Comedian Tony Gardner has contracted the Zika virus while on the set of "Death by Paradise."

The actor was in Guadeloupe, an area in the Caribbean, to film the BBC's crime comedy-drama. There have been 265 cases of the mosquito-borne infection in the UK since the outbreak was announced in 2015.

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Gardner only visited the area to do a scene. Coincidently, he has a colleague working in the Public Health England studying the viral disease. The actor revealed on Sean Hughe's podcast that "Death by Paradise" may be associated with several cases of the Zika virus infection in the UK. He said that the approximately 200 Brits who tested positive for the disease probably contracted it when they traveled to Guadeloupe to shoot the series.

About 190 cases of the Zika virus in the UK came from Guadeloupe and Caribbean which are both considered by the European Centre for Disease Control as hotspot for the disease. The Zika virus can be transmitted sexually and can gravely affect pregnant women and their unborn children.

Gardner said that "in retrospect, I probably should have been a bit more fierce with the anti-mosquito repellant." He recalled that everyone got bitten quite a few times.

"As soon as I got the rash, I knew I had it. A couple of hours before I flew out, I got the rash and then for a week I wasn't particularly well with joint pain and swelling and a bit of photophobia, I didn't like the light. Just felt pretty rough actually for about a week. Straightaway, I thought it was Zika," he said.

The producer Red Planet Pictures also revealed that some of its crews and casts became "unwell" during filming. A spokesperson for Red Planet clarified that the company is taking the safety of its cast people seriously and "made all actors aware of the potential medical issues that may arise when filming in the Caribbean, including the risk of the Zika virus."

The "Death by Paradise" star also said on the podcast that the Zika virus is not a problem for him because it would only be in his semen for six months.