Former Death in Paradise actor Ben Miller has shared an exciting career update, revealing a move far removed from his time on Saint Marie. The actor, who memorably portrayed London detective Richard Poole in the beloved BBC drama, appeared on BBC Breakfast on Tuesday, May 19, to announce his forthcoming adult thriller, A Very Dangerous Pursuit.
Ben Miller's Career Since Death in Paradise
After portraying Richard Poole across two series, Miller's character met a dramatic end at the beginning of season three, paving the way for DI Humphrey Goodman (Kris Marshall). Since leaving the show, Miller has appeared in acclaimed dramas such as Austin, Professor T, and Bridgerton, and has written a bestselling series of children's adventure novels.
A New Genre: Adult Thriller
Now, Miller is branching out into a fresh genre. In A Very Dangerous Pursuit, he reimagines the hero of John Buchan's seminal spy classic The Thirty-Nine Steps in a "rip-roaring story of international intrigue, enchantresses and master criminals from the streets of Constantinople to the decks of the Titanic."
During his BBC Breakfast appearance, Miller told hosts Sally Nugent and Jon Kay: "I wanted to write a thriller. I love thrillers. I wanted to write a really dynamic thriller. This one's set in 1912, so it's the very beginning of all the technology that we love in spy stories."
The main character takes one of the very first airplane flights and rides one of the first motorbikes. He is given an object in Constantinople that turns out to have a secret, drawing interest from Americans, Germans, and French, leading to a pursuit that ends on the Titanic.
Inspiration from The Thirty-Nine Steps
Miller drew inspiration from The Thirty-Nine Steps, famously filmed by Alfred Hitchcock. He described it as "a sort of one man against the world kind of story" and the first spy story that evolves into something like James Bond. He added: "I kind of think of this as P.G. Wodehouse meets James Bond. This is a really exciting time."
The official synopsis states: "When one Richard Hannay - intrepid, inquisitive, and on the hunt for intrigue - encounters an old acquaintance in Constantinople, he has an inkling that something thrilling is afoot. Charged with an item of great mystery and import - a washbag, no less! - he soon finds himself in a very dangerous pursuit: from the luxurious confines of the Orient Express to the decks of the Titanic herself, all with the very fate of Europe in his care."
It continues: "Can he slip the net of Count Schwabing, whose long arm stretches from Berlin to the Bosphorus? And what of Madame Zara, the cabaret enchantress - does she play at affection, deception, or something far more deadly? In over his head, often a step - or thirty-nine - behind, but absolutely, resolutely determined to save the day, Hannay is about to embark on an escapade that will test his wits, his courage, and his ability to keep hold of a blasted washbag."
Death in Paradise is available to stream on BBC iPlayer, while A Very Dangerous Pursuit will be published on Thursday, May 21.
