Original subtitles

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The district nurse is with him now, and the doctor's on his way.

♪♪

I'm sorry.

He's gone.

I know he's gone.

And we all know who killed him.

♪♪

♪♪

Could I have a red one, please, sir?

Unwrap this one, will you?

So how old's this Melissa Townsend, then?

22.

Bit young, isn't it?

Her father wanted her to get used

to the responsibilities of property ownership early on.

Seems she didn't do much in the way of maintenance.

She passed the first landlord's exam, then.

Troy!

What the hell do you think you're doing?

You might not mind riding up that heap of junk,

but mine's just out of the showroom.

I'm Detective Chief Inspector Barnaby.

This is Detective Sergeant Troy.

I thought you chaps were supposed to know how to drive.

And your name is?

Frederick Benteen Brown.

And I'd like to know where to write my letter of complaint.

You have every right to do so, of course.

And we have grounds, thank you, for charging

you with reckless driving.

But we're a bit busy at the moment, sir.

So why don't you just climb back into your motorcar

and continue with a little more care?

And let us get on with our investigations.

Wouldn't want to keep them from your crime busting.

Somebody's stolen a lawnmower, have they?

Troy, if you're going to drive innocent members

of the public off the road, try not to pick

on influential multimillionaires, will you?

♪♪

♪♪

If Neil dies before the roof is fixed, you follow him close behind.

Those two were sent before old Neil croaked.

They knew better than an animal one arrived this morning.

Good for nothing animals get put down.

Melissa.

She drives me to distraction.

The whole thing's absurd.

The tiny peppercorn rent he was paying.

How anyone expects me to spend thousands on a new roof.

Ridiculous.

It's not as if I have any money.

My daughter's allowance is perfectly adequate.

I believe the young should learn the value of money.

And that's bullshit ease where I'm a complete

and utter tightwad.

Refuses to take anything seriously.

If her friend Sally hadn't told me about all of this,

I would never have known.

Oh yes, the meddler.

Sally who is that?

Rick what?

She was at the cottage when Neil Laxton died.

The only reason my father hasn't made a pass at her

is he's currently besotted with a Tuscan peasant girl

who can't speak a word of English.

That's why they get on so well.

Sally's the district nurse.

And a lovely person.

Father's a vicar.

Quite what she sees in my daughter.

You like them young and innocent, don't you Daddy?

Daughter substitutes.

He's never been too keen on this one.

♪♪

You'll never credit it. They're putting

a tarpaulin on Neil's roof. I don't think

that girl could be more offensive if she tried

Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your forward-looking progress.

Thank you.

A bit frosty in there.

Distinctly.

She doesn't seem too bothered.

I think I'll be getting the security guards in by now.

Hello?

Oh, Josie, I'm just off to visit the, uh, the Bolkham's.

Wasn't there something you wanted me to pick up?

Yes, the recipe.

Oh, yeah, uh, what recipe was that?

It was that apple jelly you liked

so much from the WI stand.

Oh, right.

Well, I'll talk to her about it.

Bye.

You know them?

Yeah.

Cherry's a legendary jam maker.

Hugo is an ex-botanist.

He was a great explorer in his time.

They're both bats, of course, but she does do

a very good tee.

Melissa knew about Neil's chest infection.

We told her time and time again, didn't we, Hugo?

Endlessly.

And she knew that the damp conditions

were making it worse.

Farley, here you are.

Come on.

And how did Joan Farley take it that Neil's dead?

Joan would never send threatening notes.

She's a member of the Women's Institute.

I'm very flattered you asked.

Of course, any wife of mine would have to give up her job.

-Freddie! -No, no, no, no, no.

It's non-negotiable.

I like my job.

It's who I am.

Well, certainly keep the uniform.

In fact, I insist upon it.

Thank you.

-Thank you. -Thank you.

Try and talk some sense into the girl, would you?

Sorry, can't stay.

Have to be in Geneva for supper.

He just won't listen.

It is multi-millions, you do know that.

I don't love him.

You are priceless.

Divorce him after a year or two.

You clean up.

What did the police say?

They think I should take the threat seriously.

Well, you should.

It might help if you looked just a little upset.

But I've got vacant possession.

Melissa.

It was a joke.

God, you can be so provincial sometimes.

I've been thinking.

I'm not sure it's a good idea you coming to the tennis

do this evening.

Joan's going to be on the bar.

It's probably too provincial for you anyway.

Fine.

Melissa!

Now just remember, one tablet in the morning

and another half in the evening.

Oh, no, there'll be nothing to pay, Albert.

Just you concentrate on getting old Kezi back on her feet now.

Bye-bye.

♪♪

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It's the open air in life, you see.

Gives you an appetite.

And I'm not just talking about bacon and eggs.

You get my drift?

Yes.

Yes, I think I do.

Would you excuse me?

Now, her backhand has seriously improved.

B.T. materialized.

And this isn't just because you want to keep her

away from her husband or their wee fixtures.

We'll talk later.

We're not going yet

Thank you for making an effort as usual.

I don't think I can take much more of the pig farmer

Derek hmm the one with the shoes like Cornish pasties

Georgina I'm club secretary. Will you please

keep your voice down? Why do you have to be a member anyway?

