Midsomer Murders: Series 20

"Midsomer Murders" has always had a fondness for weird characters and unusual murder methods. Not just simple stabbings, for example, but how about death by gargoyle or headless horseman? Every once in a while, it slips back into that oddball whodunit mode in current episodes. This season, for example, we get death in boiling ale and death at -150°, and how about death by corset!The new forensic pathologist, Fleur Perkins (played by Annette Badland), is a hoot. I suspect that she was teased so much about being called a flower when she was a girl, that she determined to grow up into anything but. We're introduced in the first episode, when Barnaby finds her looking down at the body floating in the kettle vat and she tells him: "Boiled human flesh isn't something I work with every day, so I'll need to consult a specialist. And possibly a cookbook?"The Jamie Winter character doesn't have the charisma of past sidekicks, but he does add humor to the show. We happen to really enjoy John Barnaby's sly sense of humor and deadpan delivery. Best exchange between Barnaby and Winters:Barnaby, rattling a charity donation cup: "From now on, it's a pound in there every time you make me feel old."Winters: "I'm not made of money."....1... "The Ghost of Causton Abbey" In 1539, the monks of Causton Abbey boiled one of their own, Brother Jozef, in a vat of bubbling oil. Why? Because he had poisoned people with his beer. As they lowered him over the cauldron, Brother Jozef shrieked, "A curse! A curse upon this place! For all eternity – a curse!" Cut to today, and John and Sarah attend the launch party for the Causton Abbey Brewery's new IPA. Not only are they brewing beer near the ruins where Jozef was executed, but they are calling their new product "Cursed Brew", complete with a logo of a monk in a vat. That is truly tempting a medieval curse.....2... "Death of the Small Copper" Mahesh Sidana, butterfly collector, is anesthetized and skewered as if he was part of his collection. Can you get more odd than that?This episode brings back Danish police detective Birgitte Poulsen, from the episode "The Killings of Copenhagen", British Season 16 (2013-14). That was the 100th episode of "Midsomer Murders", and to celebrate, it had Barnaby and his then DS, Charlie Nelson, travel to Copenhagen on a case. This time, Birgette comes to Midsomer.....3... "Drawing Dead" The 7th annual FranCon, a 3-day comic book festival, comes to Carver Valley. How, I wondered, will people dressed as comic-book charachters (including Winters as a pretty nifty hawk man) be connected to a woman who's been in a coma since her attack 2 years ago? Because she's waking up, which makes everybody happy. Doesn't it?....4... "The Lions of Causton" The Causton Rugby Club has been taken professional by its new owner. Their clubhouse includes the best in physiotherapy including a cryotherapy room. Where you could stash a victim and set the temperature to minus 150 degrees. As Fleur explains, the person would have "two minutes, max" to get out.Note: Watch the Bonus Feature on this episode for an extended look at the wonderful Maori haka the team performs.....5... "Till Death Do Us Part" The wedding reception for Laurel and Gavin is in full swing. The Barnabys are there because Sarah is a friend of the mother-of-the-bride. Which is why Barnaby is on hand when someone is killed, a ribbon tied in a bow around the tongue.....6... "Send in the Clowns" Joe Ferabbee has brought his little circus back to Swynton Magna, his home town. As a matter of fact, he brings it all the way back to a field on the family farm where he grew up. Just one problem, his brother, who now runs the farm, doesn't want him anywhere near. Another problem, his headliners, the clown team of Oucho and Groucho, are going to split up. And Barnaby suffers from coulrophobia. It's enough to make someone kill – three times.Altogether, the 6 episodes of Season 20 total 558 minutes, or 90 minutes each. If you purchase the season on disc, English subtitles are available on the episodes and the Bonus extras.Bonus Features contain snippets of interviews on the film sets, as well as clips from the show:....A... "Behind the Scenes: Death of a Small Copper" (9 minutes) Commentators include Neil Dudgeon (plays Barnaby), Mark Benton (plays Eddie), Nick Hendrix (plays Winters), Peter Egan (plays Grady Palmerston), Annette Badland (plays Perkins), Fiona Dolman (plays Sarah Barnaby) and Ann Eleonora Jorgensen (plays Poulsen). As this episode features a Mensa-style IQ test, and character DS Winter is supposed to be a killer at quizzes, this featurette ends with the actors asked typical pub quiz questions. I've added a comment to the review with the questions asked, so you can test yourself.....B... "Behind the Scenes: The Lions of Causton" (6 minutes) New commentators include Antoni Hopper (haka creator), Don Gillet (plays Bill Viner), Michael Maloney (plays Gallagher), Tamzin Outhwaite (plays Samantha) and Douggie (plays Dominic). Hopper says the haka used for the Lions' warm-up is "true and culturally appropriate and it's appropriate to the story.... I've grown up doing the haka."....C... "Behind the Scenes: Till Death Do Us Part" (6 minutes) New commentators include Kelly Brook (plays Laurel), Nick Hancock (plays Phil) and Fenella Woolgar (plays Hazel). Hancock on his character: "He likes cooking, and he likes meat-eating plants... I can't tell you if he likes murder or not 'cause that'd be giving things away."....D... "Behind the Scenes: Send in the Clowns" (6 minutes) New commentators include John Miller (owner Jay Miller's Circus), Charlotte and Jodi Miller (his daughters), Mike Grady (plays Les), Kevin Eldon (plays Terry) and Andrew Knott (plays Mostyn). Jay Miller's Circus tents and equipment were used for background shots. A couple actors had to be taught circus skills for their parts.Settle in for six more episodes of DCI John Barnaby and DS Jamie Winter!Happy Reader

