Reaching into Inspector Morse’s past for a prequel series was a gamble that paid off handsomely. Endeavour, which followed the young detective over a seven-year period from constable to detective sergeant in the 1960s and early 1970s, just concluded after nine series. It was an exemplary prequel, beloved by newcomers and by fans of the original Inspector Morse, which it referenced playfully and with imagination.
Endeavour’s success was not a given, nor should it be laid at the feet of simple IP recognition. Prime Suspect 1973, which attempted the same trick by following a younger version of Helen Mirren’s celebrated Dci Jane Tennison, lasted only one series. Young Wallander on Netflix made it to two, but the response has been lukewarm. The 1930s-set Perry Mason starring Matthew Rhys in the lead role is faring better on HBO, but it’s clear that it’s not enough simply to...
Endeavour’s success was not a given, nor should it be laid at the feet of simple IP recognition. Prime Suspect 1973, which attempted the same trick by following a younger version of Helen Mirren’s celebrated Dci Jane Tennison, lasted only one series. Young Wallander on Netflix made it to two, but the response has been lukewarm. The 1930s-set Perry Mason starring Matthew Rhys in the lead role is faring better on HBO, but it’s clear that it’s not enough simply to...
- 3/16/2023
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Line of Duty fans are divided over rumours the show will make a grand return in 2023.
Reports have claimed that the BBC has “unfinished business” with the crime series, which came to an apparent conclusion in 2021.
While creator Jed Mercurio has never conclusively revealed that the show was finished, many assumed this to be the case.
The final episode ended with revelation of the identity of the enigmatic “H”, who was the leader of undercover corruption syndicate within the police force.
An insider told The Sun: “Viewers weren’t satisfied with the ending of series six and were crying out for a more sensational conclusion – now Jed can deliver that.
“The question is whether the person we were led to believe was H really is the villain that AC-12 has been hunting or if it was another nemesis.”
According to the source, “there’s also a theory another, darker puppet...
Reports have claimed that the BBC has “unfinished business” with the crime series, which came to an apparent conclusion in 2021.
While creator Jed Mercurio has never conclusively revealed that the show was finished, many assumed this to be the case.
The final episode ended with revelation of the identity of the enigmatic “H”, who was the leader of undercover corruption syndicate within the police force.
An insider told The Sun: “Viewers weren’t satisfied with the ending of series six and were crying out for a more sensational conclusion – now Jed can deliver that.
“The question is whether the person we were led to believe was H really is the villain that AC-12 has been hunting or if it was another nemesis.”
According to the source, “there’s also a theory another, darker puppet...
- 12/22/2022
- by Jacob Stolworthy
- The Independent - TV
A 100th anniversary is a milestone in the history of any institution. In the case of the BBC, the centenary of its founding on 18 October 1922 triggers a rush of memories, a landslide of couch-bound nostalgia. But whether it’s Doctor Who’s Dalek battles, David Attenborough striking up a bromance with a family of gorillas, or Line of Duty’s Ted Hastings invoking “Jesus, Mary, Joseph and the wee donkey”, the sweep of the corporation’s output across the past century is impossible to condense into a few paragraphs. Still, we’ve tried to pull together some of the most iconic shows of those 10 decades, from drama and documentary to comedy via arts, music and science fiction. All are iconic in their own right. Together they are a portrait of a time, a country, and a belief in broadcasting as a force for good in the world.
20. Line of Duty (2012 – 2021)
Mother of God,...
20. Line of Duty (2012 – 2021)
Mother of God,...
- 10/18/2022
- by Ed Power
- The Independent - TV
As the nights draw in and autumn arrives, some of the year’s hottest TV shows hit our screens, and drama is no exception.
In amongst the new series of cult reality shows like The Great British Bake Off, Strictly Come Dancing, Drag Race UK and I’m a Celebrity, UK TV networks start a fierce competition for the must-watch autumn dramas that will get everyone talking, leaving us with an eye-watering number of release dates to look forward to.
Here are some of the highlights from the UK’s autumn 2022 drama releases.
The Bastard Son and The Devil Himself
Netflix’s Spooky Season line-up includes this eight-part drama based on the Half Bad trilogy of YA books by Sally Greene. It tells the story of sixteen-year-old Nathan (Jay Lycurgo), the illegitimate son of the world’s most dangerous witch, who has spent his life being monitored for signs he...
In amongst the new series of cult reality shows like The Great British Bake Off, Strictly Come Dancing, Drag Race UK and I’m a Celebrity, UK TV networks start a fierce competition for the must-watch autumn dramas that will get everyone talking, leaving us with an eye-watering number of release dates to look forward to.
Here are some of the highlights from the UK’s autumn 2022 drama releases.
The Bastard Son and The Devil Himself
Netflix’s Spooky Season line-up includes this eight-part drama based on the Half Bad trilogy of YA books by Sally Greene. It tells the story of sixteen-year-old Nathan (Jay Lycurgo), the illegitimate son of the world’s most dangerous witch, who has spent his life being monitored for signs he...
- 9/9/2022
- by Lauravickersgreen
- Den of Geek
Adrian Dunbar has addressed a Line of Duty fan theory concerning Boris Johnson.
The sixth season of the hit BBC police procedural came to an explosive end last year, with a finale that divided fans.
In a new interview with The Independent, Dunbar – who plays Superintendent Ted Hastings – addressed the controversial ending as well as one popular fan theory about the prime minister.
***Spoilers for Line of Duty season six below***
The finale revealed the identity of corrupt senior police officer “H” to be the bumbling background character, Buckles.
Many fans took issue with the revelation, arguing that it was an unsatisfying conclusion to the long-running mystery.
