Only Fools and Horses icon cast in Channel 5 murder mystery series
A legendary Only Fools and Horses actor plays an expat caught up in a murder case in Channel 5's Death in Benidorm.
Only Fools and Horses legend Paul Barber has been cast in a new murder mystery series for Channel 5.
The 74-year-old actor - best known for playing lorry driver Denzil Tulser in the beloved BBC sitcom - stars as an expat who finds himself embroiled in a murder case in Death in Benidorm.
Speaking about the show - which is set to air in 2026 - a source told The Sun newspaper's TVBiz column: "Paul filmed his scenes in sunny Spain a few months ago. He enjoyed being in the holiday hotspot for a few weeks and got on great with the cast and crew, as well as holidaymakers and locals.
"He was more than happy to spend time talking about his days as Denzil and working with David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst on Only Fools and Horses."
In Death in Benidorm, John Hannah, 63, plays the lead character - a former police officer who has swapped the line of duty for running a bar in the popular Spanish seaside resort.
But with dead tourists scattered on the Costa Blanca John's alter ego goes back to his detective roots.
Paul has had an illustrious career, spanning over 50 years - with his first big TV role as Sam "Lucky" Ubootu in ITV Playhouse in 1974.
And Paul inspired Idris Elba, 53, to become an actor after The Full Monty star visited Idris' school's drama class.
In a video shared on Clarence House's Twitter - now called X - account in 2019, Idris answered a question from a young entrepreneur, asking
what made him become a role model for others, as part of Black History Month.
Idris said: "I was in my drama class, I loved drama class. It was a place of expression, I enjoyed being there, I enjoyed the sort of creative freedom.
"And this professional actor came in. His name was Paul Barber. He came in and sat amongst us, and, you know, we recognised him from TV and it was a big moment.
"He sat in our class and talked to us about his profession, who he was. I just remember thinking, 'Wow, man.' He didn’t know it, but he really, really inspired me to… become an actor."
