Beyond Paradise's festive episode was a heartwarmer for fans, as Humphrey and Martha tentatively continued their fostering journey - so what's in store for series 3 and when does it start?

The Christmas special saw the thoroughly likeable couple face a tricky personal challenge, while Humphrey and the team also had to solve two crimes.

As the credits rolled, Beyond Paradise fans were understandably left wondering about the upcoming series 3 start date. So here's everything we know so far...

***Warning: minor spoilers from the Beyond Paradise Christmas Special 2024 ahead***

Will there be a third season of Beyond Paradise?

In April 2024, BBC One confirmed that there will be a series 3 of Beyond Paradise. In a tweet sent out after series 2's finale, they said: "Missing us already? Good news: there's another #BeyondParadise Christmas special coming your way, followed by series 3 next year!"

Like Death in Paradise - soon to air its 14th season - there's no reason why the Devon-based spin-off can't run for years and years.

When will series 3 start?

Although the BBC has not yet announced the start date for Beyond Paradise series 3, we expect it to be in the first half of 2025.

Series 1 kicked off February 2023, with Kris Marshall reprising his role of DI Humphrey Goodman five years after he left Saint Marie in Death in Paradise.

After a Christmas special in 2023, series 2 started in March 2024... So we'd expect series 3 of Beyond Paradise to start in February or March 2025.

Death in Paradise series 14 will come first, though.

What happened at the end of Beyond Paradise series 2?

Series 2 ended with future seasons very much in mind - the impending fostering journey of Martha and Humphrey, not to mention the mounting crimes occurring in the fictional Devonshire town of Shipton Abbott.

The series finale of Beyond Paradise season 2 was a happy one, even though Humphrey Goodman and Martha Lloyd called off their wedding.

In the end, Martha and Humphrey agreed NOT to get married. However, they vowed to do so in the future, and threw a not-getting-married party on the beach.

Instead, they got closer to fostering a child. Viewers will know that, after being unable to conceive a child, the pair decided to become foster parents.

In the Beyond Paradise Christmas Special 2024, Humphrey and Martha's fostering journey continued as they opened their home to introverted teenager Jaiden.

At first, Martha struggled to bond with Jaiden - until she found "the secret" to it all. Of course, she wanted everything to be perfect, but having their first teenager at Christmas was always going to be tough.

Initially, Jaiden came across as "rude". He was sitting alone in his room all the time, on his phone. Bus Martha eventually discovered that Jaiden was talking to his baby brother Ben, who has a different dad who he is living with in Ireland.

We're expecting actor Austin Taylor to return as Jaiden in Beyond Paradise series 3.

Beyond Paradise series 3 news

Beyond Paradise series 3 will see the Shipton Abbott police force tackle plenty of intriguing new cases, including a body that's found in the river, a "baffling" chocolate box poisoning, a "historic farming feud" and a "spiking incident" on the water.

Meanwhile, Martha and Humphrey must "overcome unexpected hurdles as foster parents".

Their fostering journey isn't made any easier by the reappearance of Martha's old flame, Archie Hughes, played by returning cast member Jamie Bamber.

Tim Key, executive producer at Red Planet Pictures, said: "We are delighted to be back in the beautiful South West, filming what promises to be our strongest series yet, packed full of mysteries, surprises, challenges and lots of heart."

He added: "We love making the show and the audience response to it is fantastic, and it's especially exciting to welcome back Jamie Bamber to Shipton Abbott. We can't wait for everyone to see what we've been up to."

Beyond Paradise series 1 and 2 are available on BBC iPlayer, with series coming in 2025.