What Is Jason Hughes Doing Now

Remember Jason Hughes? He was the perpetually worried, brilliantly dry-witted sidekick to John Nettles in Midsomer Murders. Yes, that Jason Hughes. The one who made detective work look like a stressful, tweed-filled board game. Well, grab a cuppa, because his life now is way more surprising than a body in a vicarage.

He Ditched the Tweed for a Very Different Beat

Jason Hughes hasn't been chasing murderers in the English countryside for a decade. He traded blood spatter analysis for radio microphones. Since 2018, he’s been a mainstay on BBC Radio 4, mostly as a host and contributor. Think of him as the voice of calm, dry logic in your morning commute.

But here’s the kicker: he’s obsessed with clocks. No, really. He presented a whole radio documentary called The Clockmakers of Liverpool. He got deep into the gears, springs, and history of timekeeping. It’s the most "Jason Hughes" pivot possible—from solving mysteries to understanding the mechanics of time itself.

He’s Still Acting, But Way Weirder

Don’t worry, he hasn’t quit acting completely. He just picks stranger projects now. In 2023, he popped up in the bonkers Netflix series The Crown. Wait, no—that was another actor. He actually appeared in a bizarre, critically-acclaimed play called The Score in London. He played a composer going mad. Naturally.

The best part? He returned to the theatre in 2024 for a wild, one-man show called B S T. He just stood on stage and told true, hilarious stories from his life. One involved accidentally joining a cult for a weekend. Another was about getting stuck in a lift with a very famous, very grumpy actress. He’s basically become a professional storyteller.

He Lives a Shockingly Normal (Yet Quirky) Life

You won’t find Jason Hughes on Instagram bragging about his avocado toast. He’s anti-social media. He has said in interviews that he finds “the whole thing terrifying.” Instead, he lives in a quiet corner of London with his wife and two kids. He walks to the local pub. He buys milk.

But here’s the juicy bit of trivia: he is a certified bee-keeper. Yes, during lockdown, he took up beekeeping. He now has three hives in his garden. He makes his own honey. He names the queen bees after obscure characters from 18th-century novels. It’s true. If he’s not on stage, he’s suiting up in a white veil and lovingly tending to thousands of buzzing insects. Talk about a side hustle.

He’s Become the King of Podcasts (Sort Of)

While he avoids Instagram, he loves the spoken word. He hosts a podcast called The Re-Covered. It’s not about solving crimes. It’s about finding lost songs. He and a musician friend dig up forgotten, weird vinyl records from charity shops, listen to them, and then try to track down the original artists. It’s like Antiques Roadshow meets a detective show, but with terrible 1970s synth music.

In one episode, they found a record by a man who only made music for his cat. In another, they tracked down a folk singer who now runs a goat farm in Wales. Jason’s joy in these discoveries is infectious. He laughs like a child finding buried treasure.

Why We Should All Care About a Middle-Aged Bee-Keeper

Because Jason Hughes represents a beautiful, underrated thing: the quiet, weird pivot. He didn’t chase Hollywood fame after Midsomer. He didn’t write a boring memoir about “the struggle.” He just got really into clocks, bees, and forgotten records. He chose curiosity over celebrity.

He’s living proof that you can be famous for one thing, and then just… become something else entirely. He’s not trying to be a star. He’s trying to be interesting. And that’s way more fun to watch.

The Weirdest Fact of All

Here’s the kicker that ties it all together. In 2022, he auctioned off a jar of his own honey for charity. The winning bid? Over £500. The buyer was a Midsomer Murders fan who wanted to taste the honey from the “bee of the man who solved the murders.” Jason found this both hilarious and deeply unsettling. He said, “It’s just honey. But thank you for the creepy compliment.”

So, what is Jason Hughes doing now? He’s keeping time, keeping bees, and keeping it weird. He’s narrating the BBC’s Great British Railway Journeys in his sleepiest voice. He’s learning to play the glass harmonica (yes, that’s a real instrument made of spinning glass bowls). He’s probably right now, this very second, trying to teach a bee to do a little dance.

And honestly? That’s way cooler than solving another fake murder in a fake English village. He traded the scripted drama for the joy of real-life absurdity. And we’re all richer for it—even if we only get to taste it in jar of very expensive, very famous honey.