You've got a tennis court of your own

Are you gonna be okay for tennis tomorrow?

Mm-hmm.

And Melissa's?

I've changed my mind. I'm not going.

Do I detect a slight falling out?

Are you sure about Georgina Canning?

Every time I try and talk to her, she walks out.

Well, that's how you know you're under the chance, Derek.

She likes to be pursued.

Right, right.

You stirring again?

Who, me?

Nothing's wrong. Everything's just perfect.

You know, if you want to talk, I'm always around.

You're such a sweet man, Ray.

I've wondered where you've gotten to.

Can't have you standing here all alone.

Well, I wouldn't want to hog you.

Very good.

Hog.

Pig farming.

Ha, ha, ha.

Doesn't want to hog me.

I like a girl that make me chuckle.

Same again.

An interesting surprise.

How's it looking?

A bit of sport, we have.

Our sweet little medal is a touch under the weather.

Oh, God.

Or which one?

Yeah!

Get it laundered

Madam, may I have the use of your jacket, please?

You just missed over the phone

Melissa turned up

Quite a floor show she just left

Melissa!

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Good night, was it?

Well, it must have been about half-past eleven.

I was absolutely sparky at the time.

Didn't really register what it was.

But look what they've done.

You might want to have a word with Sally Rickworth.

So...

There's been a break-in at the vets at Malham.

A load of arbitraries and syringes.

Good for nothing animals get put down.

If Neil dies before the roof is fixed,

you'll follow him close behind.

What do you think, sir?

Not particularly educated.

Someone trying to give us that impression.

Sweet?

Thank you.

Hi, horses.

What's happened here, then?

Seems Sally Rickworth knocked our car on her way back

-last night. -Melissa's friend?

A bit sloshed, I think.

Sir?

Nice to meet you, brother.

Thank you.

Hope you got a good garage.

The nice young girl who's too good for Melissa, so it seems.

I'm sorry but it does show positive. I'm

afraid we're going to have to take down the station.

Drunk driving.

Drove into the Bolkham car last night.

Oh yes.

Still over the limit this morning.

Ever guess what?

Vicar's daughter's been done for drunk driving.

You've worked wonders.

She was like a sack of spuds before she came to you.

I don't think she was quite that bad.

She was.

Total transformation.

You're very sweet, your lordship.

Joan. It's Joan.

That's quite sufficient.

Actually, I was wondering, we're having

drinks on Thursday.

It's rather late notice.

But Freddie Benton Brown will be coming.

Adam, do you know Lord and Lady Hislop?

This is Adam Keen.

How do you do?

Have you heard about Sally Rickworth?

She's been done for drunk driving.

Plowed into the Balcombe Saab last night, failed to stop.

She'll lose her job.

What if she can't drive district nurse?

My god, that's awful.

Well, I think drink driving's unforgivable.

Oh, yes, yes.

No, when I said, I meant.

Well, let's get on.

I locked up at about 7 yesterday evening after surgery.

Discovered this just before 8 this morning.

If those drugs were given to humans, would they be fatal?

Oh, yes. Pentobarbitone.

We use it for large livestock. Cattle, horses.

Nothing else, Kenning?

Apart from the syringes, no.

Do you think there's any connection with the threatening notes?

Oh, it's common knowledge in the village.

Good for nothing animals get put down, etc.

Do you know how it became common knowledge?

Melissa must have showed them to Adam.

Adam made a joke of it at the tennis club.

From there, it's one breath away from the post office queue.

I mean, you might as well take a megaphone onto the high street.

Adam, who's that, then?

Oh, um, Adam Keen, club captain.

And they're good friends, are they, Adam and Melissa?

Yes.

You seem uncertain.

Oh, no, they're friends. Two of a kind.

Anyway, I tried to phone Melissa this morning

to warn her,

but there was no reply.

Look, I'd appreciate it if you kept the details of this break-in

to yourself for the moment, please.

Adam and Melissa, you said they were two of a kind.

What kind would that be?

Well, I suppose you might say

they both have a habit of sailing rather

close to the wind

in their personal lives.

That's enough, that'll do. That's enough.

It's copper, see? Got a taste for it.

Morning everybody. Now if you would just bear

with me, I've got to have a chat with these

two gentlemen. Thank you.

Don't, don't, don't, you soppy old...

Oh, no.

Would you like to come with me?

found what looks like a fresh footprint.

It's quite small, distinct tread, looks like Welly's.

I'd guess quite new.

Woman's?

Or child's, perhaps.

It could be Peggy or Gardner's.

Well, we'll need a print of it, get forensics on to it.

And we'll need to see if Gardner's been caught.

If we can arrange that, please.

It's just for elimination.

I'll talk to her.

One other thing.

You may have already heard about it,

the incident at the tennis club party last night?

Yeah.

It may not be related, but Joan Farley,

she's clearly distraught with grief.

She may be capable of doing something she'll regret.

Questa piazza è la più bella d'Italia.

Questa piazza è la più bella d'Italia.

Hello.

Mr. Townsend, it's Tom Barnaby.

Is your daughter there, please?

Just a second.

Melissa?

Melissa?

No, she doesn't seem to be.

