic musical instrument controlled without physical contact by the performer (who is known as a thereminist). It is named aft ...
, which has a sound not unlike a low whistle or a human voice. The theremin part was played by Celia Sheen (1940–2011). From the 14th series onwards the soundtrack was altered so that during the closing titles a standardised version of the theme is played on a solo violin in place of the theremin. Occasionally a version with a longer introduction opens the show, using a flute rather than a theremin as the lead instrument. The closing theme for "The Scarecrow Murders", shown on 29 May 2022 to celebrate 25 years, was a more jovial clarinet version. Multiple soundtrack CDs have been released so far, containing versions of the theme and musical cues from various series.


Home media

All 140 episodes have been released in the US (Region 1) and in the UK (Region 2) including three Christmas specials, by Acorn Media. The first 18 series and "Part 1" of series 19 of ''Midsomer Murders'' have been released in Australia and New Zealand (Region 4). Note that episodes 1 to 100 were originally released as 25 DVD "sets", which were not in chronological order and are now discontinued. They have been re-released in 2015 as chronological "series" 1 to 16 in redesigned packages. To confuse fans further, Costco Warehouses sold 5 abbreviated (region 1) sets with one less disc, but used the same "set" numberings even though they did not match the retail "sets". Blue-ray discs were released for "Sets" 17 through 25 and "Series" 16 through 24, picking up where the "sets" left off but not re-issuing the "sets" in resigned packages like the DVDs did. In January 2006, ''Midsomer Murders'' started a DVD and Magazine Collection, available at newsagents in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and the UK. Acorn Media had released DVD chronological order collections of ''Midsomer Murders'' in North America which are: * ''The Early Cases'' 10 disc collection of 18 episodes includes the pilot episode and those of series one, two, three, and four (except the last episode), as well as a bonus disc featuring a behind-the-scenes documentary. * Acorn's "Barnaby's Casebook" 10 disc collection has 17 episodes, including the last episode of series four, followed by those of series five, six, and seven. * Acorn's "Village Case Files" 8 disc collection includes the 16 episodes of series eight, and nine; and a 4-minute bonus clip from series one. * Acorn's "Mayhem & Mystery" 15 disc collection includes the 17 episodes of series ten and eleven. * Acorn's "Tom Barnaby's Last Cases" 15 disc collection includes the 17 episodes of series twelve and thirteen. Below table are the release dates for complete series sets in both Australia Region 4 and United Kingdom Region 2.


Books

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References


External links

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