There aren\u2019t many murder mysteries that leave audiences crying at the end, but Broadchurch may be an exception.
The immense popularity of the series is proof that the detective genre has successfully revitalised itself for the 21st century. In the last few years we may have seen the end of classic series like Inspector Morse and A Touch of Frost, but we\u2019ve been introduced to a slew of new detectives: Dr. Gregory House, Dr. Temperance \u2018Bones\u2019 Brennan, James McNulty, and even a re-vamped version of Sherlock Holmes. These detectives, and their programmes, are reshaping the conventions of the murder mystery genre.
Whodunit to whydunit
We\u2019re used to the Midsomer Murders format, in which the victims drop like flies. In the more recently devised detective programmes, death weighs much more heavily, grief is expressed more subtly, and the characters react with more emotional force. These programmes probe the psychological and emotional life of the characters; they don\u2019t just keep the audience guessing, \u2018whodunit\u2019, but they also ask, \u2018whydunit?\u2019
