Case file · Series 25, Episode 3
Death Strikes Three
A booby-trapped cuckoo clock kills a guest after an engagement party at Godley Manor, leaving the intended target uncertain.
The 60-second case card
Should I watch this one?
An extravagantly mechanical opening method gives way to a more intimate mystery about belonging to a family.
- Best for
- Cuckoo clocks · Engagement party · Family secret
- Mood
- Eccentric
- Team
- DCI John Barnaby with DS Jamie Winter
- Spoiler guidance
- Read the premise freely; open the marked sections only after watching. This is not a complete content advisory.
Why it matters
An extravagantly mechanical opening method gives way to a more intimate mystery about belonging to a family.
A booby-trapped cuckoo clock kills a guest after an engagement party at Godley Manor, leaving the intended target uncertain.
Brad Furbank dies at Godley Manor after receiving the full force of a rigged cuckoo clock. Because the clock was a gift brought by a newly acknowledged relative, Barnaby and Winter must first decide whether Brad, his host or another member of the Bruce family was meant to trigger it.
The engagement celebration has also brought an unfamiliar branch of the family into view. Messages about a woman believed to have returned to Godley Buzzard draw the investigation towards a childhood loss, a fatal road accident and identities maintained for many years.
Break the seal: reveal the finding
The clock trap and later violence protect a family story shaped by a child's death, a concealed identity and fear of what a returning witness can prove.
Open the full research dossierProduction, cast, forensics, deaths and filming evidence
Credits, context and checked facts
The episode file
- TV series
- Series 25
- Episode number
- Episode 3
- Written by
- Jeff Povey
- Directed by
- Darcia Martin
- Listed transmission date(s)
- 22 December 2025
- Reported filming period
- May–June 2025
- Detective
- DCI John Barnaby
- Partner
- DS Jamie Winter
- Pathologist
- Dr Fleur Perkins · Annette Badland
- Principal setting
- Godley Buzzard
- 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 1 broader filming area and 3 exact on-screen site identities.
Credits and archive connections
- Writer ledger8 episodes credited to Jeff Povey
- Director ledger1 episode directed by Darcia Martin
- Release positionCase 143 of 144
- Story characterEccentric · Cuckoo clocks · Engagement party
- Location evidence3 exact screen-use matches
The Cricketers at Littlewick Green appears as The Raging Stag, while nearby cottages supply a village shop and home.
Fawley Hill stands in for Godley Manor, the Bruce family estate and scene of the opening clock attack.
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.
Selected episode credits
Guest cast on file
Selected profiles and published cast-list entries. Database records are linked individually; this is not a full transcription or an independent check against the end credits.
Kevin McNally
Published cast record ↗Rebecca Front
Published cast record ↗Joe Dixon
Published cast record ↗Andi Osho
Published cast record ↗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 source rows represent 3 people in the current ledger.
Break the seal: reveal the death ledger
- Brad Furbank
Murder · Vehicle or machinery
- Aggy Marlowe / Nessie Copeland
Murder · Blunt force
- Kimonie Bullitt
Murder · Suffocation
Real place → fictional identity
What was filmed where?
The Cricketers
Used as: The pub exterior is used as The Raging Stag in Godley Buzzard.
Representative photograph of the real filming location; the exact camera angle or building may differ.Colwyn Cottages
Used as: The cottages supply Kimonie Bullitt's home and flower-shop exterior.
Representative photograph of the real filming location; the exact camera angle or building may differ.Fawley Hill
Used as: The Georgian house stands in for the Bruce family's Godley Manor.
Building identities are cross-checked against the Casebook's published filming-location references. A named match describes the part used on screen, not the whole village and not necessarily an interior.
Wider filming areas