“There were very few other ways of finishing it,” said Dunbar. “There never really is a kind of ‘Mr Big’ where the police are concerned – it’s usually just someone not passing on a piece of information, turning a blind eye.
“It’s...
The sixth season of the hit BBC police procedural came to an explosive end last year, with a finale that divided fans.
In a new interview with The Independent, Dunbar – who plays Superintendent Ted Hastings – addressed the controversial ending as well as one popular fan theory about the prime minister.
***Spoilers for Line of Duty season six below***
The finale revealed the identity of corrupt senior police officer “H” to be the bumbling background character, Buckles.
Many fans took issue with the revelation, arguing that it was an unsatisfying conclusion to the long-running mystery.
“There were very few other ways of finishing it,” said Dunbar. “There never really is a kind of ‘Mr Big’ where the police are concerned – it’s usually just someone not passing on a piece of information, turning a blind eye.
“It’s...
- 8/23/2022
- by Annabel Nugent
- The Independent - TV
Line of Duty star Adrian Dunbar has suggested that the next series could have as few as two episodes.
While there has so far been no official confirmation that the hit BBC police drama is returning for a seventh series, a renewel is widely expected.
Dunbar, who plays Ted Hastings in the hit BBC police drama, suggested that he, alongside co-stars Martin Compston and Vicky McClure, will find out later this month whether Line of Duty will indeed return.
Speaking to The Times, however, he claimed that he thought the prospective next season would contain fewer episodes than previously.
“There’s a big appetite for more Line of Duty,” he said. “It could be three or four episodes, I don’t think there’s going to be six for some reason.
“It might be two 90 minutes. But it’s all entirely down to [creator Jed Mercurio] what the storyline is going to be.
While there has so far been no official confirmation that the hit BBC police drama is returning for a seventh series, a renewel is widely expected.
Dunbar, who plays Ted Hastings in the hit BBC police drama, suggested that he, alongside co-stars Martin Compston and Vicky McClure, will find out later this month whether Line of Duty will indeed return.
Speaking to The Times, however, he claimed that he thought the prospective next season would contain fewer episodes than previously.
“There’s a big appetite for more Line of Duty,” he said. “It could be three or four episodes, I don’t think there’s going to be six for some reason.
“It might be two 90 minutes. But it’s all entirely down to [creator Jed Mercurio] what the storyline is going to be.
- 8/19/2022
- by Louis Chilton
- The Independent - TV
In the heady moments of celebration after England’s victory over Denmark in this year’s Euros semi-final, the sight of team manager Gareth Southgate prompted ITV pundit Gary Neville to comment: “The standard of leaders in this country the past couple of years has been poor. Looking at that man, he’s everything a leader should be: respectful, humble, he tells the truth.”
The former Man U right-back’s words, directed at the political rulers of a country riven by Brexit, tap into a modern craving for decency. Fed a diet of self-serving narcissism from our public figures, we hunger for more wholesome fare: moral character, humility, honesty, kindness. In the year of horrors that was 2020, that appetite was temporarily sated on TV by fictional football manager Ted Lasso.
Played in the Apple TV series by Jason Sudeikis, Ted’s thoroughgoing decency won everyone over to The Lasso Way.
The former Man U right-back’s words, directed at the political rulers of a country riven by Brexit, tap into a modern craving for decency. Fed a diet of self-serving narcissism from our public figures, we hunger for more wholesome fare: moral character, humility, honesty, kindness. In the year of horrors that was 2020, that appetite was temporarily sated on TV by fictional football manager Ted Lasso.
Played in the Apple TV series by Jason Sudeikis, Ted’s thoroughgoing decency won everyone over to The Lasso Way.
- 7/25/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Exclusive: Adrian Dunbar has become a household name in the UK thanks to his gruff performance as Superintendent Ted Hastings in hit BBC series Line Of Duty. Now, the Irish actor is turning his hand to another detective role — this time for ITV.
Dunbar will headline Ridley, a series in which he will play retiring Detective Inspector Alex Ridley, who is lured back into service as a consultant detective when his former protégée, Carol Farman, needs help cracking a complex murder case.
Penned by Vera and Father Brown writer Paul Matthew Thompson, ITV hopes Ridley can join the ranks of its detective icons, including Brenda Blethyn’s very own Vera Stanhope, David Jason’s A Touch of Frost, and John Thaw’s Inspector Morse.
Like some of these cherished dramas, Ridley’s episodes will play out over two-hour episodes, with All3Media-backed West Road Pictures making an initial season of four.
Dunbar will headline Ridley, a series in which he will play retiring Detective Inspector Alex Ridley, who is lured back into service as a consultant detective when his former protégée, Carol Farman, needs help cracking a complex murder case.
Penned by Vera and Father Brown writer Paul Matthew Thompson, ITV hopes Ridley can join the ranks of its detective icons, including Brenda Blethyn’s very own Vera Stanhope, David Jason’s A Touch of Frost, and John Thaw’s Inspector Morse.
Like some of these cherished dramas, Ridley’s episodes will play out over two-hour episodes, with All3Media-backed West Road Pictures making an initial season of four.
- 6/2/2021
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
UK ratings phenom Line of Duty did not disappoint with its season 6 finale. The season ender was watched by an average of 12.8 million viewers Sunday night, a record for the World Productions-produced BBC police corruption drama.
According to the BBC, Sunday night’s episode, which revealed the identity of the series’ arch-villain H, was the most watched episode of any drama since modern records began in 2002, not including soaps. It drew a 56.2% share of the UK’s TV audience, according to overnight figures, the highest overnight viewing number since February 2001, when an episode of ITV’s police drama Heartbeat drew 13.2 million.
