Death in Paradise cast tease Naomi and Marlon's potential romance

Death in Paradise fans were surprised when Naomi Thomas and Marlon Pryce shared a kiss in the recent Christmas special, and actors Shantol Jackson and Tahj Miles have teased how the repercussions of this will impact the pair in series 13.

Jackson and Miles teased what's to come for the would-be couple in the BBC show, telling Yahoo and other publications that the kiss shocked them just as much as it did for viewers so they are at a loss about what it means for their friendship. Though both actors were keen not to reveal too much about the storyline, Miles admitted they're in a "funny little predicament" in the new episodes.

"I think Naomi and Marlon are in the same position as the fans where because of the kiss in the Christmas special they are like are 'what's gonna happen? Do we do this, do we do that?'" he teased. "They're in the same position so we watch that whole relationship and that dynamic play out as it goes along, where they're both trying to figure out what the hell just happened in that Christmas party.

"It's just fun to watch, I think some of our fans are on different sides of the ship team [a term used for when viewers support the development of a fictional relationship]. Some want it to happen, some aren't too sure, some just completely don't want it to happen.

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"So there's moments for each one of the teams where they will be satisfied at some point. But yeah, it's a funny little predicament that the whole team have been involved in and seeing how that plays out."

Jackson called Marlon and Naomi's relationship in series 13 a "strange, beautiful friendship" but remarked that there are more important things for them to deal with too — an attack on one of their own. This is because the show's forthcoming 100th episode sees Commissioner Selwyn Patterson (Don Warrington) fighting for his life after being shot by a mystery assailant.

"We know we love each other, but we're not sure if we want to be in love with each other. It's us trying to figure out what that is, but still staying focused on the task at hand, we're here to do a job first," Jackson reflects. "And I guess she's just trying to break out of her shell but she's also so protective of that friendship that she has with Marlon.

"And so we explore more in the first two episodes her trying to figure out, 'OK. How do I broach this topic with him? We need to talk about this? Is it something that we want to explore or, you know, is this not something we want to explore... and does she want to explore it with maybe someone else.'"

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The actor goes on: "But Marlon is very sweet and as the episodes go on... we'll see because I can't tell you how it will turn out, but it is a beautiful dynamic. I really do enjoy that relationship, I enjoy all the relationships but I think [the show] definitely managed to get a beautiful friendship dynamic from those two characters and we both thoroughly enjoy playing with each other."

Death in Paradise series 13 premieres on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday, 4 February at 9pm.

Watch the trailer for Death in Paradise season 13: