Death in Paradise season 9: Everything you need to know
It's one of British TV's finest laid-back treats, and with audiences figures regularly in the eight-to-nine-million range, it'd be a big surprise if Death in Paradise didn't return to BBC One for a ninth series.
The Beeb is yet to officially announce if it'll be recommissioning the Caribbean-set crime procedural, but we're sure the good news can't be far off. (Well, good news for most of us – not so much the residents of Saint Marie, a few of whom will soon be dead.)
Here's everything you need to know about the potential next series, including who'd be returning for the new episodes and *sob* who won't be back.
Death in Paradise season 9 release date: When will it air?
The new series has been announced for January 9 2020.
Death in Paradise season 9 cast: Who'll star in the new episodes?
Ardal O'Hanlon – who's featured as Death in Paradise's third lead detective since Kris Marshall (who himself replaced Ben Miller) quit the show in 2017 – will be back for his third and final series as DI Jack Mooney, though his replacement has already been announced as Ralf Little – and he'll be joining this year.
Tommy Bulfin, commissioning editor, BBC Drama, added: "I am so pleased to welcome Ralf Little to the island, who we know will be brilliant in the role of D.I. Parker. Death in Paradise brings escapism and joy to BBC One and I can't wait for viewers to see what’s in store in the new year."
Expected to join him are Tobi Bakare as Officer JP Hooper, Don Warrington – who's featured in every series since the first – as Commissioner Selwyn Patterson and fellow series veteran Élizabeth Bourgine as restaurateur-turned-Mayor Catherine Bordey.
Shyko Amos, who joined the cast in its eighth series as new recruit Officer Ruby Patterson (filling the void left by Danny John-Jules' absent Dwayne Myers), is also a safe bet to return.
Joséphine Jobert, though, will not be back, having exited her role as DS Florence Cassell midway through the last series. Jobert, who'd been on the series since 2014, said she chose to leave for "personal and professional reasons" but said it was a "tough" decision to make, thanking viewers for all their "love" and "support".
On-screen, Florence decided to leave Saint Marie following the murder of her fiancé Patrice (Leemore Marrett Jr) and a near-death experience of her own.
Aude Legastelois joined Death in Paradise in series eight, episode seven as Madeleine Dumas, a new DS sent by Internal Affairs to investigate the recent shooting.
We'd bank on her sticking around.
Death in Paradise season 9 on Netflix: Will it be streaming?
Currently, only the first seven series of Death in Paradise are streaming on Netflix UK.
Fingers crossed that more episodes will be added soon. (Episodes up to and including the most recent eighth series can be purchased via Amazon Prime Video.)
Death in Paradise season 9, episode 1: What will happen next?
Much as we love it, the show does have something of a formula. Each episode will begin with a pre-credits sequence showing the events leading up to a murder, and possibly the discovery of a body, also introducing us to the latest batch of guest characters played by familiar faces off the telly.
Jack will unravel the mystery and finger the killer (tee hee) in a dramatic dénouement that revisits the murder in flashback, and afterwards, the team will all toast a job well done. (The final episode of the series will probably also include a sub-plot where Jack is tempted to return to the UK for either personal or professional reasons and finally succumbs.)
That said, the eighth series did take a few more risks, with the two-parter that wrote out Florence notably taking on a darker tone than usual. "It's a real departure from what Death in Paradise does," Ruby actress Amos told Digital Spy before the story aired. "It's dark, it's really dark.
"That was the thing on-set, 'Is this too dark? Is this even Death in Paradise?' It's really intense."
It's possible that the show might continue to experiment with the odd grittier instalment here and there – a little sour to balance out all the sweet.
If Legastelois does stick around, you can also expect Madeleine Dumas to continue finding her feet as the newest member of the team. (We anticipate Ruby will enjoy no longer being the biggest rookie, too!)
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