Happy Families (11 Mar. 1992)

The head of a wealthy but dysfunctional family is found bludgeoned to death in the family estate as Morse is forced to deal with the resultant media frenzy.

Director:

Adrian Shergold

Writers:

Colin Dexter (characters), Daniel Boyle

Stars:

John Thaw, Kevin Whately, Sukie Smith

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
John Thaw	...	Chief Inspector Morse
Kevin Whately	...	Detective Sergeant Lewis
Sukie Smith	...	Lorraine
Gwen Taylor	...	Margaret Cliff
Martin Clunes	...	James Balcombe
George Raistrick	...	Sir John Balcombe
Jonathan Coy	...	Harry Balcombe
Andrew Ray	...	Alfred Rydale
Anna Massey	...	Lady Emily Balcombe
Mark Draper	...	Constable
Rupert Graves	...	Billy
Jamie Foreman	...	Chas
Liz Kettle	...	WPC (as Elizabeth Kettle)
Alun Armstrong	...	Superintendent Holdsby
Tony Guilfoyle	...	Journalist One

Storyline

Morse and Lewis investigate the murder of wealthy industrialist Sir John Balcombe. There is little love lost in the Balcombe family and no great remorse when Sir John is found dead, obviously bludgeoned to death. The dead man's wife and two sons all seem worried about other things. To Morse's annoyance, there is a great deal of media coverage, some of it quite personal. He also comes under pressure from his superior, Chief Supt. Alun Armstrong, to produce results. When a second murder occurs on the Balcombe estate, Morse begins to focus on the family's history and learns that Mrs. Balcombe has a little known secret in her past.

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Plot Keywords:

bludgeoned to death | dysfunctional family | media frenzy | police pathologist | sarcasm | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 March 1992 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Exeter College, Turl Street, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Zenith Entertainment, Central Independent Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During the filming of Colin Dexter's cameo role as a tramp, filmed from the top of the Carfax tower, a real down-and-out approached him, grabbed his bottle of "meths" and ran off - only to find that it contained just water.

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Quotes

[the pathologist is examining a second body, found with a chisel embedded in it The first body was murdered with a stone mason's hammer]
Pathologist: Bring in any more and we'll soon have a full kit of tools.

User Reviews

One of the more complex Morse episodes, and a fine one it is too.

Happy Families is a wonderful entry of the much-loved detective series, and actually one of my favourites. John Thaw and Kevin Whately maintain their usual standard of acting, which is nothing short of perfection, particularly Thaw. I know Thaw wasn't the typical Hollywood looker, but his amazing acting ability was what touched people most, and when he died, Britain did lose a great actor, and even that word doesn't do justice to the talent the man had. The script and the plot are excellent, full of complex issues, like Morse's persecution with the press. The camera-work is very slick, and the final solution, while not the most ingenious of the Morse episodes was still clever and entirely unpredictable. I also liked the supporting actors, especially Martin Clunes, in definitely one of his better and more understated performances, but the performances of Anna Massey, Allun Armstrong and Gwen Taylor also impress, and Rupert Graves seems to be enjoying himself as the ruthless newspaper man. All in all, a very complex mystery, developed into a very well-done and intelligent episode. 10/10 Bethany Cox.