Midsomer Murders (TV Series) Days of Misrule (2008) User Reviews

It's hard for Barnaby to get the Christmas spirit

[blanche-2 · 7/10 · 18 June 2013]

Poor Barnaby. It's close to Christmas, and he's saddled with a baby-faced superintendent, filled with enthusiasm, who wants to concentrate on teamwork, team-building exercises, and the filling out of forms. And where should the team-building workshops take place but at the local Army Centre, which is the site for murder and all sorts of mayhem.

The Centre is run by Colonel Parkes, who, despite being a good man himself, has a womanizing loser, Jamie, for a son. Everyone loathes him, and this includes his own grandmother, whose daughter died giving birth to him.

The list goes on. There's Penny Galsworthy, whose daughter killed herself after Jamie got her pregnant, and Penny's husband Tim. Penny stalks Jamie constantly. And George Barkham, who was supposed to be made a partner at the center until Jamie returned home from France and took the job from him.

One night the Parkes' yard is bombed; after that, two deaths occur. Barnaby discovers a crime ring and must ferret out motives and whodunit.

Very good story, complete with Christmas carols as Barnaby drags around, throwing out forms and trying to be polite to the superintendent, even after Jones tells the inspector that Barnaby considers all the team-building activities "rubbish." Recommended.

Christmas can be murder...

[Ghostwood · 8/10 · 11 July 2008]

I quite enjoyed this festive outing from Barnaby and the gang. There were some great performances from stalwart actors Tim Pigott-Smith and Judy Parfitt, and the returned-to-form Nettles/Hughes duo.

This Christmas story is set against the backdrop of a haulage firm owned by ex-Army type Matt Parkes (played by Pigott-Smith) and his wayward son James. As a sideline, Parkes is involved in running 'team-building' Army games for various organisations, which is where Barnaby and Jones come in. Son James is involved in a sideline of his own...

There are some comedic moments as we see dyed-in-the-wool Barnaby go through the exercises with less enthusiasm and ability than his younger police colleagues, providing light relief from a festive tale of subterfuge and classic Midsomer murder.

There are plenty of carols to keep you in the Yuletide spirit, and as it was filmed at the beginning of the year, it looks festively cold too.

I won't go into much detail as I understand this is the Christmas 2008 episode for the UK, but I think Series Eleven is a great return to form after some disappointing story lines and ham-laden performances - Shot At Dawn, Picture Of Innocence - had me convinced that this franchise was past its sell-by date.

Hairy X-Mas

[darbski · 8/10 · 21 September 2018]

***SPOILERS*** I like his series, and this is a pretty good episode, with the usual life snapshots while Tom Barnaby and company (Jones) go about solving the crimes they're stuck with. Now, Barnaby kinda reminds me of Columbo in the fact that he is persistent, very intelligent, and not prone to violence; i.e., smarts wins. Christmas is in full swing as the silliness of the new taskmaster's relevancy training gets in the way of anything resembling intellect, and shows very clearly just how phony the premise of these games truly is. Jones tells CS Cotton how Tom feels about the training, and it is painfully evident that his idea of using first names and telling the truth about how one feels is not accepted - that is to say stupid.

The crimes , of course, are still there there to be solved, and Tom and Ben do their best to drag the miscreants to the docket. If there is one thing that I truly like about this series it is exactly that. All the elaborate nonsense that has to be dealt with is politesse to be ignored in the face of reality. The writers have the same approach as the presentation of the American series "Law And Order". Normally the more wealth, the less brains, the less consideration for fellow man and the rule of law, and the more likely they are to be even worse than the poorer classes in behavior. I'll give this one an 8.

It's Christmas!! Well sort of.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 7/10 · 23 March 2020]

CS Cotton has taken temporary charge, overseeing Tom and Ben who are on the case of several murders, with links to a freight company.

It's a very solid episode, in what is a bit of an up and down series. The mystery is intriguing, it has some good characters, and some nice touches of humour, the training exercise was hilarious, the best moment arriving where Jones tells Cotton exactly what Barnaby thought of the session.

Joseph Millson is great as the unpleasant James Parkes, but the two shining lights are the senior players, Tim Piggot-Smith and Judy Parfitt, the pair are outstanding.

Some amazing classic cars, they spoil us with some glorious motors.

December? I didn't buy that this was set in December, no amount of fake snow or Christmas carols could convince me otherwise.

It's a good watch, 7/10.

Christmas in Midsomer

[safenoe · 9/10 · 6 August 2017]

This special Midsomer Christmas episode covers military honor, murder (of course), family secrets and skullduggery and all that. I'm a sucker for Christmas episodes, and this episode doesn't let down. One of my favorite characters is Gail Stephens (Kirsty Dillon) and a spin- off series should have featured her. Also Elspeth Rae shines in this episode and she deserves to be a huge star.

