The Blacktrees Prophecy is the first episode of the twenty third series of the popular ITV crime drama Midsomer Murders.
Synopsis[]
Deep in Blacktrees Forest is a bombproof shelter built by a man named Warren Kaine. His extreme paranoia has drawn other survivalists to the village, and now a doomsday prepper group meets weekly. But after the controversial ousting of a member, Warren has a target on his back. Preaching survival at any cost comes back to haunt him as the Blacktrees Prophecy claims its first--but not last--victim.
Plot[]
5:59 am at Blacktrees Farm, G.P. Warren Kaine receives a warning. "They've launched. This is not a drill. They're gonna kill us all." He runs to tell his wife, Clodagh, who is still in bed. He runs out of the house calling Etta Derby. He arrives at the Doomsday shelter and goes inside. He chugs a bottle of whiskey, tries to call Stu Levy. He starts to feel woozy. He turns on the radio. "I always knew it would be like this," he says to himself. The radio starts to broadcasts, "Hello Warren. Do you feel safe and sound in your bunker. Because you have 2 minutes to live. As you breathe your last breath remember you brought this on yourself." The exit door is locked and he falls against it holding his bottle. The air has been turned off. Through the window of the door a figure is seen walking off.
DCI John Barnaby is at home fixing breakfast. His wife, Sarah Barnaby, walks in obviously upset-- her mother is coming to stay..
At the shelter, Pathologist, Fleur Perkins, states that the victim, Warren Kaine, suffocated to death. The killer reconfigured the venting system outside, cutting off the oxygen. The door is bombproof, the shelter is air tight. It's called Doomsday Prepping. The shelter had enough supplies for months on end: medical, food, toilets, beds. You would need a good level of technical expertise to reconfigure the ventilation system. Prior to his demise, Warren called two numbers: Etta Derby and Stu Levy.
At the Kaine home, Barnaby and Winter speak to Clodagh Kaine. She said there was a "nuclear alert" on Warren's radio and Warren was urged to go to safety. Warren has had alerts a half dozen times over the last few years. But none of the events ever materialized, so Clodagh went back to bed. She looked for Warren later. Barnaby says he believes Warren was lured to the bunker. "Given the world was about to end, I'd like to know why Warren was the only one who made it to the shelter?" says Barnaby.
DS Jamie Winter goes to interview Etta Derby, one of the Doomsday prepper members, who is living in a camper van. She claims she was snuggled up in her camper the previous night and didn't receive a call from Warren. After checking her phone, Etta said she forgot to charge it. Winter says he is surprised it wasn't a prerequisite in case of the apocalypse to have a phone charged.
At the Huntsman Horn pub, Stu Levy arrives with a deer. Stu and proprietor, Randall Salt, go to hide the animal as Barnaby walks in. Stu says he missed Warren's call. He had his phone on silent. Barnaby asks where Stu was at 6 am. Becky Burrows gives him an alibi. Becky also tells Barnaby that her father Guy Burrows is a member of the Prepper Group.
Barnaby and Winter go to talk to Guy Burrows. "Had Warren upset anyone recently?" There is no record of Warren calling Guy this morning even though the apocalypse was coming. Guy says he was at the fire station at 6 am. If Guy had received the alert, he would have gone to the Doomsday shelter. His wife, Paige Burrows, says "It's a moot point. Prepping was really just a bit of fun, not life and death." Barnaby says, "But it was for Warren Kaine."
Pathologist Fleur Perkins tells Barnaby that Warren had ample time to reach the door and punch in the code to get out, but his whiskey was laced with amphetamines. "3-4 slugs is enough to make him pass out". The shelter had a supplies of drugs.
Clodagh Kaine is in the woods and greets Guy Burrows with a hug. She is finally free of Warren.
Clodagh is next seen at the bookstore. Her friend, Paige Burrows, has received a notice of repossession and has signs up "Closing down." Clodagh tells Paige that Warren's life insurance will keep the store open. They can be partners. Then, Barnaby and Winter come in and tell Clodagh there were drugs in Warren's whiskey. Winter says that Warren cancelled his life insurance awhile ago. "Who would benefit from insurance when there is an alien invasion." Clodagh is furious, but she still has the farmhouse and the shelter.
