Death in the Slow Lane

A local DJ is crushed to death at a traditional girls' boarding school, and the man sent to sort it out is DCI John Barnaby, Tom's cousin, played by Neil Dudgeon. The surname is familiar. The face, and the way he moves through an inquiry, take a little getting used to. He finds a village that looks as pretty as ever and a death that sits at odds with it, and within a few days the usual Midsomer arithmetic is in play: one victim, then a widening circle of people who would rather the questions stopped.

The boarding school setting gives the episode its texture. The investigation reaches deep into the school's world, staff and pupils and the families around them, and no one can quite explain why a DJ ended up crushed on school grounds. The school is the kind of institution that keeps its own counsel, and the staff close ranks just enough to make everyone interesting. Whatever happened, it happened in a place where the pupils were supposed to be safe, and the school's composure starts to crack accordingly. Ben Jones stays on as his sergeant, Dr Bullard still reads the bodies, and around them gather Peter Fossett, Granny Brightwell, the Wingates and the Cameron family, with Samantha Bond adding a familiar face to the suspect list.

Michael Aitkens wrote it with Caroline Graham, and Richard Holthouse directed. Dudgeon and Jason Hughes carry the load, supported by Barry Jackson, David Warner, Edna Doré, Susan Engel, Lucy Briers, Tim Dutton, Samantha Bond and Clara Paget.

And a change of detective is a risk for a show this long-running, but John Barnaby settles in quickly. He makes the role his own almost at once, and the show barely misses a beat. The village looks the same, but the man asking the questions is new, and that turns out to be refreshing.