BBC Death in Paradise star opens up about ‘intense’ filming as he takes over from Ralf Little
Don Gilet is taking over from Ralf Little as the new lead detective on the fictional island of Saint Marie in BBC detective drama Death In Paradise, but things don't get off to a great start for DI Mervin Wilson
Don Gilet is taking over from Ralf Little as the new lead detective on the fictional island of Saint Marie in BBC detective drama Death In Paradise, but things don’t get off to a great start for DI Mervin Wilson
Don Gilet has spilled the beans on the “intense” shooting schedule of Death In Paradise.
The EastEnders star steps into fill Ralf Little’s shoes as the new sleuth on Saint Marie. The drama ramps up from day one for DI Mervin Wilson, and Don hasn’t shied away from detailing the gruelling nature of filming in the sizzling climes of Guadeloupe
Chatting about filming the festive episode, he remarked: “It’s intense because you’ve got that heat from the start to the end of the day. It does get to a point where you are used to it, but it takes that extra layer of concentration.
“You can’t turn the temperature down, but it’s a beautiful backdrop to shoot against. Sometimes, you have to pinch yourself and go look at where you are and what you’re doing. I’m going on it, and I know it’s going to be scary, but I’m going to do it.”
The Death In Paradise Christmas Special airs this December (
BBC)
Gilet went on to confess: “You’re daring yourself. Then you sit in the seat going, ‘What have I just let myself in for? ‘ But it was exciting because I knew I was embarking on this new journey. I felt this great sense of relief. It was a great reminder to me that, yeah, you can still do this, it felt like a little personal air punch without anyone looking moment.”
Ralf Little, Gilet’s predecessor, had previously admitted that whilst his heart was reluctant to say goodbye to the series, his head told him moving on was the wise choice, reports Wales Online.
In an emotional reveal about his final series, he shared: “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.
2But 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.”
