Death in Paradise star Shaquille Ali-Yebuah has revealed that the BBC drama assists him in dealing with his brother's passing. The 30-year-old actor, who portrays Officer Sebastian Rose in the popular BBC One detective series, has reflected on how securing the role came at a crucial time following the unexpected death of his younger brother Zion in 2023, who was just 20 years old.

In conversation with the Daily Mirror newspaper, Shaquille shared: "It would have been his 23rd birthday last week. His death left us all devastated, and I took a break from acting." The actor was marking his own 30th birthday in Guadeloupe, where the long-standing drama is shot, when he pondered over his brother's absence during a family get-together on the Caribbean island. He expressed: "It was as if it was meant to be," adding it was "fate I got the part". He continued: "Guadeloupe is such a nice spiritual island. Beautiful nature, you have mangoes and coconuts just lying around in abundance.

"Beautiful sunsets and every beach is picturesque. The island also has a nice laid-back energy, there is no rush unlike the rat race in the UK."

Shaquille, who previously featured in BBC Two comedy The First Team and Paramount+ series FBI: International, mentioned that he frequently took Zion to auditions for inspiration.

He stated: "I used to bring my brother onto sets and to auditions to inspire him. I know 100 per cent he would be proud of me.

"And I know he would definitely have been with me in Guadeloupe during filming, exploring nature and island living."

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Now in its 15th series and consistently attracting approximately eight million viewers, Death in Paradise has welcomed Shaquille's character as a digitally adept and dynamic officer with a talent for cracking cases via social media.

He said: "Sebastian is such a great team player and he is always willing to go above and beyond. He tries new methods to solve cases and he thinks outside the box. His fidgety brain becomes his superpower! In future episodes, we are going to learn more about him.

"I am looking forward to the audience having a better understanding of him. He's a cool kid on the island and very popular."