Review of BBC One’s new comedy detective series with Timothy Spall and Gwyneth Keyworth

With Ludwig and now this, the BBC’s comedy department is looking like the home of cosy crime. And why not? The construction of a good whodunit is like the construction of a good joke, keeping key information from your audience until the big reveal.

Death Valley also embraces the other staple of both comedy and detective story: the mismatched double act, apparently different, but more alike than they would care to admit.

The casting coup here is luring Timothy Spall back to comedy, playing John Chapel, a reclusive former actor, holed up in a Welsh hideaway to escape the attentions of over-ardent fans of Caesar, the detective he played in a long-running TV period drama, tantalising glimpses of which we get here.

Ambitious young DS Janie Mallowan (Gwyneth Keyworth) stumbles across him while making investigating the death of a wealthy property developer.

Following the formula of such things, their first meeting does not get things off on the best foot. Janie, a fan of Caesar, babbles away nervously  at seeing her screen hero in the flesh (and overgrown beard), invading his sanctuary.

But, wouldn’t you know it, the thought of being useful draws him out of his self-imposed isolation, and plays to the actor’s ego. He believes his skill at observing people and understanding their motivations makes him better than any criminal psychologist. This ‘rambling old hermit’ might actually have some unique insights that give him a much-needed purpose and her an unlikely mentor.

So yes, of course, they come to build a mutual, grudging respect while bickering like competitive siblings, knowing just how to push each other’s buttons.

‘These shows are all the same anyway,’ one character says self-knowingly about detective shows, in relation to Caesar of course. And true enough, Death Valley hits all the touchstones of the genre, down to the misdirections and the easily-missed clue on which the whole case pivots before Chapel unmasks the killer with an Agatha Christie-esque flourish.

Comedy-wise, It’s rarely laugh-out-loud funny, although it has its moments. More, there’s a warm wit that percolates through the core relationship, adding an amusing flavour to the Sunday night flawed-detective-in-a-scenic-location genre.

The regular supporting cast do their bit, too, not least Steffan Rhodri as DCI Barry Clarke - Janie’s boss - trying his best to negotiate 21st Century HR rules that do not come naturally to him 

The jokier elements make Death Valley different enough from the norm, while sticking firmly to the expectations of the murder-of-the-week genre. But the bottom line is that as John Chapel, Spall makes a great craggy detective, and Keyworth his perfect foil.

• Death Valley is on BBC iPlayer now. Read a feature about the show here and an inteview with writer Pail Doolan here

Review date: 26 May 2025
Reviewed by: Steve Bennett