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Written in Blood

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Written in Blood is the first episode of the first series, the second overall after the pilot, of the popular ITV crime drama Midsomer Murders and first aired 22nd March 1998.

Synopsis[]

A member of a local writing circle is found dead the morning after the group’s meeting with a best-selling novelist.

Plot[]

Durrow, Southern Ireland, 1955, Liam shoots his father in his bed.

Present Day, in Midsomer Worthy, Mrs. Bundy, the housekeeper, leaves Gerald Hadleigh's house. Gerald types away on his computer. Laura Hutton heads to Gerald's house for Midsomer Worthy Writers Circle meeting while thinking of plot for her book, a romance.  Brian Clapper and Sue Clapper prepare for the meeting. Brian's story is very limited to "Scum, Scumbag, etc."  Honoria Lyddiard is typing a book about her family history. She makes rude remarks to her sister-in-law, Amy Lyddiard.

At the Writers Circle meeting, hosted by Gerald Hadleigh, the group discusses who to invite to their next meeting. Amy suggests inviting well-known author Max Jennings , author of "The Far Away Hills." The group's secretary, Gerald Hadleigh is opposed to the invitation but is outvoted.

Max receives a letter from the Midsomer Worthy Writers Circle inviting to come talk. The letter is from Brian Clapper and Max sees Gerald Hadleigh's name on the letterhead. Max tells his wife that he is going to go the meeting.

At DS Tom Barnaby's house, Barnaby delays going into work since there isn't much to do. His wife, Joyce Barnaby, says if someone doesn't get murdered soon he'll get tetchy. Daughter Cully Barnaby and her boyfriend, Brad come by to visit. Cully asks her parents to watch her cat while Cully is in Poland on a tour of Much Ado About Nothing.

Honoria Lyddiard drives to the Spinning Wheel Antique store. Proprietor, Laura Hutton is crying inside. She claims it is hay fever. Honoria wants to see Navy News. Laura answers the phone and Honoria steals a paper. Later she is seen knocking on Gerald Hadleigh's door.

At the Clapper residence, Sue is painting a watercolor of a dragon for her children's book. She tells her husband she has finished reading "The Far Away Hills." Brian tells her sarcastically that he is glad that she has time to read while he was working.

Gerald sees Amy Lyddiard out shopping and tells her he is afraid of Max Jennings. He knew him a long time ago. Gerald asks Amy not to leave him alone with Jennings.

At the Hadleigh house, Max finishes his talk. "When you say a book is 'true', I don't think it has to be literally 'the truth'. That's not what writing's all about. You take the truth and you spin something from it. You're creating something new; you're not recording something old. Anyway, I've been talking long enough now, so in conclusion I would just like to say this. Writers need stamina. We need a wayfaring mind! Nothing should be beneath our attention. But, above all, we need luck. And that's what I wish all of you." Max asks the group if there are any questions. No one responds initially. Then Max directly asks Gerald, who says no. Amy starts to ask a question when Honoria interrupts. She is writing a history of England as seen through the personal chronicles of her family, the Lyddiards. Which she has traced back to the 14th century. And the line continues all the way to the Falklands where her late brother Ralph served as an officer on HMS Leicester. She looks at Gerald as she says this.

Gerald asks, "You were talking about the truth. In fiction. So I'd be interested to know... Where do you get your ideas?" Max says mainly from experience. Max worked as a psychiatrist before he took up writing. Laura asks Max if he ever has characters who surprise him. "You think you know them. You think they're one thing, then they turn out to disappoint you completely." Sue says she is writing a children's book about a dragon called Hector. Brian is writing a play. He says he is "building it. For me it's a totally passe word. And elitist...Writing. You know, we're... rapping. We're improvising - free association! You should come to one of my rehearsals, Max! You might find it... dangerous." Sue hands her copy for Max to sign. Honoria insults Amy. Max tells Gerald it was good to see him. On the way to their car, Honoria wants to know who she should approach once her history is finished. Max forgot his gloves and goes back into Gerald's house. Amy tries to follow him, but Honoria won't let her. Max asks Gerald for a nightcap. Laura watches from the road. Brian Clapper drives up and then ducks behind his car as someone walks up.