Have you seen her this morning?

Yes, about half an hour ago.

I need to speak to her urgently, please.

Can you give me a ring as soon as she gets in?

Yes, of course.

♪♪

Yes, I threw wine at her.

The bitch deserved it.

This is about time for you, Mrs. Farley.

We could, uh,

Clive don't mind if you don't.

He's not proud.

Are you, Clive?

He's a diabetic. I give him his insulin.

Is this about those threatening letters?

Yesterday evening, Mrs. Farley, what time did you

arrive at the tennis club?

7.30.

Tom Grover picked me up, dropped Helen off.

That's his daughter.

She kept an eye on Clive for the evening.

We went straight over.

Who is Tom Grover?

Landlord of the horseshoes.

He helped set the bar up for the evening.

What time did he leave?

When it all wound up, 1.30.

Why are you asking?

And he brought you back again, did he, Mr. Grover?

Yes, we came straight back, dropped me off,

and picked Helen up.

Mrs. Farley, I noticed that you have cats.

You ever use the vet surgery, Rafe Canning?

Haven't been there for years.

What's that got to do with anything?

Mrs. Farley, do you have any Wellington

boots here?

Warm flat, sir.

Thanks for your time.

It's just, uh, it's just one thing.

I'm sure you realize it anyway, but if someone

does murder Melissa Townsend, or tries to,

they'll be spending the rest of their days in prison.

We'll make sure of it.

I wouldn't do a thing like that.

Clive's weekly visit.

So that's two people who know how to use a syringe

and who know Melissa.

Joan Farley isn't exactly her biggest fan.

Why would someone who's planning a murder

so clinically note the drugs?

Why would they show such open aggression towards Melissa?

And so publicly?

Maybe she can't help herself.

Siamo arrivato a Venezia.

Siamo arrivato...

No, that's wrong. Come on.

Siamo arrivati a Venezia.

La ragazza è bella.

La bella ragazza.

La famiglia è felice.

La famiglia è felice.

Siamo arrivato a Venezia.

Siamo arrivati a Venezia.

La ragazza è bella.

♪♪

Mario has gone and left your job.

No! No! No!

♪♪

Sammy!

♪♪

Thank you.

Are you angry with me?

Why would I be angry with you?

Because I didn't go round to Neil's sooner.

It's not your fault.

There's only one person whose fault it is.

What time did you speak to her?

Ah, 10 o'clock.

She was fine.

Archie said she'd just popped out.

Being late isn't exactly unusual for Melissa.

I saw Georgina's getting on well with Derek last night.

-Pardon? -Don't listen to him.

It's a bit odd, now you come to mention it.

Derek actually propositioned Georgina.

You'll have to watch her, Rafe.

Adam?

Have you ran to one of those parties

before you can say car keys in the middle?

What the hell?

♪♪

She's dead.

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♪♪

Looks like the contents were injected into the liver.

There's no other obvious cause.

Time of death?

At this stage, provisionally, I'd say

an hour either side of 11.

There's no sound of the father, sir.

Not the ones who found her back at the cars.

We should have prevented this.

Rafe Canning, the vet, is one of them.

What's that?

♪♪

Mr. Townsend, I know you won't feel up to talking,

but when we were with you last, you

gave the impression that your daughter

may have had a few enemies.

There are a lot of people who would say

that she left the world a worse place than when she came into it.

But she was my daughter.

Melissa!

Melissa!

I'm so sorry. Love you. God. It's procedure.

I'm sorry. Why don't we do inside?

Quite a performance.

Give it a rest, Adam.

♪♪

She's devastated, on top of everything else.

The drink driving, losing her license, her job.

And now this.

I just couldn't leave her in her house on her own.

I think I'll put her in the guest room.

Dead?

At her home.

She has been murdered.

How?

It looks as if she may have been injected with something.

We need to establish everyone's movements.

Can you tell us where you've been since we saw you earlier?

Clive's sister came over after the nurse had gone.

I went to Neil's cottage, been doing some packing up.

And I went to the church hall about twelve.

About quarter past.

I notice, because she's normally right on time,

Joan enjoys the flower arranging.

Do you have a time for one, Melissa?

Time of death was between 10 AM and midday.

What sort of mood was Mrs. Farley in when she got here,

-would you say? -Well, she was a bit anxious, I suppose.

-Wasn't it? -Mildly.

We all heard what she said, Cherry.

Joan blames Melissa for Neil's death.

We all know that, and we have done for some time.

I can't believe that you imagine Joan is capable of murder.

It's a ridiculous concept.

And there are one or two others would

have been tempted as well.

Now, that is true.

Melissa had a reputation for breaking up marriages.

Got any names you can give us?

Two couples left the village last year.

Neither marriage survived.

Then, well, this year there was.

Well, try Liz Keane.

Her husband spent an unhealthy amount of time with Melissa.

Adam Keen?

Wouldn't trust him as far as I could spit.

My god, love is blind.

Not so blind these days, I think.

Love can be a curse as well as a blessing.

Oh, true.

Very true.

And you could try Sally Rickworth.

I thought Sally and Melissa were friends.

Melissa had an affair with Sally's husband,

now ex-husband, Mark.