Sunday’s night episode drew four million more viewers vs the Season 5 finale, which was seen by 9 million in 2019.
Created by Jed Mercurio, Line of Duty revolves around the controversial police anti-corruption unit AC-12, which investigates crimes within the police force. It stars Martin Compston as Di Steve Arnott,...
According to the BBC, Sunday night’s episode, which revealed the identity of the series’ arch-villain H, was the most watched episode of any drama since modern records began in 2002, not including soaps. It drew a 56.2% share of the UK’s TV audience, according to overnight figures, the highest overnight viewing number since February 2001, when an episode of ITV’s police drama Heartbeat drew 13.2 million.
Sunday’s night episode drew four million more viewers vs the Season 5 finale, which was seen by 9 million in 2019.
Created by Jed Mercurio, Line of Duty revolves around the controversial police anti-corruption unit AC-12, which investigates crimes within the police force. It stars Martin Compston as Di Steve Arnott,...
- 5/3/2021
- by Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Warning: contains spoilers for the Line of Duty series 6 finale.
Perhaps thanks to the extra half hour of screen time (with seven one-hour episodes instead of five plus a 90-minute finale), or perhaps because there was a genuine sense of threads being tied up as AC-12 went into storage for potentially the last time, there are fewer questions left to answer than usual after Line of Duty series six. The finale gave us lots of certainty, and just a few things still to mull over. After you’ve read our weekly episode review, catch up on the post-finale theories and questions below.
So, Buckells was H all along?
He was bent all along, ever since being part of the corrupt team that investigated the racist murder of Lawrence Christopher. But Buckells only stepped into the shoes of ‘H’ or ‘The Fourth Man’ or whatever you want to call the senior...
Perhaps thanks to the extra half hour of screen time (with seven one-hour episodes instead of five plus a 90-minute finale), or perhaps because there was a genuine sense of threads being tied up as AC-12 went into storage for potentially the last time, there are fewer questions left to answer than usual after Line of Duty series six. The finale gave us lots of certainty, and just a few things still to mull over. After you’ve read our weekly episode review, catch up on the post-finale theories and questions below.
So, Buckells was H all along?
He was bent all along, ever since being part of the corrupt team that investigated the racist murder of Lawrence Christopher. But Buckells only stepped into the shoes of ‘H’ or ‘The Fourth Man’ or whatever you want to call the senior...
- 5/2/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains spoilers for the Line of Duty series six finale.
“The genuine answer is we don’t know,” Line of Duty actor Martin Compston told the Shrine of Duty podcast last week about whether or not the BBC One crime drama will return. “But that’s nothing different for us. Jed always takes his time.” As reported by Radio Times, Compston explained, “After a series, [creator Jed Mercurio] always takes a couple of months… I think he likes to take the emotion out of it and sit down and look at all that.”
To judge by series six’s mammoth audience numbers, a seventh series would seem like a no-brainer, and yet there’s still no commission announcement.
In previous years, the BBC commissioned two Line of Duty series at a time. After the hit second run featuring Keeley Hawes as Lindsay Denton, a third and fourth series were ordered.
“The genuine answer is we don’t know,” Line of Duty actor Martin Compston told the Shrine of Duty podcast last week about whether or not the BBC One crime drama will return. “But that’s nothing different for us. Jed always takes his time.” As reported by Radio Times, Compston explained, “After a series, [creator Jed Mercurio] always takes a couple of months… I think he likes to take the emotion out of it and sit down and look at all that.”
To judge by series six’s mammoth audience numbers, a seventh series would seem like a no-brainer, and yet there’s still no commission announcement.
In previous years, the BBC commissioned two Line of Duty series at a time. After the hit second run featuring Keeley Hawes as Lindsay Denton, a third and fourth series were ordered.
- 5/2/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
This Line of Duty review contains finale spoilers.
Ian Buckells, as I live and breathe. There we were, thinking you a workshy wally with one foot on the golf course and the other skidding on a banana skin, when all along… you were, well, that, but also tapping out Ocg orders on your secret laptop in your secret millionaire’s pad and secret Gran Canaria timeshare. Dsu Buckells. The Fourth Man. Line of Duty’s Keyser So-So.
The Buckells revelation played out for viewers just like it did for AC-12: What? Him? The sight of his curly mop in the interrogation room cut our kite strings and brought us thudding back to Earth. There’d been no mwahaha mastermind behind it all. No Moriarty-like spider of crime. The big bad was a greedy oaf who hid his criminality undercover of thickness. Since the death of Tommy Hunter, it’s...
Ian Buckells, as I live and breathe. There we were, thinking you a workshy wally with one foot on the golf course and the other skidding on a banana skin, when all along… you were, well, that, but also tapping out Ocg orders on your secret laptop in your secret millionaire’s pad and secret Gran Canaria timeshare. Dsu Buckells. The Fourth Man. Line of Duty’s Keyser So-So.
The Buckells revelation played out for viewers just like it did for AC-12: What? Him? The sight of his curly mop in the interrogation room cut our kite strings and brought us thudding back to Earth. There’d been no mwahaha mastermind behind it all. No Moriarty-like spider of crime. The big bad was a greedy oaf who hid his criminality undercover of thickness. Since the death of Tommy Hunter, it’s...
- 5/2/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains major spoilers for Line of Duty series 1-6.
You could say we’ve taken this too far. You could be right. You could also say that, for a Line of Duty fan attempting to solve the Jo Davidson family mystery, it’s useful to know that Tommy Hunter was 13 years old when Jo Davidson was born, making him more likely to be her brother than her father. Or that John Corbett was born two months after Jo Davidson, making it impossible for his mother Anne-Marie McGillis to also be her mother.
