Don Gilet has opened up about the “intense” filming for Death In Paradise.
The EastEnders star is replacing Ralf Little, who starred in the BBC detective drama as DI Neville Parker, as the new lead detective on the fictional island of Saint Marie. However, things don’t get off to a great start for DI Mervin Wilson.
Now, Don has opened up about the intense filming for the show and the extreme heat of Guadeloupe, where the filming really takes place. He admitted he needed an “extra layer of concentration” to get through the hot conditions.
Speaking ahead of the Christmas special, he said: “It’s intense because you’ve got that heat from the start to the end of the day. It does get to a point where you are used to it, but it takes that extra layer of concentration.
The Death In Paradise Christmas Special airs this December -Credit:BBC
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“You can’t turn the temperature down, but it’s a beautiful backdrop to shoot against. Sometimes, you have to pinch yourself and go look at where you are and what you’re doing. I’m going on it, and I know it’s going to be scary, but I’m going to do it.”
He added to Press Association: “You’re daring yourself. Then you sit in the seat going, ‘What have I just let myself in for?’ But it was exciting because I knew I was embarking on this new journey. I felt this great sense of relief. It was a great reminder to me that, yeah, you can still do this, it felt like a little personal air punch without anyone looking moment.”
Mervin has some trouble when he arrives in Saint Marie -Credit:BBC
When he left, Ralf admitted he didn’t want to leave the show, but his head told him it was the right thing.
He explained: “This last series was always going to be my last series. I had talks with the BBC and with Red Planet, the production company, and we all agreed that it just felt… if it was in my heart, like if it was just a heart decision, I’d have wanted to do it for 20 more years. But just for the show, and… for my character Neville, it just sort of felt like his story… it deserved to be sort of finished and his sort of journey… sort of deserved to be completed, and he deserved a nice happy ending and so it just felt right.”
*Death In Paradise’s Christmas special airs on BBC One on Sunday December 22nd.