The Village That Rose from the Dead 

When a man is found murdered during the reopening of a ghost village, Barnaby must unravel a sinister web of lies from both past and present in order to catch the killer.

Director:

Nicholas Laughland (as Nick Laughland)

Writers:

Rachel Cuperman (screenplay), Sally Griffiths (screenplay)

Stars:

Neil Dudgeon, Nick Hendrix, Fiona Dolman

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Neil Dudgeon	...	DCI John Barnaby
Nick Hendrix	...	DS Jamie Winter
Fiona Dolman	...	Sarah Barnaby
Manjinder Virk	...	Dr. Kam Karimore
Edwin Thomas	...	Finn Thornberry
Catherine Steadman	...	Corina Craven
Angus Wright	...	Roderick Craven
Hugh Dennis	...	Milo Craven
Sally Phillips	...	Lucy Keswick
Pippa Haywood	...	Andrea Craven
Matti Houghton	...	Dottie Craven
William Melling	...	Josh Craven
Christopher Colquhoun	...	Blake Keswick
David Burke	...	Fred Messenger
Caroline Blakiston	...	Sylvia Lennard

Storyline

Abandoned by the army, who took it over in World War II, the village of Little Auburn is to be reoccupied, with three groups of people submitting ideas for its resurrection. When Finn Thornbury, who with girlfriend Corinna Craven had opted for an eco-friendly village, is killed, Barnaby and new sergeant Winter discover he had a secret wife nobody knew about. Of the rival bidders, elderly Sylvia Lennard, seeking to restore the village to former glories, hated the deceased, but property developers Blake and Lucy Keswick claim to have had no argument with him. Corinna's father Roderick, who was to judge the worth of each party, is the next victim, and oddly, Finn's mother Andrea is his main beneficiary. With the discovery of an illegal snake farm and more secrets unfolding, Barnaby must decide whether greed or passion accounted for the murders in the village that rose from the dead.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Release Date:

18 December 2016 (UK)

Filming Locations:

Little Missenden, Buckinghamshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Did You Know?

Trivia

The murder weapon in the first killing is an British Army, FV433 Abbot SPG 105 mm self-propelled artillery piece. Technically not a tank but more properly self propelled artillery.

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Goofs

At the beginning of "The village that rose from the dead" a murder is committed with a tank driving forward towards the victim. Once the victim is found, only the legs and lower torso are crushed by the tank tracks and the victim is on the ground -behind- the vehicle.

User Reviews

A long way from dead

When in its prime (a vast majority of Seasons 1-9), 'Midsomer Murders' was a great show and one that is watched and re-watched frequently. Seasons 10-13 became more uneven, with three of the show's worst episodes coming from Seasons 11 and 13, but there were a few solid episodes and "Blood Wedding" and especially "Master Class" were gems.

After John Nettles retired and Neil Dudgeon and the new character of John Barnaby took over, 'Midsomer Murders' just hasn't been the same on the most part. Season 14 was a disappointment outside of "The Oblong Murders" and "A Sacred Trust", with "Echoes of the Dead" and "The Night of the Stag" being show low-points. Season 15 was inconsistent, being a case of starting promisingly and then took a three-episodes-in-a-row strange turn with "Written in the Stars" before finishing on a good note. Season 16 was mostly good, especially "Wild Harvest", with the only disappointment being "Let Us Prey". Season 17 was a mixed bag, with the first two episodes being watchable but uneven and the other two, particularly "A Vintage Murder", faring better.

Season 18 was mostly unimpressive, with "Breaking the Chain" faring weakest and "Saints and Sinners" and "The Incident at Cooper Hill" not faring much better. The season did have two good episodes, the best being "A Dying Art" and "Harvest of Souls" being a close second.

"The Village that Rose from the Dead" kicks off Season 19, the latest season, and proves to be a very solid and promising season opener. It is easily one of the better John Barnaby-era episodes and the best of the era since Season 17's "A Vintage Murder", which is saying a lot.

Not without problems, though they are very few and nowhere near as big as in many John Barnaby-era episodes. Kam still doesn't do much for me and don't think she ever will, she lacks personality, is condescending and a snobbish know-it-all. The new detective Jamie Winter is not particularly interesting, though to be fair it is his first episode, and rather lacking in personality and chemistry with Neil Dudgeon.

Production values however cannot be faulted as usual. It's beautifully and atmospherically shot with suitably picturesque scenery. The music fits perfectly, with some lush jauntiness and sometimes an ominous quality, and the haunting theme tune is one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre.

Writing is thought-provoking and some of the quirky and gentle humour juxtaposes well with the dark murder theme and the twists and turns, the episode not feeling overly serious or heavy like some John Barnaby-era episodes as a result. The story is never simplistic, neither is it convoluted, with a surprising ending that manages to just about be plausible rather than convoluted or distastefully over-the-top. In fact, as said, it is very suspenseful and engrossing. The murders are clever and the ending is a surprise and hardly obvious or far-fetched either.

Acting mostly is good. Dudgeon looks comfortable and involved, while Caroline Blakiston, David Burke and Sally Phillips are particularly good of a uniformly good supporting cast.

Overall, a solid and promising episode. 8/10 Bethany Cox