And then there are the real questions, such as: the day before AC-12 raided Hillside Lane Station in series six, it was Kate Fleming’s 35th birthday. Did she bring in doughnuts? Had Kate come in worse for wear from one too many glasses of white in Frederico’s with Jo? The people demand to know.
You could say we’ve taken this too far. You could be right. You could also say that, for a Line of Duty fan attempting to solve the Jo Davidson family mystery, it’s useful to know that Tommy Hunter was 13 years old when Jo Davidson was born, making him more likely to be her brother than her father. Or that John Corbett was born two months after Jo Davidson, making it impossible for his mother Anne-Marie McGillis to also be her mother.
And then there are the real questions, such as: the day before AC-12 raided Hillside Lane Station in series six, it was Kate Fleming’s 35th birthday. Did she bring in doughnuts? Had Kate come in worse for wear from one too many glasses of white in Frederico’s with Jo? The people demand to know.
- 4/14/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains spoilers for Line of Duty series 6 episode 4
Nothing is standalone in this Line of Duty series six; everything is linked back to what’s gone before. Ryan Pilkington, Terry Boyle, Steph Corbett, Ian Buckells, Jimmy Lakewell, Blackthorn Prison, Lee Banks, even Jackie Laverty… all of them ‘previously on’ characters who’ve made a reappearance and dragged the past back with them.
It should come as no surprise then, that the series six guest lead played by Kelly Macdonald also has a significant link to the past. The end of episode four revealed that Acting Det Supt Jo Davidson is the blood relative of a key character already known to AC-12. The question is: who? When Steve and Chloe present the DNA evidence to Hastings, Steve seems to say “He’s identified over the page”, suggesting a male relative, though it’s impossible to be sure.
“I don’t...
Nothing is standalone in this Line of Duty series six; everything is linked back to what’s gone before. Ryan Pilkington, Terry Boyle, Steph Corbett, Ian Buckells, Jimmy Lakewell, Blackthorn Prison, Lee Banks, even Jackie Laverty… all of them ‘previously on’ characters who’ve made a reappearance and dragged the past back with them.
It should come as no surprise then, that the series six guest lead played by Kelly Macdonald also has a significant link to the past. The end of episode four revealed that Acting Det Supt Jo Davidson is the blood relative of a key character already known to AC-12. The question is: who? When Steve and Chloe present the DNA evidence to Hastings, Steve seems to say “He’s identified over the page”, suggesting a male relative, though it’s impossible to be sure.
“I don’t...
- 4/11/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains spoilers for Line of Duty series 6 episode 4.
After all the excitement of episode four (read our spoiler-filled review here), fans could be forgiven for taking a recovery day before putting their minds to work and trying to figure out series six’s many mysteries. But did Steve and Chloe take a rest after that shoot-out? No, so in their honour, neither will we. After all, as Kate told Ted in that piss-stinking underpass make-up scene, we’ve got a case to solve.
Jargon of the week: Nominal
Anybody convicted, cautioned, reprimanded, warned or arrested of a recordable offence has a “nominal record” on the Police National Computer, and is therefore a nominal. In the show, it seems to mean the chief individual/suspect in an investigation. In the series five opener, AC-12 referred to both Lisa McQueen and John ‘Clayton’ (before they knew he was an undercover officer) as “the nominal.
After all the excitement of episode four (read our spoiler-filled review here), fans could be forgiven for taking a recovery day before putting their minds to work and trying to figure out series six’s many mysteries. But did Steve and Chloe take a rest after that shoot-out? No, so in their honour, neither will we. After all, as Kate told Ted in that piss-stinking underpass make-up scene, we’ve got a case to solve.
Jargon of the week: Nominal
Anybody convicted, cautioned, reprimanded, warned or arrested of a recordable offence has a “nominal record” on the Police National Computer, and is therefore a nominal. In the show, it seems to mean the chief individual/suspect in an investigation. In the series five opener, AC-12 referred to both Lisa McQueen and John ‘Clayton’ (before they knew he was an undercover officer) as “the nominal.
- 4/11/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
This review contains Line of Duty spoilers.
Like a plump Christmas stocking, the real treats of series six have worked their way down to where we are now – somewhere around the heel. Having dutifully unwrapped the first couple of episodes and politely smiled at the satsumas and novelty tissues, we’ve reached the really good stuff. Episode four was nothing but single malt miniatures and Hotel Chocolat, both of which, incidentally, would be excellent ways to recover our nerves after all that excitement.
Everyone fortified? Let’s go.
Rip Jonesy. Rip Jimmy. Rip AC-12? Of all the balaclava-men-and-bolt-cutter peril the team has survived over the years, who’d have thought that in the end, they’d be brought down by bureaucracy. Acc Wise can blame it on redistribution of funds, department mergers and staff redundancies, but we know the deal. There’s no place for Ted Hastings in this rotten world.
Like a plump Christmas stocking, the real treats of series six have worked their way down to where we are now – somewhere around the heel. Having dutifully unwrapped the first couple of episodes and politely smiled at the satsumas and novelty tissues, we’ve reached the really good stuff. Episode four was nothing but single malt miniatures and Hotel Chocolat, both of which, incidentally, would be excellent ways to recover our nerves after all that excitement.
Everyone fortified? Let’s go.
Rip Jonesy. Rip Jimmy. Rip AC-12? Of all the balaclava-men-and-bolt-cutter peril the team has survived over the years, who’d have thought that in the end, they’d be brought down by bureaucracy. Acc Wise can blame it on redistribution of funds, department mergers and staff redundancies, but we know the deal. There’s no place for Ted Hastings in this rotten world.
