PARTNER IN CRIME
ARDAL O’HANLON TELLS US HOW JACK IS FINDING HIS FEET IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE…
If you’ve been paying attention to our Telly Tattle section, you’ll know that Ardal O’hanlon – aka DI Jack Mooney – will be leaving Death In Paradise this year, and Ralf Little will be replacing him as DI Neville Parker. However, the time and circumstances of his departure are yet to be confirmed
– and as the ninth series begins this week, Jack is exploring new horizons. Ardal tells us more…
What’s Jack up to at the start of the series?
Jack goes for dance lessons, where he meets a witness in a case, and becomes friendly with her – so he’s in a good place. He’s still a melancholy soul, but he feels as if he belongs out there. So while it’s lonely, it’s also healthy.
You’ve seen him go through grief and healing – how was that to play?
I think I probably enjoyed this series more than any of the previous ones because there’s more of that kind of stuff. I always like the puzzles, but I love the more personal storylines. I think that there were a lot more colours to this, and more variety in what we were trying to achieve.
Can you tell us any guest stars you have on board this year?
One of the big attractions for me of doing a job like this is the amount of people you get to work and socialise with. And we get household names – I mean, Adrian Edmondson is in the first episode; he’s a personal hero of mine. He gave it everything, and he’s a fantastic raconteur and someone you look forward to socialising with in the evenings!
So why did you decide it was time to move on?
I felt like, in terms of the character, I’d done everything I possibly could with it, and in terms of island life, I’d mined it for all it was worth – I feel a real sense of completion, actually. I just hope that I didn’t outstay my welcome, but I really have enjoyed every minute of it!