The next morning, Mrs, Bundy arrives to clean. She finds Gerald upstairs in his room, naked and dead. She screams. The police arrive. Troy tells Barnaby that the victim is Gerald Hadleigh. He's not quite recognizable. The weapon was a candlestick. Whoever did it was in a hell of a temper. Killed him with one blow and went on bashing. Also, the cupboard is empty. Mrs. Bundy says Gerald's wife's photograph was in the drawer. He never talked about his wife. She says she didn't go into the bedroom. "I took one look and I saw him stark naked on the carpet with his head bashed in and I scarpered! Of course I didn't bloody go in!"

Barnaby and DS Gavin Troy go to talk to Sue Clapper, who lives across the street. She tells them that the writer's group meets once a month. Sue says, "Of course there would be more space at Gresham Hall. That's Honoria's house, but she wouldn't have it, Ever since Ralph died. Mind you the place is like a morgue. Freezing cold even in the middle of summer." Ralph was her brother. "She worshipped him. Amy was his wife and now she lives there." Sue continues that Gerald was tense last night. She wondered if he had a row with Laura. They are usually close, but last night she was frosty. Gerald was dead against Max Jennings coming. Brian had to invite him because Gerald wouldn't. Sue mentions that Gerald's car was stolen the other day in Causton.

They head to Causton Comprehensive. Troy went there from 1983-90. He drives on the wrong side of the road. In the drama class, Brian Clapper is doing warm-up exercises with the students. Edie tells Brian, "Drop dead, you scum-bag." She says that she is getting into character. The police speak to him. Barnaby asks what he can tell them about Max Jennings. Brian says, "A reactionary fossil. Not a clue about modern drama. Hardly surprising, when you see the stuff he turns out." Brian says he saw Honoria knocking on Gerald's door about four. "He was a civil servant who'd taken early retirement - a platinum handshake and a fat pension. I had no time for people like him," says Brian.

Barnaby and Troy go to interview Honoria at Gresham House. She is rude to them. She claims there is very little she can tell them about Gerald. Honoria says, "Our name is woven into the very warp and woof of England. Above reproach. Pursue your enquiries elsewhere."

Amy tells the police that Honoria adored her husband, Ralph. After her husband died, Amy had no money so Honoria let her live with her. Amy feels it is her fault that Gerald died. She says, "He was terrified of... of meeting Max Jennings. He asked me not to leave the two of them together. Not for a minute! And I promised him." But after they left, Max went back inside claiming he forgot his gloves.

Barnaby and Troy go to interview Selina Jennings, Max's wife. She tells them that Max flew to Denmark after the writer's meeting. She tells them to ask his secretary, Bouncing Barbara for details. Selina then jumps into the pool.

At dinner, Barnaby talks to Joyce about Gerald. Barnaby says the more he hears about him, the less he seems to know about him. He was a retired civil servant from Kent. His house had no character, no souvenirs, no mail, no personal documents, not even a driver's license. He had one photograph of his wife. Whoever killed Hadleigh, took away a suitcase. It is one of three.

That evening, the cat is in the Barnaby's bed. Barnaby tells Joyce that he is not sleeping in their bed, but after Barnaby is asleep, the cat is on the bed.

Brian Clapper tells Sue he is going out. He's not sleepy. Sue says "You were out last night too." Brian claims that he went round the green to blow the cobwebs. She asks why he lied to the police.

At the police station at breakfast, Troy brings in information about Hadleigh's car. It was stolen in Causton. Troy also checked all the flights to London and all the ferries. He wasn't on any of them. Barnaby and Troy go to see "Bouncing Barbara", Barbara Neale. She says Max made all his own arrangements. Max knew Gerald Hadleigh and wanted to see him. Barnaby is itching. Troy suggests it might be his washing powder.

