The Village Murder CasebookAn unofficial Midsomer Murders guide

Complete released-series file · 2024

Series 23

4 feature-length cases from the John Barnaby era, led by DCI John Barnaby with DS Jamie Winter across the run.

Two empty leather chairs and contrasting case notebooks on a rural detective desk at dusk
Original Village Murder Casebook artwork—not a programme still.
Cases4

Episodes 1–4

First shown2024

Year-level chronology

Settings4

Principal fictional places

Archive depth4/4

Expanded case files

Before you open the folder

What defines Series 23?

This run sits in the John Barnaby period and contains 4 cases. Its archive labels lean eccentric, with 2 cases carrying that tone.

Best entry point
The Blacktrees Prophecy
Opening case
The Blacktrees Prophecy
Final case
Dressed to Kill
Recurring settings
Each principal setting appears once

Archive highlights

Three ways into Series 23

Editorial signposts drawn from the Casebook catalogue—not a claim that every murder needs a podium.

Opening file

The Blacktrees Prophecy

A false missile warning sends a survivalist into his bunker, where the apocalypse fails to arrive but murder does.

Episode 1 →Casebook focus · Eccentric

The Blacktrees Prophecy

A prepper community built to survive global catastrophe proves much less prepared for mistrust inside its own village.

Open the case →Filming trail

The Debt of Lies

1 broader filming areas are already connected to this file.

Follow the places →

Who works these cases

Core cast in Series 23

Every lead detective, investigating partner and credited on-screen pathologist represented in this series.

No freely reusable portrait located. A rights-cleared photograph can be added later.
Lead detective

Neil Dudgeon

John Barnaby · 4 cases

An 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.

Open actor profile →
No freely reusable portrait located. A rights-cleared photograph can be added later.
Investigating partner

Nick Hendrix

Jamie Winter · 4 cases

An 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.

Open actor profile →
Actor Annette Badland at BBC Elstree Centre in 2016
Photo: AnemoneProjectors · CC BY-SA 4.0 · displayed with a layout crop
Forensic support

Annette Badland

Dr Fleur Perkins · 4 cases

An 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.

Open actor profile →

Complete episode ledger

Every Series 23 case

4 expanded dossiers and 0 concise catalogue records, all linked in broadcast order.

  1. Episode01

    2024 · Blacktrees-on-Marsh

    The Blacktrees Prophecy

    A false missile warning sends a survivalist into his bunker, where the apocalypse fails to arrive but murder does.

    EccentricWritten by Jeff PoveyExpanded dossierLocation research openOpen case →
  2. Episode02

    2024 · Challis Court

    The Debt of Lies

    The death of a retiring senior officer leads Barnaby into an elegant community where former police colleagues share one old secret.

    DarkWritten by Nick Hicks-BeachExpanded dossier1 mapped areasOpen case →
  3. Episode03

    2024 · Lower Blissingham

    A Grain of Truth

    An organic bakery divides its village before a mass poisoning and two attacks make the dispute impossible to dismiss.

    ClassicWritten by Julia GilbertExpanded dossier1 mapped areasOpen case →
  4. Episode04

    2024 · Elverton-cum-Latterly

    Dressed to Kill

    Opposition to a charity drag show appears to explain a murder, until the performers and detectives uncover a more private history.

    EccentricWritten by Maria WardExpanded dossierLocation research openOpen case →