Police technicians say the source of the "nuclear hoax" that Warren heard is in the woods. Winter is loathe to investigate since he has brand new shoes. (It would do him well to carry boots along on his investigations.). Winter wanders around lost in the woods. Barnaby calls Winter and asks how his powers of investigation are. Barnaby is looking at the lockers in the bunker. There is no locker for Guy, which is suspicious. Suddenly, Lyra Kaine yells at Winter to freeze as there is an animal trap in the woods that Winter almost steps in.
Barnaby chats with Etta. She is interested in Winter as he could be a good man to have in the Doomsday shelter. They will have to repopulate the world. Etta tells Barnaby that Clodagh was not interested in the prepper group.
Meanwhile, Winter is at Lyra Kaine's tent in the woods. She is living in the woods since she left her job at Dallow Farmer, the virology center in the next village. Guy works there as a virologist. Lyra was in charge of maintenance and security at the center. Winter tells Lyra of Warren's murder. Lyra was Warren's first wife, but she grew too old for him. "You can't restart the human race at my age," Lyra says. Lyra has multiple electronic devices that she works on. She also has many doomsday movies.
At the Burrows house, Becky Burrows and brother Zane Burrows are playing video games. They argue and Zane says Guy is not his dad. He smashes a picture frame of the Burrows family. Barnaby shows up to talk to Paige about the prepper group. Paige claims Guy goes out every Wednesday night to the Huntsman Horn pub to a meeting of the prepper group.
Guy Burrows meets Clodagh at Blacktrees Farm and they kiss. She tells him she has a new plan. She is going to sell up and "get out of this God-Forsaken place." Guy offers to buy the bunker from her. Clodagh says, "you have money and you aren't willing to save Paige's store?" Guy says he is a survivalist and always has a contingency fund. "You were meant to be my savior. But I'm not really feeling that now," says Clodagh.
At the Huntsman Horn pub, Barnaby asks when the last time Guy attended a prepper meeting. Randall Salt says he skips those nights. He can't take all the "End of Days" talk. Stu says it's about a month since Warren kicked Guy out of the group. Guy was enraged. Stu saw the pair in the pub the other day. Russell said when they started the prepper group with Warren it was for the "good of mankind." But it was really for themselves. Who knows what lengths Guy would go to to get back in the group.
Guy arrives at the bookstore with flowers for Paige to soften the blow of the repossession letter. Paige says the police want to know why Guy lied about being in the prepper group. Before he can answer, Guy gets a text message "Meet me or it all comes out" and tells Paige that he has to get back to the fire station. Guy goes to the woods to meet someone. He comes to a clearing and hears a music box. He walks into a cord strung between trees and a deflated boat inflates and thrusts him into a tree. A figure in an orange suit and mask comes out and holds Guy's nose and mouth closed and he dies.
At the Barnaby home, Sarah is worrying about her mum coming. Winter walks in with survival rations (Beer and Chips). Sarah tells John if he is thinking about sneaking off to the garage when her mother is there.... John denies that and says Winter is confused.
In the woods, Fleur Perkins is investigating the "death by lifeboat" of Guy Burrows.
Paige and Becky Burrows meet Barnaby and Winter at the police station. Paige tells Barnaby that Guy got a text from the fire station. Barnaby mentions that Guy was kicked out of the prepper group a few weeks ago. "That man, that wretched, awful man- hadn't he hurt Guy enough?" says Paige. She tells Barnaby that Warren turned up about a month ago and told Zane that he was adopted. Paige and Guy had planned never to tell Zane. As a GP, Warren had access to Paige's medical records. Paige had no idea what Guy was up to. He told her he was going to the prepper meeting every week while Paige was busy dealing with Zane's anger at being adopted.
At the pub, Medora Salt finds Randall on the floor drinking with Becky beside him. "You promised me. You swore you'd never touch another drop," Medora says. Randall says "with Warren and Guy gone, the world is ending. It's going to be one person at a time until there is no one."
