The Village Murder Casebook

Case file · Series 15, Episode 3 · Season 15, Episode 3

Written in the Stars

A solar-eclipse gathering at an observatory is followed by deaths involving a meteorite, a spear and an astronomical disc.

The 60-second case card

Should I watch this one?

The celestial murder methods are flamboyant, but the case is grounded in professional ownership and personal betrayal.

Best for
Astronomy · Solar eclipse · Academic rivalry
Mood
Eccentric
Team
DCI John Barnaby with DS Ben Jones
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

The celestial murder methods are flamboyant, but the case is grounded in professional ownership and personal betrayal.

Members of the Midsomer Stanton Astronomical Society gather on Moonstone Ridge for a total solar eclipse. Their celebration is followed by a sequence of bizarre deaths using astronomical objects and imagery, including a meteorite and a bronze disc.

Scorpio appears to connect the victims, but Barnaby doubts that astrology supplies the real logic. He and Jones investigate the observatory, rival researchers and a valuable discovery whose credit may matter more than any horoscope.

  • Astronomy
  • Solar eclipse
  • Academic rivalry
Break the seal: reveal the finding

Who was the killer in Written in the Stars? (spoiler)

The Scorpio pattern is a designed distraction. Barnaby follows disputed academic credit and a concealed relationship to find the practical motive beneath the astronomical staging.

Spoiler-safe viewing companion

Three questions to carry into the episode

Three spoiler-safe questions for your rewatch.

  1. Place

    What does Midsomer Stanton conceal?

  2. Theme

    Which details could have more than one meaning?

  3. Teamwork

    Watch DCI John Barnaby and DS Ben Jones: who notices what?

Browse all 100 observation cards →
More episode detailsProduction, cast, deaths and filming information

Credits, context and checked facts

Production and cast

TV series
Series 15
Episode number
Episode 3
Written by
Steve Trafford
Directed by
Renny Rye
Listed transmission date(s)
24 September 2012
Reported filming period
May–June 2012
Detective
DCI John Barnaby
Partner
DS Ben Jones
Pathologist
Dr Kate Wilding · Tamzin Malleson
Principal setting
Midsomer Stanton
Casebook tone
Eccentric

Sources accompany the production credits and filming links.

Fictional settings and real filming places are listed separately. Filming links include 0 mapped areas; 6 exact sites.

Credits and archive connections

  • Writer credits4 episodes credited to Steve Trafford
  • Director credits23 episodes directed by Renny Rye
  • Release positionCase 92 of 144
  • Story characterEccentric · Astronomy · Solar eclipse
  • Location evidence6 exact screen-use matches
A real observatory

The UCL Observatory at Mill Hill represents Stanton Observatory.

Village institutions

Sonning-on-Thames provides the Midsomer Mercury office, museum, tea room and yoga-hall exterior.

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

Written in the Stars cast

These selected cast entries link to their published profiles. They do not include every name shown in the end credits.

Actor Maureen Lipman in 2023
Photo: Raph_PH · CC BY 2.0 · Source · displayed with a layout crop
Played Margaret "Mags" Dormer

Maureen Lipman

Lipman plays Margaret 'Mags' Dormer in Written in the Stars, a mystery set amid an astronomical society and a village under an eclipse. The role adds a veteran stage and screen performer to the show's eccentric local circle.

Open actor profile →

The performers behind this case

Core cast

Follow the cast links for full actor and character guides.

Image credits identify the licence used. No programme publicity stills are reproduced.

Forensic team

Dr Kate Wilding

Credit
Resident pathologist
Played by
Tamzin Malleson
Meet the Casebook pathologists →

Spoiler-controlled deaths

Deaths recorded in this case

4 people die in this case, according to the linked death record.

Break the seal: reveal the list of deaths
  1. Jeremy Harper

    Murder · Blunt force

    Performer check
  2. Peter Groves

    Murder · Stabbing or impalement

    Performer check
  3. George Dormer

    Murder · Blunt force

    Performer check
  4. Mary Dutta

    Accidental, natural or other · Fall · historical or before the main case

    Performer check
    • Mary Dutta: not listed in the current published cast recordNo Mary Dutta performer appears in the current published cast record. Harry and Gagan Dutta are separately credited characters, so neither is treated as this historical victim.
Break a second seal: reveal the verified killer
Series 15 · episode 3 · checked 15 September 2026

Who was the killer in Written in the Stars? (spoiler)

Adrian Sharp

Adrian killed Jeremy Harper, Peter Groves and George Dormer while disguising the crimes as a Scorpio-themed sequence and steering suspicion towards Lawrence Janson. He then abducted Gagan and prepared to kill her for sole credit for the planet discovery; Mary Dutta's much earlier fall was an accident caused by Margaret Dormer and concealed by the group.

Verified motive

Adrian killed and manipulated the evidence to obtain the glory of claiming Gagan's new planet and to frame Lawrence, the former pupil he resented for taking the observatory directorship. He needed Gagan alive only until she identified the star, then intended to take sole credit for the discovery.

Verified important clue

Archive case 92 · checked 17 September 2026Gagan's final mobile-phone call to Adrian

The call log places Gagan in contact with Adrian at 4:45, after the time he claimed she left his cottage. That lie breaks his carefully shared alibi and exposes how the Scorpio signatures and stolen-data story were steering the inquiry towards Lawrence.

Verified decisive clue

Archive case 92 · checked 25 September 2026Gagan's final call to Adrian at 4:45

The phone record contradicts Adrian's claim that his last contact with Gagan was at four. That false account breaks his alibi and prompts Barnaby to reconsider the Scorpio signs and stolen-data trail as deliberate misdirection towards Lawrence, while keeping Mary Dutta's earlier death and Gagan's abduction distinct.

Verified death and discovery order

Archive case 92 · checked 16 September 2026
  1. death
    Mary Dutta dies years earlier

    Mary's fall is an accident caused by Margaret Dormer and concealed by the observatory group, not one of Adrian's murders.

  2. death
    Jeremy Harper is killed

    Adrian begins the present sequence while shaping the evidence into a Scorpio-themed pattern.

  3. death
    Peter Groves is killed

    A second staged death strengthens the apparent astrological link and pushes suspicion towards Lawrence Janson.

  4. death
    George Dormer is killed

    Adrian kills George as the old observatory history and the present scheme close in on him.

  5. discovery
    The Scorpio staging is decoded

    The pattern is revealed as a device for framing Lawrence and concealing Adrian's pursuit of credit for Gagan's discovery.

  6. discovery
    Gagan is rescued

    Adrian abducts Gagan and prepares to kill her after she identifies the new planet, but the attempt is interrupted.

Search the complete deaths index →

Real place → fictional identity

Where was Written in the Stars filmed?

Hyde Heath, Buckinghamshire

Hyde Heath Village Hall

Used as: The hall provides the interior of the yoga-class venue.

Mill Hill, Greater London

UCL Observatory

Used as: The working observatory represents Stanton Observatory.

Sonning-on-Thames, Berkshire

The Old Forge

Used as: The building becomes the headquarters of the Midsomer Mercury.

Sonning-on-Thames, Berkshire

Village building

Used as: A building is used for Stanton Museum and the Moonstone Ridge Tea Rooms.

Sonning-on-Thames, Berkshire

Pearson Hall

Used as: The hall provides the exterior of the yoga-class venue.

Taplow, Berkshire

St Nicolas' Church

Used as: The church becomes the parish church of Midsomer Stanton.

Sources accompany the identified filming places.

Wider filming areas

Places connected to this file

Location research remains open.

No real filming place is confirmed for this case.