“I think it’s a huge source of comfort in a world that increasingly resembles nothing like Midsomer. Although we’re a contemporary show, we hark back to 50 years ago with cricket on the lawn and old ladies cycling. “With the working week ahead of you it’s very calming to watch a peaceful world where wrongs are righted and good triumphs over evil. There’s a moment of trouble and then it’s all resolved and back to normal.”

“In the beginning nobody knew who the characters were, but, by the time I joined, Midsomer Murders was an enormous hit, so there was perhaps a bit more pressure on me than the other guys. We wanted to find a way to make Scott different from Daniel Casey’s character. But within two or three episodes I found my feet and hit the ground running.

“Scott’s still biased against the countryside. He’s an urban character at heart, always looking for a way out but never quite finding it. His relationship with Barnaby was written as a bit spiky to begin with. Now it’s mellowing into a slightly fractious marriage of convenience, with Barnaby still disapproving of Scott’s methods and me grudgingly starting to respect him.” Scott’s reluctance to embrace the country life is not shared by John. “I love walking in the country and I go to Wales quite a bit. This summer I also went surfing in Sennen in Cornwall. It’s great working in the pretty English villages and I like the way Midsomer stretches its boundaries far and wide. It’s probably got a coastline and a nuclear power station somewhere too!

“I also love working with some fantastic British actors. We’ve had all the greats and Diana Quick rowing was a sight to see. And it was lovely to meet Steve Redgrave – he’s a huge guy but a very gentle man.” John’s previous TV credits include Spooks, Love in a Cold Climate, Trial & Retribution VII and Nicholas Nickleby, while film work includes The Swimming Pool. While at the RSC, he appeared in Anthony & Cleopatra, Much Ado About Nothing, King John, Julius Caesar and Love in a Wood. In between series, John appeared in a film shot by some friends in Prague. “I play a man who wakes up in Prague with amnesia. I had to fall in the river and meet beautiful, mysterious women. It was great to pretend to be an action hero and do something so different from Midsomer Murders.”