Beyond Paradise’s Kris Marshall responds to surprise Christmas cameo as Humphrey and Martha finally get married

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A double surprise lay in store for Humphrey in this year’s Beyond Paradise Christmas special.

Martha surprised everyone by secretly planning their wedding after their first attempt fell through at the end of season two. She even managed to get Humphrey’s old boss, Selwyn – who used to be the police commissioner – to be Humphrey’s best man.

Marshall said coordinating schedules was tricky since Don is also on another show, but everyone was confident they’d be able to make it happen. He added that he’d known for a while that Warrington would be involved.

Selwyn greeted Humphrey with a coldness that made it clear he wasn’t happy to see him, saying simply, “Nice of you to join us,” as Humphrey came through the door. It was easy to tell Selwyn wasn’t pleased.

But Death in Paradise fans will know that’s all part of Selwyn’s unique charisma.

Marshall explained that it’s hard to pin down exactly what Selwyn does, and he tends to move through situations being pleasant but a little unclear. Humphrey, Marshall added, always found this behavior strange and captivating. Instead of being upset by Selwyn, Humphrey seemed oddly charmed by it – a kind of ‘reverse charm’.

And for Marshall, working alongside Warrington has always been a highlight.

I especially loved acting alongside Don. We’ve shared the stage before, like in ‘Glengarry, Glen Ross’ in London’s West End, but I always felt our scenes together in ‘Death in Paradise’ were particularly enjoyable.

One of the things I enjoyed most about working on Death in Paradise was the chance to be a bit mysterious and indirect, and I really missed that. Returning to that style, and maintaining that same subtle approach, was great. I think my character, Humphrey, finds it amusing and appreciates that quality.

“So I’m always delighted to do more scenes with Don.”

Selwyn contributed to a beautiful moment, but the real focus is Humphrey and Martha, who are now married. This feels particularly meaningful considering they briefly split up earlier in the series due to the difficulties of trying to have a baby, and Archie’s attempts to rekindle things with Martha. Despite that rough patch, their love for each other has always been clear.

Sally Bretton believes Humphrey and Martha have always been meant for each other, and that the past couple of difficult years, filled with challenges and sadness, have only confirmed that connection.

She seems to want a really big, meaningful display of how much she loves him – something that shows he’s the most important thing in her life. It’s less about making a formal commitment through marriage and more about celebrating their love and enjoying the moment.

Marshall agrees, saying he’s relieved they finally addressed the situation. He doesn’t believe it reflects any change in their feelings for each other, but rather that they simply hadn’t felt the need to define their relationship before. Whenever they’ve attempted to, something else has always come up.

During the filming of season 4, which just finished, Marshall had a funny lapse and temporarily forgot about their recent wedding.

Sally and I were both married at the time, and I distinctly remember being on set during the first week of filming. I realized I still had my wedding ring on – my actual wedding ring – and thought to myself, ‘Oh no! I’ve already been filming for three days!’

Oh, that’s right, I do have a wedding ring! Everything’s okay now that I remembered that it’s already happened – we’re married.

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Beyond Paradise season 4 will arrive on BBC One and iPlayer in 2026.

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Authors

Abby RobinsonDrama Editor

Abby Robinson is the Drama Editor at TopMob, where she writes about TV dramas and comedies. Before that, she was a TV writer for Digital Spy and a content writer for Mumsnet. She has a degree and a postgraduate diploma in English Studies.

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2025-12-22 02:06