Case file · Series 16, Episode 2 · Season 16, Episode 2
Let Us Prey
Deaths begin to resemble the punishments in a medieval church fresco while storms close in on Midsomer St Claire.
The 60-second case card
Should I watch this one?
A rain-soaked mystery that turns a restored church painting into a vivid catalogue of threats.
- Best for
- Medieval fresco · Church crypt · Flooding
- Mood
- Dark
- Team
- DCI John Barnaby with DS Charlie Nelson
- Spoiler guidance
- Read the premise freely; open the marked sections only after watching. Check the linked provider advisory for further viewing information.
Why it matters
A rain-soaked mystery that turns a restored church painting into a vivid catalogue of threats.
Art historian Philip Hamilton is restoring a medieval fresco uncovered in the crypt of Midsomer St Claire's church when his partner, Nancy Dewar, is found dead in the river. Further attacks appear to reproduce the fresco's macabre punishments, encouraging the village to read the case as a work of religious vengeance.
Barnaby and Nelson investigate the church restoration, the Dewar family and the people whose reputations depend on controlling the past. With floodwater rising around the village, they must decide which details are genuine ritual and which have been staged to disguise a much more personal secret.
Break the seal: reveal the finding
Who was the killer in Let Us Prey? (spoiler)
The fresco provides a theatrical pattern rather than the true motive. Once Barnaby reconstructs the hidden relationship behind the Dewar household, the staged punishments point back to a secret the killer believed could not survive exposure.
Spoiler-safe viewing companion
Three questions to carry into the episode
Three spoiler-safe questions for your rewatch.
- Place
What does Midsomer St Claire conceal?
- Theme
Which details could have more than one meaning?
- Teamwork
Watch DCI John Barnaby and DS Charlie Nelson: who notices what?
More episode detailsProduction, cast, deaths and filming information
Credits, context and checked facts
Production and cast
- TV series
- Series 16
- Episode number
- Episode 2
- Written by
- Paul Logue
- Directed by
- Alex Pillai
- Listed transmission date(s)
- 8 January 2014
- Reported filming period
- April–May 2013
- Detective
- DCI John Barnaby
- Partner
- DS Charlie Nelson
- Pathologist
- Dr Kate Wilding · Tamzin Malleson
- Principal setting
- Midsomer St Claire
- Casebook tone
- Dark
Sources accompany the production credits and filming links.
Fictional settings and real filming places are listed separately. Filming links include 2 mapped areas; 2 exact sites.
Credits and archive connections
- Writer credits6 episodes credited to Paul Logue
- Director credits7 episodes directed by Alex Pillai
- Release positionCase 97 of 144
- Story characterDark · Medieval fresco · Church crypt
- Location evidence2 exact screen-use matches
The medieval wall painting is not decoration: its imagery supplies the pattern that the detectives must test against each crime.
St Mary the Virgin Church in Hurley represents the parish church of fictional Midsomer St Claire.
Sources for the production file
Published episode chronology and credits ↗Official ITV programme page ↗Filming-location reference index ↗Credits follow the linked chronology. Dates can differ between territories. Consult original credits for story, teleplay and adaptation wording. External synopses may contain spoilers.
Selected episode credits
Let Us Prey cast
These selected cast entries link to their published profiles. They do not include every name shown in the end credits.
Fiona Dolman
Vincent Regan
Rebecca Front
Andrea Lowe
Ben Bailey Smith
Billy Postlethwaite
William Beck
Paul Copley
Gerard Horan
Patricia Brake
Roy Hudd
Sarah Lochlan
Michael Jayston
The performers behind this case
Core cast
Follow the cast links for full actor and character guides.
Neil Dudgeon
John Barnaby · Detective Chief Inspector- Messiah
- Life of Riley
- The Mrs Bradley Mysteries
Gwilym Lee
Charlie Nelson · Detective Sergeant- Bohemian Rhapsody
- The Great
- Jamestown
Tamzin Malleson
Dr Kate Wilding · Police pathologist- Teachers
- Bodies
- Unforgotten
Image credits identify the licence used. No programme publicity stills are reproduced.
Forensic team
Dr Kate Wilding
- Credit
- Resident pathologist
- Played by
- Tamzin Malleson
Spoiler-controlled deaths
Deaths recorded in this case
3 people die in this case, according to the linked death record.
Break the seal: reveal the list of deaths
- Nancy Dewar
Murder · Drowning
Performer check- Nancy Dewar: Sarah Lochlan
- Frank Dewar
Murder · Crushing
Performer check- Frank Dewar: Paul CopleyThe earlier synopsis-derived list used only a builder’s-yard descriptor; the published cast record and detailed episode synopsis identify the victim as Frank Dewar.
- Philip Hamilton
Murder · Stabbing or impalement
Performer check- Philip Hamilton: Vincent ReganThe published cast record includes Philip Hamilton’s academic title; the concise list of deaths retains the name without the title.
Break a second seal: reveal the verified killer
Who was the killer in Let Us Prey? (spoiler)
Rev. Arthur GouldArthur killed Nancy Dewar after she discovered that Ava was not his biological daughter, then killed Frank Dewar and Professor Philip Hamilton when each found evidence that threatened the same secret. His earlier abduction of the newborn Ava and Ava's non-fatal struggle with Rev. Martha Hillcott remain separate offences.
Verified motive
Arthur had abducted newborn Ava from vulnerable mother Tina Bell and built his purpose and identity around raising her as his daughter. He killed Nancy, Frank and Hamilton to keep that parentage secret and, in his own mind, protect Ava from a truth that would end their relationship.
Verified decisive clue
Archive case 97 · checked 25 September 2026Nancy's test results and letter about Arthur GouldNancy sees the result that exposes Arthur's concealed parentage story and writes to the homeless centre about him. Frank finds her results in her car and Hamilton is poised to move into the family cottage; the evidence explains Arthur's three silencing murders while keeping his earlier abduction of Ava separate.
Verified death and discovery order
Archive case 97 · checked 16 September 2026- discoveryArthur takes newborn Ava
Arthur abducts Tina Bell's baby and raises Ava as his own daughter, building the secret that drives the later murders.
- deathNancy Dewar is killed
Arthur kills Nancy after she discovers that Ava is not his biological daughter.
- deathFrank Dewar is killed
Frank's evidence about the property and Ava's history makes him the next threat to Arthur's secret.
- deathProfessor Hamilton is killed
Arthur kills Hamilton when the proposed cottage purchase and recovered evidence bring the concealed parentage closer to exposure.
- discoveryThe property trail exposes the parentage
The deal shared by the victims leads back to Tina, Ava and the identity Arthur has protected for years.
- discoverySeparate violence is distinguished
Arthur's three murders and earlier abduction are separated from Ava's non-fatal struggle with Rev. Martha Hillcott.
Real place → fictional identity
Where was Let Us Prey filmed?
St Mary the Virgin Church
Used as: The same real church returns as the parish church of fictional Midsomer St Claire.
Representative photograph of the real filming location; the exact camera angle or building may differ.
Village house
Used as: A private house supplies the recurring exterior of Dr Kate Wilding's home.
Representative photograph of the real filming location; the exact camera angle or building may differ.Sources accompany the identified filming places.
Wider filming areas