Case file · Series 24, Episode 3 · Season 24, Episode 3
Claws Out
A village dog search discovers a pet detective dead inside an animal cage while another, much larger dog remains missing.
Verified filming locations
Every filming site currently documented in this Casebook file is listed here. The published evidence does not establish a complete production itinerary.
- The Horn · Crazies Hill, Berkshire
The pub exterior is redressed as the Indian restaurant in fictional Binwell.
Filming source ↗ - Crazies Hill Village Hall · Crazies Hill, Berkshire
The village hall supplies one of Binwell's community exteriors.
Filming source ↗
Map lookup by place name. A private house’s exact address is not marked.
Selected episode credits
Claws Out cast
These selected cast entries link to their published profiles. They do not include every name shown in the end credits.
Fiona Dolman
Josie Lawrence
Josette Simon
Catherine Tyldesley
Mina Anwar
Andrew Scarborough
Charlie Condou
Duncan Preston
Nathan Sussex
Joe Edgar
Tia May Watts
Tom Moya
The 60-second case card
Should I watch this one?
Pet ownership, training culture and inheritance law combine in a case where almost every clue has teeth.
- Best for
- Missing pets · Dog training · Inheritance
- Mood
- Eccentric
- Team
- DCI John Barnaby with DS Jamie Winter
- Spoiler guidance
- Read the premise freely; open the marked sections only after watching. Check the linked provider advisory for further viewing information.
Why it matters
Pet ownership, training culture and inheritance law combine in a case where almost every clue has teeth.
Volunteers searching around Binwell for a missing dog instead find pet detective Frank Bailey dead in a cage associated with Storm, a missing Czechoslovakian wolfdog. The discovery turns an apparently communal search into an examination of rivalries among owners, trainers and Frank's family.
A disputed inheritance and a second death change the financial consequences of the case. Barnaby and Winter have to separate hostility towards the victim from the movement of the missing animal—and decide which apparently helpful searchers are controlling the evidence.
Break the seal: reveal the finding
The pattern of inheritance, the staged use of dog-training equipment and the truth about Storm's disappearance expose a plan built to redirect suspicion through the animals.
More episode detailsProduction, cast, deaths and filming information
Credits, context and checked facts
Production and cast
- TV series
- Series 24
- Episode number
- Episode 3
- Written by
- Helen Jenkins
- Directed by
- Paul Gibson
- Listed transmission date(s)
- 18 December 2023
- Reported filming period
- May–June 2023
- Detective
- DCI John Barnaby
- Partner
- DS Jamie Winter
- Pathologist
- Dr Fleur Perkins · Annette Badland
- Principal setting
- Binwell
- Casebook tone
- Eccentric
Check the credits, then follow the source trail for production and filming details. Counts below describe this archive’s records.
The fictional setting and the real filming sites are separate pieces of information. The location desk currently connects it to 0 broader filming areas and 2 exact on-screen site identities.
Credits and archive connections
- Writer credits6 episodes credited to Helen Jenkins
- Director credits3 episodes directed by Paul Gibson
- Release positionCase 139 of 144
- Story characterEccentric · Missing pets · Dog training
- Location evidence2 exact screen-use matches
The Horn pub was used as Binwell's Indian restaurant, while the village hall and a local cottage supplied further exteriors.
Storm is identified in the story as a Czechoslovakian wolfdog rather than an ordinary domestic crossbreed.
Sources for the production file
Published episode chronology and credits ↗Official ITV programme page ↗Filming-location reference index ↗The chronology is the reference for the credits shown here. A programme homepage does not independently verify a filming date or every production detail. Where multiple transmission dates are listed, territory attribution needs checking. Story, teleplay and adaptation distinctions require the original credit wording; links to external synopses may reveal plot details.
The performers behind this case
Core cast
Actor profiles for the detective, investigating partner and pathologist credited to this episode.
Neil Dudgeon
John Barnaby · Detective Chief InspectorAn English actor whose television work before Causton included Piece of Cake, The Mrs Bradley Mysteries, Messiah and the sitcom Life of Riley. He also appeared in Midsomer Murders years earlier as a different character in Garden of Death.
- Messiah
- Life of Riley
- The Mrs Bradley Mysteries
Nick Hendrix
Jamie Winter · Detective SergeantAn English actor trained at the University of Exeter and RADA. His theatre work includes the National Theatre, Old Vic and West End, while his screen credits include Black Mirror, Marcella, The Crown, Legend and Suffragette.
- Black Mirror
- Marcella
- The Crown
Annette Badland
Dr Fleur Perkins · Police pathologistAn award-winning English actor with an extensive career in theatre, television, film and radio. Her many recognisable roles include Doctor Who, EastEnders, Outlander, Bergerac and pub landlady Mae in Ted Lasso.
- Ted Lasso
- Doctor Who
- EastEnders
Portraits are used only where a reusable licence or public-domain release has been verified. Publicity stills and stock photographs are not copied into this independent guide.
Forensic desk
Dr Fleur Perkins
- Credit
- Resident pathologist
- Played by
- Annette Badland
Fleur pairs forensic certainty with dry humour and a magnificently low tolerance for Midsomer nonsense.
Meet the Casebook pathologists →Spoiler-controlled deaths desk
Deaths recorded in this case
3 people die in this case, according to the linked death record.
Break the seal: reveal the death ledger
- Frank Bailey
Murder · Other recorded death
Performer check- Frank Bailey: Nathan Sussex
- Tai Yang
Murder · Electrocution
Performer check- Tai Yang: Tom Moya
- Lorna McIntosh
Murder · Strangulation or hanging
Performer check- Lorna McIntosh: Josie Lawrence
Break a second seal: reveal the verified killer
Verified killers
Perry Fleming (physical killer) · Madeline Saunders (instigator and killer)Madeline manipulated terminally ill Perry into targeting Tai Yang, although Perry first killed Frank Bailey by mistake. Perry then killed Tai; Madeline killed Lorna McIntosh after Perry disclosed the scheme to her. Perry's later confession falsely claimed responsibility for all three deaths.
Verified motive
Madeline's controlling belief that Tai was derailing Daniella's future drove her to exploit Perry's gratitude for Edison’s heart donation and his terminal diagnosis: she asked Perry to make Tai disappear, accepting the risk because he would not live to face the consequences. Perry killed Frank by mistake and then Tai out of obligation to Madeline; Madeline killed Lorna when Perry's confession threatened to expose them.
Real place → fictional identity
What was filmed where?
The Horn
Used as: The pub exterior is redressed as the Indian restaurant in fictional Binwell.
Crazies Hill Village Hall
Used as: The village hall supplies one of Binwell's community exteriors.
Sources support the listed site uses; they do not establish every filming location in an episode.
Wider filming areas
Places connected to this file
No real-place link is published here until it can be tied to a specific, sourced screen use.