And that’s all folks! Death in Paradise is finished for another season while they attempt to repopulate the island of St Marie after all of season 11’s murders - and we're so sad it's over! The beloved BBC show is helmed by Ralf Little, who plays DI Neville Parker, who joined us to chat about his favourite moments of the season, his reaction to how Floreville played out, and more...
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"Season 11 was an absolute joy, I always really enjoy it out there, but it is tougher than you think," Ralf admitted. "It’s physically demanding with the heat but I try not to talk about it that much because everyone is like, 'Oh boohoo, it must be really difficult being in the Caribbean.' I loved it, I think Shantol [Jackson] is an amazing addition to the cast, but it was sad to see Josie go and she’s sadly missed."
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Like the audience, Ralf marvels over the ongoing complex mysteries that the writers manage to piece together, saying: "It’s funny isn’t it, trying to think of a new setting for each murder, each puzzle, and they keep coming up with them. It looks amazing, the design of it was fantastic… I just think it worked really well, maybe one of my favourite episodes!
What did you make of season 11?
"One of the show’s strengths is that it follows a formula but plays with it very intelligently and I thought it was a very poignant episode - not just the mystery but all the stuff with commissioner too."
Of course, in the finale the Commissioner discovers that he had a daughter he never knew about after reconciling with his ex-wife, Maggie. But this has been a season of heartache for many characters, as Ralf himself well knows.
Speaking about the relationship that fans lovingly labeled 'Floreville’, Ralf said: "It was disappointing for Neville, poor old Nev. I think that Florence and Neville’s relationship was beautifully conceived and written and Josie’s amazing so it was wonderful to play that out with her.
Ralf plays Neville Parker in the hit show
"I guess the writers and producers of the show can’t let Neville get too happy! We’re already talking about this guy lucky enough to be living in paradise, he needs some hardship! He’s not conquered them, they still exist, but he’s on a subtle and lovely journey and once he had that sort, to find love with this charming, charismatic, intelligent and beautiful woman it’d be like, oh come on.
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"As much as we feel like that’s what we want to see, we’re not gonna enjoy watching a guy who has had a great time every week. I understand the choice, I was sad for Neville but I understood the dramatic choice and I think it was the right one."
Josephine left the show in season 11
But since Neville is looking for love in the season 11 finale, does that mean he’ll find it?
"It would be nice, wouldn’t it," Ralf pondered. "Be wary of the detectives being too happy, if they’re too happy there’s nowhere else for them to go… but it would be really lovely. One thing Tim Key, our exec, loves winds me up about is that he never ever wants Neville to look too cool.
"And I’m like, 'Come on man!' At the weekends I’m an adrenaline junkie, I scuba dive, snorkeling and jet skiing, all this great stuff you can do in the Caribbean. So I’d suggest, 'Maybe Neville could be on a jet ski?' And Tim’s like, 'NOT a chance,' it’s now a running joke where he is obsessed with never letting me look cool."
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