Ned Barnaby is the father of John Barnaby and the uncle of Tom Barnaby. He was first referred to in the episode Let Us Prey and later appeared in the episode The Point of Balance, portrayed by veteran actor Christopher Timothy.
Biography[]
Little is known about Ned's early life though he had one unnamed brother. They may have been raised in Sheffield, Yorkshire. Ned currently lives in Sheffield in The Point of Balance. He may have raised his son John there.
When a younger man, Ned participated in dance competitions, winning several awards. Ned came to visit his son John, Sarah, and his granddaughter Betty. During this episode, John manifested daddy issues —- residual childhood anger and hurt because his father was always gone — off to dance competitions (see The Point of Balance). This left John’s mother at home to raise John alone much of the time, as John accused his father.
However, it is thanks to Ned's acknowledgement of the short story Secret Life of Walter Mitty that he is able to help John solve a murder case his son is investigating - involving a military "Walt" who LARPed his way into a wealthy family and aroused the suspicion of a genuine veteran, then hiring a hitman to kill both him and his sister for seeking the truth. After the two are arrested and John comes home, Ned apologizes for all the hurt he's caused as the two watch childhood home movies of them as a family while sharing a beer and asking if John succeeded in catching the bad guy.
Notes[]
- John Barnaby was simply referred to as Tom's cousin in The Sword of Guillaume so it can be assumed Ned is Mr. Barnaby's brother
- In a comment made by John Barnaby, it is stated that his mother, Ned's wife, has been dead for twelve years, putting her time of death around 2007.