The detective was still licking his wounds in the Death in Paradise Christmas special.
Even with his mum joining him for the festive season, Neville’s mood was as flat as a squashed Christmas pudding in the Death in Paradise special following the events of season 12.
It looked like the detective had finally found love with tourist Sophie, a development that was championed by viewers following the Florence debacle, with the two of them seemingly committed to making a real go of it.
But in a heartbreaking twist, it was unveiled that his new love interest had travelled to Saint Marie under a false name to destroy him as revenge for the death of her sister, which she blamed on Neville.
“I was really impressed with the ambition of the storyline,” Ralf Little, who plays Neville, told RadioTimes.com.
“After the 10 year mark, shows can rest on their laurels a bit or even run out of ideas, and actually, I think this series just keeps getting better and better and more and more ambitious.”
Neville was emotionally floored by the reveal – and he even began questioning how a seasoned detective such as himself had fallen victim to such a crime.
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“He says at some point, ‘I had a murderer living in my own house and I didn’t see it. I didn’t see any of it coming. I’m supposed to be a detective and I just let it all happen,”’ Little continued.
“So he’s really, really beating himself up, and he’s really in a bad place – and frankly, he’s not even sure anymore if he’s up to the job.”
Since then, Neville’s conflict about his abilities as a detective has settled, but his confidence in finding “the one” is at an all-time low.
“New year, new start,” his mum Melanie says to him at the Christmas party, and while he had a smile for her in that moment, it’s going to take more than a few words of encouragement to get him back on the horse.
Will he ever fully recover from his past trauma? The jury is currently out.
As for Naomi, all she needed to boost her confidence was several Christmas cocktails, and before the sergeant knew what she was doing, she had planted a kiss on Marlon’s lips, leaving both of them lost for words.
Is this the start of a beautiful romance? Or will their friendship fail to recover from that very awkward moment? Find out in season 13, which arrives in 2024.
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