# List of Murdoch Mysteries episodes
*Murdoch Mysteries* is a Canadian period detective drama, based on Maureen Jennings's novels, in which Detective William Murdoch applies then-radical forensic techniques such as fingerprinting and trace evidence to crimes in turn-of-the-century Toronto. The episode list covers three made-for-television movies broadcast in 2004 and 2005, the ongoing series that premiered on January 24, 2008, and the specials and webisodes produced alongside the regular seasons.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386955/episodes/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Precursor | Three made-for-television movies, *The Murdoch Mysteries* (2004–2005), with Peter Outerbridge as William Murdoch[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386955/episodes/) |
| Series premiere | "Power", January 24, 2008, on CBC Television[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/) |
| Season lengths | Seasons 1–6: 13 episodes each; seasons 7–13: 18 each; season 14: 11; seasons 15–17: 24 each; season 18: 22; season 19: 21[4](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/murdoch-mysteries) |
| Episode count | 333+ episodes at 60 minutes each[5](https://epguides.com/MurdochMysteries/) |
| Milestone | The series passed 200 episodes during its 13th season (2019–2020)[6](https://www.wgc.ca/sites/default/files/resource/2020-05/CanScreen-Vol22No2-FULL-LoRes.pdf) |
| Christmas specials | *A Merry Murdoch Christmas* (December 21, 2015), *Once Upon a Murdoch Christmas* (December 12, 2016), and *Home for the Holidays* (December 18, 2017)[7](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/seasons/official/0) |
| Season 20 | Premiered October 5, 2026, with new episodes on CBC Gem, Ovation TV, and Acorn TV[8](https://murdochmysteries.com/) |
## The 2004–2005 television movies
Before the weekly series, three made-for-television films collectively titled *The Murdoch Mysteries* aired in 2004 and 2005, with [Peter Outerbridge](https://www.edgepedia.org/peter-outerbridge) playing Detective William Murdoch. Outerbridge later appeared in the 2008 series as Father Keegan.[1](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/) The first film, "Except the Dying", aired on May 13, 2004, and follows Murdoch investigating the murder of a young girl found drugged and strangled in an alley in the red light district. The second, "Poor Tom Is Cold", aired September 12, 2004, and turns on Murdoch's suspicion that a constable's apparent suicide was staged; using unproven techniques such as taking fingerprints off the weapon, he satisfies himself that he has a case of murder.[2](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386955/episodes/)
## Season 1 (2008)
The series proper began on January 24, 2008, with [Yannick Bisson](https://www.edgepedia.org/yannick-bisson) as Murdoch, and ran thirteen weekly episodes to April 17, 2008.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/) • [5](https://epguides.com/MurdochMysteries/) The season established the show's pattern of building cases around period science and historical figures:
1. "Power" (January 24, 2008): the electrocution of a woman during a demonstration draws Murdoch into the dispute over whether Toronto should continue with Edison's DC system or [Nikola Tesla](https://www.edgepedia.org/nikola-tesla)'s AC system.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
2. "The Glass Ceiling" (January 31, 2008): a killer known for his deadly use of a stiletto may have escaped from jail to take revenge on the public servants who helped convict him.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
3. "The Knockdown" (February 7, 2008): boxer Amos Robinson, supposed to throw a fight, knocks out his opponent instead and is murdered before the night is out.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
4. "Elementary, My Dear Murdoch" (February 14, 2008): Murdoch accompanies Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, in Toronto on a spiritualism lecture tour, to a clairvoyant who leads them to a freshly buried murder victim.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
5. "'Til Death Do Us Part" (February 21, 2008): an heir is murdered in church minutes before his marriage of convenience.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
6. "Let Loose the Dogs" (February 28, 2008): a fixed dog-fighting conspiracy produces a murder, and the prime suspect is Murdoch's estranged father.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
7. "Body Double" (March 6, 2008): a desiccated corpse crashes through a theater stage during a performance of *Macbeth*.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
8. "Still Waters" (March 13, 2008): a young man who recently replaced a rower on the 1896 Olympic rowing team is found drowned.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
9. "Belly Speaker" (March 20, 2008): a wastrel is found dead with varnish forced down his throat, and his estranged ventriloquist son is discovered in a wardrobe.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
10. "Child's Play" (March 27, 2008): glue-factory owner Howard Rookwood is murdered in his horse stables.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
11. "Bad Medicine" (April 3, 2008): a physician researching brain abnormalities is killed with a crossbow, and Murdoch traces the hooded killer to the patients of his institute.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
12. "The Prince and the Rebel" (April 10, 2008): Murdoch protects Prince Alfred, Queen Victoria's grandson, from a Fenian conspiracy during a Toronto visit.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
13. "The Annoying Red Planet" (April 17, 2008): a farmer is found hanged in a freshly plowed field with no footprints around it, and Constable Crabtree suspects extraterrestrial involvement; it is the season's highest-rated episode on IMDb at 8.0/10.[3](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
