Beyond Paradise cast tease Humphrey and Martha’s wedding prospects in series 3

Beyond Paradise is back for a new series and fans will get to see the next chapter in Humphrey (Kris Marshall) and Martha’s (Sally Bretton) lives, both professionally and romantically.

Viewers will remember how the pair almost tied the knot at the end of the BBC show’s second series, but Martha changed her mind at the last minute and put the wedding off for another time. The couple have always had an unconventional romance, and so it is unclear whether they ever will make it down the aisle but the cast shared what viewers can expect.

Speaking with Yahoo UK and other publications on the set of series 3, Marshall and Bretton were coy about whether their characters tie the knot, but the former teases: “Nothing ever quite goes to plan for them. They’re remarkably similar, I think, which is why they kind of found each other in a storm of single life for persons who are not in their early and mid 20s… more mature singletons.

“Martha’s a wonderful character, as is Humphrey. Martha is incredibly prone to changing her mind, but he accepts that, and she accepts him for his clumsiness and his absurdities.”

“I can say Martha’s business is going from strength to strength and expanding,” Marshall adds. “He’s always busy, he’s got a 100% crime solved rate so he’s always got something going on. She’s becoming more and more busy with her business, and they’re taking on more with their first fostering journey, so there are challenges for them again. But they are strong.”

Bretton mirrors this sentiment, as she says of the couple: “They’re finding out what family looks like for them so they continue on their fostering journey, they foster a little girl who comes into their life.

“Martha opens up new premises, so she’s juggling quite a lot. They’re juggling a lot between them in that sort of frantic way. Working, home life. But they are very solid together. Yeah, I suppose that’s it in a nutshell.”

Barbara Flynn, who plays Martha’s mother Anne, also reflects on what viewers can expect from the pair, speaking to Yahoo UK and others in a further interview closer to the show’s return in which she celebrated how the characters represent a different type of relationship to what is typically seen on TV.

“They think about things very deeply and very, very sincerely [which led to] the blundering that occurred the last attempt,” Flynn says. “Goodness knows where it will lead. It’s a very interesting argument, isn’t it? Is that necessary [to get married]? That doesn’t say that you’re going to be happy forever.

“It’s a statement. But you can do that privately anyway, you don’t need to invite everyone across the world [to judge], you don’t have to do anything. You can do what you like, and that’s what I like about that storyline.

“Obviously we can’t tell you [for certain] but it’s a big possibility and I think a great debate, a really, really interesting debate about relationships and the importance of that, And, again, individuality, they’re so individual they break the mould.

“It’s a wonderful relationship, and lovely for an audience to watch. I love watching it as an audience member, it’s terrific.”

Zahra Ahmadi, who plays Humphrey’s co-worker DS Esther Williams, also teased: “Everyone’s aware they have problems and it’s very human, isn’t it? If you’re working in an office, you’re kind of aware that things aren’t quite right or things aren’t going well. I think they all hope they might, but I don’t think anything is certain.”

Regardless of the outcome of their romance, Marshall adds how he appreciates that the show is not just about his and Bretton’s characters — there’s so much more for viewers to enjoy.

“I think it’s strength of the show that you don’t just focus on Humphrey and Martha,” the actor says. “There are other characters in the show who have their own journeys, they’re not just foils for the two main protagonists.

“I think what’s good about Beyond Paradise is that it has become more representative of this environment, and the sort of rural wild beauty of the place.

“I think that’s great because it makes you realise there’s only a certain amount of ways you can murder someone on a TV series but there are myriad ways that you can rustle sheep or steal art, or commit arson in a show. We’ve got all those kinds of crimes going on.

“And I think the puzzle in episode 6, and the solving of the puzzle, is probably the most incredible —and incredibly intricate— puzzle I’ve ever witnessed in TV. It’s insane, it’s so clever. I don’t know how they wrote it, it’s brilliant.”

Beyond Paradise series 3 premieres on Friday, 28 March at 8pm on BBC One, episodes will also be available on BBC iPlayer.