Midsomer Murders fans have "worked out" who could replace Neil Dudgeon as the show's lead detective after the actor opened up about being cancelled. While Neil has no plans of leaving his role, one hardcore fan has their thoughts on who could take the lead after him - and it's a returning detective.
Taking to a Midsomer Murders Facebook fan page, one fan shared: "If Neil Dudgeon ever retired from the show, I think we should bring back Daniel Casey in his place as Chief Inspector Gavin Troy.
"Also, Laura Howard as Cully Barnaby whose husband died and comes back to town meets Gavin and strikes up a romance, and marries. She becomes his sidekick and the Barnaby in the story that's needed."
However, not all fans were thrilled by the idea as one fan commented: "Oh heavens," while another pleaded: "No not Gavin Jones."
"I don't care as long as the show carries on," someone else agreed as a fourth went on: "Yes, I would love him back."
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DS Gavin Troy had been in Midsomer Murders from the first episode and was a major part of the show’s initial success.
He remained part of the cast until season seven when Gavin made his exit in 2003, having been promoted to Detective Inspector and transferred to Middlesbrough.
Neil, who took over the baton of DCI John Barnaby, also recently opened up about his initial trepidations of following in John's footsteps to Radio Times magazine.
"It was hard at the beginning because John [Nettles] had done it for 14 years," he acknowledged.
"If they'd cancelled me after one series, that would have been embarrassing! 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."
Last month, Neil and his co-star Nick Hendrix graced the set of This Morning, dishing out details on the freshly concluded latest series of Midsomer Murders.
Nick was all praises for his co-star, expressing: "Neil is an inspiration, he is a mentor figure really, a father figure. I have learned so much from him both from acting and in life."
Midsomer Murders is available to watch on the ITV Hub.
