John Nettles reveals his favourite Midsomer Murders death

John Nettles has revealed his favourite Midsomer Murders death scene involved a pitchfork being driven through a victim sitting in a deckchair!

The 81-year-old actor, who played DCI Tom Barnaby in the show for 14 years between 1997 and 2011, said his top murder scene occurred in episode 3 of series 8.

In the 2005 episode, called "Orchis Fatalis" one of the world's rarest orchids is smuggled illegally into Midsomer, triggering a "catalogue of passion, jealously and death". Talking to The Times, Nettles laughingly recalled loving the scene in the episode where one poor victim is murdered by a pitchfork being thrust viciously through a deckchair. Yep, it's amazing what people will do over a rare orchid. As an interesting aside, Midsomer Murders clearly loved using pitchforks as a murder weapon as future Hollywood star Orlando Bloom, playing a thief, was also bumped off in a different episode via a pitchfork.

John Nettles remains surprised and delighted by the global appeal of Midsomer Murders, which is still running to this day with Neil Dudgeon having taken over the leading role as Tom Barnaby's cousin, John.

Nettles said: "I'm just amazed by it, the fact that every territory has a Midsomer Murders presence. In America, I'm told — as if they hadn't got enough to put up with, by the way of Trump and all the rest of that menagerie around him in the White House — they have to put up with a 24/7 Midsomer Murders channel. They show back-to-back episodes, which is quite amazing."

But he adds that he never rewatches Midsomer Murders, despite having so much fun over the years with all the weird and wonderful deaths in the show. "No, I don't watch. I've seen every trope, every curiosity, every plot manoeuvre that belongs to the genre, over and over and over again. I never want to see another actor pretending to be a dead body. It’s just too much. I've done it for so many years, for days and months at a time, 24/7, more or less. And it's like building a wall. You build it very carefully. You don't want to go back and watch other people building it."

Meanwhile, his other famous detective, Bergerac, has got a reboot with Damien Molony taking over his starring role as Jim Bergerac. But Nettles won't be appearing in the new Bergerac, beginning on the free-to-air channel U&DRAMA on Thursday, February 27 at 9 pm, having described himself as being "too old" for the part. Meanwhile, you can catch John in Midsomer Murders on ITVX. Check out our best ITV dramas guide for more shows to enjoy on ITVX.