## Season structure and broadcast history
The season calendar changed twice. Seasons 1 through 6 each contained 13 episodes and aired in winter and spring, from the January 2008 debut through April 2013. From season 7, first broadcast in September 2013, the show moved to a fall premiere on CBC and expanded to 18 episodes per season, a length it kept through season 13.[4](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/murdoch-mysteries) • [9](https://murdochmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Category%3ASeasons)
**A change of broadcaster.** The series nearly ended at season five, when commissioning broadcaster Citytv pulled the plug in 2011; the show landed at CBC, where it has remained.[6](https://www.wgc.ca/sites/default/files/resource/2020-05/CanScreen-Vol22No2-FULL-LoRes.pdf) Under CBC the episode orders grew: seasons 15, 16, and 17 each ran 24 episodes, season 18 ran 22 (October 2024 to April 2025), and season 19 ran 21 (October 2025 to April 2026).[4](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/murdoch-mysteries) Season 14 was the exception to the fall pattern, premiering in January 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it was also the shortest regular season at 11 episodes.[9](https://murdochmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Category%3ASeasons) • [4](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/murdoch-mysteries)
The 200th episode fell in the 13th season, in early 2020, a milestone showrunner Peter Mitchell marked in an interview with *Canadian Screenwriter*.[6](https://www.wgc.ca/sites/default/files/resource/2020-05/CanScreen-Vol22No2-FULL-LoRes.pdf) Season 20 premiered on October 5, 2026, with the official site directing viewers to CBC Gem, Ovation TV, and [Acorn TV](https://www.edgepedia.org/acorn-tv) for the all-new season; its first episode has Murdoch questioning the seemingly open-and-shut case against mystery author Nigella Fletcher, who awaits execution in Malta for her husband's murder.[8](https://murdochmysteries.com/) • [10](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/593/murdoch-mysteries/episodeguide)
## Specials and webisodes
Alongside the numbered seasons, the production has released standalone specials and short web series. Three Christmas specials aired on [CBC Television](https://www.edgepedia.org/cbc-television): *A Merry Murdoch Christmas* (85 minutes, December 21, 2015), *Once Upon a Murdoch Christmas* (88 minutes, December 12, 2016), and *Home for the Holidays*, an 88-minute episode billed as the season finale (December 18, 2017).[7](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/seasons/official/0)
Webisodes are exclusive original online series created as an extension of the seasons, starting with season 4 in 2011.[11](https://murdochmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Webisode_Guide) *The Curse of the Lost Pharaohs* ran as three-minute CBC web episodes beginning June 7, 2011, and *The Murdoch Effect*, a six-part web series, aired on May 24, 2012.[7](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/seasons/official/0) • [12](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/allseasons/official) Later short-form specials include *Beyond Time* (January 17, 2017) and *Murdoch Mysteries: The Silent Film* (September 10, 2018), which reimagines the show as a silent picture.[12](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/allseasons/official)
## Distribution
In Canada the series streams on CBC Gem, which posts episodes one week before they air on CBC, and in the United States on Ovation.[5](https://epguides.com/MurdochMysteries/) Season 19 ran as an Acorn TV exclusive in the United States, with new episodes on Mondays.[13](https://images.amcnetworks.com/amcnetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/March-ATV-Calendar_FNL.pdf) The official site states that the series, now in its 19th season, airs in over 150 countries.[8](https://murdochmysteries.com/)
## References
1. [Murdoch Mysteries (TV Series 2008– ) – IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/)
2. [The Murdoch Mysteries (TV Mini Series 2004–2005) – Episode list, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0386955/episodes/)
3. [Murdoch Mysteries (TV Series 2008– ) – Episode list, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091909/episodes/)
4. [Murdoch Mysteries – TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/murdoch-mysteries)
5. [Murdoch Mysteries (a Titles & Air Dates Guide), epguides.com](https://epguides.com/MurdochMysteries/)
6. [Murdoch Mysteries' Major Milestone, Canadian Screenwriter Vol. 22 No. 2 (Writers Guild of Canada)](https://www.wgc.ca/sites/default/files/resource/2020-05/CanScreen-Vol22No2-FULL-LoRes.pdf)
7. [Murdoch Mysteries – Specials, TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/seasons/official/0)
8. [Murdoch Mysteries – The Official Site](https://murdochmysteries.com/)
9. [Category:Seasons, Murdoch Mysteries Wiki (Fandom)](https://murdochmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Category%3ASeasons)
10. [Murdoch Mysteries – Episode Guide, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/593/murdoch-mysteries/episodeguide)
11. [Webisode Guide, Murdoch Mysteries Wiki (Fandom)](https://murdochmysteries.fandom.com/wiki/Webisode_Guide)
12. [Murdoch Mysteries – Aired Order, All Seasons, TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/series/murdoch-mysteries/allseasons/official)
13. [Acorn TV March 2026 Calendar, AMC Networks](https://images.amcnetworks.com/amcnetworks.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/March-ATV-Calendar_FNL.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Seasons, episodes, and installments › Installment collections and reference › Scripted live-action episode lists › Live-action episode lists*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license