Ring Out Your Dead

Of all the episodes I've watched, this one has the most preposterous conclusion. Nevertheless it's quite enjoyable. The cougar is quite something too.

Another episode with a church and church people being used in a negative way in Midsomer Murders.

Church bell ringers start being murdered in this town one at a time. The head man of the ringers is obsessed with practicing and winning an award. That is his only goal in life.

It is said that this church Reverend was killed years ago by bell ringers. His body is found in a well. The cause is said is that he wanted the ringers to attend the church. This seems so bogus. I never heard of heads of churches allowing non-members of a church to go into the church tower to ring the church bells and enter a contest but this is how the story went.

Nobody seems to know why these killings take place. A theme but not the cause of deaths is a rich woman is like the town prostitute. She has sex with younger men and it is just a game with her, she broke up a marriage in the village and the wife caught her husband in their bed. She threw her husband's clothes out the window which was funny, even his pants. This loser woman also made a play for Sgt Troy and he looks like he gives in to her advances. I was disappointed in Troy.

A red headed male bell ringer is with a woman that is like his mother is walking near the church the bells start ringing when they are not supposed to ring. The woman wants to go see who is up there and the the young male said he is afraid of heights something like that. This makes no sense, he has to go up to the tower to practice ringing the bells when they are scheduled to practice.

The plot of killing all the bell ringers is interesting but stupid. The killer in the end does not seem physically competent to commit all these murders. It is a good mystery but a fantasy.

Bell-ringers are being murdered, and the question is, why? In this 2002 Midsomer Murders from season 5.

The church bell-ringers of Midsomer Wellow are preparing for a big bell-ringers' competition. As rehearsal begins, blood starts falling on the face of one of the ringers, Emma Tysoe (Lyndsey Marshal).

It turns out to be blood from the body of Greg (Dugald Bruce Lockhart), who was somewhat of a playboy. Well, there are a few people who could have wanted him dead, including his soon to be ex-wife.

But when there's another murder, and another - with a message near each, going back to the history of the church, it seems like someone is determined to knock off all those bell-ringers.

Interesting story tied to an old tale about the church itself which Barnaby and Troy attempt to untangle. As an amusing sideline, Troy finds himself in a flirtation with an older woman who is very up front about her sexuality, and had been a lover of the first victim.

Entertaining, with some good performances, particularly by Gemma Jones as Maisie Gooch, Graham Crowden, and Hugh Bonneville.

This is your typical Midsomer Murders episode of the time, the early 2000s where we saw the best, it's totally changed now.

Very summery episode, stunning houses and gardens, great to see Hugh Bonneville and Gwen Taylor, brilliant performances.

The conclusion is extremely silly but it wouldn't be Midsomer Murders without this. The usual over the top characters but strangely, this episode presents some rather more down to earth ones as well. Strange that we don't see Dr Bullard in this one, he isn't called in for any of the deaths.

As usual, Joyce Barnaby getting involved and causing a nuisance, most entertaining.

This doesn't rank in the top 10 by any means but worth a watch.

I too noticed the time on the clock as always being 6.25. It was mentioned in the goofs. What is the reason for it? Maybe too, like other titles there could have been an explanation of the murder and how it was done at the end. It was an interesting episode and I have a feeling that the writer tends to portray quite a few women as murderers, or should I say, murderesses. I find it absolutely bizarre that a person could murder innocent bell-ringers just because her ancestor was murdered by 'bell-ringers' who are unrelated to the present ones. The judgmental old man was super. As was the character of Peter, who was only interested in winning at all costs. He was thoroughly insensitive to the deaths around him. Super film all round!