The Timothy Spall and Gwyneth Keyworth-fronted series has been hit with complaints just minutes in
08:46, 09 Jun 2025Updated 08:55, 09 Jun 2025
Death Valley faced a storm of criticism as viewers claimed to “switch off” just minutes into the third episode.
The six-part drama, which aired its third episode on Sunday, June 8, features Timothy Spall as John Chapel and Gwyneth Keyworth as DS Janie Mallowan delving into the mysterious demise of a best man, reports the Express.
However, despite attracting viewers’ eyes, it was for all the wrong reasons. Disgruntled fans didn’t hesitate to blast the show on social media, with one irate viewer proclaiming: “What on earth is this s***?” (sic)
“#DeathValley No wonder everyone is talking about it… It’s utter drivel and woke toboot. Refund the BBC if this is the best they can s**t out.” (sic)
Another disgruntled fan expressed their dismay: “Heard it was bad, but jeezo it’s horrendously bad. The lead lady is soooo irritating and the script is chronically unfunny. A new low for BBC Sunday night viewing, absolutely horrendous.”
Death Valley was swamped with complaints(Image: BBC)
Frustration peaked for some, prompting them to turn off their TVs, as one viewer confessed: “Caught up with #DeathValley on BBC1. I love stuff staring Timothy Spall but just had to turn off after a few minutes due to the awful co-star detective played by Gwyneth Keyworth shouting all the time. She must be one of the most annoying TV characters ever.”
Further amplifying the chorus of disapproval, another comment stated: “I’m on the third episode of “Death Valley” – I really gave it a try, but it really doesn’t get on me. I can’t stand the main characters, they are cringe… in general I really like those shows, but this I’ll skip and that Ludwig will return soon.”
One viewer was utterly unimpressed, venting on social media: “#DeathValley on BBC1 is one of the worst programmes I’ve ever sat through!”.
Timothy Spall and Gwyneth Keyworth star as John Chapel and DS Janie Mallowan(Image: BBC)
Nonetheless, despite some viewers knocking the series, others have expressed their enjoyment, with a fan sharing: “I know a lot of people seem to enjoy slagging off #DeathValley, and I admit that when I saw the initial trailer, I thought it looked poor.
“However, having binged the series the other day, I can quash my original reticence & say that I loved it. Daft, funny, cosy & Welsh.”
Another viewer chimed in with support: “Enjoying #DeathValley too. It’s Sunday night viewing and I remember ‘By the Sword Divided’ and ‘The Pallisers’ so this is quite fun.”
Despite the mixed reviews, Death Valley drew in nearly three million viewers on its debut(Image: BBC)
In spite of receiving a volley of criticism, Death Valley has shown impressive resilience in viewing figures, as disclosed by the BBC. The show’s inaugural episode, which premiered on 25 May, captivated a substantial audience of 2.9 million on BBC One.
This debut not only becomes the most viewed launch for a new BBC Scripted Comedy in the past five years but also eclipses Ludwig’s premiere last September, which attracted an audience of 2.8 million.
With a vast and notable lists of credits under her hat from over the years of her career, Dame Patricia Hodge opens up about her newest TV stint starring in BBC1’s newest drama Death Valley
The actress is playing the role of Helena in the new BBC drama Death Valley(Image: Jonathan Buckmaster)
A veteran of long-running shows including Poirot, Miss Marple, Waking the Dead and Inspector Morse, she says of Death Valley: “It is sort of that new genre of humorous murder mysteries, which is quite a difficult thing to get your head around, because I don’t think there is anything funny about murder. But it’s a new popular thing.
“It was lovely working with Tim Spall, who is a darling. Anyway, I am interested to see how it pans out. I am not the new Vera, though!”
Patricia returns to our screens for the new BBC1 drama Death Valley(Image: Getty Images)
Patricia, 78, filmed around Cardiff for the show, which follows eccentric retired actor John Chapel (Spall) and detective sergeant Janie Mallowan (Gwyneth Keyworth) as they form an unlikely, and often comedic, crime-solving partnership working in and around the Welsh valleys.
Specific details of Patricia’s role are being closely guarded, but she is one of a number of guest stars and, with her vast experience of crime drama, she is sure to add to the intrigue.
Despite being close to 80, the star of A Very English Scandal is also busy working on another BBC murder mystery series, The Marble Hall Murders, based on the Anthony Horowitz books.
Patricia, whose movie credits include Four Weddings and a Funeral and The Elephant Man, clearly loves working. “Work is what we are,” she says. “I sort of like being challenged. I don’t want to sit on the back foot. I want to sit on the front foot.
