The Madame Blanc Mysteries - Season 1 and 2

Thirteen episodes of sunny murder mysteries for the whole family.

If you like easy-going, funny murder mysteries, then this is the show for you. The Madame Blanc Mysteries is a simple, easy-going series, in a small sunny town in the South of France. The show revolves around Jean White (Sally Linday, Coronation Street), who comes to the town of Saint Victoire to resolve some matters surrounding her husband’s sudden demise there. The two of them owned an antique shop in Britain for which he was shopping in Saint Victoire. Quickly, she begins to suspect that his death might have been more than an accident. She decides to stay in town to deal with the practicalities, but it quickly turns out that her expertise and knowledge in the antiquities are very useful to solve local crimes. She is happy to help and is assisted by the lovely Dom (Steve Edge, All at Sea), the town’s taxi driver and handyman. Throughout the series you will get to know the others living in town, among which a surprising number of British expats. Each of them is a bit quirky, making for a colorful mix of characters.

This is clearly a more traditional detective series, with a very down-to-earth vibe to it.

Don’t expect gratuitous violence in this show. While there are definitely some murders, most of this show is very mild and you will see little more than a bit of blood. Basically, it is a very light-hearted murder mystery series. The show is clearly aimed at older viewers, with most of the actors being 50+ as well, but I would argue that it is a fun watch for people from all ages. Also, do not expect high-tech forensics or action-based police work. Jean solves her murders by observation and logic; this is clearly a more traditional detective series, with a very down-to-earth vibe to it.

Each episode is about one mystery, often involving one of the town inhabitants, while the larger mystery of Jean’s husband’s death continues on the background. The first season ends with a cliffhanger, but we can luckily move right on to the next season. The second season starts with a Christmas special and continues with six normal episodes. Most of the characters from the first season return as well.



As said before, most characters are a bit quirky, right down to some being caricatures. I would argue, however, that this is part of the strength of the show. It is clear the producers do not take everything too seriously and neither should you. The characters grow on you quickly, which is necessary with the short seasons. What makes the mysteries fun is that you never know what way they go: overdone cliche in a funny way or something new and surprising? And the show works well with both. The only time I was left dissatisfied was the season 2 finale. It was a bit anticlimactic and I expected more of the resolution after two seasons of build-up.

The producers do not take everything too seriously and neither should you.

Besides that, there is one major problem with the show: the soundtrack does not fit the show at all. I strongly dislike the song and it is stuck in my head as I am writing this. Quite a poor choice, in all honesty.

Besides that, another downside is that the production is sometimes a bit amateuristic. This is visible in the soundtrack video and in some action scenes, mostly the scenes where someone gets murdered (although you do not really see the actual violence). The bad action scenes, in a way, do help set the vibe that the show is a bit of a parody of murder mysteries as well, however. So make of this what you want.

Overall, the series is not really innovative in any way, but it is fun because of its execution and light-hearted vibe. And I would argue that being fun is one of the most important things in a TV show.