Case file · Series 2, Episode 1
Death's Shadow
A brutal death interrupts the Barnabys' anniversary plans and reopens a tragedy from three decades earlier.
The 60-second case card
Should I watch this one?
One of the early era's darkest and most highly regarded mysteries.
- Best for
- Badger's Drift · Old secret · Village fête
- Mood
- Dark
- Team
- DCI Tom Barnaby with DS Gavin Troy
- Spoiler guidance
- Read the premise freely; open the marked sections only after watching. This is not a complete content advisory.
Why it matters
One of the early era's darkest and most highly regarded mysteries.
A brutal death interrupts the Barnabys' anniversary plans and reopens a tragedy from three decades earlier.
Break the seal: reveal the finding
Three present-day deaths lead back to a child's death and a long-delayed reckoning.
Open the full research dossierProduction, cast, forensics, deaths and filming evidence
Credits, context and checked facts
The episode file
- TV series
- Series 2
- Episode number
- Episode 1
- Written by
- Anthony Horowitz
- Directed by
- Jeremy Silberston
- Listed transmission date(s)
- 20 January 1999
- Reported filming period
- July–August 1998
- Detective
- DCI Tom Barnaby
- Partner
- DS Gavin Troy
- Pathologist
- Dr George Bullard · Barry Jackson
- Principal setting
- Badger's Drift
- Casebook tone
- Dark
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 3 broader filming areas and 1 exact on-screen site identity.
Credits and archive connections
- Writer ledger6 episodes credited to Anthony Horowitz
- Director ledger9 episodes directed by Jeremy Silberston
- Release positionCase 6 of 144
- Story characterDark · Badger's Drift · Old secret
- Location evidence1 exact screen-use match
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.
The performers behind this case
Core cast
Actor profiles for the detective, investigating partner and pathologist credited to this episode.
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John Nettles
Tom Barnaby · Detective Chief InspectorAn English actor, author and narrator who was already a household name as Jersey detective Jim Bergerac. After Bergerac he spent five seasons with the Royal Shakespeare Company and later returned to television drama in Poldark.
- Bergerac
- Poldark
- Royal Shakespeare Company
Daniel Casey
Gavin Troy · Detective Sergeant · later InspectorAn English stage and television actor also known for Our Friends in the North, Steel River Blues, EastEnders and Emmerdale. He later returned to the Midsomer world to play Tom Barnaby in the first professional stage adaptation.
- Our Friends in the North
- Steel River Blues
- Midsomer Murders on stage
Barry Jackson
Dr George Bullard · Police pathologistAn English stage and screen character actor whose career lasted more than five decades. His credits ranged from the landmark television play Cathy Come Home to Doctor Who, Barry Lyndon and many familiar British television dramas.
- Cathy Come Home
- Doctor Who
- Barry Lyndon
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 George Bullard
- Credit
- Resident pathologist
- Played by
- Barry Jackson
Causton's long-serving pathologist is professionally unflappable, quietly witty and an old friend of Tom Barnaby.
Meet the Casebook pathologists →Spoiler-controlled deaths desk
Deaths recorded in this case
5 source rows represent 5 people in the current ledger.
Break the seal: reveal the death ledger
- Felix Bryce (boy)
Accidental, natural or other · Strangulation or hanging
- Richard Bailey
Murder · Stabbing or impalement
- David Whitley
Murder · Burning or heat
- Simon Fletcher
Murder · Gunshot
- Rev. Stephen Wentworth
Suicide · Other recorded death
Real place → fictional identity
What was filmed where?
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
Places connected to this file
Bledlow
The church, village hall and Lions of Bledlow pub recur as the social centre of several fictional villages.
Open location →
Thame
A versatile Causton and village backdrop whose town hall, museum, shops and surrounding estates take many identities.
Open location →
Wallingford
One of the principal doubles for Causton, with its Corn Exchange, riverside and civic streets appearing repeatedly.
Open location →