They go to interview Laura Hutton. She says, "We met once a month at the writers' group and that was all." Barnaby asks, "Just out of interest,what sorts of books were you all writing, Mrs Hutton?" Laura says, "Gerald was writing a spy thriller. Sue, a children's book. Brian, a rather dreadful play. Amy wasn't writing anything, though she did talk about poetry. And of course there's Honoria and her family history. She's always in and out of here. She came in that afternoon. About 4:00, the afternoon before it happened. She came in to look at old magazines. London Illustrated News, Life Magazine, Navy News... She's fanatical about it! Anything to do with her family or her brother Ralph in particular. In fact, she stole one of those - June '78. They're in order. She probably found another cutting for her book." Laura says she was writing a romance. She says she did find Gerald quite... attractive. But he never once reciprocated her feelings. She says, "I'm a bad sleeper, and I often go out walking late at night. That night - ten to twelve, maybe a little earlier - that was when I saw it. A woman arrived in a Causton cab, paid the driver, got out and walked towards Gerald's house. I thought she'd ring the bell, but she let herself in. She had a key!' She was quite obviously a prοstitսte! Her clothes! The way she walked! Now, I'm not normally a nosy person. 'But I have to admit,I was aroused. My curiosity, that is. I went a little closer, and that was when I saw them. He'd given her a glass of wine, and... she was toasting him and laughing! I didn't mind Gerald rejecting me, but to think of him turning to that!" Laura mentions that she did go by Gerald's house the night of the writers meeting. At 12:30 she saw Max Jennings leave. He'd had too much to drink. He took quite a while getting into the car. She also saw Brian Clapper.

Barnaby and Troy go back to talk to Brian. They tell him they have a witness who saw Brian at Gerald's. He tells the police he saw someone outside the house. After his drama class, Edie Carter tells Brian she needs to talk to him. Brian puts his arm around her.

At the Barnaby home, Joyce tells Barnaby that Far Away Hills is a wonderful book. She says, "It's the story of a young boy - an Irish boy. His name is Liam Hanlon. Liam lives on a farm, near Durrow in southern Ireland. It's a horrible life. He's abused by his father sexually. Aged 13, Liam shoots his father with his own shotgun and runs away. He meets a man, an artist. They travel together, first in Europe and then Turkey. Liam bought a flat by the Albert Hall. He got the money from the artist. He's painted him in historical dress and they've made a fortune. He lies on the bed, the cushion cool against his neck, and traces his past against the mouldings on the ceiling." Barnaby sneezes. The phone rings. Max Jennings has been found.

Max is found dead somewhere by the sea. He's been dead 48 hours. Poison. Dr. George Bullard notices a rash on Barnaby's neck. Barnaby sneezes.

Barnaby and Troy discuss the case. Barnaby tells Troy to check the minicab that dropped off the blonde at Gerald's house. He also has him do a background on Gerald Hadleigh and Max Jennings. Troy says there is no record of his marriage, no birth certificate and the civil service has never heard of him. His car was found wrecked and dumped in the river.

Barnaby talks to Barbara Neale. He says the seaside cottage was booked for two. Max Jennings and Barbara. Barbara says tearfully, "Max used to be a psychiatrist before he was a writer. I was his receptionist. Then I was his secretary. And then... We'd been seeing each other for two years. There was no Denmark. That was just what we told Selina. The plan was, we were going to meet there. At the cottage. He'd gone down the night before, and I followed. It was easier for us to go down separately. I got there about... lunchtime. He was lying there on the bed. I thought he must have had a heart attack. I never dreamt... What more could I do? I couldn't tell you about him without telling about us. Nobody knew. Nobody."

Barnaby and Troy go to talk to Gerald Hadleigh's solicitor, Mr Jocelyne. He says, "Well, he was a very private man. Unusually reserved. But we looked after his legal affairs for him, including the purchase of Plover's Rest seven years ago. He had lived in London. I can't tell you more. Though he did retain a property there. He left £500 to a Mrs Bundy. His cleaner. And £10,000 to the local cricket team. Oh, yes. He left a picture - an oil painting! - to a Mrs Laura Hutton. And a somewhat larger sum of £100,000 to Amy Lyddiard."

Amy tells Barnaby and Troy that Gerald "did sometimes joke about it. He said it would amuse him to 'rescue' me from Honoria." Amy says she came to Gresham Hall after Ralph died. "We had a little house in Spain. We were trying to make a life there. But Ralph got ill. I wrote to Honoria, of course. The next day, she just arrived! She nursed him - she did everything. It was as if I wasn't there. After Ralph died, she talked to the doctors, she brought his body home. I didn't have a penny. There was nothing I could do" Amy realizes that now she has money, she can leave- "I hate it here. I'm rich!" Honoria walks in and asks why Amy hasn't started lunch. Amy tells Honoria "These officers have come to give me some news," Honoria says, "That's of no interest to me." Honoria tells the police that the newspaper she took was about her brother's boat, the Leicester. Honoria says, "Ralph rose to be a Sub-Lieutenant. He received two commendations. He would have been an admiral."