Mark Wigworth?

Who's he?

A property developer.

Lives in Causton.

And Sally and Melissa fell out recently.

Wouldn't surprise me if it wasn't

something to do with Sally's new millionaire boyfriend.

And what millionaire boyfriend would that be?

Ruth, um, I've invited Lord and Lady Hislop for drinks

on Thursday together with a couple of other people

from the Midsomer Whore Society.

Freddie, Pentine Brown, and Julia.

Fine.

I was, um, wondering, do you think Sally

will still be here by then?

Well, if she is, she can join us.

I'm not sure she'd really enjoy it there, would she?

You are such a snob.

I don't know what you mean.

Sally, the wrong type to be associated with

in front of the Hislops.

Just not sure she'd be comfortable, that's all.

The thing is, Freddie Pentine Brown

has been trying to persuade Sally to marry him.

-What? -As far as I'm

concerned, she's far too good for him.

♪♪

What's wrong?

♪♪

You know something about Melissa's death.

Open the door, Mr. T.

Come along, sir. We know you're in there.

It's a collection agency.

Come on, Mr. Kane.

Next time, we'll be with the bailiffs.

This is your last chance.

It isn't just the debts that are worrying you.

Most women discover someone's been banging their old man.

It'd be like cats and dogs, never speak again.

But Melissa and Sally were friends.

Human nature is a curious thing, Troy.

Not that curious, surely.

I mean, the way she was at the murder scene.

I wonder whether maybe they like their bread

and butter both sides, so to speak.

But then she has a boyfriend.

And there's talk of her remarrying.

Yeah, but nobody's going to marry Benteen Brown for love,

-are they? -Or lust.

The only way a subspecies like that's

going to get a stunner like Sally is when he's

got a few million in the bank.

Sally, the police are here to talk to you.

I was looking where the ball had gone, and there she was.

None of us had noticed.

She's gone.

I didn't want to be any trouble.

Oh, she must have overheard us.

Overheard what?

My wife didn't want Sally to be here when Lord and Lady

Hislop came for drinks.

That's not true.

Oh, I think it is.

Georgina is so desperate to get onto the committee

of the Midsomer Horse Society, has been for years,

she was worried that honorables might think

she wasn't quite the right type.

Oh, right.

Well, we'll try her place.

Um, incidentally, do either of you

know why Sally and Melissa fell out recently?

Well, no, not really.

Mr. Kenning?

Oh, you don't have any interest in my friends

from the tennis club, do you?

That's not true either.

Well, why is it every time we go to a party

do you spend the entire evening asking

me when we're going to leave?

Actually, on this occasion, my husband's absolutely right.

I've no idea why Sally and Melissa fell out,

and I'd prefer to keep it that way.

What about the car?

It's already sold.

When the clients get back from Hong Kong, that goes too.

We can always start again. There's my savings account.

It's all gone.

Not all of it.

Yes, all your dear old granny's money.

Now do you understand?

There is a way out.

How did it go today?

We're not actually going to eat those.

Medlar jelly, Miss Cherry's recipe.

You have to let the fruit go rotten before you eat it.

You've got to be kidding.

It's in the book.

I checked.

♪♪

♪♪

Meddler jelly,

meddler.

What is it?

Someone described their friend as the meddler.

I wonder if she meant one who meddles or the fruit.

There are quite a few trees over Malham Way

in the bigger gardens, quite popular locally.

Meddlers spread on straw, ripen by their own corruption.

I didn't want to cramp Georgina's style.

I thought it was best if I came away.

Oh.

-Thank you. -Thank you.

We're asking everyone this.

Where were you between 10 o'clock and midday

yesterday morning?

I left the police station a little after 10.

And then I had to make a visit to the Farley

to check on Clive.

Yes, we saw you.

So what time did you leave there?

I wasn't there long.

I was back here before 11.

And after 11?

I didn't do anything.

I just,

I was upset about the breathalyzer thing.

I didn't do anything.

There was no one else here?

I've lived alone since my marriage

break up two years ago.

No romantic interest since then?

No.

And Mr. Benteen Brown?

It's not serious.

OK, so he proposed to me.

Must be quite serious.

Not to me.

He's a very wealthy man.

It has been suggested that I accept,

just so I can divorce him later and take him to the cleaners.

I was tempted.

Somebody ought to teach him a lesson.

He's the most arrogant man I've ever met.

Were you and Melissa on good terms at the time of her death?

No.

We'd had a row.

I didn't like how flippant she was being about Neil's death.

But it wasn't her fault. Neil Laxton wouldn't

let anyone into that house.

He's turned nurses away.

So the idea that she was responsible for his death,

it's just not true.

Still, someone may have killed her because of it.

May?

-May. -It's a possibility.

I see.

But then, Melissa made enemies in the village

for other reasons as well, didn't she?

Or so we, uh, so we understand.

It's malicious gossip.

Your ex-husband, Mark.

Mark seduced her.

Melissa didn't know he was married.

She was just as upset when she found out

about me as I was about her.

It was Cherry Balcombe, wasn't it, told you this.

Please, Adam!

You want to lose all this?

I don't want to lose you.

Nothing can go wrong, I've told you.

