Beyond Paradise guest cast tonight includes Coronation Street villain actor

Beyond Paradise season 2 main cast shot
A familiar face from the world of soaps will appear in Beyond Paradise. (Image credit: BBC)

Beyond Paradise season 2 fans are in for a treat tonight as Coronation Street villain Mark Frost arrives in Shipton Abbott in a guest role.

Coronation Street viewers will remember Mark as slimy Ray Crosby, the hotel owner who went on a mission to buy up all of the street and bulldoze the whole lot for redevelopment. 

By the time Ray left the cobbles in 2021, he was also guilty of attempted murder after locking Debbie and Kevin Webster in a freezer and the sexual assault of Faye Windass, played by Strictly Come Dancing 2023 winner Ellie Leach. 

Mark Frost as Ray Crosby in Coronation Street

Mark Frost as Ray Crosby in Coronation Street.  (Image credit: ITV Studios)

But if viewers were hoping Mark might be playing a nicer character in Beyond Paradise, they're possibly set for disappointment. The actor will take on the role of Patrick Kirby, a character who is the prime suspect when his sister-in-law's lifeless body is found on a moor.

But, this won't be the first time landowner Patrick has been accused of wrongdoing. According to the official synopsis for the episode airing tonight (Friday, April 19), the character has previously been accused of killing his brother.

The BBC says: "On the open ground of Abbott Moor, an early-morning walker stumbles across a chilling sight: a woman, face down on the ground, with an arrow straight through her shoulder. The victim, Niamh Kirby, didn’t see her attacker, and there’s no trace of their presence or weapon at the scene.

"As the team digs deeper, they uncover a family feud between Niamh and her brother-in-law, Patrick. She accused her brother-in-law of murdering her husband, who vanished from Shipton Abbott overnight a decade before, and the bad blood between them has never settled. With answers lying in the past, they find themselves with more than one crime to solve."

Niamh Kirby (Seeta Indrani) lies on her front on a stretcher being wheeled through a hospital corridor, still wearing her clothes and her outdoor coat, with an arrow sticking out of her back

Niamh is found with an arrow in her back in this week's Beyond Paradise.  (Image credit: BBC / Red Planet Pictures)

Whether Patrick is a killer remains to be seen, but that's not the only drama we have to look forward to in the penultimate episode of season 2. 

With their wedding fast approaching, Humphry and Martha are worried that Anne might be a little too invested in their fairytale ceremony after her recent romantic entanglements.

While elsewhere, Esther wrestles with unexpected consequences when a white lie she told Zoe about her dead father comes back to haunt her.

Beyond Paradise airs tonight, Friday, April 19 on BBC One at 8 pm. Previous episodes are available to catch up on BBC iPlayer. 

The Beyond Paradise season 2 finale airs on Friday, April 26 at 8 pm. 

Claire Crick
Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch

Claire is Assistant Managing Editor at What To Watch and has been a journalist for over 15 years, writing about everything from soaps and TV to beauty, entertainment, and even the Royal Family. After starting her career at a soap magazine, she ended up staying for 13 years, and over that time she’s pulled pints in the Rovers Return, sung karaoke in the Emmerdale village hall, taken a stroll around Albert Square, and visited Summer Bay Surf Club in sunny Australia. 

After learning some tricks of the trade at websites Digital Spy, Entertainment Daily, and Woman & Home, Claire landed a role at What’s On TV and whattowatch.com writing about all things TV and film, with a particular love for Aussie soaps, Strictly Come Dancing and Bake Off

She’s interviewed everyone from June Brown — AKA Dot Cotton — to Michelle Keegan, swapped cooking tips with baking legend Mary Berry backstage at the NTAs, and danced the night away with soap stars at countless awards bashes. There’s not a lot she doesn’t know about soaps and TV and can be very handy when a soapy question comes up in a pub quiz! 

As well as all things soap-related, Claire also loves running, spa breaks, days out with her kids, and getting lost in a good book.