Case file · Series 25, Episode 2
Lawn of the Dead
A bowling-club groundsman and antiques dealer is murdered after a disputed friendly match exposes deeper club resentments.
The 60-second case card
Should I watch this one?
The genteel order of lawn bowls provides an ideal surface for competitive grievance and disputed valuables.
- Best for
- Lawn bowls · Antiques · Club rivalry
- 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
The genteel order of lawn bowls provides an ideal surface for competitive grievance and disputed valuables.
A bowling-club groundsman and antiques dealer is murdered after a disputed friendly match exposes deeper club resentments.
Wilf Worrell serves as groundsman and referee at the Midsomer Deverell Lawn Bowling Club while also trading antiques. His death follows a match that ended in a public argument over his decision, giving Barnaby and Winter an immediate circle of sporting and commercial suspects.
A missing painting, an attack inside Wilf's home and a second death expand the inquiry beyond a bad refereeing call. As the club championship approaches, the investigation turns towards jealousy, possession and the possibility that one victim was killed in another person's place.
Break the seal: reveal the finding
The final explanation rests on jealousy, a disputed object and an intended target whose identity is obscured by the timing of the second killing.
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 2
- Written by
- Maria Ward
- Directed by
- Roberto Bangura
- Listed transmission date(s)
- 15 December 2025
- Reported filming period
- April–May 2025
- Detective
- DCI John Barnaby
- Partner
- DS Jamie Winter
- Pathologist
- Dr Fleur Perkins · Annette Badland
- Principal setting
- Midsomer Deverell
- 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 ledger4 episodes credited to Maria Ward
- Director ledger4 episodes directed by Roberto Bangura
- Release positionCase 142 of 144
- Story characterEccentric · Lawn bowls · Antiques
- Location evidence2 exact screen-use matches
Shiplake Village Bowling Club provides the fictional Midsomer Deverell club and its playing surface.
The Bottle and Glass Inn at Binfield Heath appears as Midsomer Mocca, connecting the sporting story to the village's wider social world.
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.
Peter Davison
Published cast record ↗Sarah Hadland
Published cast record ↗Adam Rayner
Published cast record ↗Frazer Hines
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
2 source rows represent 2 people in the current ledger.
Break the seal: reveal the death ledger
- Wilfred Worrell
Murder · Stabbing or impalement
- Dale McManus
Murder · Other recorded death
Real place → fictional identity
What was filmed where?
Shiplake Village Bowling Club
Used as: The real bowling green becomes Midsomer Deverell Lawn Bowling Club.
The Bottle and Glass Inn
Used as: The inn appears under the fictional café identity Midsomer Mocca.
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
No real-place link is published here until it can be tied to a specific, sourced screen use.