The death of elderly Miss Emily Simpson (Renée Asherson) in the sleepy village of Badger's Drift brings DCI Tom Barnaby and DS Gavin Troy to investigate. Her best friend and neighbour, Lucy Bellringer (Rosalie Crutchley), had seen her return from a walk in the woods, unnerved and shocked by something she had seen. When her death is confirmed as no accident, Barnaby and Troy start to question the eccentric and quirky residents. Nosy village resident Iris Rainbird (Elizabeth Spriggs), who spies on