As far as feuds go, it’s unlikely to be the bloodiest this rural idyll has seen.
Nevertheless, a row over plans to put up red plaques around the quaint town of Thame to mark its part in the filming of Midsomer Murders means a few individuals are having to watch their backs.
Six red tributes commemorating the detective series were set to be displayed on listed buildings in the Oxfordshire market town, which features as fictional Causton.
Thame Town Council wants to put plaques commemorating its involvement in the ITV show Midsomer Murders on six historical buildings
Conservation Officers at South Oxfordshire District Council have hit out at the plans, saying in a report: 'While the visitor may wish to "arrive in Midsomer", it is important to also recognise that Midsomer is not real.'
The plaques are proposed for six historic buildings in the town
Thame Town Council had hoped the plaques would attract visitors to the buildings when themed walking tours were not operating.
But the plans were rubbished by conservation officers at South Oxfordshire District Council, who wrote in a damning report: ‘While the visitor may wish to “arrive in Midsomer”, it is important to also recognise that Midsomer is not real.’
They added: ‘The market town of Thame is historically significant in its own right and not as the set of a television programme.’
The officers argued the plaques would compromise the ‘historic and architectural interest’ of the Grade II listed buildings.
A spokesman said: ‘Officers have recommended that this application be refused as they consider that the plaques would harm the significance of the listed buildings through an association with a fictional TV show rather than their actual historic and architectural interest.’
Proposed sites of the plaques for The Spread Eagle Hotel (left) and Thame museum (right)
There are also plans to place a plaque on the Swan Walk shopping area which has been used in Midsomer Murders several times since the ITV show started in 1997
The Oxfordshire Architectural and Historical Society also disputed the council’s plans, saying: ‘It cannot be a 'public benefit' to encourage the blurring of the distinction between fact and fiction, which the application is at pains to do.
