Midsomer Murders (TV Series) Death in a Chocolate Box (2007) User Reviews

I liked it

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 27 July 2015]

I didn't see the bad review the posters are alluding to - guess I missed it - but I liked this episode just fine.

The story concerns Lord Holm, who once served a prison sentence for killing his wife. His home is now a rehab center, I guess we might call it a halfway house here, for ex-offenders.

The center is run by two ex-police officers, Gina and Jack Colby. Barnaby once worked with Jack and they were close friends; however, Jack left the department in disgrace, and he is unwilling to talk to Barnaby. His wife, Gina, who had a wonderful career in law enforcement, left it as well.

When Barnaby sees that one Eddie Marston is coming to the house, he becomes concerned, as Eddie is trouble. Then Jack is found dead and Eddie is missing.

In his quest to find the killer, Barnaby discovers blackmail, a possible affair, and some unsettling things from the past.

I thought this was a fine episode, very involving. It's another sad one, though, and sad in a way for Barnaby as well.

Definitely recommended.

Series ten rounds off with a great episode.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 21 September 2018]

I have read several reviews where Midsomer Murders is written off post Series 9, I have to take issue with that, as Series 10 features some excellent episodes, I really loved The Axeman cometh and The Animal within, Death in a Chocolate Box is another excellent episode from what I'd class a very strong series.

The plot is very intriguing, very clever, very detailed, it's not a simple one, granted, but the show has had many complex mysteries over the years, this is just another episode with an intricate plot, where you need to concentrate a little harder.

It starts well, progresses nicely, and features a fantastic conclusion. I've always liked this story, it's different, and we get to see a very different side of Tom, we learn a little more about what makes him tick, Nettles is very, very good here. He's in fine company, Clare Higgins is fabulous, Chris Barrie and Edward Petherbridge are also very good.

A really clever, traditional murder mystery.

To me, one of the better episodes of Season 10

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 11 February 2017]

As has been said by me a number of times, 'Midsomer Murders' is one of my most watched and most re-watched shows. It is nowhere near as good now and the Tom Barnaby-era wasn't alien to average or less episodes, but when it was on form or at its best boy was it good.

"Death in a Chocolate Box" is to me one of the better episodes of Season 10, would go as far to say that it's second best after "The Animal Within". Season 10 generally was an uneven season, with "They Seek Him Here" and particularly "Picture of Innocence" faring least (also was mixed on "The Axeman Cometh") but with enough solid episodes to still make it a solid one.

The episode does take a little too long to get going before we get to the meat of the story. Some of the exposition doesn't add as much as it should have been and somewhat superfluous. Will also admit that the identity of the killer was not really a surprise, in a case with somewhat too few suspects.

However, the production values as always are just great, the idyllic look of it contrasting very well with the story's grimness, and quaint and atmospheric photography. The music fits perfectly, with some lush jauntiness and sometimes an ominous quality, and the theme tune one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre.

There are some thoughtful and humorous moments in the script, which is generally well structured and crafted, and the supporting characters are entertaining enough with Gina being the most interesting. Once it gets going, the story is absorbing and doesn't feel too simple or over-complicated, with more twists and turns than most of the other Season 10 episodes. The outcome of the final solution is very tense and sad.

John Nettles and Jason Hughes are both superb, individually and together (their chemistry, and the chemistry with Daniel Casey and John Hopkins before Hughes, being a huge part of their episodes' charm). Can't fault the supporting cast either, Clare Higgins is wonderful and love her chemistry with Nettles.

All in all, a good episode and one of the best episodes of an uneven but mostly solid Season 10. 8/10 Bethany Cox

End of another season

[hmflashgordon · 10/10 · 23 March 2009]

I totally disagree with the previous writer. My husband & I thoroughly enjoy Season 10 of Midsomer Murders & look forward to each episode & love watching them over & over again. I guess when you are used to such high quality programming you tend to get 'bored'. As we live in Canada & have little opportunity to truly enjoy great entertainment in regards to TV productions, we appreciate the quality of programming that we do receive from those stations that provide these shows. Each episode of Midsomer Murders is so well presented - writing, acting, photography, settings & all that is presented it is well worth viewing & enjoying time & time again. The British dramas are appreciated here in Canada & we hope we keep getting them. As 'Death in A Chocolate Box' didn't have lots of bodies but it was certainly interesting in the story-line. It kept us guessing as to who actually did the killings. Season 10, on a whole, presented us with different aspects of the main characters of Midsomer Murders - Tom Barnaby etc. It was very interesting to see Tom in a different light - I'm thinking of 'The Axeman Cometh'. Keep up the good work & we'll keep watching.

