I will always show up for Inbetweeners alumni, so spotting Martin Trenaman in Queens of Mystery Series 2 felt like a promise already being kept. Add in the presence of Bend It Like Beckham royalty via Juliet Stevenson, and this second run of the Acorn favourite had my attention before the first body even hit the floor.
Queens of Mystery wastes no time reminding you why it earned its Emmy nomination, and with Series 2 now landing on DVD and digital courtesy of Acorn Media International, this feels like the ideal format for revisiting Wildemarsh. This is comfort television with a body count, and the DVD release lets the show breathe away from weekly schedules and channel hopping.
Created by Julian Unthank, best known for cosy crime staples like Doc Martin and New Tricks, the series continues to blend traditional whodunnit plotting with playful, almost storybook visuals. The tone sits somewhere between Agatha Christie and a well-thumbed paperback from a sun-drenched charity shop shelf, and it suits binge-watching far more than it ever did appointment television.
Series 2 finds DS Matilda Stone properly embedded in village life, working under the rigid Inspector Thorne, played with glorious dryness by Trenaman. His by-the-book energy clashes nicely with Matilda’s instincts, while PC Terry Foster brings just enough eager warmth to round out the local police dynamic. Florence Hall continues to anchor the show with an engaging lead performance that balances professional confidence with lingering personal trauma.
Hovering over everything is the mystery of Matilda’s mother’s disappearance, a thread that tightens considerably in this run of episodes. One of the smartest moves Series 2 makes is weaving this long-running emotional arc into the standalone cases. The result is a sequence of mysteries that feel light on their feet but weighted with genuine consequence.
The crimes themselves are delightfully varied. A murder at a health spa populated by people who clearly need less mindfulness and more confession, an art-soaked killing that revels in creative pretension, and a robbery that echoes Matilda’s own past. Each case feels distinctive, visually playful, and satisfyingly solvable without ever being obvious.
Of course, the beating heart of Queens of Mystery remains the Stone sisters. Julie Graham, Sarah Woodward, and Siobhan Redmond are a constant joy as the crime-obsessed aunts whose confidence in their fictional expertise routinely lands them in very real danger. Their dynamic crackles with warmth, rivalry, and just enough chaos to justify Matilda’s frequent exasperation. Juliet Stevenson’s Emmy-nominated narration continues to wrap everything in a knowing, almost fairy tale cadence, elevating even the silliest beats into something charming rather than twee.
On DVD, the series benefits from uninterrupted viewing and repeat visits. The vivid colour palette, careful framing, and neatly structured scripts all hold up beautifully, and this is exactly the sort of show that rewards comfort rewatches. While bonus features are modest, the real value here is having the complete series ready to dip in and out of like a favourite short story collection.
Queens of Mystery Series 2 rules by leaning hard into what makes it distinct. Female-led storytelling, a sunlit village full of secrets, and mysteries that never forget to be fun. On DVD, it feels right at home. Miss it, and frankly, it would be a crime.
Jessie Hobson