Where is Death in Paradise filmed? Does Catherine's Bar exist?
You can’'t help but watch the hit drama and think where is Death in Paradise filmed? It looks so lovely!
The only thing against the place has to be its ridiculously high murder rate! From the fabulous beach shack where the show’s chief detective lives to the idyllic-looking Catherine's Bar, Death in Paradise is packed with fabulous locations.
Death in Paradise season 13 has finished filming and will air in January.
Here's where Death in Paradise is filmed and the answer to whether Catherine's Bar is real.
Where is Death in Paradise filmed?
Death in Paradise is filmed in Guadeloupe which doubles as the fictional island of Saint Marie. Guadeloupe is an overseas region of France and its official currency is the Euro. Guadeloupe has a population of just under 400,000 and its official language is French.
The island’s official website boasts that there are all kinds of exciting things you can do in Guadeloupe including getting married and going island hopping. Yep, Guadeloupe is actually made up of more than 12 islands, not just one. Former star Death in Paradise leading man Ben Miller spoke about how much he enjoyed being on the island. "There were so many moments stand out, some of them bizarre, some of them sort of beautiful," he recalls.
"One day I drove in a car all the way to the top of a volcano, up through the rainforest and it was just the most amazing thing looking out from the very top of the rainforest and seeing the whole island.
"I remember we were filming on one side of the island and you could see the volcano on Montserrat erupting — absolutely amazing!
"Another day we were filming at a big plantation house over on one of the other sides of the islands where there was a huge iguana in one of the trees, an enormous great thing, probably two and a half feet long!"
According to Trip Advisor, the best attraction on the island is the botanical gardens and wildlife park. You can't actually get a direct flight from the UK to Guadeloupe. But you can fly direct from the US.
Does Catherine’s Bar exist?
Yes, it does! Sadly, you won’t actually find Catherine herself running it, although she might pop up when the show is being filmed. But Catherine’s Bar isn’t simply a set. The scenes are shot at a beachside restaurant called "Le Madras". And just like Catherine’s Bar, it serves beer, cocktails and nice seafood. It currently has a four-star rating on Tripadvisor and many of the reviewers mention that it's Catherine's Bar.
Meanwhile, Catherine is still serving the drinks on the show in Death in Paradise season 13. She hasn't let the fact she's now mayor stop her! The team is always meeting up in her bar, normally to celebrate cracking a case.
Star Ralf Little actually shared a behind the scenes video of them filming in Catherine's Bar.
A post shared by Ralf Little (@ralf.little)
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Does the Inspector’s shack exist?
Erm, no. Sadly it’s not a real place. And the actual chief detective of Guadeloupe doesn’t look wistfully at the sea while talking to a pet lizard. Instead, the inspector’s shack is unpacked before the start of each series and put up on a beautiful stretch of sand called La Perle Beach. The show’s producer Tim Key previously told us: "We rebuild it every year and it’s all real inside. We shoot inside there. Of course we could have done those scenes in Pinewood but it wouldn’t feel the same."
Is Honoré police station real?
While it's not actually a police station, you can visit the place where the exterior shots of the police station are filmed. In reality, it's actually the Presbytery attached to the church of St Peter and St Paul in Deshaies, which is a coastal town in Guadeloupe. "We get on very well with the priest, we’ve worked with him since the beginning," producer Tim Key previously told us.
So there you go, we hope we’ve answered where Death in Paradise is filmed. And in reality, there are lots of places you can visit in Guadeloupe that are used in the show.
Star Ralf Little revealed once that each of the main actors on the show gets their own villa to stay in while filming. Not a bad job if you can get it.
If you want to catch up on all the fabulous locations in the series, all the seasons are available currently on BBC iPlayer. There are all these options below to watch the show.
