Thame Midsomer Tours donate £3k to good causes

Following another successful year, Thame Midsomer Tours have again donated £3,000 to worthy causes. The Mayor’s Charities (Thame Community & Youth Centre Project and Thame Senior Friendship Centre) receive £1,500 and Thame Museum, a registered charity and Midsomer location, also receives £1,500.

Around 4,000 Midsomer fans and tourists from the UK and around the world have taken the Midsomer Walking Tour since the tours began eight years ago. Including this year’s donation, the ever-popular tours have resulted in around £19,000 being donated to local charities, based on two thirds of ticket sales income.

Next year is the 30th anniversary since Midsomer Murders began in 1997, so we are expecting special interest from fans and visitors. There have been 25 series and 140 episodes since the show began, and it’s estimated that one billion people around the world have seen it.

More tours are being laid on, with the addition of the Saturday tour weekly from 1st May onwards until 25th September. This means there will be two tours a week from 1st May - 25th September inclusive. The Wednesday tour will start as usual on 7th April, continuing weekly until 27th October. For more information, go to www.thamemidsomertours.co.uk.

Thame is one of the most-filmed locations, sometimes appearing as Causton, sometimes as one of the many picturesque villages in Midsomer County (aka Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire). The tour covers the 23 Midsomer filming locations in Thame. Our team of seven knowledgeable guides are all enthusiastic experts, not only on Midsomer Murders locations, the actors, the bizarre methods of murder and much more, but on local history too. Your guide will tell you about each location – including Thame Town Hall (aka Causton Town Hall) and Thame Museum. You will also learn fascinating snippets about Thame’s history, from its ancient Neanderthal remains to the English Civil War and Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, up until the present day – one Midsomer filming location, the Prebendal, was home to the late Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees.

Tony Long, tour coordinator, said, “We’re delighted once again to have been able to contribute substantial sums to worthy local causes while giving Midsomer fans from the UK and many other countries, such as the USA, Scandinavia, Japan, China and Australia, a wonderful insight into Thame as a major Midsomer filming location and as a fascinating town. Please join us for a Midsomer tour when the new season starts in April 2027 and help local causes at the same time.”

The guides are all unpaid volunteers. If you’re interested in doing something a bit different that also raises money for worthy local causes, why not talk to Midsomer Walking Tours about becoming a Midsomer Tour Guide? If you have some spare time and like meeting people, enjoy history, and you’re a fan of Midsomer Murders (although not obligatory as full training will be given to new recruits), get in touch with Tony, to discuss what’s involved. Most of all, you will get the chance to meet Midsomer fans, who will hang on your every word as you take them on their walking tour of Thame! It’s a lot of fun, and the guides get a lot of satisfaction from running the tours.   

·         Midsomer Guided Walking Tours of Thame will re-start on Wednesday 7th April and be held every Wednesday until 27th October 2027. The Saturday tours will start on 1st May and last until 25th September. All the tours last around 90 minutes and start at 2 pm from outside Thame Town Hall

·         Tickets are £10 per person (no increase in 2027). Book online at ticketsource.co.uk/thamemidsomer or at Thame Town Hall Information Centre in person or by phone on 01844 212833 or at Thame Museum (during opening hours – check websites  https://www.thamemuseum.org/, https://www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk/)

·         Ad hoc tours are available if Wednesday and Saturday afternoons aren’t convenient, contact [email protected] to arrange a tour

·         Thame Community & Youth Centre Project will be a hub for the community. Over £5 million has so far been donated to get the centre built on Southern Road Recreation Area, but further funding is still being sought. To donate any sum, large or small, go to https://www.thametowncouncil.gov.uk/communityandyouthcentre/. 

·         In 2027 Thame Museum celebrates 20 years since it was founded and plenty of activities are planned, including a Civil War Re-enactment.