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Wednesday night saw John Nettles’ final appearance on our TV screens as Inspector Tom Barnaby. Since 1997, he’s hardly aged as he has solved murder after murder in England’s most dangerous county, with his multiple sidekicks Troy, Scott, Jones, Stephens and Bullard the pathologist, not to mention Joyce (who seems to have got younger, no comment) and Cully. And now he’s gone.
By rights, everyone in Midsomer should have been brutally killed long ago, not to mention that house-prices would be at rock bottom. Despite this, willing victims still flock to Britain’s most dangerous county only to be the victims of a serial killer who is fuming over rare orchids or perhaps the church roof being torn down because the bring-and-buy sale didn’t raise enough money. Eighty-one episodes of being the people of Midsomer’s sole protector on, Barnaby has seen so much human destruction in so many quaintly named villages, it’s no wonder he’s feeling a little worn out. He’s earned a bit of a rest. Time to put his faintly constipated-looking thinking face to bed and go on a cruise.
The people of Midsomer on the other hand will be pretty worried. Barnaby was the only thing standing between them and a wholesale massacre. Without him, their days are numbered. Thank goodness then that his cousin John Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) has conveniently decided to move to Midsomer to take over from good old Tom. You’ll recognise Dudgeon’s face, he’s been around a while, but I doubt you’ll remember where you’ve seen him. Personally I don’t think he’ll be as good, but at least he’s trying.
Barnaby’s last case took place at a health farm. It was the same as usual - all a bit silly, but basically a dispute over rights of way took the foreground until the end when it turned out that it was all actually about an unfinished novel. Of course. Ronni Ancona gave a great turn as the high maintenance bitch who was high and drunk most of the time, until she was dead in the floatation pool. She does crazy eyes and voice very well. Then there was another death: chest crushed by a faulty weights machine, and a terrible beating in the tanning booth, nicely revealed when the ultra-violet light highlighted spots of blood around the place. It was pretty obvious. Barnaby solved it all. The end.
As a rule people don’t like change, particularly those who watch Midsomer Murders, and with John Nettles gone, Midsomer will not be the same comfy programme it was. It could take some time for Dudgeon to rework the bum-print in the sofa which Nettles has left. Let’s be honest though, as long as there are plenty of vicars being killed and suspicious country types in the frame, everything will work out in the end. The appeal of Midsomer Murders has never been high-brow or even particularly gripping, but just something nice to watch in the evening with a crumpet and a cup of tea, so I’m sure it’ll work out with new Barnaby. Tom, we’ll miss you but I’m sure John will be up to the job, he’ll probably be exactly the same character anyway.
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