Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10
Cast: Neil Dudgeon, Nick Hendrix, Fiona Dolman, Annette Badland, Amber Aga, Michael Byrne, Beth Cooke, John Cummins, Zebb Dempster, Angela Griffin, Tony Gardner, Anita Harris, Jason Merrells, Anjili Mohindra, Chu Omambala, Elaine Paige, Justin Pierre.
The curse is a powerful tool when it comes to bringing a story of murder to life, it is the symbol of the preordained motif that will weave itself through the narrative and give a sense of comfort, as well as cunning, to the viewer as they watch the gruesome tale of death unfold.
The oath that others will come to harm because of a miscarriage of justice is not new, neither will it arguably become staid or a despairing way in which to sell a story to the patient armchair detective but it has to have an edge in which to make it infallible to the scrutiny of those well versed in such matters of death’s assurance from beyond the grave. It is one though that can have mixed effects, a slight grimace in amongst the satisfaction of the performance viewed, and one that can perhaps take away from the introduction of a character who no doubt will inject a much-needed sense of antagonism into what has become a safe pair of hands.
Midsomer Murder’s 20th series opener on terrestrial television has had the benefit of being available on other platforms long before it reaches its natural home on I.T.V. and that perhaps has been part of the problem. It negates the opportunity for the loyal viewers who have no way of attaining such advance previews to be in touch with a community in which they have long felt they have belonged and never mind that, The Ghost of Causton Abbey has the added bonus of Annette Badland joining the cast as pathologist Fleur Perkins, that the episode has heavyweight support from the extraordinary talents of Angela Griffin, Michael Byrne and Elaine Paige, it is that loss of community spirit that arguably is the biggest curse of them all.
With Annette Badland joining the cast as the new police pathologist, Fleur Perkins, story-line assurance is guaranteed, a genuinely adept actor bringing new scope to a much-loved series, not one as a romantic adaption but one with steel nerve, a credit to the prosperity of being seen as a reliable and compelling actor. With the ability to ruffle feathers and not be taken for granted, Annette Badlands character is just what the show ordered to bring it back into a place of fireside mystery rather than tangled up safety.
A show doesn’t survive in this day and age unless it has something different to offer, the fact that Midsomer Murders has endured is down to ability to understand it needs to change every now and then and listen to the ghosts that seek revenge.
Ian D. Hall