Amy tells Honoria that she is going to leave. Honoria says she promised Ralph that she would look after her. Honoria says,"If you'd loved him he'd not have died." Amy says, "I'll leave tomorrow. It's for the best." Honoria says, "No. You're a Lyddiard. Blood and bone. Blood and bone, that's what counts. Blood counts! Bone counts!"

Sue Clapper walks up to Laura, who is packing up. She is leaving the village. Laura says, "I used to think that if you loved someone for long enough, they wouldn't be able to help loving you back. I was very foolish," The movers bring out a portrait of a boy. Laura says, "Gerald. That was his. He left it to me. It's beautiful. It's a Hilton Conninx. One of the series of historical boys he painted in the '50s. It's very valuable, but I'll never sell it. It reminds me of him."

The police interview the cab driver who says he picked up the blonde woman. He dropped her at Gerald's house. She was an ugly woman. Tall, a lot of make-up. Nice legs, though. The cab driver tells them where he picked her up. Barnaby and Troy go to the pickup place, which is a drag club. It could explain the empty wardrobe. And why Hadleigh had no clothes on. And maybe the photograph of his dead wife too.

Barnaby tells Joyce later: Gerald Hadleigh was a transvestite. He parked his car near the club, then he must have gone back to it in full woman's dress. But it wasn't there. He couldn't walk into CID dressed as he was. And the woman Laura Hutton saw was Gerald Hadleigh in drag.

Brian Clapper goes over to Edie's house. She seduces him. Someone photographs them together. An envelope arrives on his doorstep the next morning. It is full of photos of himself and Edie. Brian freaks out.

Troy tells Barnaby that it was poison that killed Max. Thallium sulfate in a glass of wine. Gerald could have give it to him. They get a call from Gerald's lawyer with the address of Gerald's property in London.

Brian arrives at school. His class is waiting for him. They try to blackmail him for £5,000. Then they clap and tell him that that was their coup de theatre for the play. On the bulletin board outside the Parish Council, Brian finds photos of himself and Edie.

Barnaby and Troy go to Gerald's flat in London. It is decorated with several paintings. Barnaby recognizes the place. It was in the book, The Far Away Hills. The book Max Jennings wrote about Gerald Hadleigh. Barnaby explains, "Liam Hanlon - the boy - meets an artist. He paints him in historical dress and the paintings go for a fortune. He was sexually abused. He killed his father. Then he runs away from home. He gets rich, and then one day he tells Max Jennings everything. Max used to be a psychiatrist before he was a writer. Jennings took what Hadleigh told him and put it in a book- The Far Away Hills. Gerald Hadleigh was never married. His life was a complete sham. The photo of his wife was a prop. He probably hid it in case Jennings saw it." Barnaby says, "What would you do if you told a professional healer, a friend, all your innermost secrets? Your entire life history. And he turned it into a bestselling book?" Troy says, "I'd kill him." At the flat, police find the same paper that Honoria Lyddiard had. Beneath the article is a photo of Ralph Lyddiard and Gerald Hadley. That's what sent Honoria scuttling over to Gerald's house. Here was someone who actually knew Ralph in the village.

Amy pulls a suitcase out of a closet and she finds a suitcase full of clothes covered in blood with the initials G.H.

Driving back from London, Barnaby says, "Honoria killed Gerald Hadleigh - Amy almost gave her away when she contradicted her. When we asked Honoria what she was doing on the night of the murder. I retired. I had a headache. 'Retired' didn't mean go to bed, which is what I thought. Amy told us the next time we met. Amy went to bed. Honoria retired to the study. And then she went out again a few minutes later. Back to Gerald Hadleigh's." Honoria says to Amy, "I couldn't believe he'd known my Ralph. My darling Ralph. I tried to see him earlier, but he wasn't there. And I couldn't talk with all those people there." So she went back that night. She had to see him. She couldn't wait. She couldn't believe what she saw. "So disgusting, so beneath contempt! But I asked him about Ralph. I had to know. That's what I'd come for. And do you know what he... what he told me? Do you know what he said?" Gerald said, "Yes, I knew him, your dearest, darling Ralph! We were lovers, Honoria. I had him and he had me. Now get out of my house!" She killed him and took all the clothes. She didn't want anyone to know.

