Dan Scott (John Hopkins) comes in to replace Troy as Barnaby's new partner in "Bad Tidings" from season 7. He has no time to become acclimated to his new boss or surroundings, as a murder case beckons.
A woman is found dead from stabbing in Midsomer Mallow. She left the Midsomer Mallow residents' association's Spanish Evening in a huff but never arrives home.
The suspect that comes up immediately is Jacob Stoat, who goes around with a wagon and does odd jobs.
As a subplot, Cully, Barnaby's daughter, is reuniting with some school friends, one of whom is peripherally involved in the case. She was a neighbor of the dead woman. Cully is distressed to see that her friends have changed. She's not as comfortable with them as she once was, not realizing that they have a secret. When a second murder occurs, that secret is revealed.
This is a pretty good Midsomer Murders entry, except that the murderer seems to troll the countryside looking for people to kill, and one of them is not really involved with the killer.
As Sergeant Scott, Dan Hopkins is handsome and the character's polite, charming nature on the surface belies his resentment for being sent down from London and his determination to move up the ranks. I think he gets his wish, as he's not with Barnaby very long.