Death in Paradise stars' reasons for quitting from struggling marriages to baby bombshells

Fans of Death in Paradise are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the show's new detective, Detective Inspector Mervin Wilson (Don Gilet). However, the latest DI may well be feeling a little nervous as he enters the Saint Marie police station.

Indeed, as beautiful as the island undoubtedly is, previous detectives have run into mortal peril, with more than a few grisly murders along the way. And while many long-running crime shows focus on one sleuth, Mervin will be the fifth detective to take up the posting as viewers look ahead to season 14.

And it looks as though this new DI could be harbouring a secret as he swaps London for sun-kissed beaches. According to the BBC press release: "While assisting with a case following a short trip, the team discover Mervin may have an ulterior motive for being on the island."

How long former EastEnders actor Gilet sticks around remains to be seen, however, with the show having gained a reputation for quick turnarounds. So why have so many former stars left what's previously been described the "best job" in telly?

Ben Miller - Richard Poole

It all began with a sweaty and red-faced Detective Inspector Richard Poole turning up on the tropical island wearing a suit and tie. He hated living in Saint Marie during the first series but eventually started to put up with island life.

But he met an untimely end at the start of season three when he was murdered at a Cambridge University reunion with an ice pick after threatening to expose an identity theft. Actor Ben Miller decided to leave the role in 2014 because he wanted to save his relationship - and he was about to become a father.

"Two weeks after I arrived in the Caribbean, Jessica found out that she was pregnant," he revealed. "I've just got divorced, and I've finally met somebody, and now I'm on the other side of the world, and we're having a baby. That's a proper curveball to be on the end of. So I knew what I had to do to get my wife back – quit Death in Paradise!"

The actor rose to fame alongside Pointless host Alexander Armstrong in their comedy sketch show Armstrong and Miller. Since then he's appeared in the Johnny English films, Primeval, Doc Martin, and Upstart Crow.

Most recently, Ben played Lord Featherington in the Netflix series Bridgerton, a gambler who frittered all his family's money away and then won it back, before ultimately meeting a sinister end.

Despite his pretty conclusive ending on Death in Paradise, Ben returned for the 10th-anniversary celebrations. The actor jumped at the chance to return to the show as he has "unfinished business" with the character, who appeared as a hallucination in the last series.

Kris Marshall - Humphrey Goodman

My Family star Kris Marshall took over from Ben Miller at the beginning of the third series. The forgetful and unorganised DI Humphrey Goodman loved Caribbean life and fell romantically in love with DS Bordey.

After solving a special case in London, DI Goodman decided to stay with his new love interest Martha. In real life, Marshall opted to leave the series in 2017 because of the pressure the role put on his young family.

He told Radio Times that he had an agreement in place with his wife Hannah that he would only do the show for a "few years". "It's something my wife and I discussed three or four years ago," said Marshall.

"When I was first offered the job, my son was six months old, and my wife wasn't working, so it was a very easy decision. We decided I would do Death in Paradise for a few years until it became impractical. It was always quite a finite thing. I certainly didn't hide it from anyone I work with. I'm going to miss it terribly. There have already been times when I've thought to myself, 'Have I made the right decision?'"

The actor has since appeared in the historical drama Sanditon and the American comedy-drama Better Things. In June 2021, Kris admitted he had to leave because his son was "becoming too Caribbean".

He told Lorraine Kelly on Good Morning Britain: "I realised that I really had to get my son to school. He was becoming a bit too Caribbean - he refused to wear shoes and would only drink coconut water and eat pineapple"

He added: "He was very good on the beach but not so good with Maths and English, so I decided that it was time to get him to school. So the show had to go, really. But six months later, I'm standing on a film set in a car park in Dagenham thinking at 4 o'clock in the morning thinking, 'Have I made the right decision?'"

Ardal O'Hanlon - Jack Mooney

The third man to take over as detective inspector was DI Jack Mooney, played by Father Ted actor Ardal O'Hanlon. DI Mooney first appeared when the team travelled to England as part of a murder inquiry and was sent to Saint Marie for a holiday as a temporary replacement.

After three years, it was time for DI Mooney to move on - returning to London with daughter Siobhan instead of going off with love interest Anna. "I've spent the last four summers in Guadeloupe playing DI Jack Mooney, solving over 20 murder cases in my time there!" announced Ardal O'Hanlon.

"It's been a hugely rewarding and unforgettable experience, working with incredibly talented actors, directors, and crew while discovering a magical part of the world." Hinting that the heat may have been behind his decision to go, he added: "It's time to move on and explore other opportunities – preferably nearer the Arctic Circle."

Ardal, who has appeared in Doctor Who and Skins, has also done stand-up comedy on Live at the Apollo and Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow. More recently, he appeared as Eamonn in the second series of Channel 4 comedy Derry Girls and in series 13 of Taskmaster. It doesn't look like DI Mooney is going to be returning to the show anytime soon, as Ardal claimed he felt a real sense of closure with the series.

Ralf Little - Neville Parker

Royle Family star Ralf Little made his first appearance as DI Neville Parker midway through season nine in 2020 and departed at the end of the latest season. It was an eventful tenure for Neville, who had to juggle fighting crime with falling in love, all while battling several serious allergies.

"It’s the best job in TV," Ralf previously told The Mirror. "Not just in terms of location, because Guadeloupe is wonderful. But the show itself has become pretty iconic. In the space of an hour, we get a puzzle and a murder, which are fully resolved, along with a red herring and a couple of twists. And you’ve got, however, many main characters who all have interplaying relationships and their own foibles and challenges to overcome.

"If you think of pretty much every other detective show, they have at least 90 minutes to get that done. I think being part of the show is a huge treat for me and kind of an honour." But viewers have bid a fond farewell to DI Neville Parker, who left at the end of the latest season for a new life with romantic interest DS Florence Cassell (Josephine Jobert).

Reiterating his love for the role, Ralf, 44, recently told BBC Breakfast that, although he'd always known that this would be his final season, he was still sorry to say goodbye. Ralf revealed: "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."

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