Warning: major spoiler below - amusing concealed literary reference

[kmoh-1 · 14 August 2021]

Early in this episode, we get two shots of a rather bizarre level crossing across a railway, recognisable because of the rickety gates and the speed and lack of warning with which they come down. They are very noticeable, and a couple of reviewers have already remarked on them.

This brings to mind the Russian playwright Chekhov's principle of the gun - if a pistol is obviously evident on the wall in the first act of a play, you know it will be used to shoot someone before the end. Nothing must be irrelevant to the story. Hence a dramatic climax at the level crossing, with a train bearing down, is foreshadowed.

Then the script plays with us a bit, because Cully gets a part in a new play. And guess what - it's Chekhov's Cherry Orchard, which with some irony is the only Chekhov play in which a gun is waved about that is not used!

Will the gates come down on Tom, or the killer, at the end? A nicely subtle tease from the author Tony Etchells.

Solid, but not great.

[harrykivi · 7/10 · 5 June 2021]

The tenth season of "Midsomer Murders" has never been one of my favorites of the series, I have said it numerous times before, but "Death in a Chocolate Box" is one of the strongest episodes of that season in my opinion. It's not a fantastic entry, but still a pretty good episode indeed.

Let's start with the good aspects, shall we?

. The production values of "Death in a Chocolate Box" are amazing as usual. The episode is well-directed and the music does fit to the scenery. The acting's strong too. Jason Hughes and John Nettles are brilliant as the leads and out of the very good guest stars Clare Higgins gives the most compelling performance.

. The murder mystery is mostly very interesting. There are some neat twists, turns and red herrings here. The characters are well-written and the humor is suitably quirky. The ending (the murderer Gina Colby runs in front of a train) was sombre agreed.

But....

. "Death in a Chocolate Box" has issues with pacing. The first 35 minutes in particular feel long and kind of uninteresting. After that the story becomes a lot more intriguing watch.

. Because there are very few suspects in the mystery, the solution was not surprising at all and felt quite obvious from the start, which was sad to say the least.

Overall, good, but not great.

7/10 HK.

Solid, well crafted episode which will satisfy fans and be a good as place as any for people watching the show for the first time.

[jamesraeburn2003 · 8/10 · 24 January 2022]

DCI Barnaby (played by John Nettles) visits Midsomer Holm, which houses a rehabilitation centre for criminals to say goodbye to Ronnie Tyler (played by Christopher Fairbank), an ex-con who has turned his life around and is leaving to start a world walking tour. The centre's administrator and parole officer, Jack Colby (played by Pip Donaghy), is a former friend and colleague of Barnaby's and was forced to resign from the police force over a scandal that took place years before. When Colby is brutally murdered, Barnaby and DC Hughes (played by Jason Hughes) are assigned to the case. Was his death connected to the scandal at his police division? Or, was Lord Holm (played by Edward Petherbridge) prepared to resort to murder in order to win the heart of the woman he loves, Colby's wife, the ex-police inspector turned psychotherapist Gina (played by Clare Higgins)...

A solid, well crafted entry in this long running and popular whodunit series, which will satisfy fans and be as good a place as any for anyone thinking of watching it for the first time to start. The plot set in the world of police corruption, blackmail and murder holds together well in Tony Etchells' screenplay and delivers a fair number of red herrings and twists and turns that lead to a satisfactory denouement. There is also the usual amusing subplot about the chief inspector's home life and how his dedication to his profession affects his ability to spend quality time with his wife (played by Jane Wymark) and his daughter, Cully (played by Laura Howard), a struggling actress. In this instance, she brings home her fiancé to meet her parents and she has also won a part in a new play. Of course, her father's investigation means that he is called away every time he tries to spend time with them because a new lead has cropped up or something. The film bares the series' usual hallmarks of quality: attractive settings, well chosen casts, a good script, top flight production values and direction.

Tons of coincidences

[vitoscotti · 7/10 · 15 January 2020]

A well written story. An absolute joy once it's gets going past the set-up stage. But must have to be the most coincidences of any MM story. Having all participants together at Midsomer Holm 16 years after Maria's murder, and the Friday nighters is really a stretch.