Good vs. Evil

[vitoscotti · 7/10 · 29 January 2020]

Bigger than life good Colonel, and rotten son. Christmas cheer and murders. The truck smuggling from Europe has been done before. A crippling accident, blackmail, mourning mother, etc. All done so many times. A lot of overacting with over the top characters. But, it all worked well together in a pretty solid script. Whenever there's an English Colonel I always think of the Fawlty Towers Colonel. Very good Episode. Vito S 1-28-20

Out of the Ordinary

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 2 May 2016]

While all this is somewhat intriguing, it involves a contrived ghost story. It concerns a charlatan and his followers, messing with the supernatural. It also is about jealousy between two people at opposite ends of the spiritual spectrum. People are dying and it appears that somehow ghosts are involved. Barnaby's dull, unimaginative wife begins to fall for it, accusing her husband of not having an open mind. The interesting thing is that she's jumps to conclusions. He's the relational on. Unfortunately, things could not be left well enough alone and we end up with a supernatural plot, with some kind of open ended, unexplainable result. The beauty of this series has always been that Barnaby can use pure logic and knowledge of human nature. The conclusion pretty much ruins the whole episode.

Days of tedium

[TheLittleSongbird · 4/10 · 14 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.

"Days of Misrule" (the second Christmas-themed episode of 'Midsomer Murders' and nowhere near as good as "Ghosts of Christmas Past") overall was a disappointing episode, to sum it up in one word it would be tedious. Ranking it with the rest of Season 11, for me it's second worst, the worst being "Shot at Dawn" (which was low-point status, something that for all its disappointment "Days of Misrule" never quite reaches).

Would also consider it a forgettable episode too, the only things memorable when watching it on first viewing were the use of Christmas carols and the murder of one of the show's most detestable victims. One further viewing later, it's still a forgettable episode with a few good things, but those two aforementioned things being its most memorable attributes.

There are strengths here in "Days of Misrule", even the worst/low-point 'Midsomer Murders' episodes have redeeming merits. As always, the production values are just great, the idyllic but also hauntingly wintry 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 is one of the most memorable and instantly recognisable of the genre.

John Nettles and Jason Hughes are fine and their chemistry is still fun to watch and natural. The supporting cast, especially Tim Piggott-Smith and Judy Parfitt, do quite well with what they have which by 'Midsomer Murders' standards is nowhere near as strong as ought.

However, a massive problem with "Days of Misrule" (or at least to me) is that the story just isn't that engaging. The Yuletide spirit is nice, but the episode is just far too padded (taking forever to get to the point, when it does it's nearly half-way through), complete with tedious pacing, subplots and situations that are not that intriguing due to some being suddenly introduced and either feel underdeveloped or too pat, a complete lack of imagination and characters that lack any kind of colour or life (the closest is James, but even he is too much of a cliché).

Regarding the final solution, the killer's identity didn't surprise me and didn't make me feel anything while the motives are flimsy. After such a dull first half, the ending felt pretty rushed in comparison as did the second half where they suddenly remembered to bump people off and did it in quick succession. To be honest too, the episode does contain one of the most detestable murder victims there's been that it was a relief to see him killed off and one doesn't really care who killed him. The script is sluggish and by-the-numbers.

All in all, forgettable and tedious. Not a low-point, but even more of a long way from classic 'Midsomer Murders'. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Another disappointing episode.

[poolandrews · 4/10 · 25 December 2008]

Midsomer Murders: Days of Misrule is set in the small Midsomer village of Calham Cross where Christmas fast approaches & starts as a temporary new young politically correct Chief Super John Cotton (Nick Fletcher) has organised a team bonding activity day out in partnership with the local division of the territorial army & both DCI Tom Barnaby (John Nettles) & DS Ben Jones (Jason Hughes) have been ordered to come along. Neither Barnaby or Jones are convinced that playing silly little games in Calham woods will be of any benefit to them or be of any use as police officers. Then unexpectedly at a nearby haulage firm owned by TA Colonel Matt Parkes (Tim Piggot-Smith) & his waster son James (Joseph Millson) a large explosion destroys a lorry & the building it was in, Barnaby & Jones are on the case. It seems half the village have a grudge against the Colonel or James & the list of suspects is long but the case takes a even more serious turn when a dead body surfaces in a local lake...

