Dark Autumn (16 Sep. 2001)

The near decapitation of the local postman, whose hyperactive libido also makes him the village lothario, leads to a series of grisly murders involving other promiscuous villagers.

Director:

Jeremy Silberston

Writers:

Peter Hammond (screenplay), Caroline Graham (characters)

Stars:

John Nettles, Daniel Casey, Jane Wymark

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
John Nettles	...	DCI Tom Barnaby
Daniel Casey	...	Sgt Gavin Troy
Jane Wymark	...	Joyce Barnaby
Fleur Bennett	...	Debbie Shortlands
Adam Blackwood	...	Keith Shortlands
Prue Clarke	...	Mary Yeatman
Robert Glenister	...	John Field
Del Henney	...	Mike Yeatman
Nicky Henson	...	Simon Reason
Alan Howard	...	Owen August
Celia Imrie	...	Louise August
Barry Jackson	...	Dr. Bullard
Gillian Kearney	...	WPC Jay Nash
Kate Maberly	...	Holly Reid
Marian McLoughlin	...	Barbara Judd

Storyline

When Dave Cutler, the local postman, is found with his throat slit, Barnaby and Troy are on the case. Cutler it seems had slept with most of the woman in the village so between spurned lovers and irate husbands, there are any number of suspects. They are assisted by the local police in the form of the very attractive WPC Jay Nash, to whom Troy takes a instant liking. When a second and then a third murder takes place, the police realize they have a far more complex motive that simple jealousy.

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Plot Keywords:

postman | lothario | suspect | detective series | throat slitting | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 September 2001 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Bledlow, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bentley Productions, A&E Television Networks, ITV Network

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min 99 min (DVD)

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the police are looking through a victim's room, there is a framed poster of Louise Brooks on the wall.

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Quotes

Janet Reason: There's still some things of yours in the outhouse!
Simon Reason: Yes, well, I haven't had time to clean them out, you know, Jan.
Janet Reason: Then get off your ass and do it!

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Soundtracks

"Tangerine"
Written by Johnny Mercer and Victor Schertzinger

User Reviews

Not that great, but always worth a watch

I knew it! The bartender did it. I watched half the episode yesterday before work and I was just coming to the conclusion that all the obvious murderers had already been murdered themselves, so who was left? Either the bartender or the lady he boarded with (whom I thought was his mother... maybe she was his stepmother?).

I was heartened by the spark of romance within the police force. Between Gavin and Jane. Says me, as long as everyone in town is always 'at it', maybe it's inspector Troy's day. At the end, when Barnaby sees the gift Troy gave her but she refused (a book of Lord Byron's poems) I thought Barnaby would make a play to take the book himself and give it to his wife and get a little spark too. He set the stage earlier by playing dance hall music at home and Joyce says, "Are you going romantic?" and he says, "Why not?!!"

There were a couple of little parallels to Columbo. In an art heist episode, Columbo calls in a lady policemen in high heels to simulate an escape down stone stairs so the security guard who came just after the burglary could verify the sound he heard out back was indeed the sound of high heels going down stone stairs. She looked rather like Jane, in a smart looking policeman's cap. Secondly, Barnaby's stunning win at that bowling game throwing the wooden batons reminds me of Columbo executing perfect pool shots and excellent golf strokes, and playing the tuba expertly --- a guy you least expect to excel in these things.

I was sorry to see the accountant lady murdered. There wasn't a vicious bone in her body, so it was undeserved. I was awfully glad Jane was spared. I thought the bartender did a good moment of acting during his confession, with that quivering lip and all.

In one of the earlier DVDs was a special feature "The Making of Midsummer Murders". In it the director said when there aren't enough murdered bodies, people start complaining. So it became de rigueur to make sure there's enough mayhem. They decorate those corpses so nicely, don't you think, with all that blood splatter and eyes a-popping.

Who needs Halloween when I get my dose every week. With that scythe as the murder tool, it puts one in mind of the Grim Reaper, eh?