Barnaby wonders how long it would take to get to the bunker from where the broadcast came. Barnaby and Winter go back to the woods looking for Lyra. Winter had brought Wellies, but when they get to the woods, Barnaby has the boots on. Winter goes off to see how long it takes from Lyra's tent to the bunker. He thinks someone would have to be lying in wait for Warren. Barnaby thinks there are two killers working together. Lyra Kaine runs up and says she found another body. It turns out to be an unconscious Randall lying in the woods. Randall says "I can't find her. I don't remember where she is." Melora takes Randall home.
At the Burrows home, Stu is hanging out with Becky. They are drinking. Zane is listening in from around the corner. Later, Zane is watching a recording of himself on his computer. It is a confession to Becky that he has feelings for her and since they are not really siblings... Paige hears him and confronts him.
The police receive information that Clodagh Kaine had been texting Guy Burrows 6-7 times a day. Clodagh tells Winters that she did contact Guy regularly. "I was lost. I was in dire need for someone to come along and rescue me. He (Warren) didn't see me as a wife. He just wanted someone to breed with when the aliens dropped from the sky. That's all he saw me as- livestock," says Clodagh. She told Warren about her affair with Guy. She wanted a divorce from Warren. But he just punished Guy by kicking him out of the Prepper Group.
Etta confronts Stu- "Where have you been?" Stu says he was out honing his hunting skills. Etta tells him that the police are looking for him and that Becky isn't getting her place in the shelter. Back at the police station, Stu admits to Barnaby that he was poaching the morning that Warren died.
Becky meets Zane in the shelter. Zane has fallen in love with Becky. Becky is not his sister. Zane locks the door to the shelter. He tells Becky that living in the shelter could be good for them. Barnaby and Winter go to the bookstore and ask Paige where Zane is. He sent out the hoax message to Warren. Becky calls Paige from the bathroom of the shelter to tell her that Zane has locked her in. The police break in and rescue Becky. Zane says he doesn't think there was anything wrong with sending Warren the hoax message after Warren told him he is adopted. He didn't kill Warren though.
Turns out that Guy Burrows had a secret bank account- enough to save the bookstore. So that gives Paige a motive. Winter thinks Lyra could be the killer since she is good with electronics.
Barnaby and Winter confront Medora. She tells them that the woman that Randall is searching for is long gone. A woman crashed into the pub and then ran off into the woods. Randall and Guy found her in the river. She must have tripped and hit her head and fell into the water.
Clodagh is in her house packing up. Lyra shows up with a crossbow in her arms. Lyra wants to move in the house with Clodagh.
Randall is in the pub drinking. He hears a noise and goes in search. "It's too late for sorry. I know that. I know that now," he says. He lights a match and sees the figure in the orange suit and mask. He is beaten on the head with a can.
Sarah is busy decorating the house with flowers. Barnaby tells her that her mum will love the house. Sarah, "Great, cause she'll be here tonight."
Fleur examines Randall's body. He has no defense wounds. He was on his knees and made no effort to stop the attack. Barnaby and Winter interview Medora. "Your husband welcomed his murder and I want to know why," says Barnaby. Medora says she has "lived with this for so long. The woman waded into the water and killed herself. They buried her. They dug a grave for her." Randall barely spoke to Warren or Guy again.
At the bookstore, Paige is putting books back on the shelf. Guy's secret savings account has come in handy. Barnaby and Winter ask Paige about the "body" that Guy buried. She doesn't know anything about it. She also didn't know Guy was seeing Clodagh, Paige's best friend.
Barnaby and Winter interview Lyra about the body in the woods. She tells them that a woman came to their house twenty years ago. She claimed she had come into contact with biowaste and was starting to feel ill. Guy was on the phone telling Lyra to keep her in the house. But Warren slammed the door on her. Randall in an orange suit and mask tried to stop her. Guy went to help. "If a virus had gotten out, it would have been catastrophic. Randall said she was incredibly brave. She knew she was a threat to the public and had no choice." (She drowned herself). Her name was Mattie. She was 23. Lyra says "She was a temp- We were badly under resourced...I told her to remove waste materials that I hadn't trained her in handling. Guy promised he would find her and bring her back to the virology center.." But she drowned herself. They ran tests afterwards and found that the biowaste wasn't contaminated. So they covered it up. Guy drove her car to a train station and left it there. Later, looking at a photo of the car, there was a baby seat. Barnaby says he thinks Maddie's child is out there. The baby would be in its early 20's.
