Midsomer Murders - Destroying Angel [1997] [DVD]

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The will of late hotelier Karl Wainright causes ructions amongst his staff, and soon a serial murderer begins hunting down the beneficiaries, dispatching them in increasingly gruesome and imaginative ways. Meanwhile, Barnaby and Troy discover the bizarre village tradition of exposing dark secrets - through cryptic Punch and Judy shows. At the reading of the will, Kenneth Gooders decides to start even though Gregory Chambers has not arrived. Suzanna Chambers - Shot in the chest with a shotgun by Julia Gooders while trying to kill her with a knife after Suzanna received a phone call sounding like Julia, threatening to expose her and Julia received a phone call saying "You are next! I'm coming to get you!" sounding like Mr. Punch.

Kenneth shows Barnaby and Troy a room at the hotel to work in. Kenneth tells Barnaby the results of the will. "Mr. Wainwright was childless and wanted to pass the hotel onto the people who made it a success." Suzanna is the manager, Julia does the books, Tristan is the chef and Gregory helped out generally. Suzanna will inherit Gregory's share of the estate. Detective Constable Gail Stephens ( Kirsty Dillon) (series 10–13)—a colleague of Tom Barnaby and DS Jones, who often helps them in their cases, sometimes providing valuable insight. Gail was transferred to Midsomer from Binwell. Gail is cheery but emotional, breaking down in tears when, after initially serving as a uniformed woman police constable, she was appointed as a plain-clothed CID detective. Throughout Gail's appearances, it is implied that she is on the point of having an affair with Sgt Jones, but when it came to the crunch he decided that he did not want to get too heavily involved with a colleague, after which Gail effectively snubbed him. Strangely, Gail has not been seen since "Fit For Murder". Evelyn talks to Barnaby and Troy about the poisonings. Barnaby asks why Tyson would call Suzanna a double crossing swine. Woody says it's to do with the hotel. The new owners have big plans to modernize the hotel and sell off the rest of the estate to finance it which means Annie and Tyson will lose their home and jobs. Both of which old man Wainwright promised them for life. It was in a contract or piece of paper. Gregory mentions a piece of paper in the script for the Punch and Judy show. Detective Sergeant (later Inspector) Gavin Troy ( Daniel Casey) (main: series 1–7; guest: series 11)—DCI Barnaby's first assistant. Troy is bright and ambitious. Early in the series, Troy is also known for his careless driving, causing a number of near-accidents. He is less enlightened than his boss who, in the first episode, tells Troy that he is “as politically correct as a Nuremberg Rally.” For example, Troy is uncomfortable with gay people (he calls them “ass bandits”) and the elderly, whom he calls "wrinklies". Doctor Kate Wilding ( Tamzin Malleson) (series 14–17)—Dr George Bullard's replacement as resident pathologist. Her confident, competent, no-nonsense approach has earned the detectives' respect. She is unmarried and is also a professor. Her parents, Giles and Laura, have appeared in one episode, "The Flying Club". [4] In the series 18 opener, "Habeas Corpus", Wilding has left Midsomer to take up a professorship in Brighton. She is briefly seen on-screen in a photo with Ben Jones, who had previously relocated to Brighton.

Elizabeth Spriggs and Richard Cant appeared in the pilot episode ("The Killings at Badger's Drift"), as mother and son Iris and Dennis Rainbird; they appeared again in "Dead Letters", this time as Iris' sister Ursula Gooding and her son Alistair. Kenneth Gooders, "I leave the hotel and my modest capital to be divided equally between Suzanna Chambers, Gregory Chambers , Julia Gooders and Tristan Goodfellow. I know I can trust them to run the hotel in the same traditional manner." Murmuring among the people at the reading. In "Murder Of Innocence", it is revealed that Jones is in a relationship with firefighter Susie Bellingham. In the series 16 opener, "The Christmas Haunting", it is revealed that Jones has been promoted to Inspector and transferred to Brighton. A photo of Jones (alongside Kate Wilding, who also moved to Brighton) is shown in the series 18 opener "Habeas Corpus". DI Jones made a further appearance in episode 3 of series 19 "Last Man Out", in an undercover role - erroneously still listed in the credits as DS Ben Jones. In the end, he left Causton CID after a mini farewell party at John and Sarah Barnaby’s home at the end of episode 6 of series 15, "Schooled in Murder". Naked Apron: Barnaby arrives to question Colin Salter, a middle-aged, male suspect, only to find him doing a spot of baking wearing nothing but an apron. Meanwhile, the script is smart, thought-provoking and suitably grim, the humour also being a breath of fresh air. Nothing felt inconsequential, everything had a point, everything intrigued and it was explained and cleared up well.

Destroying Angel" starts with the murder of Gregory Chambers. Gregory was out in the woods collecting mushrooms when he falls to the ground after being shot with an bow and arrow. Karl Wainwright, owner of the local hotel, dies at the same time, and his funeral is being held. Karl Wainwright leaves his hotel and modest capital to be shared between Suzanna Chambers, Gregory Chambers, Julia Goodard and Tristan Goodfellow. Now that Gregory is dead, his shares will be taken over by his wife Suzanna. A severed hand is found it the woods, and it is later identified as Gregory's. As always, the production values are top notch, with to die for scenery, the idyllic look of it contrasting very well with the story's grimness, and quaint and atmospheric photography. The music fits perfectly, and the theme tune one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre. Cully Barnaby (later Dixon) ( Laura Howard) (series 1–13)—Tom and Joyce's only child takes her first name from a village on Lake Geneva in Switzerland, where she was conceived during her parents' honeymoon. An inquisitive and bold young woman, she's inherited her parents' friendly attitudes and community spirit. Early in the series, she attended Cambridge University and dated a fellow drama student, called Nico ( Ed Waters). After that, she sometimes went out with and secretly flirted with DS Troy and DS Scott. She is an actress and frequently takes temporary jobs in the Midsomer area when "resting" between assignments. Like her mother, her tendency to do community work often leaves her personally involved with the murders that take place. She meets Simon Dixon ( Sam Hazeldine) in "The Axeman Cometh", becomes engaged to him in "Death In A Chocolate Box", and marries him in "Blood Wedding".

After "Garden of Death" was watchable, though not one of the best, I was really looking forward seeing "Destroying Angel". And I wasn't disappointed. "Destroying Angel" is easily one of the series's best and a great episode. Amateur Sleuth: Evelyn Pope, to Great Detective levels. Not only does she orchestrate the deaths and exposure of Gregory Chambers and Karl Wainwright's murderers, but this comes after she meticulously deduces the truth of the crime by investigating what seem to be vague clues and minor inconsistencies in the murderers' behavior. Her investigation even happens during the plot: her confession at the end of the episode doubles as The Summation, as she explains all the moments through which she uncovered the murder plot within scenes from the beginning of the episode before Barnaby hit the scene, explaining her conclusions step by step. Tristan Goodfellow - Consumed a poisonous type of mushrooms, Destroying Angel, which were placed for him to cook instead of regular mushrooms. This was carried out by Ben the gardener at Evelyn's instruction. In "Destroying Angel," DCI Barnaby and Sgt. Troy are called to a Midsomer village to investigate the murder of Gregory Chambers, killed in the woods while out looking at specimens of mushrooms.