What did she ever do to you?

I think you should go home, Sally.

We'll talk about this when you've calmed down.

Don't you close that door, don't you?

She's dead!

How can you say that?

You cunt!

I'll kill you!

Open it!

Sally!

What did she do to you?

Open the door!

Stop it!

♪♪

Well, Troy, the drug pentobarbitone

that was used to kill Melissa Townsend

was the same as that taken from the vet's surgery.

No surprises there, then.

And the footprint does not match the gardener's.

So this could be the footprint of our murderer.

Indeed it could.

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Is this about the Balkans?

Afternoon, Mrs. Rickworth.

They're not pressing charges.

Well, I don't like it when people talk ill of the dead.

Have you been to the vet's surgery for any reason recently?

No, I haven't.

Do you have a pair of Wellington boots?

We need to look at them, Mrs. Rickworth.

We're looking at everyone's.

They're normally in here.

I'd left them in the house, they'd be here.

But I'm sure they were in the car.

Where's Adam?

Is something wrong?

I thought Sally might...

Sorry, it doesn't matter.

I can see you're busy.

Sorry to bother you.

If you do find the boots, you'll call us.

I'm sorry. I'm not quite myself at the moment.

Elegant. Robust. Good hair.

Is Sally invited to your little drinks party?

She can be.

I'm rather surprised.

I wouldn't have thought she was your type.

She's not, but I'm going rather tired of the perfect vows

and the saddle-spread buttocks.

Miss Rickworth has an excellent figure, good bones.

She's not too stupid, not too bright.

Ideal breeding stock, I'd say.

So if you could invite her over, put in a good word

about what a sensitive soul I am deep down.

I'll have a word with the Hislops about who they should

vote on to their committee.

♪♪

Mrs. Kane, good afternoon.

Is your husband in?

No.

Sir, do you mind if we take a look at the soles of those boots, please?

We have a print from a crime scene.

You'll have to check it against the boots

of Melissa's associates and friends.

Yeah, fine.

Uh...

We need to ask you some questions about Melissa Townsend.

Is everything all right?

Actually, I've got rather a bad headache.

I don't suppose it could wait.

There's something she doesn't want to talk about.

And she's not very good at hiding it.

Stop, Troy.

Like another word with Mrs. Rickworth

You found them, then?

Yes.

Where were they?

I was wondering where they could be,

and I remembered that I thought about putting

them on to walk home across the field the other night,

instead of driving.

But I suppose I couldn't face the walk.

I thought I must have taken them out of the back of the car

and then changed my mind and left them here by mistake.

By mistake?

Yes, they were at the back by the dustbins.

Thank you.

When we saw you earlier and Liz Keane came over,

she seemed to think you might know where her husband was.

Why would she think that?

I don't know.

Got no idea where he might be?

Not at all.

Or why Mrs. Kane thought you might.

No.

Thank you.

I'd have brought money on the print matching her boots.

Well, leaving them here by mistake.

Those are rafes, and those are spares, I think.

No other boots in the house?

Not as far as I know.

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Oh, good evening.

Ha, ha.

I was upstairs.

I'm hoovering.

I didn't hear.

Oh, not to worry.

Anyway, um, yes, your new batch of jam jars

for the food store.

Mem Sahib asked me to drop them off.

Thank you.

Well, I must, uh, I must get on.

Thanks again.

♪♪

I think the police should be told.

Maybe she was hoovering earlier.

Oh, I don't know.

I've spent a lifetime trying to fathom the complexities

of jungle ecosystems,

but they are as nothing compared to the

bizarre machinations of this village.

Just extraordinary.

I don't think it's fair.

♪♪

Sir.

He's not back.

Hasn't he contacted you?

Right.

Did he take any clothes, a bag?

I wanted children, but he said we still

had some fun years left.

Then it was we had to build up the car business first.

Now we're bankrupt, and there won't be any children.

Why are you talking about your husband in the past tense,

Mrs. Kane?

Because he's dead.

I can feel it.

♪♪

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♪♪

Hello? Anybody there?

Mrs. Kane, if you do know anything, you must tell us.

Hello?

What?

♪♪

Sir?

Liz had been on the phone asking us if we knew where

Adam might be.

My daddy was.

♪♪

Would have died just about instantly.

The joists had been sawn through.

They'd left just enough to keep the floor in place,

but it would have given way as soon as he stepped onto it.

Do you think this is connected to Melissa's murder, sir?

Well, they were friends.

Where's the motive?

Melissa was killed in revenge for old Neil Laxton's death.

Why this?

What have Adam got to do with that?

And what was Adam doing here?

It wouldn't be a bad spot, though, would it?

For a secret tryst.

All that straw.

Mm.

What?

Personally, I think straw's a bit overrated, sir.

Why?

It's prickly.

What if Melissa and Adam were having an affair,

and Liz Keane decided she'd had enough of the pair of them?

And all that anxiety was what, an act?

Enemies.

Adam.

You mean apart from the legions of debtors,

the cuckolded husbands, and the cheated lovers?

Yes, I've been a complete and utter fool.

Mrs. Kane, do you know whether your husband

was having an affair?

With Melissa Townsend?

With Melissa?

