Dead on Time 

A respected, dying Oxford don, husband of Morse's former fiancée, apparently shoots himself, but his doctor asserts that he was not capable of firing a gun.

Director:

John Madden

Writers:

Daniel Boyle (as Daniel Boyle), Colin Dexter (characters)

Stars:

John Thaw, Kevin Whately, Brendan O'Hea

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
John Thaw	...	Chief Inspector Morse
Kevin Whately	...	Detective Sergeant Lewis
Brendan O'Hea	...	Telecom Engineer
David Haig	...	Peter Rhodes
Susan Jane Tanner	...	Nurse Rogers (as Susan-Jane Tanner)
James Walker	...	Henry Fallon
Martyn Waites	...	Duty Constable
Thomas Craig	...	Desk Sergeant
Roger Frost	...	Photographer
James Grant	...	McGregor
Richard Pasco	...	William Bryce-Morgan
Joanna David	...	Susan Fallon
Lesley Vickerage	...	WPC
Christopher Owen	...	Solicitor
Richard Hampton	...	Coroner

Storyline

Henry Fallon, who is wheelchair bound and is suffering from a neurological disorder, apparently commits suicide and Morse has mixed feelings working on this case as he was once engaged to the dead man's wife, Susan Fallon. The body was found by his son-in-law Peter Rhodes, a local antiques dealer and the victim's wife was in London. When Fallon's doctor advises Morse that Henry didn't have the physical capability to hold a gun to his head, the police realize they may have a murder on their hands. When the police are told that the business arrangement between Fallon and Rhodes had fallen apart, they also have a suspect. Lewis is concerned that Morse is too close to Mrs. Fallon to be objective but in the end, the perpetrators are identified.

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Plot Keywords:

doctor | son in law | antique dealer | hand | former fiance | 

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Did You Know?

Quotes

[talking about his mechanical bucking bronco]
William Bryce-Morgan: It doesn't eat, it doesn't poo.

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Connections

Referenced in Endeavour: Lazaretto (2017)

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Soundtracks

String Quintet in C major (D. 956, opus posthumous 163)
by Franz Schubert

User Reviews

Lewis solves it.

There is the apparent suicide of Henry Fallon who, suffering from a fatal disease, appears to have shot himself. The problem is that he is deemed to be incapable of performing the act. The victims wife was, at one time, engaged to be married to Morse - Susan Fallon.

Suspicion falls on Peter Rhodes,who is thought to be responsible for the deaths of Henry and Susan Fallon's daughter and grandchild. Fallon had asked him at 3.pm to come to the house at 6.0pm but the evidence appears to be that his phone was out of order at the time.

This episode fully explores the relationship between Morse and Lewis which has not, in my opinion, been given full credit. There are few partnerships that have the chemistry of these two characters.

Morse eventually comes to the conclusion that it was an assisted suicide but never actually solves the mystery. Lewis does but keeps it to himself.

My problem with this is that Morse just lets it go and does not appear to want to continue his enquiries. Totally out of character.

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 February 1992 (UK)

Filming Locations:

The Turf Tavern, 4-5 Bath Place, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Zenith Entertainment, Central Independent Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

103 min (DVD)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1