Episode 6 from season 11 this Midsomer Murders is in fact the 2008 Christmas special which aired here in the UK on Christmas Eve, directed by Renny Rye I have to say that I personally as a long standing Midsomer Murders fan found Days of Misrule to be extremely disappointing & continues the general downward spiral that the series seems to have gotten itself stuck in. For a start the pace is pretty slow & the first dead body doesn't turn up until an hour into the episode which is just too long & since the body is merely found the murder is not seen which also takes something away from the episode. There's an explosion as a building is blown up which happens before the body is found but even that has minimal interest, the first hour of Days of Misrule consists of an explosion & then the entire village telling Barnaby how horrible James Parkes is before the body is found & the plot finally moves on. Days of Misrule also seems to pile on the humour & in particular the team bonding day out a sceptical & grumpy Barnaby is dragged along to by his much younger politically correct boss, it's amusing for a few minutes I suppose but overall it feels a little out of place. The killer when revealed feels pretty standard as does their motives, there's not much imagination or creativity gone into the plot of this one. I mean there just aren't any significant twist's or turns & the plot really is quite linear & unadventurous. The character's are forgettable as is the dialogue & the simple plot as a whole is just stretched out over two hours which means plenty of padding.

Set at Christmas Days of Misrule obviously has a very festive backdrop as sets are decorated with tinsel & Christmas trees & Christmas songs play in the background. There are two murders in this one with neither shown on screen until the black and white flashback at the end & even then they are not graphic or memorable as someone is hit over the head & the other victim is just stabbed. The production values are up to the usual high standards but with such a weak story it doesn't matter. The acting is alright although the material & the character's just aren't that strong to start with.

Days of Mistule is probably one of my least favourite Midsomer Murders episodes ever now, it's dull, often quite boring & very uninspired with a very bog standard forgettable plot & kills. Disappointing on all fronts, I expected & indeed hoped for a lot more.

Don't Open This Present

[deansscreen · 5/10 · 8 September 2019]

Yes, the atmosphere is well done and the acting is, as ever, convincing. But unless you know someone with Einsteinian intelligence who can watch the show along with you, you're going to have a hard time following the plot, which involves far too many subplots, characters, and unconvincing relationships. The murderer, cleverly enough, does a good job of masquerading as a do-gooding moralist, but this is just about the only part of the plot that I found interesting at all. As do so many Midsomer Murders episodes, the convoluted plot and the intricate subplots overwhelmed me almost from the start. I yearned for Barnaby to face the camera and explain things like, "This lady is the fourteenth cousin of the next-door-neighbor's daughter's boyfriend," just to keep me oriented to the story. Maybe it's all my fault, but the confusion and unconvincing logic of the episode force me to recommend watching a solid episode of The Lone Ranger instead. Either that, or turn off the soundtrack and watch the episode just for the atmosphere.

Not very good at all!

[harrykivi · 4/10 · 27 June 2021]

"Midsomer Murders" has been one of my favorite series for a long time, I have said so many times before, but the 11th season has never been the best of the show for me. "Shot at Dawn" being particularly awful as the premiere. "Days of Misrule" on the other hand is not an abysmal episode. It's just generic and easily the second weakest entry of the 11th season.

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

. The production values of "Days of Misrule" are amazing as usual. The episode is very well-directed and the music fits the scenery. Really liked the Christmas carols used here.

. The acting, while not great, is decent enough. Joseph Millson is suitably brutish as James Parkes, Judy Parfitt's fine and Tim Piggot-Smith is good with what he has.

. There are some occasional sparks in the script. The humor regarding Tom Barnaby and his attitude towards the new superintendent was funny indeed.

But....

. The murder mystery is not very interesting at all. It lacks twists, turns, red herrings and compelling characters. I agree with the previous reviewer, who said that the plot of the story is too straight forward for "Midsomer Murders".

.The solution to the murders (The colonel being the killer) is not surprising at all. The motives are quite forgettable as well.

. The pacing of the story is agreed pedestrian. It takes such a while (about an hour into the narrative) up untill anything semi-investing happens. After that it feels: too little, too late.

NB! There is not a way on earth this episode was shot in December, September or October would be my bet. No amount of Christmas songs could create the atmosphere of the holiday.

Overall, a mediocre episode.

4/10 HK.

Strange Storyline

[Cilica · 4/10 · 23 April 2022]

The storyline has about three branches but the one that drives me to dislike the episode is the branch about a mother morning the loss of her daughter in childbirth. Fine, going along watching until it dawns on me that the child that survived is now about 25 years old. Thus the mourning mother is a complete nutter, gone, loss of mind to still be outwardly mourning. Stranger still is her husband, is still her husband with his wife's outward displaying of hatred for her grandson, and 25 years after the fact, meaning he has no marriage, really.

Niamh Cusack who plays the grieving mother, is a good actress but I find I don't like watching her. Overall the other two branches of the storyline are decent.