Inspector Morse, again (and always!)

November 22, 2007 at 1:47 pm (Anglophilia, books, Film and television, Music)

I’ve written before about Inspector Morse, both the books by Colin Dexter and the television series. Now comes this delightful news item from Martin Edwards. How I wish I’d been one of the party that he accompanied to The Trout Inn! The Trout is located near Oxford, in Lower Wolvercote actually, as in TheWolvercote Tongue, one of my favorites from among the TV episodes. Morse/John Thaw can frequently be seen downing a pint at this idyllic spot on the River Thames.

As for Morse and More by Patricia Buchanan and The Oxford of Inspector Morse by Antony Richards, they can be purchased from The Inspector Morse Society.

One of the many joys of the Morse films is the way in which they are enriched and enhanced by music. This music is available on three discs, all of which I own. My favorite is Volume Three, largely because it features the stunningly gorgeous Andante movement from Brahms’s Sextet No.1, heard in the film The Day of the Devil. ( You can listen to this music on Amazon. ) I am in awe of chamber music, like this Sextet, that conveys the same power and majesty as a full orchestra.

In addition to orchestral music, chamber works, and opera from the Inspector Morse films, all three of the above-mentioned discs feature the original music composed for the series by Barrington Pheloung. It is always a pleasure, albeit a melancholy one, to hear Morse’s signature tune, with Morse code woven seamlessly into the melody.

[While trawling through the web for pictures of Barrington Pheloung, I happened upon this rather wonderful Inspector Morse Picture Gallery. ]