'Death in Paradise' Spinoff 'Return to Paradise' is a Breath of Fresh Aussie Air

It was only a matter of time for the Para-verse (sorry, not Telly Vision’s term) to once again wrestle itself out of its comfort zone. "The Para-verse," for those unaware, is the unlovely term for the BBC/BritBox’s Death in Paradise franchise, which has expanded to Beyond Paradise, and now, Return to Paradise. 

To begin at the beginning, Death in Paradise first premiered in 2011, set in the fictional Caribbean island of Saint-Marie. Beginning with Ben Miller as DI Richard Poole, a series of London detectives are sent to solve island murders. It aired (and still does) in winter when a bit of Caribbean warmth and light are welcome in England. Miller was killed off after two seasons, succeeded by Kris Marshall (Season 3–6), Ardal O'Hanlon (Season 6–9), Ralf Little (Season 9–13), and current lead Don Gilet. Marshall, as DI Humphrey Goodman, helms Beyond Paradise, in which he performs eccentric acts of detection in the gorgeous, sunny scenery of Devon. The third season debuts in October 2025 on BritBox. 

Now – drumroll – we have a spin-off set in Australia, Return to Paradise, and our fish-out-of-water police officer is a woman. (It’s about time!) More than that, DI Mackenzie Clarke (Anna Samson) is driven, serious, and not afraid to speak her mind. She can be intimidating, and dresses for the part in a black pants-vest-jacket combo with a subdued shirt that would look right at home in London, but is totally incongruous Down Under.

Return to Paradise aired in the U.K. in the fall of 2024, hopped over the Atlantic in May 2025 to premiere on Ovation (that was a surprise!) before settling on BritBox. Various idiosyncratic scenarios (with murder) are featured in each episode – the death of a wellness influencer on the Dolphin Cove fun run, a murdered hairdresser, a radical eco-activist is mysteriously killed, a game of bowls turns deadly (with supernatural implications), and a mine owner dies in a classic locked-room scenario. But this first episode features the death–by–drowning, or stabbing, of a local VIP, a case that is way beyond the skills of the Dolphin Cove Police.

Dolphin Cove, the fictional setting for the series, is gorgeous, and we get the chance to see some of the best of Australia’s acting talent. Plus, you know, lots of rippling muscle and tanned six-packs on the beach. Mackenzie says at one point in exasperation, “Why is your shirt off?”

The shirtless man in question is her former fiancé, whom she dumped by fleeing to England six years before, and joined the Metropolitan Police Force. Brilliant at her work, she developed a reputation for solving complex cases; however, she’s now under investigation, and her reputation and her job are in jeopardy. She has nowhere to go but Dolphin Cove, her hometown, where her name is still mud – beginning with the taxi driver from the airport who dumps her 3 km from her destination. 

She’s returned to fix up and rent out her mother’s house, her mother having decided to go on an artistic pilgrimage. The house is a daunting mess left for her daughter to clean up, with at least one dead rat in the trash can. (It’s on the beach. There are rats.) Her mother left a note which contained one word – Gone.

However, Senior Sergeant Philomena Strong (Catherine McClements) has no choice but to ask for Mackenzie's help. Macenzie claims she has to return to London soon. But she’s intrigued, Phil knows it, and the next morning, Mackenzie drives down to the police station to join the team. She immediately starts asking pertinent questions, scaring the local cops, Colin and Felix. Team member Reggie Rocco (Celia Ireland), a retired teacher who now works for the police, is pleased to see her again (the only one so far). Evidence trickles in, including a phone message left by Granger for a young, female employee, Becky Hayden (Vivienne Awasoga), with whom he was having an affair. 

Granger’s wife, Susan Stirling (Jennie Baird), was out for a run when her husband was killed. She believed the affair was over, since she saw herself and her husband as the aristocrats of the community who would not stoop to sully their name. But Becky knows Susan’s pre-nup controlled him, and Mackenzie guesses she’s pregnant.

There’s one person MacKenzie really does not want to meet again: her former fiancé, Glenn Strong (Tai Hara), the department’s forensic pathologist. He’s Phil’s son (how awkward would it be to have your mother-in-law as your boss?). But Glenn tells Colin that Mackenzie is brilliant, a good person despite her forbidding exterior. They're still attracted to each other, but there’s someone else involved: Frankie (who answers only to her proper name, Francesca Camilla Kelpington II), a delightful dog who greets MacKenzie with absolute joy.

But what about Mackenzie’s London job? In the Paradise tradition, a character from Death in Paradise is resurrected – her London boss, DI Jack Mooney (Ardol O’Harlan). She calls him, with her identity hidden, but Jack is surrounded by a group of officers listening as he pretends to take a sales call from a mobile phone service. The investigation could go on for months, and he tells her not to call him again.

Mackenzie becomes less of a loner and tentatively bonds with the team. There’s a great scene in the premiere where she, Colin, Felix, and Reggie chase after a suspect, and it’s Mackenzie who brings him down in the middle of a beach yoga session. “Namaste,” she tells one of the startled yoga practitioners. At the end of the first episode, the case solved, she is convinced she is no longer needed, despite a bravura performance in which she gave an entirely new analysis of the case and discovered they had misidentified the original murderer and their victim. 

Touchingly, she apologizes to Colin for throwing away a cup of coffee he bought her after an all-nighter, and you get the impression she’s not used to revealing regret. She and Colin become friends, and she offers her mother’s house to him to rent. Thanks to her presence on the team, Colin and Glenn have strengthened their friendship, and Colin has grown in confidence. Even so, Mackenzie is surprised when Phil offers her a place on the team. (Of course, Phil talked to DI Jack Mooney!) She points out to Mackenzie, in a kindly, teasing sort of way, that Dolphin Cove is now the only police station in the world that would hire her. 

The strong storyline and characterization make for a credible and entertaining series. Above all, the acting is gripping, particularly Anna Samson’s subtly brilliant performance. We’re torn between admiration and dislike when we first encounter Mackenzie, but her competence and intelligence win us over as she forges a place for herself. Will she stay? For the sake of the series, she has to. Season 2 is already filming. But it may not be dependent on rekindling her romance with Glenn, and that's a refreshing approach.

Return to Paradise Season 1 continues with new episodes every Tuesday through mid-October 2025. Season 2 is already in production. Death in Paradise Seasons 1 through 14 and Beyond Paradise Seasons 1 and 2 are available to stream on BritBox.