Who will replace Ralf Little on Death in Paradise?

The original detective inspector on the island was Richard Poole (Ben Miller), who solved murders for two seasons before being murdered himself at the start of season 3. He was replaced by fan favourite Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall), who departed in season 6 to live in London with his girlfriend Martha (and to later move to the Devon coast in spin-off Beyond Paradise).

Jack Mooney (Ardal O'Hanlon) then arrived on the scene, before eventually making way for Neville in season 9.

Now, 38 episodes and five years after he first stepped foot onto the sandy beaches of Saint Marie (or more precisely Guadeloupe, where Death In Paradise is filmed), Neville has departed.

As soon as Little confirmed that Neville isn't coming back – the ending of the episode saw him sail away with Florence, but it could have feasibly been for a holiday rather than a permanent departure – speculation began as to who could head to the Caribbean and join Shantol Jackson, Don Warrington, Ginny Holder and Danny John-Jules, who recently returned to the show.

It's likely Little's replacement will be confirmed pretty soon because Death in Paradise usually films during the summer months, as executive producer Tim Key explained in an interview with Radio Times to celebrate the 100th episode earlier this year.

"We start filming in April, and then we go right the way through until the end of October," he explained.

"It's a big commitment. Some of the crew, they are out in Guadeloupe from March to November, and it's a very, very long time for them to be away. And the lead actors, they can't be doing other auditions, they can't be doing other work, and by the time you get back home, it's nearly Christmas when the industry is kind of closing down a bit. So it's a big ask.

"And it needs a very kind of specific person and personality to be able to commit to it and enjoy it, and exploit it to its maximum."

While we await the big announcement, let's take a look at some of the actors who have been rumoured as possible replacements for Ralf Little in season 14.

Simon Bird

Best known for his roles as Will in The Inbetweeners and Adam in Friday Night Dinner, comic actor Bird is currently the bookies' favourite to join the Death ion Paradise team (even his Wikipedia page hints he's been cast).

The 39-year-old would be the youngest actor to take on the role to date – Little was 40 when he was cast – but the big question is whether a move to the Caribbean would be feasible for Bird, as a husband and father of two?

Channel 4 sitcom Everyone Else Burns, in which he stars, has also been renewed for a second season, and he has also won acclaim as the director of movie Days Of Bagnold Summer and 2023's Such Brave Girls for the BBC – will he be happy to put that aspect of his career on hold for DIP?

Can we see Simon Bird solving crime in Saint Marie?

He certainly ticks all the same boxes as previous leads – skilled at comic acting as well as drama, being recognisable without being too linked to any previous roles – so it's no surprise he is the popular, if somewhat predictable, choice as he would fit right in as the awkward Englishman on the island.

Diane Morgan

It's not written in stone that the British detective in Saint Marie has to be a man, and the actress hotly tipped to be the first woman to take on the role is actress-comedian-writer Diane Morgan – known to millions of fans as dim-witted interviewer Philomena Cunk.

Morgan, 48, has also won praise for her roles as Kath in the Ricky Gervais series After Life and as Liz in BBC comedy Motherland, as well as for the series Mandy (the third season of which airs on the BBC this week), which she also writes and directs.

Can we see Diane Morgan solving crime in Saint Marie?

Morgan is one of our favourite comic actresses, but could she be too snarky and sarcastic for the residents of Saint Marie? We can’t help but wonder whether it would be hard to get used to her intelligently questioning criminals when we are so used to her playing our beloved but useless interrogator Philomena…

Mathew Horne

Another comic actor whose name is in the mix is Mathew Horne, star of the hugely successful Gavin & Stacey and Bad Education.

While there have been rumours that the beloved 2007-2010 sitcom would return for another Christmas special this year, which could rule Horne out of the running for DIP, nothing has been confirmed, with writer and co-star Ruth Jones telling RTE Radio 1 in February that it was "sadly a rumour" and that "if there was something to say on that front, James [Corden] and I would happily announce it".

Can we see Mathew Horne solving crime in Saint Marie?

While Horne has appeared in numerous shows, if you're of a certain age he will always be Gavin in your heart. And Gavin isn’t quite who we imagine solving murders – unless, of course, he brought along his smarter half, Stacey (Joanna Page).

Given the recent streaming success of 1980s cop/romantic series Dempsey & Makepeace, maybe now is the time for Gavin & Stacey to leave Barry behind and take their romance to the Caribbean.

Jaye Griffiths

Jaye Griffiths, 60, has already appeared in one episode of Death in Paradise as DI Karen Flitcroft, who popped up in season 12's Sins of the Detective, Part 2 to investigate Neville's involvement in the murder of criminologist David Cartwright.

It would certainly be an interesting twist to change the 'British policeman moves to the island' formula of the show and instead promote a returning character, and Griffiths' performance has already made her a fan favourite.

If she looks familiar beyond her appearance in the crime drama, Jaye has also starred as Elle Gardner in Casualty, Sally Johnson in The Bill and Professor Janet Mander in Silent Witness.

Can we see Jaye Griffiths solving crime in Saint Marie?

Griffiths already knows the lay of the land thanks to her season 12 appearance, so she'd easily slot back in to the Saint Marie police force – and we can just see her sparring with Commissioner Selwyn Patterson, too.

Jodie Whittaker

Jodie Whittaker, 41, has also been mentioned as a possible replacement for Little, and she's certainly no stranger to committing to a long-running series, having played the lead in Doctor Who for five years.

The Yorkshire-born actress has also won acclaim for her roles in Broadchurch, Black Mirror, Trust Me and more recently, the prison-set series Time, and will next be seen in the Netflix series Toxic Town that filmed at the end of 2023.

Can we see Jodie Whittaker solving crime in Saint Marie?

We're sure that a no-nonsense police woman from Whittaker's native Yorkshire would know how to deal with Selwyn and Dwayne, while the more loveable, Doctor Who side of Whittaker would become best friends with Naomi and Darlene, making the former Doctor a terrific fit.

Romesh Ranganathan

It's possible that Romesh Ranganathan's name has been added to the list of possible replacements simply because he seems to be in just about every other TV show that's on at the moment, so why not Death in Paradise?

The 45-year-old comedian, presenter and actor from Crawley is host of The Weakest Link, co-host of the BAFTA TV Awards (with Rob Beckett), star of The Misinvestigations of Romesh Ranganathan (season 2 coming soon) and The Misadventures of Romesh Ranganathan, co-creator, co-writer and star of BBC comedy drama Avoidance, and a regular guest on shows including Have I Got News For You and A League Of Their Own.

He's probably far too busy to head over to the Caribbean anytime soon, especially as he also presents the Saturday morning show on BBC Radio 2, having taken over from Claudia Winkleman, and has an upcoming stage tour, Hustle, which is running from April to June this year.

Can we see Romesh Ranganathan solving crime in Saint Marie?

He's used to asking the questions on The Weakest Link, so he certainly has the interrogation skills, but we think Ranganathan's TV personality is just too big for Saint Marie – or, indeed, for the whole of the Caribbean.

All 13 seasons of Death in Paradise are available to stream now on BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what else is on.

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