If you were imagining a good comparison for a new murder mystery show, Gavin and Stacey is probably one of the last ones you would reach for, alongside the likes of Teletubbies or Antiques Roadshow.
But the new BBC cosy crime drama Death Valley takes the hard-nosed crimes of a Midsomer Murders and mixes them with a comedic sensibility of shows like the hit sitcom.
The new six-parter – which is already all on iPlayer for a Bank Holiday binge – follows Timothy Spall as John Chapel, a retired TV actor who made a career as a brainbox Hercule Poirot-type solving mysteries.
DS Janie Mallowan (Gwyneth Keyworth) is a mega fan of Chapel and desperate to get some convictions under her belt to climb the corporate ladder, so she enlists him to help crack the weekly mysteries.
This is where the Gavin and Stacey comparison starts to make more sense, because her idle boss is played by Steffan Rhodri (Dave Coaches). He doesn’t do much to intervene because his only aim is to keep policing paperwork to a bare minimum.
Death Valley is an adequate name for where the show is set in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales, because the crime-crackers are never short of a new case.
The oddball duo get to work by first investigating the death of a wealthy property developer Carwyn Rees, who Chapel deduces was in fact murdered.
When asked how he would describe the show, Timothy Spall labelled it ‘intriguing, engaging, amusing,’ then added: ‘I hope! It’s now over to the audience to decide!’
He said in an interview with Beyond The Joke: ‘Paul Doolan has written excellent scripts! He’s a fantastic comedy writer but also a big fan of crime dramas.
‘With Death Valley, you have three aspects – the whodunnit, characters who are both real and funny plus a dramatic, emotionally grounded quality.’
It’s clearly a good comfort watch, because many BBC viewers have already taken to X (formerly Twitter) to rally fellow TV fans to give Death Valley a go.
@Poshaudrey wrote: ‘I loved it!! Very funny!! Very Gavin and Stacey in style and humour. Don’t pan it. Give it a chance.’
@VikPercival echoed: ‘Totally binged Death Valley what a lovely, fun and joyous British drama. Timothy Spall & Gwyneth Keyworth are funny and beautiful together.
‘I blinking enjoyed it,’ wrote @SUtayl. ‘Not because it’s filmed in Wales but it’s what I call light entertainment. Breath of fresh air.’
@GinaLouLoves chimed in, writing: ‘A nice light hearted detective series! Definitely want to visit Wales again soon after watching this!’
However, not everyone could get on board with the show’s blend of the lighthearted with the more serious themes. @Clive_laddie wrote: ‘How on earth did this drama get commissioned by the BBC? Making fun of suicide and murder, in a fake Welsh setting, is nothing but a recipe for disaster. And this series is a total disaster.’
‘Aw… the failure of Death Valley is overdoing the comedy so it’s just a cartoon caricature,’ added @KateLeeComms. ‘Timothy Spall is excellent with what he has to work with. Not in the league of Ludwig.’
Death Valley is available to stream on iPlayer and continues on BBC One on Sunday at 8:15pm.
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