Lyra arrives at Blacktrees Farm and sees a figure dressed in orange with the crossbow. The figure takes Lyra to her tent in the woods. Barnaby and Winter show up in time to stop Becky from killing Lyra. Becky explains that Warren thought Etta was the baby from Mattie's car all grown up and he was petrified that she would seek vengeance. Becky says she overheard Guy begging Warren about letting him back in the prepper group. Guy told Warren about the baby he'd found in Maddie's car. And that the baby wasn't Etta. If Warren knew Zane had been adopted and told Paige that she wouldn't be allowed in the shelter. Paige couldn't have children, (useless in repopulating the world). So Becky realized that she must be the baby in the car. Guy took the baby home and pretended Becky was his and Paige's.
Becky heard Zane rehearsing his invasion hoax in the woods. She knew it was the way to kill Warren. Randall told her he knew about her when he was drunk one night. He told her he'd always known who she was. Lyra said she tried to get to Becky's mom but Warren wasn't having it. When Randall was drunk one night, he told Becky he found out that it was a false alarm. So, instead of helping her mom, Lyra put the fear of god in her, says Becky. "She died for nothing." Becky runs off with the crossbow, but gets caught in an animal trap.
Winter tells Barnaby he never paid for the beer and crisps and he needs a new pair of shoes now. Barnaby tells him he can file a claim for a new pair of shoes on expenses. But he doesn't pay for the beer and crisps.
At home, Barnaby is cleaning out under the sink when Sarah walks in and tells him that her mother isn't coming.
Cast[]
- Neil Dudgeon as DCI John Barnaby
- Nick Hendrix as DS Jamie Winter
- Fiona Dolman as Sarah Barnaby
- Annette Badland as Fleur Perkins
- Holly Aird as Paige Burrows
- Paul Aron as Randall Salt
- Aran Bell as Warren Kaine
- Robert Savannah as Guy Burrows
- Cayvan Coates as Zane Burrows
- Carly-Sophia Davies as Becky Burrows
- Sonita Henry as Clodagh Kaine
- Cora Kirk as Etta Derby
- Tej Obano as Stu Levy
- Kate Robbins as Lyra Kaine
- Nina Wadia as Medora Salt
Galleries[]
Body Count[]
Prior to the Episode
Committed suicide by drowning herself in a pond to "save the world" after believing she was contaminated with a dangerous virus. (It was revealed later the whole thing was an error)
In the Episode
As Zane spoke him with a false doomsday broadcast on his radio (speech that was taken from "The Sum of Their Fears") and he ran to the fallout shelter, he drank from his bottle of whiskey which was laced with amphetamines, he was locked inside and he passed out. The venting system was reconfigured, sucking all the oxygen out of the room and suffocating him to death.
Lured with a phone message into the woods where, drawn by a phone playing lullabies on a deflated boat, he tripped on a wire that triggered the boat to rapidly inflate into him, throwing him against a tree. As he was laying down, his nose and mouth were hold to suffocate him.
As he saw the killer in the hazmat suit, thinking it's the ghost of Maddy, kneeled down and stood readily and happily to be killed. He was then hit in the head and beaten to death with a can of Ham and Pork.
Supporting Cast[]
Episode Images[]
Arrests[]
- Becky Burrows - Arrested for the murders of Warren Kaine, Guy Burrows, Russell Salt and attempted murder of Lyra Kaine.
- Stu Levy- May be arrested for poaching
Notes[]
The following actors and actresses who appeared in this episode have also appeared in the following episodes
- Holly Aird - The Oblong Murders
Trivia[]
The Trials and Tribulations of Jamie Winter: He had to go into the woods to investigate and he had brand new shoes. Next, he brought Wellies to work, but Barnaby took them and wore them. Barnaby later told him he could put in for the ruined shoes on expenses. But he didn't reimburse Jamie for the crisps and beer that he bought at Barnaby's instruction.
Sarah Barnaby: Received news her mother was coming to visit and was not happy. Saw Jamie bringing in the box of crisps and beer and told John they better not be planning to hide in the garage watching TV while her mother was there. Later when John was busily cleaning out under the sink in preparation for the visit, Sarah told him her mother had cancelled.