Death In Paradise returns for its third Christmas special this year, which sees DI Neville Parker (Ralf Little) and the team investigating the suspicious death of an entrepreneur and the subsequent disappearance of a key witness.
It's going to be a busy Christmas for Neville, who's also playing host to his mum Melanie (guest star Doon Mackichan), who's come to Saint Marie to cheer her son up following his recent heartbreak after he discovered that his relationship with girlfriend Sophie (Chelsea Edge) was a sham, and Sophie was plotting to frame him for murder. And as if that weren't enough, Neville also accidentally angers Commissioner Selwyn Patterson (Don Warrington) over a misunderstanding at the switching on of the island's Christmas lights...
We caught up with stars Ralf Little, Élizabeth Bourgine (who plays local mayor and bar owner Catherine Bordey) and Don Warrington to find out what's in store...
Death In Paradise Christmas Special interview with Ralf Little, Élizabeth Bourgine and Don Warrington
Why do people love a murder mystery at Christmas?
Élizabeth: "Because it's a lovely game and a challenge! And they will be part of our lovely family in Saint Marie, so they will be happy to join us. They will have a lot of surprises this year — they will see Neville's mother, who we adore, so they will love him much more!"
Were you excited for Doon Mackichan join the show as Neville's mum, Melanie?
Ralf: "I was so delighted when they told me that Doon was coming to do it. She and I have crossed paths a few times over the years — we're not big old friends, but we know each other well enough and we've always really enjoyed each other's comedy. I watched the first series of Knowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge between the last series of Death In Paradise and this one, and I was like, 'Doon's great, I must send her a text' — and then here she was! And no surprise whatsoever, she was absolutely brilliant, she was fun on-screen and off-screen."
What kind of mum is Melanie?
Ralf: "It's funny — Neville is the way he is because when he was a kid he was allergic to everything and he was a little bit coddled, so his mum had to look after him. But the character that arrives in the show is almost the exact opposite of what you'd expected — she's really fun-loving and free-spirited! She's actually a little bit like, 'Neville, come on, maybe when you were a kid you needed to be a bit more insular, but it's time to live life a bit more'. She's kind of the antithesis of him, and slightly embarrassing to him!"
She quickly strikes up a friendship with Catherine too, doesn't she?
Élizabeth: "They get along very, very well — Catherine has been waiting a long time to meet Melanie! They become, I could say, partners in crime — Catherine has organised a Christmas carnival with a lot of parties and drinks everywhere, and she organises dates for herself and Melanie. They go dancing, and they have fun! They are two women with the same energy, and they become sort of best friends, it's nice."
What else can we expect from the Christmas episode this year?
Don: "I think it's very special in itself — each Christmas episode is very different, and this one is more traditionally Christmas in its feeling. It's more upbeat."
Ralf: "Last year's was a ghost story, and this one is more about family values — the mystery centres around a family, Neville's mum comes to visit, so it's about what family means and centring family at Christmas."
Is it always fun to film a Christmas episode?
Ralf: "The Christmas episode is always the first one we shoot."
Don: "We're suddenly all back together again, and that brings with it a kind of excitement. You wouldn't imagine it would be, but it's always a shock to arrive back — the island, the weather, and us being here, so there's always a buzz to the first episode!"
Ralf: "Back home if you're doing a Christmas special, the chances are you aren't going to film it at Christmas and that's weird enough, but it's extra weird here because it's bright sunshine and that's not what you're used to! But Don's exactly right — everyone's excited to see each other and get going again, so hopefully that's going to come across on screen."
What would your character's perfect Christmas day look like?
Don: "I think Selwyn would spend it with a bottle of very old old rum and his favourite people, sitting on the beach and having fun!"
Élizabeth: "I think Catherine would keep things quiet because she's becoming a grandmother very soon, so I think she's preparing for Camille [her daughter, played by Sara Martins from 2011-2015, with a brief return for the 10th-anniversary special in 2021] becoming a mother — and Catherine will be drinking rum too, I think!"
Ralf: "Neville's an interesting one because I think he would say, possibly even up until very recently, that his ideal Christmas is a traditional Christmas dinner, and then maybe going down the local with some friends, doing a pub quiz and all the things that he's done his whole life. But since we've got to know him in the show, I think he lives his perfect Christmas, and maybe he's just around the point where he might even admit that. I think Neville's perfect Christmas is with his friends and colleagues, here in the sunshine — although he might not be able to move on from chicken and chips just yet..."
- The Death In Paradise Christmas special airs on Boxing Day on BBC1 at 9pm