- 4/11/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains spoilers for Line of Duty series 6 episode 3.
Now three episodes in to Line of Duty series six, the questions and theories are piling up. Jo Davidson is clearly up to her neck in it, but she’s not the one pulling the strings. Who is Jo talking to on that laptop? Is it H? What hold does the Ocg have over her, and what might it have to do with that photograph of her mother from episode one? The final four episodes will tell. In the meantime, after you’ve read our weekly episode review, there’s all this to ponder…
Is Det Supt Buckells bent?
In the ‘yes’ corner: Buckells was apparently responsible for bringing Ryan Pilkington onto the team, he used the wrong surveillance order on the Beechwood House raid thereby facilitating the kidnap and murder of Carl Banks, the witness who’d identified Terry as...
Now three episodes in to Line of Duty series six, the questions and theories are piling up. Jo Davidson is clearly up to her neck in it, but she’s not the one pulling the strings. Who is Jo talking to on that laptop? Is it H? What hold does the Ocg have over her, and what might it have to do with that photograph of her mother from episode one? The final four episodes will tell. In the meantime, after you’ve read our weekly episode review, there’s all this to ponder…
Is Det Supt Buckells bent?
In the ‘yes’ corner: Buckells was apparently responsible for bringing Ryan Pilkington onto the team, he used the wrong surveillance order on the Beechwood House raid thereby facilitating the kidnap and murder of Carl Banks, the witness who’d identified Terry as...
- 4/4/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Six series in, and Line of Duty has pinged a Jack-in-the-Box into the audience’s face so many times that we’ve learned to approach new episodes with the vigilant, arms-crossed suspicion of a mum whose teenager wants to have a party. Have you forgotten what happened last time? You can promise whatever you like, son, but ever since that girl got pushed out of that window, we have no reason to believe you.
In this state of high-alert vigilance, Line of Duty fans trust nothing and nobody. Worse than that: we start to listen out for the next loud bang, trying to anticipate where the next shock will come from. That leads, inevitably, to nonsense.
Nonsense like the popular but spurious fan theory last series that Rochenda Sandall’s character Lisa McQueen would turn out to be the secret love child of series one characters Dci Tony Gates and murder victim Jackie Laverty.
In this state of high-alert vigilance, Line of Duty fans trust nothing and nobody. Worse than that: we start to listen out for the next loud bang, trying to anticipate where the next shock will come from. That leads, inevitably, to nonsense.
Nonsense like the popular but spurious fan theory last series that Rochenda Sandall’s character Lisa McQueen would turn out to be the secret love child of series one characters Dci Tony Gates and murder victim Jackie Laverty.
- 3/22/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
This Line of Duty review contains spoilers.
Is this allowed? Somebody please check. Can Kate just leave AC-12? She’s a third of the operation. One of the three pyramids at Giza may as well stand up and walk away. The strawberry from Neapolitan ice cream, silver Olympic medals, degrees 240 – 360 of all circles… could they also just call it a day? Unacceptable. This is AC-12 we’re talking about. 12 as in four times three: the gaffer, Steve and Kate – the corners of the straight-backed, clean-nosed triangle of truth.
No wonder Ted is feeling sore about it. The Super could barely bring himself to look at Fleming’s picture in this series six opener, the sight of those blue, blue eyes prompting him to mutter about loyalty and then change the subject to great wee girl Chloe, AC-12’s newest recruit. Last series’ investigation into ‘H’ clearly left a grubby stain on the unit’s reputation.
Is this allowed? Somebody please check. Can Kate just leave AC-12? She’s a third of the operation. One of the three pyramids at Giza may as well stand up and walk away. The strawberry from Neapolitan ice cream, silver Olympic medals, degrees 240 – 360 of all circles… could they also just call it a day? Unacceptable. This is AC-12 we’re talking about. 12 as in four times three: the gaffer, Steve and Kate – the corners of the straight-backed, clean-nosed triangle of truth.
No wonder Ted is feeling sore about it. The Super could barely bring himself to look at Fleming’s picture in this series six opener, the sight of those blue, blue eyes prompting him to mutter about loyalty and then change the subject to great wee girl Chloe, AC-12’s newest recruit. Last series’ investigation into ‘H’ clearly left a grubby stain on the unit’s reputation.
- 3/21/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
“When did we stop caring about honesty and integrity?” asks Supt. Ted Hastings in the Line of Duty series six trailer. His words could be this show’s battle cry. The first series of the BBC crime thriller was inspired by the 2005 fatal shooting of Jean-Charles de Menezes, an electrician mistaken for a terrorist by a Metropolitan Police surveillance team. In the four series since, it’s drawn on other real-life failures of the law – the framing of vulnerable people for serious crimes, child abusers being protected from investigation because of their status, officers leaking to the press and accepting bribes to facilitate organised crime.
This is a drama born in reaction to the ‘post-truth era’, repeatedly staging misgivings about the ongoing conflict between PR manipulation and unflattering realities. As such, it wouldn’t be a stretch to see the tagline for series six “Lies cost lives” intended as a...
This is a drama born in reaction to the ‘post-truth era’, repeatedly staging misgivings about the ongoing conflict between PR manipulation and unflattering realities. As such, it wouldn’t be a stretch to see the tagline for series six “Lies cost lives” intended as a...
- 3/19/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains major spoilers for Line of Duty series 5
For almost a decade, Ted Hastings’ AC-12 has been a thorn in the side of Line of Duty’s organised crime group. In series one, when the Ocg blackmailed Dci Tony Gates with his lover’s corpse to make him stymie investigations into their money laundering and drug dealing operation, AC-12 uncovered it all – and they’d only been called in to investigate a freebie bacon sandwich.
