Fifteen years after leaving his role as DCI Tom Barnaby in ITV's Midsomer Murders, actor John Nettles is living a quieter life in Devon.
Now 82, the former Bergerac star lives in a 15th-century house in the seaside county with his second wife, Cathy, a painter. Together they share their home with rescue dogs, rescue horses and donkeys.
Life away from the spotlight
In a previous interview with the Mirror, John, who has one daughter from his first marriage, spoke about his marriage to Cathy: "You need someone to ground you because if you start believing that your public persona is your only and real persona, then you're looking at a very long and lonely old age. You must live as far away as you can from your public image, you really must."
John, who was awarded an OBE in 2010, made a cameo appearance in the Channel 4 sitcom Toast of London after leaving Midsomer Murders, before landing a role in the 2016 short film Never Land, which starred Keeley Hawes. His more recent role was playing Ray Penvenen in the BBC's Poldark. He has also presented and narrated various documentaries, including the BBC reality show My Unique B&B and the Channel 4 series Devon and Cornwall.
From acting to history
John has turned his attention from acting to being an amateur historian, reports Hello! magazine. In 2009, before he left the role of DCI Barnaby, he made a three-part documentary, The Channel Islands at War, about how Jersey and Guernsey were occupied by the Nazis in the Second World War. In 2012, he released a book on the same subject, Jewels and Jackboots, followed by an edition of the diaries of Reverend Douglas Ord, who lived in Guernsey during the war.
Bergerac reboot and Midsomer Murders
John turned down an offer to make a cameo in UKTV's reboot of Bergerac. "I'm not going to do it because I can't do it - I'm too old and I'd just get in the way," he told the BBC. "But I mean it was very lovely to be reminded of that and it's a brave project." Before the show's release, John met Damien Molony, who plays Jim Bergerac in the new series, to discuss their experiences filming in Jersey.
New Bergerac star Damien Molony told the Radio Times that the pair had spoken and that he was "thrilled" by what the original Bergerac star had to say. He said: "We met and he said, 'I've watched the first episode and I think it's fantastic. It's very different to what we did, it's much darker – I loved it.' He didn't need to say that, and I was thrilled that he did."
Midsomer Murders continues with Neil Dudgeon as DCI Tom Barnaby's successor, and a new stage play features John's former co-star Daniel Casey, who played Sergeant Troy from 1997 to 2008, as Barnaby. Midsomer Murders: The Killings at Badger's Drift opened at Richmond Theatre last October, and John said: "How wonderful that the original tale of murder and intrigue in Midsomer will be solved by Daniel, in this new stage version of Badger's Drift. Daniel brought the young Troy to life so brilliantly in the original TV pilot of the book and I'm delighted that he gets to lead the investigation in this theatre adaption. He has a fabulous track record in his stage work – and had a marvellous DCI to teach him the detecting ropes, back in the day!"
Midsomer Murders is available to stream on ITVX.