“I am filming this new Anthony Horowitz thing at the moment, The Marble Hall Murders, and I have been filming in Dublin and Greece, and I have never been to Greece, so that has been lovely. I am very lucky to work. Work engages me.”
She is also acclimatising to life without her husband, music publisher Peter Owen, who died aged 85 in 2016, after suffering from dementia. Downton Abbey star Patricia cared for him until his death and has helped raise awareness of dementia.
Speaking movingly in the past about her feelings of guilt over not being able to prevent her husband’s memory loss, which eventually meant he couldn’t recognise her, Patricia is not interested in finding anyone else.
She says of her loss: “It is always a big adjustment, isn’t it? We had over 40 years together, and it is now coming up to nine years (without Peter). I am not looking (for anyone new). It is not on my radar at all. I don’t know what I feel, really. I have wonderful friends. I am very lucky to work.”
Besides acting, Patricia has been committed to supporting Historic Royal Palaces – the charity which oversees the restoration of ageing ancient palaces, held in trust for the nation by King Charles and the Royal Collection. She enjoys seeing new life being breathed into these impressive sites, for the nation to enjoy.
She was made an OBE in 2017 in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for her services to drama(Image: Getty Images)
Patricia, who lives in Barnes, south west London, continues: “I was on the development board of the Historic Royal Palaces when it came out of the public purse and was given charity status. It suddenly made all these palaces belong to the nation again. And they gave them public ownership.
“I am no longer working on it, but it was amazing to be involved, and I would like to be involved again. I guess we only have so many hours in a day. During my time, we oversaw the opening of Kew Palace, which was so amazing because nobody had seen it before, and the things they uncovered, they did it so beautifully. I live in Barnes, so I am not far from it.”
Avid history lover Patricia was also keen to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day. She says: “I stood on Hammersmith Bridge for the VE Day flypast and I watched the bombers come over. I was hit in the gut to think of what our parents went through. What they put up with and how they came through.”
Turning to more fickle matters, Patricia is keen to pay tribute to the man behind her meticulously well-groomed appearance. She says: “I have very enduring relationships. All my friendships go way back, so I have had the same hairdresser for years, since 1981. It is a man called Hugh Green.”
Immensely stylish, Patricia has an enviably ageless image. But she insists: “I have never, never lied about my age. I don’t think there’s any point, because people can find it out very easily.
“I think, better to rejoice in what you are rather than try and stifle it. And if people find out and they know you’ve been lying, then what else are you lying about? You know, far better to live and embrace the truth.”
Made an OBE in 2017 in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for her services to drama, despite being widely regarded as acting royalty, Patricia likes to be known simply as “Hodge.”She says: ” The diminutives in Patricia are a nightmare. For the first 10 years of my life, I was called Patricia.
Patricia played Mrs Pumphrey on All Creatures Great and Small(Image: Playground Entertainment)
“Then I went to a school where, from day one, the teacher introduced me as Pat, without asking or anything. That was an automatic thing, that if you were called Patricia, you were called Pat.
“And then I got a bit tired of it, because actually Pat Hodge is not a great combo. When I went to drama school, I was called Trish or Trisha.
“There are a lot of people who just call me Hodge, and I think there’s only about two, if not three of us (Hodges) in the whole of equity. So now, when I answer the phone, I go, ‘Hodge.’”
Whether Hodge, Pat, Trisha, or Trish, asked if Dame Patricia Hodge has a certain ring to it, it becomes clear that if she gets another call from the Palace, this grande dame of British acting will take it in her stride.
She says: I don’t think about it. We should not get prizes for just doing a job. I am an OBE. Do you know what? If it happens, it happens.”
The new series of Death Valley begins on BBC1 on Sunday, at 8.15pm.
Welsh star Gwyneth Keyworth stars opposite Timothy Spall in Death Valley as copper Janie Mallowan. But the actress says she’d make a terrible real-life detective due to her ADHD.
Death Valley follows Timothy Spall and Gwyneth Keyworth as two unlikely allies(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/BBC Studios/Jay Brooks)
Being neurodivergent has its complications – actress Gwyneth Keyworth recently admitted that her condition is sometimes difficult to handle.
Gwyneth Keyworth, whose credits include Game Of Thrones, Hidden and the West End production of To Kill A Mockingbird stars opposite Timothy Spall in BBC One‘s new drama, Death Valley, which blends nail-biting suspense, crime and comedy.
Timothy Spall needs no introduction. From embodying Peter Pettigrew in Harry Potter to portraying acclaimed artist JM Turner in Mr Turner, the BAFTA-winning actor is a true screen chameleon. But in the BBC ’s new six-part series Death Valley, Timothy is swapping drama for comedy.