In series two, when the Ocg blackmailed DS Jayne Akers and Di Lindsay Denton to reroute the police transport of former gang leader-turned-witness Tommy Hunter so they could ambush the convoy and kill Hunter to stop him from talking, AC-12 sussed the lot.
In series three, Hunter was found to have been one of 17 paedophiles including a senior police officer who sexually abused boys at a children’s home in the 1990s. AC-12 exposed...
For almost a decade, Ted Hastings’ AC-12 has been a thorn in the side of Line of Duty’s organised crime group. In series one, when the Ocg blackmailed Dci Tony Gates with his lover’s corpse to make him stymie investigations into their money laundering and drug dealing operation, AC-12 uncovered it all – and they’d only been called in to investigate a freebie bacon sandwich.
In series two, when the Ocg blackmailed DS Jayne Akers and Di Lindsay Denton to reroute the police transport of former gang leader-turned-witness Tommy Hunter so they could ambush the convoy and kill Hunter to stop him from talking, AC-12 sussed the lot.
In series three, Hunter was found to have been one of 17 paedophiles including a senior police officer who sexually abused boys at a children’s home in the 1990s. AC-12 exposed...
- 3/17/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Adrian Dunbar, Vicky McClure and Martin Compston are to Line of Duty what the ravens are to the Tower of London; if they ever leave, the kingdom will surely fall. Luckily for us, those three are going nowhere for the new seven-episode run which is due to start on BBC One from Sunday the 21st of March at 9pm.
Superintendent Ted Hastings, Detective Inspector Kate Fleming and Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott will return as AC-12, investigating a brand new, possibly bent copper as played by Kelly Macdonald. Here’s what we know about her and the other new and familiar faces we can expect to see in series six.
Kelly Macdonald – Dci Joanne Davidson
Scottish Black Mirror, Boardwalk Empire and Trainspotting actor Kelly Macdonald will play “the most enigmatic adversary AC-12 have ever faced” according to Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio. In the official press release, Dci Joanne Davidson...
Superintendent Ted Hastings, Detective Inspector Kate Fleming and Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott will return as AC-12, investigating a brand new, possibly bent copper as played by Kelly Macdonald. Here’s what we know about her and the other new and familiar faces we can expect to see in series six.
Kelly Macdonald – Dci Joanne Davidson
Scottish Black Mirror, Boardwalk Empire and Trainspotting actor Kelly Macdonald will play “the most enigmatic adversary AC-12 have ever faced” according to Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio. In the official press release, Dci Joanne Davidson...
- 3/3/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Warning: contains Line of Duty series 5 spoilers.
While each Line of Duty series welcomes a new guest character to be investigated by anti-corruption unit AC-12, there’s plenty of connective tissue between each run. Faces from the past regularly pop up in roles of varying significance – some just a face in a case file, others actively interfering with play. The production team works on the assumption that viewers have been paying attention, which is generally the case. When the series five opener welcomed back two characters – Miroslav Minkowicz and Ryan Pilkington – not seen on the show for seven years, fans made the connection within seconds.
It was a crucial connection to make. The return of organised crime group members Minkowicz and Pilkington confirmed that the bent coppers AC-12 has been chasing since the very beginning had all been linked to to the same Ocg. The people that killed Jackie Laverty in series one,...
While each Line of Duty series welcomes a new guest character to be investigated by anti-corruption unit AC-12, there’s plenty of connective tissue between each run. Faces from the past regularly pop up in roles of varying significance – some just a face in a case file, others actively interfering with play. The production team works on the assumption that viewers have been paying attention, which is generally the case. When the series five opener welcomed back two characters – Miroslav Minkowicz and Ryan Pilkington – not seen on the show for seven years, fans made the connection within seconds.
It was a crucial connection to make. The return of organised crime group members Minkowicz and Pilkington confirmed that the bent coppers AC-12 has been chasing since the very beginning had all been linked to to the same Ocg. The people that killed Jackie Laverty in series one,...
- 3/3/2021
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
The BBC has announced that the sixth season of its hit police corruption drama Line Of Duty will be extended by an episode.
The World Productions series, which plays on Netflix in a number of major territories and features on BritBox and Acorn TV in the U.S., will run for seven episodes rather than six when it returns this year.
Announcing the extension, the BBC said Season 6 of Jed Mercurio’s show would debut “soon.” It follows production being delayed last March by the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s a short clip announcing the extension, featuring Adrian Dunbar (Superintendent Ted Hastings) and Martin Compston (Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott):
Listen up, fellas. When the gaffer asks for more, you better deliver.
#LineOfDuty returns for Series 6 with an extra episode (7 instead of 6). Coming soon to @BBCOne and @BBCiPlayer. pic.twitter.com/6An7jywJI1
— BBC Press Office (@bbcpress) February 2, 2021...
The World Productions series, which plays on Netflix in a number of major territories and features on BritBox and Acorn TV in the U.S., will run for seven episodes rather than six when it returns this year.
Announcing the extension, the BBC said Season 6 of Jed Mercurio’s show would debut “soon.” It follows production being delayed last March by the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s a short clip announcing the extension, featuring Adrian Dunbar (Superintendent Ted Hastings) and Martin Compston (Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott):
Listen up, fellas. When the gaffer asks for more, you better deliver.
#LineOfDuty returns for Series 6 with an extra episode (7 instead of 6). Coming soon to @BBCOne and @BBCiPlayer. pic.twitter.com/6An7jywJI1
— BBC Press Office (@bbcpress) February 2, 2021...
