Set in the fictional English county of Midsomer (which surely must have the highest death toll per village green in the country), Midsomer Murders is one of ITV’s biggest crime-drama hits. Fans will recall its very first episode - The Killings At Badger's Drift, broadcast in 1997 - which starred John Nettles as DCI Tom Barnaby and Daniel Casey as his trusty sidekick, DS Gavin Troy... With a stage adaptation of the same case now travelling to theatres around the country, Daniel has taken on the role of his one-time boss. Here, he explains to What’s On what it’s like to step into Barnaby’s shoes...

Daniel Casey has been promoted. 

After playing DS Gavin Troy in ITV’s Midsomer Murders, he's now back in the UK's most dangerous county (fictionally speaking, at least), appearing as DCI Tom Barnaby in a stage adaptation of The Killings At Badger's Drift. 

“It's a massive promotion, going from a detective sergeant to a chief inspector,” says Daniel. “I've certainly earned my spurs!”

The dedicated and methodical Barnaby was played on TV for 13 series by John Nettles, accompanied for the first seven by Daniel as his trusty DS.

“Barnaby and Troy had an almost father/son, mentor/pupil relationship,” says Daniel, “and that’s very much like my relationship with John. When he learned I was taking on the role in this stage version, he said, ‘Well, he's learned at the feet of the master!’ That’s certainly true… John’s advice to me has always been ‘Be true to yourself,’ so that’s how I’ve approached playing Barnaby.”

The pair starred together in the hugely successful murder-mystery show from the pilot episode, which aired in March 1997, through to Daniel's departure in 2003. 

“I spent all those years standing next to John, watching and listening, so hopefully I‘ve absorbed a bit of his magic. It's a bit daunting, because his are big shoes to fill, but I'm really excited about doing it. I think it’s important not to do an impression, so I will be bringing my own ideas to the role.”

Published in 1987, The Killings At Badger's Drift was the first of Caroline Graham's Chief Inspector Barnaby books and formed the basis of the very first TV episode of Midsomer Murders. Adapted for the stage and directed by Guy Unsworth, the play revolves around the death of well-loved spinster Emily Simpson. Her friend Lucy Bellringer refuses to accept that Emily's death was an accident, so DCI Barnaby and DS Troy are called in to investigate. In so doing, they uncover a world of hidden passions, long-buried secrets and deadly rivalries.

The play, Daniel promises, offers “a night of murder and mystery, full of theatricality and intrigue, with the central partnership of Barnaby and Troy, a whole host of English eccentrics, and this really dark undercurrent of secrets and lies going on.”

“I had such a happy time playing Troy from when I was 24 to when I was 31,” Daniel adds. “It was a fantastic time in my career, but when I made the decision to leave to pursue other things, I thought that was that.”

A guest appearance in the 11th series in 2008 aside, that was indeed that - but when Unsworth called Daniel to say that he was adapting The Killings At Badger's Drift, everything fell into place. 

“Sitting down and reading Barnaby out loud, it just felt right. I'm about the same age as John was when we made that original episode, and it brought back so many memories from a really lovely part of my career.”
Like millions of TV viewers, Daniel is also a fan of the Barnaby character: “He's a very straight-up-and-down family man with a good moral compass. He's a good cop, he's watchful and he's thoughtful… Family is so important to me too, and I think I've got a pretty good moral compass. I'm the fourth of five children. As a kid I couldn't get a word in, so I've always been watchful.”

One of ITV's most popular shows, Midsomer Murders is syndicated in over 200 territories worldwide. Daniel has a theory about the show’s enduring success: “It's set in the modern day yet it has a kind of 1940s or 1950s feel to it. It's a wonderful form of escapism. Apparently a lot of clerics like it because it’s like a modern-day morality tale - it's good versus evil, right versus wrong. And it has such cross-generational appeal, where kids watch it with their grandparents. The beautiful countryside is another part of its appeal, and it's full of eccentrics, which British actors play so well.”

Daniel was born in Stockton-on-Tees. At the age of 14, he went along to the local youth theatre, walked into the room and knew immediately that acting was the path he wanted to take. He soon landed the lead in Bugsy Malone. 

“It was amazing! The week after we finished, I was walking through town with my mate when a girl walking towards us screamed and went, ‘Oh my God, it's him!’ I knew there and then that this was the job for me!”
Daniel has plenty of TV credits under his belt, but he’s also no stranger to the stage, having toured in Abigail’s Party in 2019 and Cluedo in 2022.

“I love being part of a company of actors. When touring, the challenge is to keep something fresh, real and immediate every night, and I like that challenge. There are different entrances and exits, different sizes of venue, so you've got to be nimble and you've got to be on your toes.”
When the Badger's Drift tour calls at Birmingham theatre The Alexandra, Daniel will no doubt be recalling a particularly memorable previous job in the city.

“I was at Birmingham Rep when my son Rafferty was born. He started to arrive on press night. I did the show, then went straight home. He was a long time coming - he was supposed to come during rehearsals! - and was born in the middle of the night. I was there to greet him, then dashed back for the next day's show.”

Hopefully, during this month’s Birmingham visit, the dramatic scenes will be confined to the stage…

Midsomer Murders: The Killings At Badger’s Drift shows at The Alexandra, Birmingham, from Tuesday 10 to Saturday 14 March