Gwyneth, 34, admits she was surprised Timothy was able to tap into the show’s comedic tone. “I hadn’t seen him do much comedy, but he’s really funny,” she says. “It was a delight and an honour to work with him.”
In Death Valley, Gwyneth plays detective Janie Mallowan, and when Janie’s investigation into the apparent suicide of a businessman leads her to John’s door, the case – and her career – take an odd turn.
Off-screen, however, Gwyneth, 30, confesses she couldn’t be more different to Janie. “I’m definitely not built for detective work,” says Gwyneth. “I have ADHD, I can’t keep track of anything!”
Timothy Spall portrays John Chapel in Death Valley – a retired TV star who turns crime-solver(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/BBC Studios/Simon Ridgway)
Timothy, on the other hand, plays John Chapel, a retired actor who starred in fictional detective TV show Caesar, and who now lives in semi-reclusive anonymity – talking mostly to a stray cat and nursing a slightly inflated ego.
“He’s itching to use his psychological skills as an actor, but he’s conceited about it,” Timothy, 68, says. “ It’s nice to poke fun at certain aspects of actors, like their overinflated views of themselves. John really thinks he’s a serious intellect.”
But there’s more to John’s eccentricities than meets the eye. “He’s frustrated but he’s pretending he isn’t,” Timothy says. “We eventually find out why he really retired and why he feels this way.”
To bring John to life, Timothy borrowed from a host of real-life actors – though he’s tight-lipped about who inspired the quirks. “It’s quite a long list of excellent actors who have played various characters,” he says. Over six episodes, the pair delve into several mysteries, each one drawing them closer as allies.
“They’re both eccentric characters and incredibly clever,” says Timothy. “They do a great job as detectives. There’s a huge generational gap between them – but not emotionally. They have a sibling quality. They’re both really childish.”
For Gwyneth, Janie and John are more alike than viewers may think. “They’re both slightly peculiar people who are grieving something,” she explains.
“They find it hard to see each other’s faults because they know they have the same. They’re a little pedantic and tunnel-minded but their friendship is what brings them out of loneliness. They’ve been looking for someone to reach out to.”
Gwyneth Keyworth (right) plays John’s sidekick, copper Janie Mallowe – but the actress says she’d be a terrible detective (Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/BBC Studios/Simon Ridgway)
That emotional connection plays a key role in grounding the show’s otherwise whimsical tone. “He doesn’t patronise Janie,” Timothy adds. “It’s almost like a meeting of the souls. There’s a lot of hidden affection in their relationship.”
However, much like John, Janie is keeping her own secrets. Producer Madeline Addy hints there are deeper layers to Janie. “There’s one big whodunnit throughout the show that involves Janie. It seeds itself in the six episodes. So there’s quite a lot going on,” says Madeline.
Timothy, meanwhile, enjoyed the pace of shooting the show. “It felt like filming a new movie every week,” he says. For all the on-screen tension and mystery, filming for Death Valley in Wales was anything but bleak, giving Gwyneth the opportunity to return to her roots. “It’s nice to be home, even if it rains,” she says.
Still, even that couldn’t be guaranteed. Series creator Paul Doolan – best known for Bloods – learned the hard way not to rely on the Welsh weather. He explains, “We needed torrential rain for one big scene and it was like Barbados!”
Despite the curveball, Paul was determined to inject some comedy into the murder-mystery formula. “A lot of modern murder shows are relentlessly grim. We just wanted a bit of comedy,” he says.
The Death Valley line-up includes a string of familiar faces(Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC/BBC Studios/Simon Ridgway)
That insight partly came from his time on Bloods, where he worked with real paramedics. “They’ve seen the worst of everything, and yet they’re always joking,” he says. “It’s how people cope, it comes into every career.”
To capture the uniquely Welsh sense of humour, Paul enlisted comedian and writer Sian Harries. “That freed things up. It heightened everything,” he says. Gwyneth agrees, “Sian’s additions really made it feel Welsh and true to life.”
On set, Timothy kept spirits high, sometimes spoiling Gwyneth’s composure. “There was one scene where he skipped down the stairs and I just lost it,” she says.
Their rapport wasn’t built from scratch as Gwyneth had previously worked with Timothy’s actor son Rafe in To Kill A Mockingbird. But they’re not the only familiar faces in Death Valley.
With a smart script, stunning scenery and a funny and fresh take on detective drama, Death Valley sits between Broadchurch and Only Murders In The Building – but with a distinctive Welsh flavour.
