Death in Paradise: Ralf Little on Les Dennis' guest appearance
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Ever since Charles Dickens first published A Christmas Carol in book form in 1843, the festive season has been synonymous with stories involving all manner of things that go bump in the night. Such supernatural tales usually take place in wintery climes but the sunny Caribbean is also quite the “haunt” for seasonal spectres.
That’s certainly the case on the fictional isle of Sainte Marie, anyway – actually the island group of Guadeloupe, a French overseas département. “They’ve gone bold with the script this year,” smiles Ralf Little, who stars as Death In Paradise’s socially anxious detective Neville Parker.
“It’s a good old-fashioned Christmas ghost story with clever twists. It has a scary tone but it’s in keeping with the world of the show. It was fun to film and I think people are going to enjoy it.
“Don’t worry, though, it’s not a massive departure from the usual Death In Paradise story. We still know what people enjoy about the show. One of the nice things about a special is that everyone understands that you can be a bit more playful, experimental – or special even – with the tone.
“We have 90 minutes instead of an hour, so we can give storylines time to develop and tonally, things are more adventurous.
“It is definitely a little bit special and we’re treating the fans to something different. It was the first episode we filmed this year and it was admittedly a bit weird walking around the island wearing Christmas hats and having decorated Christmas trees in 36 degrees of searing July heat.”
Don Warrington, 71, who plays commissioner Selwyn Patterson in the crime-comedy drama, takes up the thread: “It actually is quite Dickensian.
“It’s a great Christmas special and it’s a very interesting storyline. It cuts deeper – deeper than one might imagine a Christmas special normally would.”
To set a suitably spooky tone, an old case of Selwyn’s has come back to haunt him following the murder of a true crime podcaster on the hunt for a missing child. A haunted house might also be involved!
Don continues: “Selwyn has been haunted by his inability to solve this case since being a very young policeman. Now, after all these years, it comes back to him, and he has a second chance. So, he grabs it with both hands. And why not? We’d all like to get rid of our ghosts.”
This may be the second DIP Christmas special but it’s a first for actress Shantol Jackson, 30, who has been playing DS Naomi Thomas, Selwyn’s assistant. “I am really excited about the Christmas Special because last year I was jealous I wasn’t in it,” she chuckles.
“People were in Yuletide costumes – I was so mad as I really wanted to be an elf. The producers promised me next year that I would be an angel. So I came back, anticipating my angel costume, but this didn’t work out as the storyline was different this year, but it’s fine. Christmas is my favourite time of year so of course, I was very excited to be part of this special episode. It is actually very spooky.”
Not that Shantol believes in spooks herself, she insists.
“No – I do not believe in ghosts and have always warded off paranormal experiences as I do not want to have one,” she says fil d h firmly. “I am not interested in having any type of interaction with anyone or anything from the other side. I know of people who have had those experiences, some scared by it, some not. But for me personally, no, nor would I want to.”
Apart from all the ghostly goings-on, love may be in the air for Neville again.
“In the second half of the last series, he was trying to get over the loss of his ex, Florence,” Ralf explains. “He’s still a little burned by that. Neville may be a superhuman sleuthing mastermind, but he’s still human. Workwise, he’s mostly settled in, but in his personal life he’s not quite sure how he feels about trying to move on. It’s this that sets the foundation for his journey in the Christmas special.
“His new love interest is a girl called Sophie Chambers [Chelsea Edge]. She comes from Manchester, too, and is travelling around. It all starts with them bumping into each other. As quirky and eccentric as Neville can be, he’s very kind and is actually a little nervous when she expresses an interest in him.
“He’s still heartbroken over Florence and he doesn’t want to waste Sophie’s time, so he’s very honest about it. Then there’s a few hh t twists and turns from there on.”
Ralf has starred in quite a few Christmas specials over the years, most notably perhaps as part of The Royle Family in which he played Antony. “They always feel a bit weird because you film them several months before Christmas itself,” he says today.
“I’m always a bit disappointed at the end of filming a festive episode because it becomes clear that all the presents under the tree are just empty boxes covered in gift wrapping rather than pressies for you.
“Obviously, the Death In Paradise Christmas special is very different to The Royle Family.
“The first DIP Christmas special was testing the waters to see if it was something people would enjoy, so the fact that it was such a massive success meant it was a no-brainer to go again. I keep saying it, but how can you be anything but unbelievably proud to be part of something that people care about and love so much? So, I was delighted.
“I still love it here and it feels like home now. I know the area, I know a lot of the locals, and I speak the language pretty well.”
Another festive treat is a guest star appearance by none other than Les Dennis. Ralf chuckles: “So, they wanted to cast an actor to play this unpleasant, manipulative, dodgy character in the Christmas episode. ‘What about Les Dennis?’, they said. Ha ha ha! One of the things I love about this show is that they’re not afraid to cast against type.
“They’re fearless in the chances they take. As an actor who’s spent a lot of my career being known for one style of work and therefore had to work quite hard to do other stuff, it’s great that some TV shows do this. Les is a lovely bloke and a fantastic actor.
“It was lovely to see him enjoying being completely different. Anytime that happens, it’s always really good fun. It’s great to ask the guest stars like Les how they’re enjoying it and have them go, ‘Yeah, I’m enjoying doing something different and it’s nice to have somebody take a chance’.
“It’s always nice n for me, as someone with a background in comedy, to get to do something different, and then to see that happen to other people, too.”
Death In Paradise has permanently as per- been in the top three most-watched shows on British television since it began in 2011 and last year’s Christmas special was the UK’s most-viewed Boxing Day show.
“The location and the setting don’t exactly hurt when we’re in the middle of cold and wind and rain,” says Ralf.
“But I think people also really care about the characters.” Don, who’s been in the series since the beginning, agrees.
“If I were to take a stab at it, I’d say it’s so popular because it has comedy, drama and characters who are essentially lovable and are relatable to the audience in different ways. They have more to them than their professions. I also think the interrelationships between the characters are special. The audience is interested in how those connections develop, and that to some extent makes it a successful series. The formula for the show has a magical chemistry.”
Odds are that the Death In Paradise Christmas special will become as much a part of Christmas telly watching as Call The Midwife. Ralf and Don certainly hope so.
“We have so much fun making the Christmas specials,” adds Ralf. “We get on really well and have such a laugh together. There’s one thing about Don, though- He tends to leave things till the last minute.
“Take Christmas, for example. Let’s just say I wouldn’t want to receive a present from him. He probably did his Christmas gift shopping at a 24-hour petrol station in the early hours of Christmas morning. ‘Oooh, a set of windscreen wipers? Lovely’. ‘L plates – it’s what I’ve always wanted’, ‘Thanks so much for the can of WD40!'”
- The Death In Paradise Christmas special is on BBC One today at 9pm
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