Prime SUSPECT

DON GILET on the challenging time ahead for his top cop in the series finale

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DEATH IN PARADISE LAST ONE FRI, 9PM, BBC1 DRAMA

When Detective Inspector Mervin Wilson arrived on the fictional Caribbean island of Saint Marie in the 2024 Christmas special of BBC1’s hit whodunnit Death in Paradise, he assumed that his stay would be a temporary one.

The brisk crime-fighter (played by Don Gilet) was on a mission to find his birth mother, Dorna Bray (Judith Jacob), but when he discovered she had died, he then decided to stick around to investigate what happened to her. Now, after finally solving his mum’s murder, Mervin feels ready to head home to London in the Season 14 finale this week.

However, while waiting to board his plane, the body of Rosa Martinez (Renegade Nell’s Lily Nichol), who has been volunteering at a turtle conservancy, is found in his beach shack – and being in the frame for her murder, Mervin must remain on the island until his name is cleared.

TV Times caught up with Don, 58, for an exclusive chat to find out more…

So, is Mervin feeling any sadness about departing Saint Marie, or is he truly ready to leave?

He has very much got mixed feelings. There’s as much of a pull towards the island as there is away from it, and he’s having to process that. It’s like that song by The Clash, Should I Stay or Should I Go!

Saint Marie is in his DNA. He’s having to accept that and, maybe, he’s warming to the place. It’s a big decision to go: ‘Have I had my time here? Should I go back to what life was like before?’ Whatever he does, it’s going to be a wrench…

How does he react when Rosa’s body is found in his home?