The Creeper

Series Twelve, Episode Six

The Creeper

Airdate

27 September 2009

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The Creeper is the sixth episode of the twelfth series of the popular ITV crime drama Midsomer Murders and was originally broadcast on 27th September 2009.

Synopsis[]

DCI Barnaby finds himself in charge of investigating "The Creeper", a man who has been entering peoples homes in the dead of night, after the Chief Constable becomes the latest victim. It all becomes more serious when after one of the burglaries, a man is found dead in his bed. The dead man is David Roper, a ghost-writer by profession who was staying with the Chettham family. They had spent the previous evening at the home of Jack Filby who now owned the Chettham estate, forcing the family to live in the dower house. Filby and Roper had a very loud argument after dinner with Roper, a reformed alcoholic, storming out of the house with a bottle of brandy in hand. He made it back to the dower house and was put to bed. The mystery grows when a second attendee at the same dinner is murdered and the Creeper visits the Barnabys in the dead of night, not to steal anything but to leave behind two clues. The discovery of a Chettham family secret, the second death and a bit of DNA testing not only leads to the identity of the killers but to the identity of The Creeper.

Plot[]

A cat burglar has been robbing homes in the dead of night, nicknamed "the Creeper." The Chief Constable becomes the latest victim.

At Chettham estate, Jack Filby, is planning the birthday party of his young associate, Freddy Chettham whose family has had to sell the estate house and now live in the dower house. At the party are the Chetthams- Lady Elizabeth, son Lord William, and his wife Isobel; Jack's daughters, Martha and Tallis; Dr. Sylvia Goring, Hugo Greening, and David Roper, who are all old friends. Roper is a ghost-writer by profession who was staying with the Chettham family and had just written a book about a notorious gangster, Harry Godbolt. Martha flirts with Roper and gets kicked out of the dinner. After dinner, Roper asks Jack to loan him money so he can publish a book about the groups' youthful endeavors and Jack furiously throws him out. Roper grabs a bottle of brandy and drunkenly wanders the grounds while the others play pool. Roper is howling at the moon when he gets hit over the head with a branch.

Roper later drags himself to the Dower house and the Chetthams bring him inside and Isobel puts him to bed. The Creeper comes by in the dead of night and holds a mirror up to his face to see if he is alive. The next morning Roper is found dead. Barnaby deduces he was smothered with a pillow. Barnaby and Jones go to interview everyone. Martha flirts with Jones.

The Chettham family has a meeting including Jack Filby where they discuss whether to tell the police the big secret: Freddy is actually the son of Jack, not William. William is infertile. The Creeper robs Barnaby's house and leaves a photo on the dresser with the word FAKE on it. Barnaby finds a hair on the photograph.

Later, Dr. Goring is seen talking on the phone to someone and refusing to go along with a request. She goes hunting and is shot.

Barnaby and Jones come to confront the Chettham family, without Freddy. It turns out that Freddy is actually the son of the gangster, not of Jack Filby. David Roper was going to reveal this secret, so Elizabeth and Isobel had to shut him up. Dr. Goring had proof of Freddy's parentage, so she also had to be silenced.

Freddy is actually glad that he is not Filby's son as this means he and Tallis Filby are not related. They have always been fond of each other. But Freddy has no money. Tallis says that is not a problem- she is the Creeper.