MIDSOMER NEWS
***
August 2008
A 13th series of "Midsomer Murders" has been commissioned following the recent success of the new episodes which achieved triumphant ratings. From June 2008 to March 2009, seven more episodes - Series 12 - will be filmed. The first, "The Dogleg Murders", and second, "The Black Book", have been completed. An episode this series will also see Barnaby taking his investigations over to Honfleur, a pretty port in France! "The Dogleg Murders" is directed by Richard Holthouse, and "The Black Book" by Peter Smith.
A Christmas special entitled "Days of Misrule", written by Elizabeth Anne-Wheal and directed by Renny Rye, is due to be shown Christmas 2008, and series twelve will see a third Christmas special filmed.
Series 12 will also see more recycled actors, such as Nicholas Le Prevost and Sarah Badel (Death Of A Hollow Man), Maggie Ollerenshaw (Country Matters) and John Standing (Bad Tidings).
***
September 2007 - Broadcast of Series 10 and 11
Despite the DVDs of "They Seek Him Here" and "Death in a Chocolate Box" to be released on the 8th October 2007, it seems unlikely that these episodes will be shown before this time. ITV is planning to air a new series of Miss Marple starting the 23rd September 2007. This is a series of four - so we still have quite a while to wait!
Filming has been completed on episodes "Blood Wedding" and "Shot at Dawn", two episodes due to be shown. "Blood Wedding" is a special episode centered around Cully's wedding, and "Shot at Dawn" (tbc) is 2007's Midsomer Christmas Special. Filming on episode three, "Left for Dead", is nearing completion.
***
Welcome Back DS Troy!
Good news - that Michael Grade, ITV's new Head Commissioner, is a fan of the show and has commissioned Series 12! There were worries that Grade was hoping to cut "Midsomer Murders" from ITV's schedules, hence the changes of Midsomer's broadcast days, so we can rest assured.
More good news is that Daniel Casey who plays Troy has agreed to come back to the show for a one-off episode where Cully marries her fiancee, Simon Dixon (Sam Hazeldine)!
The current episode "Blood Wedding", sees Barnaby solve a case while his daughter gets married. Barnaby will be making a speech in the ceremony - and this will reveal where the name Cully came from! The filming of "Blood Wedding" started in early June. There will be seven episodes in this series, and filming will continue until April 2008. More time will be spent filming each episode, and the crew are going to start filming more toned-down versions of certain risqué parts of each episode for day-time repeats.
Series 12 will have 7 episodes, taking the total of episodes to 70+. That's 140 hours of murder and mayhem, as Brian True-May puts it!
Another Christmas special will be filmed, but the script is still being planned. Elizabeth- Anne Wheal should be writing this one. Wheal has contributed to the series in the past ("Sins of Commission" and "Four Funerals and a Wedding").
***
Sad News on actor Ian Richardson
Old-hand actor Ian Richardson sadly passed away in his sleep on 9th February 2007 at the age of 72. Richardson, forever remembered as the Machiavellian MP Francis Urqhuart in the "House Of Cards" series, but with a reputation as being one of the UK's best in such a generation, was due to start filming the role of aristocrat Lord Holm in a episode of 'Midsomer Murders' the week after his unfortunate death!
The makers of the series have therefore moved swiftly to recast Ian Richardson's role. But now veteran actor Edward Petherbridge, best known for his portrayal of sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey in the Eighties, has stepped in to the breach.
An ITV1 spokeswoman says: "Edward is filming the episode at the moment. But we can't reveal whether his character is going to be a victim or a suspect."
***
News of February 2007
'The Axeman Cometh' will be broadcast 02nd February, and repeats of episodes 'Death and Dreams', 'Painted in Blood' and 'A Tale of Two Hamlets' will be shown on 07th, 08th and 09th of February.
Filming of episode 58, 'They Seek Him Here', directed by Sarah Hellings, will be completed in February 2007, the same month when work will commence of episode 59, 'Blood Wedding', the last episode of Series 10, written by David Lawrence and directed by Sarah Hellings.
This month will also see ITV's new Executive Chairman, Michael Grade, review the programme 'Midsomer Murders' and decide whether to negotiate a twelfth series with Brian True-May.
New episodes of 'Midsomer Murders' are now broadcasted on Friday evenings rather than Sundays, and as of Series 11 (to be filmed May-December 2007), only six episodes will be made per series.
***
Is ITV About To Murder Midsomer?
ITV's new Executive
Chairman's, Michael Grade, first job at ITV may be to kill off Midsomer Murders.
The channel’s most popular drama is under threat because of a cash crisis and
changing tastes.
In January 2007, the new series will be broadcast on ITV on Fridays rather than
Sundays.
A further series has already been agreed... but a 12th season will be the
subject of difficult negotiations in February 2007.
When Grade joins the channel next month, he will review all programmes in the
schedule. He has already told commissioning editors to “get back to taking
risks”.
Midsomer is seen as a more traditional drama. Producer Brian True-May said:
“There have been such a lot of changes at ITV and I think some of the new
regime there think that Midsomer Murders is old and tired.
“But when they see the viewing figures, they have to change their minds.”
The drama has an audience of around eight million.
“I’m having to renegotiate lots of deals with ITV because they say they have
no money,” added True-May.
He said the tight budget was the reason there had not been a Christmas special
for the past two years. “According to the past ITV regime, a show that goes
out on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day attracts very little advertising revenue.
Advertisers have spent all the money before Christmas,” said True-May. “So a
show like ours, which costs £1.5million for a special, pays no dividends.”
True-May feels that instead of killing off Midsomer, Grade’s priority should
be tackling the way ITV itself works against the series by putting on too many
repeats.
“People look at the newspaper and see that Midsomer Murders is on both ITV1
and ITV3,” he said. “Quite often viewers think a new episode might actually
be a repeat.
“I’ve battled long and hard to stop this but I don’t think ITV1 and ITV3
talk to each other.”
John Nettles says he is fine about playing Barnaby until he thinks he becomes unrealistic in the role. Though he will not disappear off TV screens - to replace Foyle's War, Brian True-May would like to work with John on a English WW2 drama after Midsomer Murders finishes. "There is a still a lot of life in the show though" says Brian True-May.
***
Series Ten Episodes
Surprisingly, as a one-off, ITV 1 have decided to show one last episode of 'Midsomer Murders' this year, a new episode called 'Dance With the Dead', written by P J Hammond and directed by Peter Smith. Script Editor Christopher Penfold has described the characters and the setting as being 'imprisoned in its past'.
***