- 2/2/2021
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
Louisa Mellor Dec 23, 2019
His Dark Materials series one goes out with a bang and the promise of even better to come. Spoilers ahead…
This His Dark Materials review contains spoilers.
His Dark Materials Episode 8
Before anything else, the feet have to be right. Whether you’re performing a dance move or throwing a jab, everything springs from the feet. In this finale, His Dark Materials was able to pull off balletic pirouettes and land every punch, all because, months ago, it put itself in a solid stance by casting the remarkable Dafne Keen.
Keen is remarkable. She has been throughout, but she’s especially so in this finale. Episode eight gave her a series of long, quiet, emotional two-handers – the kind of scenes that leave an actor nowhere to hide. Through clever editing and canny direction, there are tricks to make young actors look good. Fleeting moments can be captured...
His Dark Materials series one goes out with a bang and the promise of even better to come. Spoilers ahead…
This His Dark Materials review contains spoilers.
His Dark Materials Episode 8
Before anything else, the feet have to be right. Whether you’re performing a dance move or throwing a jab, everything springs from the feet. In this finale, His Dark Materials was able to pull off balletic pirouettes and land every punch, all because, months ago, it put itself in a solid stance by casting the remarkable Dafne Keen.
Keen is remarkable. She has been throughout, but she’s especially so in this finale. Episode eight gave her a series of long, quiet, emotional two-handers – the kind of scenes that leave an actor nowhere to hide. Through clever editing and canny direction, there are tricks to make young actors look good. Fleeting moments can be captured...
- 12/22/2019
- Den of Geek
BBC cop drama Line of Duty has scored its highest ever opening ratings – was the Jed Mercurio-created series helped by the Bodyguard effect?
The fifth season launched with 7.8M overnight viewers on BBC One, scoring a 38% share. This trumped the 5M for its fourth season launch, which was its first since moving from BBC Two, as well as the 7.5M viewers that tuned in for last year’s finale. It hit a peak of 8M during its hour-long return.
The ratings mean that the World Productions drama currently sits as the highest rated programme across all channels in 2019 so far. It was also a hit for 16-34 viewers, making it the second highest rated show in that demo following an Fa Cup soccer game in January.
Season five of Line of Duty will air on Acorn TV in the U.S. Hulu previously premiered the show in the States...
The fifth season launched with 7.8M overnight viewers on BBC One, scoring a 38% share. This trumped the 5M for its fourth season launch, which was its first since moving from BBC Two, as well as the 7.5M viewers that tuned in for last year’s finale. It hit a peak of 8M during its hour-long return.
The ratings mean that the World Productions drama currently sits as the highest rated programme across all channels in 2019 so far. It was also a hit for 16-34 viewers, making it the second highest rated show in that demo following an Fa Cup soccer game in January.
Season five of Line of Duty will air on Acorn TV in the U.S. Hulu previously premiered the show in the States...
- 4/1/2019
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Louisa Mellor Aug 2, 2017
In The Dark: a crime thriller that never quite managed to thrill…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Poldark: a beginners’ guide Poldark series 3 episode 8 review Poldark series 3 episode 7 review
Where’s Ted Hastings when you need him? A bent copper was at the heart of In The Dark’s second half, and AC-12 was nowhere in sight. If Line Of Duty’s crack-squad had been around, perhaps this thriller finale may have stood a chance of being thrilling. As it was, the twist waddled into view with all the grace of a nine-months-pregnant detective, and the denouement unravelled largely in explanatory dialogue after the event.
Adam the Affair, a character we’d hardly met and would probably struggle to pick out of a line-up if asked to, was the baddie. Poor dead Paul wasn’t corrupt - quite the opposite. Paul was onto Adam’s dodgy dealings with Kevin Sherwood,...
In The Dark: a crime thriller that never quite managed to thrill…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Poldark: a beginners’ guide Poldark series 3 episode 8 review Poldark series 3 episode 7 review
Where’s Ted Hastings when you need him? A bent copper was at the heart of In The Dark’s second half, and AC-12 was nowhere in sight. If Line Of Duty’s crack-squad had been around, perhaps this thriller finale may have stood a chance of being thrilling. As it was, the twist waddled into view with all the grace of a nine-months-pregnant detective, and the denouement unravelled largely in explanatory dialogue after the event.
Adam the Affair, a character we’d hardly met and would probably struggle to pick out of a line-up if asked to, was the baddie. Poor dead Paul wasn’t corrupt - quite the opposite. Paul was onto Adam’s dodgy dealings with Kevin Sherwood,...
- 8/2/2017
- Den of Geek
Simon Brew May 7, 2017
As Line Of Duty series 4 arrives on disc, we chat to the man who plays Britain's newest superhero, Adrian Dunbar. Diesel sucking ahead...
The hero we need right now? That’s Si Ted Hastings, the unbreakable – well, he better be – chief of AC-12, the unit that’s held us rapt for four series of Line Of Duty and counting. Ted is the man with morals of iron. He sucks diesel like no other. And the man who brings him to the screen, Adrian Dunbar, spared us some time for a chat, before he had to get back to bringing down bent coppers.
See related God Of War 4 may take in Norse mythology
Hello! How are you?
Yeah, mate! Good [I’ve never met Si Hastin… Adrian Dunbar before, but clearly I'm thrilled he’s called me mate]. Just got the news that we’ve been commissioned for a sixth series!
I just saw that. I trust you’re going to fill me in with spoilers...
As Line Of Duty series 4 arrives on disc, we chat to the man who plays Britain's newest superhero, Adrian Dunbar. Diesel sucking ahead...
