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Privacy NoticeBeyond Paradise star Zahra Ahmadi is known to fans of the Death in Paradise spin-off series as DI Humphrey Goodman’s partner in crime DS Esther Williams – but viewers might recognise her from another high-profile role. Zahra, 42, first found fame in EastEnders as the original Shabnam Masood, and while it’s been 16 years since she was last seen in Albert Square, the actress has plenty of other big-name shows on her CV. Although she likes to keep her personal life private, Zahra is fast becoming a familiar face with TV viewers as she settles into her Beyond Paradise role with the series now back on our screens for season two. Here’s all you need to know about Zahra’s achievements, from introducing a legendary Walford family to the reason she worried she would never land her Beyond Paradise role.
Zahra Ahmadi stars in Beyond Paradise with Kris Marshall
(Image: Red Planet Pictures/David Appleby)
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Proud of her Plymouth roots Despite her first big role being in EastEnders, Zahra grew up far from the soap’s London setting in Plymouth on Devon’s south coast. She is proud of her south west roots and has even said getting the chance to play a West Country character in Beyond Paradise was why she wanted to be DS Esther Williams. Zahra told the BBC: “I’ve never had the opportunity in my professional career to play a character from the West Country, so initially, that was the draw for me. I know it sounds really clichéd, but Esther is a strong, independent woman and I really respected that about her.”
Zahra found fame in the cast of EastEnders in 2007
(Image: WireImage)
Although she has lived by the coast, Zahra admitted that she had “a hard time in Guadeloupe” while filming a Death in Paradise episode because of the bug situation by the beach. “I don’t like bugs, so I had a lot of bug incidents in Guadalupe…”, she explained to Sunday Brunch. EastEnders stardom
Shabnam Masood was introduced by Zahra
Zahra had a gift of an early TV role as EastEnders’ Shabnam Masood, helping to introduce the Masood family in 2007 as the original actress in the role. Shabnam was a university graduate planning on going travelling, but ended up sticking around in Walford when she realised parents Masood (Nitin Ganatra) and Zainab (Nina Wadia) were in financial trouble. In 2008, Shabnam left for Pakistan in a bid to find herself and when her character returned in 2014, she was played by actress Rakhee Thakrar until 2016 with Zahra explaining she wanted to try out other roles. “I’ve made the tough decision to leave as I’m still young and I want to try other roles. But I’m really happy the door has been left open for me to return as it has been a great experience,” she said at the time. Life after EastEnders
Zahra joined the cast of The Bay season three
(Image: ITV/Jonny Birch/REX/Shutterstock)
Despite leaving such a high-profile soap, Zahra definitely hasn’t found it was the end of her career success – she has been cast in some very well-known shows over the past 16 years since leaving Albert Square. She has had a busy time on TV, with highlights including a starring role in season three of ITV crime drama The Bay, featuring in Black Mirror special White Christmas in 2014, and roles in Informer and Doctor Who. But before landing her current Beyond Paradise role, there was another TV job that she worried would put her out of the running to be Esther… From Death in Paradise to Beyond Paradise Death in Paradise superfans might have recognised Zahra when she arrived in spin-off show Beyond Paradise from a feature role in the original series. Zahra played a different character in Death in Paradise back in 2018, although she didn’t appear alongside Kris as Ardal O’Hanlon had taken over as the show’s star detective Jack Mooney by then. She played murder victim Daisy Anderson who had been organising a charity auction at the yacht club and was also having an affair.
Beyond Paradise wasn’t Zahra’s only time working in the show’s universe
(Image: BBC / Red Planet Pictures / Todd Anthony)
Zahra’s career has gone from strength to strength
(Image: Jeff Spicer/Getty Images)
Now, Zahra has been recast in Beyond Paradise as DS Esther Williams alongside Kris Marshall, Dylan Llewellyn and Felicity Montagu, but admitted she had worried she would be counted out of the show for having been killed off in Death in Paradise. She told Sunday Brunch: “I was a bit nervous about it, to be honest. When I got recalled [for Beyond Paradise] and was doing more and more auditions, I was like, ‘Please nobody bring it up.’ And someone said, ‘You were in Death in Paradise, right?’ and I was like, ‘Yeah…’ Because I thought, ‘How can I do it if I’ve died?’ but it’s a different universe!”Story SavedYou can find this story in  My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.Follow OK! MagazineFacebookTwitterCommentMore OnDoctor WhoEastEndersChristmasShabnam MasoodBeyond Paradise
