The slashing of a 17th century painting in the Aspen Tallow museum appears to herald the beginning of a series of ghostly goings-on. Is someone attempting to communicate beyond the grave or is something more sinister afoot?

The residents of Midsomer Mallow fear for their chances in The Perfect Village competition when Peter Drinkwater, a local thief and womaniser, is brutally killed with a pitchfork.

A visit to his convalescent aunt prompts Barnaby to investigate a series of suspicious deaths at the nursing home where she is staying.

When a tramp is found murdered in the woods near the village of Marshwood, Superintendent Ronald Pringle quickly arrests a local poacher for the crime and retires in a blaze of glory. However, Barnaby suspects an innocent man has been arrested, and when a second body is found under suspicious circumstances, it starts to look like Superintendent Pringle has rushed to judgement.