Death in Paradise reveals full list of series seven guest stars – with actors from Car Share, Poldark, Game of Thrones and Doctor Who

The BBC1 comedy drama will return for a new series next year, with Father Ted star Ardal O'Hanlon (DI Jack Mooney) taking over as top cop on the idyllic island of Saint Marie.

As each episode sees Mooney and his team take on a new case, guest actors help tell the story – and this year's list of stars looks particularly promising as the Caribbean crime fighters prepare to puzzle their way through a whole new set of murder mysteries.

New Tricks star Denis Lawson has joined the cast of the BBC1 show, as well as James Faulkner (Randyll Tarly in Game of Thrones), veteran British actor Simon Callow, and former Strictly Come Dancing contestant and star of The Halcyon, Mark Benton.

Other guest stars include Broadchurch's Charlotte Beaumont, who played Chloe Latimer; Richie Campbell, last seen as betrayed husband Liam in ITV's Liar; and John Sessions, who played DCI Frank Smilie in The Loch.

Doctor Who fans may recognise Adjoa Andoh, who played Francine Jones in the David Tennant era. And Poldark viewers will recognise a couple of faces: Richard Harrington, AKA Captain Andrew Blamey, and Drake Carne actor Harry Richardson.

Suzanne Packer, Katy Wix, Steve Toussaint and Zoe Boyle are also among the cast, with Dragons' Den star and Reggae Reggae sauce creator Levi Roots rounding out the list of guest stars in a rare acting appearance.

Executive producer Tim Key said in a statement: "We’re delighted to welcome so many famous faces for what promises to be a fantastic series of Death in Paradise.

"We’ve got the perfect weather for a post-Christmas treat – and some of our most puzzling puzzles ever! We can’t wait for the audience to see what the team are up to this year…"

Death in Paradise drew in an average of nine million viewers last series as Kris Marshall's DI Humphrey Goodman handed on the baton to O'Hanlon as DI Mooney, an Irish widower fresh from the Met Police in London.

In series seven we'll see him adapting to island life, helped out by series regulars DS Florence Cassell (Josephine Jobert), Officer Dwayne Myers (Danny John-Jules) and Officer JP Hooper (Tobi Bakare).

Also returning will be Elizabeth Bourgine as the owner of Catherine's Bar and Don Warrington as the Commissioner.

The BBC has teased that Mooney will be "playing poker masterminds at their own game and uncovering secrets and lies within a famous reggae band", while Florence will "tackle runaway suspects".

And "romance could be in the air" for Dwayne – but things are looking less promising for JP as his "past returns to haunt him".

Death in Paradise will return to BBC1 in early 2018