Midsomer Murders: Series 6

Episodes

1. Episode 1A Talent for LifeAired January 3, 2003

   

   Accusations of unsportsmanlike conduct on the river are bedevilling the Midsomer game fishermen, and Barnaby has to interview elegant widow Isobel Hewitt, a spendthrift, fast-living, Jaguar-driving 75-year-old, when another lady fly-fisher accuses her of a violent assault. Then first Isobel and later her fellow villager Dr Duncan Goff are found on the river-bank with their skulls smashed in, and there is no shortage of suspects - including an antique dealer who apparently specializes in befriending elderly widows. The picture is confused when one of the suspects, chef-restaurateur Keith Scholey, is found frozen to death in his walk-in deep freeze, with the lock of the door jammed by a nail. Troy has a theory that Scholey was the killer and has made his suicide look like murder, but will that be the end of the affair?

   • 1h 39m
   • Directed by Sarah Hellings
   • Written by David Hoskins

   Guest stars

   • Jeff Rawle Derrick Seagrove
   • Will Knightley Andrew Turner
   • Peter Cellier Peregrine Slade
   • Amanda Root Ruth Scholey
   • James Hazeldine Leo Bantock
   • Honor Blackman Isobel Hewitt
   • Philip Franks Quentin Roka
   • Jonathan Cullen Melrose Plunkett
2. Episode 2Death and DreamsAired January 10, 2003

   

   Barnaby investigates a death which looks very much like suicide. The dead man was a troubed and depressed gambler on a losing streak, but Barnaby's nose tells him to look for a murderer. During the investigation he recognizes someone from his past, in the shape of Dr Jane Moore.

   • 1h 41m
   • Directed by Peter Smith
   • Written by Peter J. Hammond

   Guest stars

   • Isla Blair Dr. Jane Moore
   • Perdita Weeks Hannah Moore
   • Jan Ravens Sarah Wroath
   • Philip Fox Gordon Leesmith
   • Stuart Bunce Tony Parish
   • Paul Brennan Dean Hunniset
   • Jonty Stephens Jeff Haskin
   • Mark Richards Guy Moore
3. Episode 3Painted in BloodAired January 17, 2003

   

   Barnaby's wife, Joyce, finds a dead body on the Midsomer Florey village green while taking part in a watercolour painting class, and she recognizes it as the elderly Miss Fairfax.Barnaby is given the case, then finds himself taken off it and replaced by a team from the National Intelligence Squad, while he is assigned to deal with a missing handbag. However, he continues his investigation into the murder, finding deceit and double-dealing. It appears that 'Miss Fairfax' was not an elderly spinster at all, but a young detective sergeant from the National Intelligence Squad working under cover, and that her colleagues are busy fitting up the village handyman for the murder of an old lady who never was. He discovers that someone is busy hunting for some five million pounds still missing from an old robbery. In the closing moments, Barnaby has to lock two of the National Intelligence Squad's officers in a bank strong-room, where they are trying to snatch the missing cash, and to arrest the

   • 1h 41m
   • Directed by Sarah Hellings
   • Written by Andrew Payne

   Guest stars

   • Clive Merrison Colin Hawksley
   • Andrew Lancel Simon Backley
   • Barbara Durkin Linda Tyrell
   • John Sessions Barrett Filby
   • Denise Black Ann Carter
   • Sheila Reid Mrs. Metcalfe
   • Leslie Phillips Godfrey Teal
   • Matthew Marsh Tony Carter
4. Episode 4A Tale of Two HamletsAired January 24, 2003

   

   Someone is decimating the ancient Smythe-Webster family of Upper Walden, and the bad blood between the villages of Upper and Lower Walden is renewed with a vengeance. First, young heart-throb actor Larry Smith (alias Laurence Smythe-Webster) dies in an explosion at a publicity event for a new film. House of Satan is based on a book by a local writer, the late Ellis Bell of Lower Walden - a village whose inhabitants are referred to by its Vicar, the Reverend Simon Smythe-Webster, as ""the weasels of the wild wood"".The next to die is Larry's uncle, House of Satan producer Frank Webster (Francis Smythe-Webster), electrocuted to death on his exercise bike. Finally, Barnaby's principal suspect, Danny Pinchel, the family's cook, is drowned in a large bowl of tomato soup...Barnaby realizes he is dealing with an historic grudge, and he enquires into the family's antecedents.

   • 1h 33m
   • Directed by Peter Smith
   • Written by Alan Plater

   Guest stars

   • Phoebe Nicholls Laura Smythe-Webster
   • Beth Goddard Wendy Smythe-Webster
   • Jonathan Hyde Frank Webster
   • Anne Reid Sarah Proudie
   • Tim Preece Jack Wilson
   • Ronald Pickup Rupert Smythe-Webster
   • Jack Chissick Murdoch
   • Leo Bill Darren
5. Episode 5Birds of PreyAired January 31, 2003

   

   Julian Shepherd, who has most of his money invested in Charles Edmonton's new invention, is found drowned, and there is every appearance that he killed himself due to money problems. Then a villager who has been stealing peregrine falcon eggs from Charles's widow is also found dead, and Barnaby and Troy investigate.

   • 1h 38m
   • Directed by Jeremy Silberston
   • Written by Michael Russell

   Guest stars

   • David Calder George Hamilton
   • Kate Buffery Mallory Edmonton
   • Anton Lesser Eddie Darwin
   • Richard Todd Charles Edmonton
   • Alexandra Gilbreath Naomi Sinclair
   • Rosalind Knight Eleanor Macpherson
   • Trevor Cooper Sean Moorcroft
   • Neil Conrich Constable Angel

Season cast

• John NettlesDCI Tom Barnaby
• Jane WymarkJoyce Barnaby
• Daniel CaseySgt Gavin Troy
• Laura HowardCully Barnaby
• Barry JacksonDr. George Bullard