Cosy crime has managed to carve out an escapist monopoly – with Death Valley and Ludwig the latest TV iterations to find an audience on the BBC.
But Channel 5 has had another enjoyably gentle whodunnit on its screens for several years now – and it’s just dropped on Netflix.
The Madame Blanc Mysteries stars Coronation Street alum Sally Lindsay – who created, co-wrote and executive-produced the show – as antiques dealer Jean White, who sets about investigating the death of her husband and other miscellaneous misdemeanors.
Set in a quaint south of France village, Jean teams up with taxi driver Dom, played by Benidorm’s Steve Edge, to get to the bottom of things. The pair are this show’s incarnation of the classic amateur detective duo and, later on, love interests.
All four seasons of the crime caper have just hit the streaming service, complete with a set of larger-than-life characters and a bit of summer escapism in the Malta and Gozo filming locations, which stand in for the fictional village of Sainte Victoire.
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Jean suspects foul play in her husband Rory’s death, putting two and two together to get to the answer that he was leading a double life – possibly one that involved an entirely other family.
He was murdered by his other women for a ruby ring, putting Jean on the hunt for the killer and the jewel.
The cast is filled out with Robin Askwith and Only Fools and Horses’ Sue Holderness, as a couple of expats living large in a chateau, as well as one half of the Chuckle Brothers, Paul Chuckle, and Blackadder’s Tony Robinson.
The show already has a Christmas special on the way this year – so you could binge all four seasons just in time for that – and Lindsay has said she will make The Madame Blanc Mysteries for as long as Channel 5 want them.
Ahead of the fourth season, she told gathered press: ‘I’m not under any, “Yes, I’ll quit when I’m on a high”. No, I won’t. I love it so much. I will do it until they want me to not do it, to be honest, because it’s such a special thing in my life. And it’s such a part of our lives now.’
The feel-good cosy crime show has a 63% rating on Rotten Tomatoes for its first season, as well as several positive reviews on IMDb.
SunnyDaise described the show as ‘almost perfect’, writing: ‘It’s great to have a show written by and predominantly starring over 50s that is clean enough for all generations to watch together.’
Paul_anson described the show as ‘silly fun in a light entertainment format’.
‘Of course it’s not meant to be taken seriously,’ Paul added. ‘Of course the actors are hamming it up. It’s still an entertaining little package best enjoyed with a nice glass of red French wine.’
‘Really enjoyed this,’ echoed robbiep-53815. ‘Great location. A bright sunny and refreshing change. The ongoing mystery is intriguing and the self contained weekly case to be solved keeps things ticking along nicely. A lovely change.’
The Madame Blanc Mysteries is available to stream on Netflix.
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