ITV Commissions 25th Season of Midsomer Murders

ITV has commissioned a landmark 25th season of Midsomer Murders, which will bring the total number of episodes to 144.

This newly ordered series will comprise four feature-length mysteries and will see the return of Neil Dudgeon as DCI Barnaby, Nick Hendrix as DS Winter, Annette Badland as Dr. Fleur Perkins and Fiona Dolman as Barnaby’s wife, Sarah.

The show, which is still active in nearly 200 territories across the world, has its own single-IP FAST channel in North America and will be making its stage debut in the U.K. this year, with a stage version of the show’s first episode currently in rehearsal.

All3Media International, which handles distribution of the series, is planning to expand the licensing program through 2025-26. The program already includes an interactive novel by Octopus Books and a casual gaming app from Qiiwi Interactive.

The show’s first podcast also launched last year—the 20-episode Midsomer Murders Mayhem, hosted by Nicki Chapman, produced by StoryHunter and distributed by AudioBoom.

Midsomer Murders is produced by Bentley Productions.

“It’s fantastic to be filming Midsomer again,” Dudgeon said. “The scripts are all great, full of intrigue and mystery, so I’m very excited for you to see them. Our writers, who seem so normal, have come up with yet more extraordinary ways for the residents of Midsomer to dispatch their neighbors, which is fun and slightly worrying; I work with these people! And, of course, the cast and crew are all back together, and it’s great to see everyone and hear all the news and gossip. It’s just like living in a village in Midsomer! I hope you all love them when they are finished.”

A spokesperson at All3Media International commented, “We can’t wait to see what uniquely perplexing and quirky crimes DCI Barnaby and DS Winter will be unraveling in this landmark 25th series. More than two decades since it began, Midsomer Murders continues to prove its evergreen credentials, offering the ultimate in prime-time ‘cozy crime.’ With the show now vastly surpassing the episode—and crime counts—of many iconic detective dramas, its credentials as a global detecting favorite are legendary.”