Line of Duty and Shetland stars join Midsomer Murders as show return confirmed - all the details

Midsomer Murders has revealed its impressive line-up of guest stars for the final episode of season 23, which returns to screens on Sunday 10 November. 

Line of Duty's Ace Bhatti and The Night Caller's Suzanne Packer lead the guest cast alongside Nigel Lindsay (Safe), LJ Johnson (Tell Me Everything) and Sophie Stone (Shetland).

They'll join leading man Neil Dudgeon and series regulars Nick Hendrix, Fiona Dolman and Annette Badland in the episode, titled Dressed to Kill.

© ITV

So, what can fans expect from the series 23 finale? 

Here's the full synopsis: "Residents of Elverton-Cum-Latterly battle in a dominoes competition that dates back decades, but when the event occurs the same night as a drag queen fundraiser for a terminally ill teenager, the resulting clash of cultures is epic and deadly."

Neil has starred on the show since 2010, when he took over from John Nettles in the lead role. 

© ITV

In a recent interview, Neil, who plays DCI John Barnaby, reflected on the mammoth task of replacing John in the drama, telling RadioTimes.com: "It was hard at the beginning because John [Nettles] had done it for 14 years. If they'd cancelled me after one series, that would have been embarrassing!"

He continued: "It gets easier, but I try to keep it fresh. Even if I've gone through the script 50 times, I'll look at it again and have another thought. It's still extremely pleasant and I'm extremely grateful."

© Mark Bourdillon

His co-star Nick, who plays Jamie Winter, has also spoken about his role on the show and while he sees "very few negatives", hasn't ruled out leaving the drama. 

"I think as ever I would always say never say never and what I would say is that there are so few negatives to doing it that it would be a really hard job to turn down," he told Express.co.uk in 2020.

"I'd like to think that I've done enough well now that they will always want me to be in it. So I can't imagine that I would say outright that I'd do it for the next ten years because that's not my career aspirations," he continued, adding that he and Neil have "a good vibe" and viewers favour "consistency" over changes to the cast.

© Bentley Productions for ITV and ITVX

"But equally when you're offered these jobs and you know it's such a nice job with nice people it's hard to say no," he explained. "Each year as an actor you play it as it lies and see what happens and try to make a decision at the time that seems like the right one."

Midsomer Murders airs on Sunday 10 November at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX.