Death in Paradise's DI Humphrey Goodman has been given his own spin-off, Beyond Paradise

The detectives in Death in Paradise have come and gone – current star Ralf Little is the fourth actor to play a fish-out-of-water police officer on the picturesque, if crime-ridden island of Sain Marie.

Despite these changes, the show has proved hugely enduring (the 12th series comes to an end tonight) but if fans had to pick a favourite leading man, quite a few would probably plump for Kris Marshall, who took over from original star Ben Miller.

So, the good news is that his character, DI Humphrey Goodman, has been given his own spin-off, Beyond Paradise. The last time viewers saw the detective was in 2017, when he was heading to London to start a new life with Martha Lloyd (Not Going Out’s Sally Bretton).

The good news is they are still together and engaged, but it seems that going from Saint Marie to London might have been a bit of a culture shock.

Kris explains: “I think both [Martha and Humphrey] found the pace of life in London and with the Metropolitan Police a bit daunting, a little too chaotic and crazy. I think he prefers a more bucolic lifestyle, rather than the gritty backdrop of policing in London.

“Martha always had the dream to open up her own restaurant. So, they made the decision to move back down to where Martha was born and grew up.”

It turns out that her roots lie in Shipton Abbott, near the beautiful Devonshire coast, where Humphrey joins the local police force – and makes a big impression on his new colleagues DS Esther Williams (Zahra Ahmadi), PC Kelby Hartford (rising star Dylan Llewellyn of Derry Girls and Big Boys) and Office Support Margo Martins (Felicity Montagu).

As Kris says: “Wherever he goes, he leaves a sort of mini tidal wave of madness behind him and he’s causing that tidal wave to ripple through the village of Shipton Abbott.”

Humphrey also quickly discovers that despite its sleepy appearance, the town is a hotbed of crime. However, it seems the murder rate might be considerably lower than on Saint Marie.

Kris says: “Whereas in Death in Paradise it was always about the death in paradise, in Beyond Paradise, we don’t have so many deaths. We have more kidnapping, sheep rustling, art thefts, ghostly apparitions…

“It’s great because it’s revisiting a lot of the same feelings and processes, and the structure of the show is very similar, but it’s a completely different show, so it’s fresh. It’s brilliant!”

So, in the first episode, Humphrey finds himself investigating an assault where the prime suspect is a 17th-century witch. Surely there has to be a more rational explanation?

If that wasn’t a difficult enough start to life in Shipton Abbot, Humphrey also has to adjust to living with Martha’s mother Anne (Barbara Flynn), who is delighted to have her daughter back but doesn’t seem entirely sure what to make of her prospective son-in-law. Don’t worry Anne, as Death in Paradise viewers can tell you, he’ll soon grow on you.