Barnaby and Troy are called in to the village of Fletcher's Cross to investigate the killing of Tara Cavendish (Felicity Dean), the young and glamorous wife of the despised tycoon Robert Cavendish (played by Robert Hardy). Tara was found battered to death with a cricket bat in her husband's derelict rock quarry. One would have thought that Robert would be the more likely target of a murderer because many people in the village had reason for wanting him dead. Not least Ian Frasier (Terence Rigby), the captain of the Midsomer Worthy cricket team whom are about to take on the Fletcher's Cross team, in which incidentally, Cavendish is the captain. But it is not due to rivalry over the game that Frasier hates Cavendish, he used to be the manager of his quarry and he lost his job over a blasting accident in which a fellow employee on the site was killed. In truth, it was his boss's fault, but Frasier took the blame. Frasier's dotty wife Zelda (Delia Lindsay) also had reason for hating Cavendish, she is the chairman of the Fletcher's Cross Ramblers Association and ancient public footpaths cross over Cavendish's land, but he is forbidding them access much to her and her fellow ramblers' chagrin. Cavendish also has a son called Stephen (Anthony Calf) whose business is on the verge of going bust and his father is refusing to extend the loan. In addition, Cavendish and Tara were planning to sale their entire estate and begin a new life in Florida, which would have been disastrous for Stephen and his wife Jane (Annabelle Apsion) because their cottage is on the family estate. Other suspects include the born again Christians, Colin and Christine Cooper (Duncan Preston & Imelda Staunton) who despite their modest professions, seem to live way beyond their means. Colin is the security guard at a local museum and Christine is Stephen Cavendish's secretary - another connection with the family. The big question for Barnaby and his young sergeant is that Cavendish would seem the most likely person that somebody would want to kill, but why murder his wife? Troy joins the Midsomer Worthy cricket team in order to shadow the people concerned, but there are other mysterious events that must be related to the case, but things just don't fit into place. A few years previously, Cavendish's elderly housekeeper Mrs Beavis fell to her death in the quarry and later that afternoon, her house was broken into, but there was no sign of any theft. The most likely suspect seems to be Stephen whose cricket bat was used to kill Tara and when a second murder takes place, in which a blackmail note typed by the victim is found in Stephen's wastepaper basket, a line of circumstantial evidence builds up against young Cavendish. Barnaby and Troy narrowly avoid having a third victim on their hands before they finally piece together the solution behind this complex case.
Dead Man's Eleven (first broadcast on 12 September 1999) was another winning combination between the Midsomer Murders establishing writer-director team of Anthony Horowitz and director Jeremy Silberston. One can only continue to praise these splendid mysteries as each and every one boasts first class locations, sets and as usual there was no miscast part. The script was well-plotted delivering just the right amount of red herrings and intrigue. There is some splendid chemistry between John Nettles and Jane Wymark as husband and wife who are always well matched in their roles. Joyce is keen to move house as their daughter Cully (Laura Howard) is moving to London to live with her boyfriend Nico and Joyce wants to move into one of the Midsomer villages. Barnaby responds by saying "Every time I visit a Midsomer village its always the same, blackmail, sexual deviances, suicide and murder, how do you possibly expect me to want to live in one of them?" Whilst Barnaby has two unsolved murders to his name, Joyce is house hunting and on one occasion he sees her heading towards Fletcher's Cross (the scene of the crime). "Oh no, not Fletcher's Cross?" he sighs. Among the supporting cast, Robert Hardy stands out as the arrogant and ruthless Cavendish who has no sympathy or consideration for anybody and Duncan Preston and Imelda Staunton offer just the right amount of false honesty as the shifty Colin and Christine Cooper. Jeremy Silberston's direction is accomplished as ever and the unique combination between he and Horowitz has shown how important they both are to the lasting success of Midsomer Murders in every episode that they worked on together. In that respect, producers Betty Willingale and Brian True May are also part of the show's top talents with the considerable thought and planning that has gone into making the series more than just another run-of-the-mill detective show including the splendid sets and the top notch technicians and actors that bring the films to life.
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