Not lately.

Their relationship had developed into something much closer.

I'm sorry.

I can't do this.

Hugo's got something to tell you, something rather important.

Well, I just had Rafe around here in his tennis talks.

He wanted to know what had happened about Adam.

So I told him how I found the body.

And suddenly, he became most peculiar.

And I asked him what was the matter, and he just ran off.

Did he say where he was going?

No, he literally ran to the car.

You think what you said made him realize something?

What exactly did you say?

Well, I told him, you know, how I

found the body, sort of laid out on the plow,

and how the flies were tucking in,

and how he must have fallen through,

through the loft floor, because the way

that the beam was sawn through.

Do you have Kenning's number?

Yes, yes, of course.

Tell them about Joan.

Yesterday evening, Cherry asked me

if I'd drop off a few empty jam jars at Joan Farley.

When I got there, I noticed that she

was digging what looked like quite

a large hole in her back garden.

Not in itself necessarily odd, but when

she answered the front door, oh, good evening.

Sorry.

I was, uh, I was upstairs hoovering.

She lied to you?

Oh, uh, may have been entirely innocent.

This is to Canning's number.

Thank you.

Troy, I want you to go over to Joan Farley place, please.

Hugo, can you go with him?

Rafe Canning, it's Tom Barnaby.

Look, I need to talk to you.

It's, uh, it's rather urgent.

So I'll be coming straight over, OK?

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

Mrs. Clemming!

♪♪

Regina?

♪♪

This is cunning

Mrs. Kenning?

Oh my god.

What are you doing here?

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

-Oh, my God. -Don't look at your sucker now.

It appears his wife was asleep when it happened.

Well, that's one less suspect.

They're getting a bit thin on the ground now, sir.

Have you found anything?

She's not here.

Just her-in-law looking after Clive.

We didn't want to start digging without her.

Hang on.

She's just arrived.

Find out where she's been.

Yes, sir.

So...

Why did you bang these, Mrs. Fung?

Something else here, sir?

It's Troy, sir.

Ah, Troy.

-What you got? -We've dug up a pair of boots that look

like a match for the print.

What's Joan said about it?

Nothing.

Did she say where she'd been?

She's not saying anything at all, sir.

Right, get her down to the station.

I'll see you there later.

There is something else, sir.

What's that?

There was a cardboard box in the hole.

It contains bottles of pentobarbitone

and a number of syringes.

Shh, shh, shh.

I admit, I did think about killing her.

I changed my mind.

You wrote those threatening letters to Melissa Townsend, didn't you?

Yes.

So you broke into the vet's surgery

and stole the syringes, the drugs,

to carry out your threat.

But then you just changed your mind.

Just like that.

I got to thinking how maybe it was my fault as well.

It was death.

I should have checked on him sooner, at the cottage, got the doctor around.

before the pneumonia set in, I...

I was as much to blame as that stuck-up little madame.

I shouldn't have done that.

He was my family.

Burying the drugs and the boots

doesn't look like the action of an innocent person.

But I couldn't take them back, could I?

What about the boots?

I heard about you at the vets being interested.

Hello. Footprint out the back.

So I showed you an old pear when you came round that time.

Can't you see?

Someone used the notes I sent as an opportunity

to kill Melissa.

That's what's happened.

They'll laugh it out of court.

Jerry.

What is it?

I heard about Rafe, and I heard that you'd arrested Joan.

Now, the thing is, I saw Joan's car outside Neil's house

just after you had spoken to Rafe on the phone.

So if you think she was responsible for-

You saw Joan at the cottage?

She was in the kitchen.

And I saw her through the window clear as day.

So you see, Joan couldn't possibly

have been at the Kenning when Rafe was murdered.

There's no way she could be protecting Joan.

What, like some sort of Women's Institute mafia?

It's unlikely Cherry Bolton would

fabricate an alibi for anyone.

It's not impossible, of course.

If Joan isn't our murderer, it means

you're back to square one.

No, not entirely.

It means that revenge for Neil Laxton death

not going to be the motive.

But why was Adam Keen killed like that?

Why, to use a needle, like with the others.

You'd have been expecting it.

So the murderer did it another way.

This is so very different.

And the difference is that the murderer

didn't have to be at the barn at the time.

How did they know he'd step on the weakened spot?

He went there to pick something up.

Adam went there to pick something up.

And what if that something, whatever it was,

was placed on the weakened area of the plough?

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

Blackmail payment perhaps?

We didn't find anything.

The killer came back and took it away.

And if Adam Keen were trying to blackmail someone

and his wife knew about him, that

would explain her evasive behavior

when we asked about her husband's disappearance,

wouldn't it?

What's going on?

Meet the bailiffs.

They're only taking what's open.

Gentlemen, I'm Detective Chief Inspector Barnaby.

Well, Mrs. Kenning's husband was unfortunately

killed yesterday.

Do you think you could possibly come back

at a better time, please?

OK, sir.

Those were my grandmother's.

Is it really as bad as this?

Seems Adam spent a lot of other people's money

as well as all mine.

They've been very patient, really.

I'm sorry, but I've got to ask this.

Was Mr. Kane, was Adam trying to blackmail someone?