One reviewer calling Cully and Joyce boring. No way they're great. The roads connecting all the villages are all one lane. How can this be? The railroad gates look like a stiff wind would crumble them they're so rickety. Cully having a boyfriend adds nothing so far. Vito S 1-16-20

Midsomer murder -"Death in a chocolate box" 28 August 2007 (Season 10, Episode 8)

[Bernie4444 · 10/10 · 28 December 2023]

Meets all the Midsummer's standards and is a tad darker than previous presentations. Screenplay by Tony Etchells.

In a town referred to as a chocolate box, which is used as a halfway house for emerging convicts, we see the ceremony as the populace turns over. What starts festive may turn into cranky murders. Everyone acts creepy and anyone could have done it. Turns out Barnaby (John Nettles) happens to be there because he has old friends and possibly enemies.

On a more domestic front, Joyce (Jane Wymark) Barnaby's wife seems to always be miffed at him "Well that shows how much you know about romance."

As with all the Midsummer's episode, we see British actors from different films and series. In this case, we get to see Edward Petherbridge who made an excellent Lord Peter Wimsey.

Rather good

[enkiddu-725-703632 · 6/10 · 29 April 2010]

I wouldn't say that this episode is bad, but there are some very weak points in this movie. First of all, a very narrow circle of suspects. After the death of Eddie Marston there is no-one else left to suspect except Gina Colby! No-one is literally left! And when the truth is revealed, on can feel a slight touch of disappointment: it's so predictable... Sure, in the series about murders one can hardly escape repetitions and clichés, still the authors have to invent something new, otherwise the series will become dull and boring. This episode contained almost everything MM has produced before, so it's really average, or maybe a little bit higher then that level... Maybe because Clare Higgins gave here a great performance?

Barnaby Loses One

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 19 April 2016]

This is a pretty good episode. A group of men who have committed crimes meet once In a while, especially when joined by a newcomer. They are proud they have turned their lives around. One man, however, has not been able to forgive Barnaby, who is actually a childhood friend, for sending him to jail. They have not talked in years. One night when Barnaby almost connects with him, he is killed on a deserted country road. His widow finds him the next day. It seems that one of the men who has been embraced, actually has his own agenda and is up to no good. There are several plot twists involving a camera obscure and an ex-con postman, who gets driven to do some serious crimes. There is one interesting character who has a great affection for the widow of the man killed. We also have subplot about Cully and her fiancée. Barnaby's wife and daughter are two of the dullest people I"be ever witnessed. When they are on screen, I can't wait to till Barnaby gets called away.

Another average Midsomer Murders episode.

[poolandrews · 5/10 · 12 May 2008]

Midsomer Murders: Death in a Chocolate Box is set in the small village of Midsomer Holm where retired Segeant Jack Colby (Pip Donaghy) lives & works as a probation officer with his wife the criminal psychoanalyst Gina (Clare Higgins) both helping ex-criminals readjust into society. Things take a sinister turn when recently paroled criminal Eddie Marston (Nigel Harrison) becomes their latest case, the body of Jack Colby is found having been bludgeoned to death & DCI Tom Barnaby (John Nettles) & Sgt. Ben Jones (Jason Hughes) are on the case. Tom & Jack used to be good friends, they joined the force together but Jack had to retire amidst a sex scandal involving the murdered Maria Godbold the wife of Lord Holm (Edward Petherbridge) who was convicted of her murder shortly after but they haven't spoken in over sixteen years. Barnaby feels he must reopen the Godbold murder case to get to the truth & bring a killer to justice...

Episode 8 from season 10 this Midsomer Murders mystery was directed by Richard Holthouse & one has to say Death in a Chocolate Box pretty much ends the tenth season on a distinctly average & lacklustre note, more or less in keeping with the whole season really. The script by Tony Etchells is utterly unremarkable & one of those really slow going ones that takes literally ages to start, it's over half an hour before the first murder happens & then a further ten minutes before the body is found & Barnaby is called in. For the first thirty minutes there's a lot of unnecessary exposition, character build up & scene setting that really doesn't go anywhere & feels like padding. The actual plot is alright I suppose, it involves blackmail gone wrong, a past vendetta, a scandal & plenty of lies & cover ups. Par for the course really. The problem is that you can't really do anything different with the show, I mean Midsomer Murders is Midsomer Murders because people are murdered in Midsomer for the usual reasons such as jealously, money, greed & self preservation. There's just not a whole lot you can do with that basic requirement so a lot of the latter episodes feel like rehashes, predictable & the wonderful writing, eccentric character's & intricate plots full of clever red herrings just aren't there anymore like in the earlier seasons either. At almost two hours in length Death in a Chocolate Box is yet again a very exposition heavy episode with only two murders so you need to pay attention. The end of this episode sees Barnaby's daughter Cully reveal that she is about to get married to her boyfriend which leads directly into the season eleven episode Blood Wedding (2008).