Honoria goes after Amy who runs away. Amy goes into a room that had been locked. In the room is a dead Ralph. Amy screams. Honoria stabs holes in the door. Honoria tells Amy that she wants to see her die. She goes after her with the knife and Amy dodges and Honoria falls out of the window. Amy comes outside. She tells Barnaby, "She said she wanted me to die. She was waiting. It was AIDS, wasn't it? That's what killed Ralph. She knew. And she hoped that... that... She was waiting!"

At the Barnaby home he says he saw Dr Preston. He has an allergy to cats. Joyce laughs.

Cast[]

Galleries[]

Body Count[]

Prior to the Episode

In the Episode

Supporting Cast[]

Episode Images[]

Arrests[]

  • Gerald Hadleigh murdered...
    • Mr. Hanlon, his father
    • Max Jennings, his psychiatrist
    • This is the third time a murderer dies before they can be arrested. The last episode where the murderer dies before being arrested is The Killings at Badger's Drift.

Should be arrested, but weren't in this episode:

Notes[]

Trivia[]

  • Frederick Forsyth gets a (perjorative) mention in this but he enjoyed it so much that he wrote about it in his Daily Express column. He deliberately misnamed Midsomer Worthy as "Midsomer Jockstrap" and he described the whole series as "amiable tosh".
  • This episode and The Dagger Club share some similarities:
    • In both episodes, the action is centered around books and the solution to the investigation lies in a book. Also, the person who reads the book is not the DCI Barnaby of the time, but the Mrs Barnaby of the episode.
    • In both episodes, Una Stubbs is a guest actor.
    • The musical themes for the episodes ("Discovery of a dead body" for Written in Blood and "Roulette" for The Dagger Club) are very similar.
  • It is revealed that Tom is allergic to cat fur.
  • This is the first time the Causton Comprehensive School is mentioned and also the first time it is shown.
  • Following the previous episode, this is the second time when the murderer/murderers die before they can be arrested by Barnaby and Troy.
  • This is the first appearance of Timothy Bateson's character Mr. Jocelyne. He also appeared in the episodes Death's Shadow and Orchis Fatalis and was mentioned in several other episodes.
  • Although, Marlene Sidaway had a small role as a counsellor in the previous episode, Written in Blood marked the debut of Mrs. Bundy. The character later appeared in Death's Shadow
  • Second episode where Cully Barnaby is rehearsing/in a play- Much Ado About Nothing
  • This episode not only references to Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) with the preserving of a dead body, the cross-dressing and the attempted insanity-driven killing with a knife, there is also a reference to Stephen King's The Shining (1980), where the murderer hacks a hole in the door with a sharp object to reach a terrified character in the episode's climax.

The Trials and Tribulations of DS Gavin Troy:

  • The repartee between superior officer and subordinate is rather snarky. As they go in to look at a body, Troy says, "It's just in here, sir." Barnaby says, "Oh, where the blood and the police photographers are. Thank you, Troy."
  • Troy: "Did you notice the cupboard, sir?" Barnaby, "If you mean the cupboard that seems to have been emptied, it had caught my attention."
  • Troy drives on the wrong side of the road and nearly hits oncoming traffic.

Goofs[]

  • The corpse of Max Jennings is breathing.
  • Honoria Lyddiard is pronounced dead but is still breathing as well.
  • When Barnaby and Troy are driving to Honoria's house for the last time, it appears to be raining heavily, and yet the sun is clearly shining in on Barnaby's face.
  • During the opening, Gerald Hadley's voice is reading out what he is writing. He says he fired 2 35mm rounds which missed by 2 inches etc. A 35mm round is huge and the size of round used in an anti aircraft gun, and not the size to be fired from a hand gun or machine gun.
  • Russian Blue cats tend to be hypo-allergenic. It's highly unlikely anyone who did not know they were allergic to cats would react to a Russian Blue for the first time in their life.
  • The talk to the writer's group is the evening of 1st July. When they're trying to find the taxi which dropped off a woman at the house the night before the talk, DCI Barnaby tells Sgt. Troy to contact cab companies and find out about "the 31st." June only has 30 days.

Jump to:  Synopsis

  1. ↑ the Script mentions the poison as Valium Sulphate, however it is more likely Thallium Sulphate
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