Ralf Little, actor of Death in Paradise, shared his thoughts on filming sequences with a surprise Hollywood superstar guest appearance.
The 43-year-old actor, who portrays DI Neville Parker, admitted to being’starstruck’ when working with Hayley Mills, 77, who is making a comeback in the BBC drama.
Ralf praised Hayley, who won an Oscar and was nominated for a Bafta for her performance in Disney’s Pollyanna, for not being a diva and being an utter ‘dream.’
He exclaimed: ‘And oh my God, Oscar winner Hayley Mills! She’s the one person I got starstruck by and had to get a photo with, she was just glorious.
‘She’s been at the top of the film industry. She won an Oscar when she was a kid, “Whistle Down the Wind” is one of my favourite films of all time.
‘With somebody who has that reputation and experience, it wouldn’t be outside the realms of possibility for her to be diva-ish, difficult, demanding, but she was the most gentle, professional, sweet, fun, funny, gregarious person… just the dream! A living legend of the industry.’
Following her Hollywood career, Hayley got the titular role on the comedy Good Morning, Miss Bliss, which was eventually retooled into the 1990s classic Saved by the Bell, and has since been on British TV blockbusters such as Wild At Heart and as a guest in Midsomer Murders.
She also performed as Anna Leonowens in a big production of The King and I in the 1990s, and in 2023, she will appear in a theatrical rendition of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
Hayley is among a number of renowned faces starring on the forthcoming series of Death in Paradise, including X Factor competitor Rachel Adedeji, West End singer Richard Fleeshman (who portrayed Craig Harris on Coronation Street from 2002 to 2006), and comedian Ronni Ancona.
The BBC teased the upcoming series, revealing that it will begin with the show’s 100th episode and will see Commissioner Selwyn Patterson (played by Don Warrington) celebrate 50 years of police service before being dramatically shot by a mysterious assassin.
Elsewhere in the series, Office Marlon Pryce (Tahj Miles) confronts his future, DS Naomi Thomas (Shantol Jackson) goes on a double date with Trainee Officer Darlene Curtis (Ginny Holder), and Catherine Bordey (Elizabeth Bourgine) becomes involved in a murder case when an old friend becomes a suspect.
The BBC adds: ‘Will our hapless detective finally get his happy ever after? There’s also a deadly game of bingo, a poisoning at a cookery competition, death during a blackout, and a mystifying murder in a lift.’
Fans of Death In Paradise were treated to an epic crossover during the Beyond Paradise finale in April last year. Producers teased future seasons of the spin-off.
Creator Tony Jordan recently said: ‘This isn’t an experiment! We have tried to create a show that will deliver to the audience and get the same feeling as Death in Paradise. They are completely different worlds, but they are feel good television and I don’t think there is enough of that. I think there is so much crime drama of missing babies, dead teenagers, people hanging from trees and all sorts!
‘I like shows like Death in Paradise where the family all sit together and I love it. Death in Paradise, 9pm on a Friday, you think “oh quick sit down!”. I hope that we’ll get the same thing with Beyond Paradise.
‘We are working on ideas for future series, we’d absolutely love for it to go again.’
Death in Paradise, a crime comedy-drama, premiered on the BBC in 2011 and stars Kris Marshall from Love Actually, Ben Miller, Ardal O’Hanlon, and Ralf in the key roles.
Death In Paradise returns to BBC One and iPlayer on Sunday, February 4.