Great service and great product. Love this show

I highly recommend this series for fans of the show (and anyone who is new to the show!) I have been watching and enjoying Midsomer Murders for many years, almost since it started, ever since I discovered the series via DVD sets at my county library. I loved the series so much that I started collecting my own copies of the DVD sets as soon as they would be available in the U.S. and have continued doing so right up to this series! I would like to counter some of the criticism that others have gave regarding there being too much city versus village content in this particular series. I have been rewatching the whole 20 series and this series has about the same blend of city/village as previous series. And about the same degree of inclusiveness as well. So I don't think there is any real change in this series, and this series is just as excellent as any of the many years of Midsomer Murders! I am a great fan of the show and I am most heartily pleased with this series as much as any of them!

Like many other reviewers I found this season had lost so much of the Midsomer charm that it had in the many early episodes, and I, too, so miss the beautiful countryside, quaint villages and cottages that took you away to another time and place. But after saying that, I still gave it a 4 rating because even though it’s not what it used to be, it’s still better than any of the junk we have to pick from on our American tv stations. So if they decide to do any more episodes I’ll still be purchasing them..just hope the writers will listen a bit to what it’s fans really want and loved so much about Midsummer.

I love this series, always have and although some of the old quirks are gone I love the new ones. I was getting tired of the old. I love John Barnaby, I like that he's related to Tom. It seems to add continuity. I love Mrs. Barnaby, she's spunky, not the put-upon longsuffering homemaker but more modern, with a career of her own. I do miss Jones but the latest coroner is an absolute hoot! Looking forward to much more Midsommer. I've watched these on PBS but I want my own copy for watching at my leisure.

I previously read the comments about this series, however, could not accept that the reviewers were "real" fans of Midsomer Murders. How wrong was I? Much of the allure was and has been the English gardens, houses, farms and countryside as backdrops for well acted and well thought plot lines. Of course, I always enjoyed the familiar actors who I felt were well cast for their supporting roles. What I viewed with Series 20 was a rather cold scenario with actors not displaying the enthusiasm and charm of prior series. Unfortunately, I did not view all of Series 20 before I blindly ordered Series 21; I will likely slog through it with a preconceived disappointment. The previous 25 sets. along with "Village Case Files" and "The Early Cases" kept me wanting more and not being able to wait until the next series would be published. These are why I kept purchasing - Series 21 will be my last unless and until reviewers of newer series' suggest vast improvement. Sorry to others out there like me who have been sustaining fans.

I’ve been watching Midsomer murders for years. I’m still collecting the DVDs but I’ve already watched it at least four times on BritBox from 1 to 21. My package came on time very well protected and neatly packed.I haven’t looked at the DVDs yet but I’ve never had any problem with them before so I’m really not worried. Thank you very much.

I almost didn't buy series 20 because of some of the negative reviews but I'm glad I did. Granted they don't spend half the show having conversations on the green but you can't always move the story line along by sitting on a park bench. They still have the villages, pubs, farms and old homes. Someone also said that Barnaby's wife appears to be reacting in a negative manner towards him but I don't see it. She, at times, pokes light hearted fun as all married couples with a healthy relationship do. This is still my number one favorite series.

Wer Midsomer Murders Fan ist, wird auch dieses mal nicht enttäuscht sein!

The series was excellent but I was disappointed that the discs were for region 1 not region 4 despite my having bought from Amazon Australia. I was not able to watch the discs on our new 4K Panasonic Bluray player and had to watch on the small screen of my computer. We were not able to find a crack online to enable us to watch it. Very disappointing.Trish

I am a Fan of This Series and as usual I liked it.

I've been collecting this particular version of midsomer since season 1 .So now 20 seasons of same collection and the season comes in 1 package not 2 as in buying from australian retail and paying substantually more

Enjoyed Season 20, the combination of drama and comedy makes this a must watch for fans of the series.