Death in Paradise confirms Happy Valley, Doctors and Waterloo Road stars for Christmas Special of hit BBC drama
BBC viewers will be treated to an all star cast for the Death in Paradise Christmas special.
Death in Paradise will air its Christmas special next month ahead of its new series in 2025, and it’s set to welcome some familiar actors to the cast.
The new series follows on from the 2024 series, but welcomes a new detective to the island as Detective Inspector Mervin Wilson makes his entrance, played by Don Gilet.
The actor is is best known for playing Lucas Johnson in EastEnders, as well as Jacob Harris in Sherwood and John Howell in Shetland.
Joining the former soap actor is Happy Valley star Steven Hartley, Waterloo Road actress Angela Griffin and Doctors star Dex Lee who are all joining the Christmas special.
Regular actors like Don Warrington, Danny John-Jules, Shantol Jackson, Ginny Holder, and Élizabeth Bourgine are all back too.
The series continues as viewers return to the island of St Marie for more puzzling mysteries and dramatic plot twists.
The official synopsis for the Christmas special reads: “Londoner Mervin Wilson ruffles some feathers as he clashes with the island’s way of life.
“But he quickly sinks his teeth into one of the team’s most puzzling murder cases yet: three men, all unconnected apart from the fact that they’re dressed as Santa Claus, and seemingly all shot with the exact same gun at the exact same time.
“As Mervin wrangles this impossible murder, his colleagues struggle with their new boss’s unusual working methods.
“And Dwayne’s Christmas with his father doesn’t exactly go to plan…”
Death in Paradise is the UK’s most watched returning drama so far this year across all broadcasters and streamers, with the 2024 BBC series watched by over 8 million viewers.
The new series waves goodbye to Ralf Little, who played the main character from series nine to thirteen of the show – which has been airing since 2011.
Speaking about his new role Don Gilet said: “I am delighted to have returned to the wonderful island of Guadeloupe and this time to be stepping into the well-worn shoes of the Detective Inspector.
“It’s been a real pleasure filming such a beloved series alongside the hardworking cast and crew.
“I can’t wait for the fans to see how DI Mervin Wilson fares on the island, how he fits within the Saint Marie police team and what secrets may unfold…”
He added: “This is a big show, with a big heart and the love continually grows for it. It is my intention to never lose sight of that and to remain grateful, humbled and dedicated.
“Even during those testing times when every sinew is screaming at me to run off the set and dive into the sea, swimming pool or an ice-cold beer – whichever happens to be closer at the time!”
Most memorable Death in Paradise episodes
By Conor O’Brien
- Arriving in Paradise: The show’s very first episode, introducing Ben Miller as the straight-laced DI Richard Poole. This episode also introduces Poole’s team and the fictional island location location of Saint Marie.
- Amongst Us: The eighth episode of series one sees Richard uncover a major secret about Aidan (Adrian Dunbar), who has been dating Catherine (Elizabeth Bourgine). Far from his Line of Duty character Ted Hastings, Aidan is revealed to be a murderer.
- Death of a Detective: The first episode of series three marks a major turning point for Death in Paradise. DI Poole is killed off – with his murder being the first case for replacement DI Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall). This mirrors two years earlier, when Poole solved his predecessor’s murder.
- Stab in the Dark: This instalment, the first episode of series four, proved memorable for two reasons. It marked the introduction of Florence Cassell (Josephine Jobert) who became a long-running character. Meanwhile, Don Gilet guest-starred as the killer – almost a decade before becoming the show’s latest DI.
- Swimming in Murder: Similarly to above, this episode marks the first appearance of JP Hooper (Tobi Bakare), who starred for seven series.
- Man Overboard (Part One and Two): This two-parter in series six had a lot of different elements involved. Some of the team travelled to London, DI Goodman exited the show – while newcomer DI Jack Mooney (Ardal O’Hanlon) made his first appearance.
- Switcharoo: Airing as the fifth episode of series nine, this was the first intalment following DI Mooney’s departure. In his place came DI Neville Parker (Ralf Little) – who became the show’s longest-serving DI.
- Sins of the Detective: The latter half of a two-parter in series 12, which saw Neville in the frame for murdering smarmy criminologist David Cartwright. Although the team eventually uncover the actual murder, it comes with a big shock.
- A Murder in the Skies: The finale of series 13 marked Neville’s exit from Saint Marie. The unlucky-in-love detective got a happy ending by sailing into the sunset with love interest Florence Cassell – who’d returned a few episodes earlier.