As usual the production values are flawless, beautifully shot in the English countryside this looks great. There are only two murders in Death in a Chocolate Box neither are graphic although you do see a pool of blood on the floor & a dead body on an autopsy table. The acting is top notch as usual too, Clare Higgins makes her second Midsomer Murders appearance after Midsomer Rhapsody (2005) from season eight & the only real reason I know that is because she starred in the first two Hellraiser films which are amongst my favourite films ever. The other main cast member of note is Chris Barrie who is better known for his comedy roles including Rimmer in the popular sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf (1988 - 1999) & The Brittas Empire (1991 - 1997).

Death in a Chocolate Box is an average Midsomer Murders episode to finish what I truly believe to be a pretty average tenth season, I can't really think of one outstanding episode from the season at all if I'm honest.

Slow and dull and creepy in the wrong way

[depaysement · 4/10 · 5 May 2020]

Not the worst episode of the season - I managed to get through it, unlike The Axeman Cometh - but oh, it was weak. There was a huge plot hole right at the end regarding when Lord Holm's memory lapses are supposed to have begun; he wasn't on the drug causing them at the time. Doesn't help that he was a repellent character, a typical case of a man sliming after a woman at least twenty years his junior being presented as sympathetic or humorous - ugh, ugh, ugh. The background of the initial crime was wildly improbable and repellent. The idea of a camera obscura being placed in a village and anyone being able to use it to watch people was a bit eyebrow-raising; less like security cameras than open slather for spying. Even the joke at the end was weird - I hope Barnaby wasn't suggesting turning up on Cully and Simon's honeymoon!

Police and criminals in same city

[ctyankee1 · 19 September 2015]

Three murders take place years apart that are very similar.

There are lots of suspects in this town. Mostly because it is a small town and some of the people were former police and in a "Friday nighters" police scandal where the cops arrested women and had sex with them in jail. The Colby's are husband and wife and worked at the police station when this scandal took place. They both resigned.

Later prisoners are let out of jail and sent to this small town to start a new life given a job and basically assigned to someone. Mrs Colby the former police detective becomes a behavior therapist who is well known.

There is a character that is very funny in this. He is a patient of Dr Colby for many years and was put in jail for killing a woman. His name is Sir Holm. He is an older man. He falls in love with Dr Colby and tries to kiss her soon after her husband is murdered. She fights him off. Barnaby and Jones stop him from getting fresh with her. He raises his fist and says he can fight. This scene is very funny.

The whole story was good. I did not like the end. It makes me feel there is no justice even though the killer was found. The killer had many people suffer for their action. The killer had Sir Holm go to prison and be on drugs for many years prescribed for him by a doctor. The drug "Ativan" kept him from getting his memory back even years later so he could never remember what happened the night he found Maria dead. Some one else also hid the fact they knew who killed "Maria" and said nothing.

In the end the killer runs in front of a train. Jones comes into the office and says "Case closed then sir?" and Jones said yes. So I felt the case was closed after the killer ran in front of the train and the other people that were affected by this person were not cleared. Maybe they were but it ended to me with a question mark?...

Wanted to like this episode

[wjspears · 4/10 · 14 April 2021]

I enjoyed the cast in this episode, especially Edward Petherbridge as Lord Holm (Lord Peter Wimsey, from an earlier time).

If a murder feels too implausible to be believed, it can spoil a mystery for me.

That is what I thought happened in this episode--and it is a murder that happened years before the episode even begins!

I couldn't get past the reveal of how the initial murder from years earlier happened.

How exactly do you convince someone that they murdered someone, when they haven't. We are used to watching murders where the suspect is presumed guilty, but is not. But the suspect declares his innocence. Here Lord Holm has evidently agreed years ago that he did murder his wife, but can't remember doing it.

There is talk of a drug being prescribed that calms nerves, but can have the side effect of blurring memory. But Lord Holm, was not using the drug at the time he found his wife murdered.

On the one hand, this is a sidebar to the episode itself, revealed at the very end, so it is not crucial to what takes place within the episode. But crucially, it leads to everything else that happens, and so should have a ring of plausibility since everything that happens hinges on it.

Cully announcing that she is engaged is sweetly handled--with dad never being able to sit still for long enough for Cully to make the announcement. But it suggests that Cully (Laura Howard) may be leaving the show, and that will be a shame.