♪♪

I found this in the desk after he'd gone.

I tried to stop him, not hard enough.

There is a way out.

You know, Melissa had some rather extensive debts as well.

Credit cards.

Well, she and I were involved in a little blackmail.

The person in question, I wish you...

don't want to know? know?

Look, 20 grand by tomorrow, and that's just for starters.

He could save us.

This person will pay good money to suppress what we got.

For God's sake, Adam, Melissa's been murdered.

Melissa's death had nothing to do with the blackmail.

She was killed by the notary, sent the threatening letters.

-The bad old Neil Dunn. -It's got nothing to do with this.

How do you know that?

Just listen.

It's going to be fine.

When I go and pick up the money, I'm going to phone,

make sure the person is at home,

nowhere near the pickup point.

They'll never even know it's me.

Adam didn't tell you who it was he was blackmailing?

No.

But you thought it was Sally, yeah?

Well, there's the evidence.

She was obsessive about keeping her affair with Melissa secret.

But how much money does she have for anyone

to blackmail out of her?

She's a nurse.

The bank will tell you.

Unlike mine, her husband actually made money.

Sally did rather well out of her divorce,

100,000 plus.

♪♪

Sally!

♪♪

Thank you so much for coming.

I'm so sorry about Rafe.

It's awful.

I'm so glad you're here.

I need a friendly face when the guests arrive.

I'm sorry?

Guests?

Didn't I mention the memorial drinks party?

No, you didn't.

Of course, it's the last thing I want with Rafe.

But it was too late to cancel, so I thought, let's make

it a celebration of his life, you know?

Of course, if we're looking for blackmail targets,

someone like Benteen Brown's got to be pretty high up on the list

with all his millions.

Got a motive?

He's bound to have his share of secrets.

Bit of insider trading, girlfriend battering,

the list's probably endless.

Then we'll go with something a little more concrete

at the moment.

You think Melissa and Adam knew Sally had the money?

Well, Liz did.

Melissa and Sally were close at one time.

That's one way of putting it, as the actress

-said to the bishop. -Oh, sorry.

But you can't go far.

And, of course, Freddie will be here, Frederick Benteen Brown.

He's a total softy underneath that stiff exterior.

And you know he's mad about you.

I think I need some fresh air.

Yes, of course.

It's all been so difficult.

Of course, she's absolutely loaded.

They own most of Devon and great swathes of Chelsea.

Not that money's everything, of course.

She's such a sweetie.

Mrs. Kenning.

Mrs. Rickworth.

Any news?

We need to ask Sally a few questions, please.

We need to ask you about your relationship with Melissa.

I've told you we were friends.

Good friends.

Wasn't it modern, huh?

Where did you get this?

Doesn't matter.

I'll ask you again, what was your relationship with Melissa?

Was it sexual?

Was your relationship with Melissa Townsend sexual?

Yes.

Are you enjoying this?

Mrs. Rickworth, is it true to say

you wanted to keep this lesbian relationship a secret?

My relationship with Melissa and how I felt about it

is none of your business.

Sally, we're trying to establish if anyone

had grounds to blackmail you.

That's ridiculous.

Is it?

You certainly have enough money to make it worthwhile.

127,000 pounds.

Have you been checking my bank account?

Seems you did quite well after the divorce.

Are you suggesting I didn't deserve every last penny

of that settlement?

The humiliation he put me through, the affairs.

And even when he wasn't actually doing it,

he was thinking about doing it.

Every day of our married life, with his sick eyes

wandering over every woman's body.

You're all animals, the lot of you.

Including Adam Keen and Rafe Canning.

Sally, when you drove back on the night

of the, uh, the tennis club dinner.

Oh, please, I've already admitted I was over the limit.

I'm going to lose my job.

Can't we just leave it?

Were you alone?

Of course I was.

You don't remember?

You don't, do you?

You don't remember anything about the journey back.

That is right, isn't it?

Yes.

I was so drunk, I can't remember a single thing

from getting into the car to waking up when I got back, all right?

Happy now?

Tell my guests I'll join them in a minute.

And make sure everyone has a drink.

Yes, ma'am.

I may be a drunk driver, but I'm not a murderer.

Are you alright?

They're accusing me of murder.

That's ridiculous.

They're saying someone was trying to blackmail me.

Sorry.

Mrs. Kenning, this is a police interview.

Why should anyone want to blackmail Sally?

Nurses are not famous for being blackmail targets.

And, uh, I remembered that I thought

about putting them on to walk home across fields

the other night instead of driving.

Would you please leave, Mrs. Kenning?

Well, why is it every time we go to a party,

you spend the entire evening asking me

when we're going to leave?

No, Troy.

Let Mrs. Kenning stay.

When you drove back to your cottage

at the night of the tennis club party,

was there anyone there at your house?

Oh, yes, there was, actually.

Melissa.

I'd fallen asleep when I got back.

She woke me.

Sally?

Sally, what happened?

-Go away. -Sally, come on, please.

Go away.

Sally, this is important.

-Away. -Go on.

What?

Melissa?

I must have flaked out again, because the next thing I knew,

I was being woken by the postman.

It's interesting that you remember

being woken by Melissa, but none of the journey back.

