ANCIENT families like the Shirewells thrive on tradition, but when the eldest son throws a bomb into five centuries of history, long-buried resentments resurface.
Back in the fictional picturesque English county of Midsomer, DCI Barnaby and his trusty sidekick, DS Winter, endeavour to solve perplexing crimes while also exploring the quirks of this delightful yet deadly county.
The beautiful Stourwick Estate is set in the quintessential English countryside, its centrepiece being the magnificent Stourwick Hall – an Elizabethan stately home owned and occupied by the Shirewell family since 1588. But Stourwick Hall is divided – much like the family itself.
The old Stable has been transformed by the bohemian heir to the estate – Lucian Shirewell (Peter Serafinowicz) – into a ceramics studio. His traditionalist younger brother Francis (Alex Macqueen) is in the Dower House with his insufferable wife Davina (Agni Scott), while their elder sister Ursula (Sarah Woodward) is in the main house caring for their dying father.
Following the death of their father, Lucian gathers his siblings for a meeting, where he announces that his tenure at Stourwick will be the Shirewell’s last. Lucian’s radical plans include the removal of his siblings from the estate with immediate effect. He intends to transform Stourwick into a residential artist’s community.
The historic family chapel is to become a gallery for his lurid controversial pieces, while the surrounding farmland will be transformed into a vast solar park. His plans are viewed as wilful desecration by family and estate workers alike.
So when an incriminating letter is found among their father’s belongings, foul play is suspected. Barnaby (Neil Dudgeon) and Winter (Nick Hendrix) are called to the estate and Lucian is the prime suspect. But is someone desperate to frame Lucian in order to regain control of the estate?
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