Benidorm Is Murder is the detective comedy fans needed
Channel 5's Benidorm Is Murder pairs washed-up former detective Dennis Crown with amateur sleuth Rosa in a sunny, case-of-the-week comedy that feels like Death in Paradise meets Benidorm. Written by a Death in Paradise scribe and starring John Hannah, it is already being tipped as essential viewing for cosy-crime fans.
Key Takeaways
- Benidorm Is Murder is a new Channel 5 detective comedy set in the Spanish holiday hotspot.
- John Hannah plays retired detective Dennis Crown opposite Carolina Bécquer as Rosa.
- Writer Ian Jarvis has credits on Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise.
- The series premiere aired on Channel 5 at 9pm on 30 July.
- Guest stars include Denise Welch, Alistair McGowan and Tamzin Outhwaite.
If you follow sunny-side true crime mysteries for the puzzle more than the gore, this one is aimed squarely at you.
What is Benidorm Is Murder about?
The series drops a classic detective format into Benidorm's bright, chaotic resort energy. Each episode promises a fresh case to solve, framed as light comedy rather than a bleak procedural.
According to Digital Spy, the show is self-aware about on-screen detective tropes and spins those references into repeatable gags. Rosa has no formal police training; instead she brings encyclopaedic fandom knowledge of classics like Midsomer Murders and Murder, She Wrote.
She acts as the eyes and ears of the audience as retired detective Dennis Crown is begrudgingly pulled back into piecing crimes together. The Times' Carol Midgley has praised the show as a silly, upbeat antidote to grim television, calling John Hannah's washed-up former detective a Death in Paradise-meets-Benidorm treat set in the sunshine.
Why will Death in Paradise fans love this detective series?
Comparisons were always likely. Ian Jarvis, who wrote episodes of Death in Paradise and Beyond Paradise, penned Benidorm Is Murder. The case-of-the-week structure and sun-drenched location echo that familiar cosy-crime comfort blanket.
Digital Spy notes the chemistry between Hannah and Bécquer as one of the show's greatest strengths. Their polar-opposite temperaments balance each other out, with a real sense they will push one another to grow. The humour never feels out of place against the unfolding mystery and central crime story.
The first episode leans lighthearted thanks to a boyband tribute act gone wrong. PC Jesús Ballesteros, played by Damian Schedler Cruz, lands a morbid Take That-inspired pun. Viewers have also been promised that the series will marry big laughs with darker themes as it unfolds.
Who stars in Benidorm Is Murder, and when does it air?
John Hannah leads as washed-up former detective Dennis Crown, with Carolina Bécquer as Rosa. Guest appearances lined up include Denise Welch, Alistair McGowan and Tamzin Outhwaite.
Benidorm Is Murder started on Channel 5 at 9pm on 30 July. Whether it builds a fanbase as loyal as Death in Paradise remains to be seen, but early coverage already frames it as a must-watch for detective-comedy devotees chasing another sunny murder mystery.