I really must attend to my guests.

I'd like you to stay, please.

If Sally's a suspect, why don't you just arrest her

and take her to the station?

I really can't.

Sally is not a suspect.

Excuse me, sir.

Dead?

Excuse me, mate.

Rafe, the husband of the poor chap's brown bread.

Are you sure?

This is his wake, apparently.

Thought it was too late to cancel.

We shouldn't really impose on the poor.

Waiter.

-Waiter, this is delicious. -Could I have a drum roll?

Oh, the Manningford All Cots.

I must have a word with Pippa.

When we, um, asked you about your boots,

you replied that you'd thought of wearing them to walk

back from the tennis club.

Now, if you could have used them to walk back

across the wet fields to your cottage,

then presumably you could also have used them to walk

from your cottage back to the tennis club.

Or someone could have.

Who would want to do that?

The person who drove you back that night.

Someone who lived just round the corner from you.

How did it happen?

Perhaps you were outside, having a breath of fresh air,

escaping from the party, when you came

across Sally asleep in her car.

And what, so annoyed with your husband

for not taking you home that you thought,

oh, I'll do it myself.

And driving a 2CV would be fun.

Hadn't done that since you owned one at university,

which is where I assume you met Rafe.

And driving back would have been fine.

What was it?

Cat run out in front of you?

You knew you were over the limit, not as much as Sally,

but still enough to lose your license.

And the shame of being done for drunk driving,

that was too much.

So you didn't stop.

And when you got to Sally's cottage, you had a brainwave.

You dragged Sally back in front of the steering wheel.

You guessed, correctly as it turned out,

that Sally would assume that she was the one

who had driven back.

But what you didn't realize was that there was someone watching you.

Someone who'd been waiting for Sally's return.

Melissa.

And Melissa watched you take the boots

from the back of Sally's car and set off across the fields

back to the tennis club, wearing them, carrying your own shoes.

And it worked, like a dream.

No one even noticed you'd been gone.

The problem arose the next day when Melissa and Adam

discovered that you were quite prepared to let

Sally, innocent districters, carry the can for the accident,

failing to stop the drunk driving,

and let her lose her job in the process.

So Melissa and Adam decided to blackmail you.

They knew that if word of your behavior got out,

you'd certainly be ostracized socially.

And they knew that was something you'd pay an awful lot

of money to stop happening.

So it wasn't Sally who was being blackmailed?

No, no, no.

Liz was way off beam with that.

Melissa and Adam were blackmailing Georgina.

No.

No, Melissa wouldn't do that.

Let me suffer like that just so she can make some money?

She would have told me.

Do you have any evidence at all?

That's a good question.

When I came into this room, I didn't.

But now, I think I do.

See, before you came in, we asked Sally

to empty her handbag.

And we didn't find anything incriminating.

But I have a feeling we will do now.

♪♪

♪♪

Nothing personal.

You murdered three people.

It all just sort of snowballed.

♪♪

Your own husband?

I didn't want to.

He noticed me taking the saw out of the toolshed.

And when Hugo told him what had happened in the barn, it was just...

It was either him or me.

But Melissa...

They were blackmailing me.

It wasn't Sally who was driving.

It was Georgina.

I saw her dragging her comatose Sally

back in front of the wheel.

Sure?

Absolutely.

And if she lets poor dear Sally take the rap,

I think she might just pay handsomely for our silence.

Well, now, that is interesting.

They were scumbags.

No, Adam, maybe.

But not Melissa.

I can't believe. Dear girl, Melissa took pleasure

from other people's misery.

It entertained her, yours included.

You mean she never cared for me at all?

No.

She had the affair with your husband

so that you'd divorce him and she

could get you on the rebound.

You were quite a challenge.

Vicar's daughter, first lesbian affair.

Quite a trophy.

♪♪

I expect you'd like to take me down to the station.

Do you think we could go out the back way?

The, uh, the drink driving, of course.

All the other charges, they'll be dropped.

You'll be able to keep your job.

Funny.

Doesn't seem like much of a relief anymore.

What was all that about you looking in my bag?

You lied.

Well, she was trying to frame you.

So anything goes, isn't it?

I'm sorry you had to hear about it so...

so bluntly.

Life suddenly seems very much clearer.

Can we give you a lift?

I have a drinks party to attend.

And an ego to bring down to size.

Goodbye.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Oh, hello.

Hello.

Delightfully green.

Thank you.

Mind you, I still prefer you in that uniform.

I like that bit with the back, sir.

Thank you, Troy.

Very unscrupulous.

I'll tell you about that in a minute.

All right.

There they are.

I almost like the look of him.

Frederick Benteen Brown, eh?

Multi-millionaire git.

Lovely bride.

She looks positively blooming.

Ripened by their own compassion.

Your medlar fruit.

Oh, of course.

The happy couple will be living in the 700-acre Benteen

Brown estate in Midsomer Worthy.

Have a feeling it won't be an entirely strife-free union

for dear old Freddie.

Medlar jelly.

Try some.

Go on.

♪♪

That's very nice.

Perhaps you should save it for special occasions.

Well, that's really not necessary.

We've got two dozen jars.

Just tuck in.

♪♪

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