The hero we need right now? That’s Si Ted Hastings, the unbreakable – well, he better be – chief of AC-12, the unit that’s held us rapt for four series of Line Of Duty and counting. Ted is the man with morals of iron. He sucks diesel like no other. And the man who brings him to the screen, Adrian Dunbar, spared us some time for a chat, before he had to get back to bringing down bent coppers.
See related God Of War 4 may take in Norse mythology
Hello! How are you?
Yeah, mate! Good [I’ve never met Si Hastin… Adrian Dunbar before, but clearly I'm thrilled he’s called me mate]. Just got the news that we’ve been commissioned for a sixth series!
I just saw that. I trust you’re going to fill me in with spoilers...
- 5/7/2017
- Den of Geek
Simon Brew May 5, 2017
Exclusive: Adrian Dunbar looks ahead to the next two series of Line Of Duty, and thinks the end might be in sight...
While the nation still recovers from the superb fourth series of Line Of Duty, that resides on BBC iPlayer if you’ve not had the pleasure and on DVD from next week, the news has come in today that the BBC has commissioned a further run of the show. We already knew that series five was happening, although we’re unlikely to see it until 2019. Now, though, a sixth series has been commissioned as well.
See related Arrow season 5: trailers for episode 21, Honor Thy Fathers Legends Of Tomorrow season 2 finale: trailer and synopsis Supergirl season 2: trailer for episode 20
Today, we also had the pleasure of chatting to top fella and diesel-sucker Adrian Dunbar, who has brought to the screen the real superhero of our times,...
Exclusive: Adrian Dunbar looks ahead to the next two series of Line Of Duty, and thinks the end might be in sight...
While the nation still recovers from the superb fourth series of Line Of Duty, that resides on BBC iPlayer if you’ve not had the pleasure and on DVD from next week, the news has come in today that the BBC has commissioned a further run of the show. We already knew that series five was happening, although we’re unlikely to see it until 2019. Now, though, a sixth series has been commissioned as well.
See related Arrow season 5: trailers for episode 21, Honor Thy Fathers Legends Of Tomorrow season 2 finale: trailer and synopsis Supergirl season 2: trailer for episode 20
Today, we also had the pleasure of chatting to top fella and diesel-sucker Adrian Dunbar, who has brought to the screen the real superhero of our times,...
- 5/5/2017
- Den of Geek
Louisa Mellor May 5, 2017
Major spoilers ahead as we speak to Line Of Duty creator, writer and director Jed Mercurio about Roz Huntley, Acc Hilton and more…
If I were ever to find myself alone in a room with a dead body I’d created in self-defence and pondering my next move, “plead guilty to manslaughter,” Jed Mercurio tells me. “For the minimum three years sentence. If you take the risk of fighting a murder plea with self-defence and you fail, then you will be convicted of murder and that is a mandatory life sentence.” Getting off with self-defence is really, really hard, says Mercurio, really hard. “I did the research.”
See related American Gods episode 1 review: The Bone Orchard American Gods cast interview: Ian McShane, Ricky Whittle, Emily Browning American Gods: Bryan Fuller interview
It’s good advice, if alarming in the context of a DVD release-plugging interview. As a general rule,...
Major spoilers ahead as we speak to Line Of Duty creator, writer and director Jed Mercurio about Roz Huntley, Acc Hilton and more…
If I were ever to find myself alone in a room with a dead body I’d created in self-defence and pondering my next move, “plead guilty to manslaughter,” Jed Mercurio tells me. “For the minimum three years sentence. If you take the risk of fighting a murder plea with self-defence and you fail, then you will be convicted of murder and that is a mandatory life sentence.” Getting off with self-defence is really, really hard, says Mercurio, really hard. “I did the research.”
See related American Gods episode 1 review: The Bone Orchard American Gods cast interview: Ian McShane, Ricky Whittle, Emily Browning American Gods: Bryan Fuller interview
It’s good advice, if alarming in the context of a DVD release-plugging interview. As a general rule,...
- 5/4/2017
- Den of Geek
Louisa Mellor Apr 30, 2017
Blimey. The Line Of Duty series 4 finale did not disappoint. Major spoilers ahead in our review…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Justice League: the brand new poster Future DC films will be "hopeful and optimistic" DC Comics movies: upcoming UK release dates calendar The Crow reboot to finally shoot in January
Line Of Duty creator Jed Mercurio originally trained as a doctor; if he’s still licensed to write prescriptions, he owes us all a month’s worth of anti-anxiety pills and a sedative after that.
And perhaps something for finger cramp. After ten minutes of holding mine to my face, rigid as bicycle spokes, I can barely type. From the second Jamie arrived in the interrogation room to the moment he handed over his gun, I’m not sure I exhaled.
Even after Jamie gave Steve the gun, there was more cheering to be done than respiration.
Blimey. The Line Of Duty series 4 finale did not disappoint. Major spoilers ahead in our review…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Justice League: the brand new poster Future DC films will be "hopeful and optimistic" DC Comics movies: upcoming UK release dates calendar The Crow reboot to finally shoot in January
Line Of Duty creator Jed Mercurio originally trained as a doctor; if he’s still licensed to write prescriptions, he owes us all a month’s worth of anti-anxiety pills and a sedative after that.
And perhaps something for finger cramp. After ten minutes of holding mine to my face, rigid as bicycle spokes, I can barely type. From the second Jamie arrived in the interrogation room to the moment he handed over his gun, I’m not sure I exhaled.
Even after Jamie gave Steve the gun, there was more cheering to be done than respiration.
- 4/30/2017
- Den of Geek
Louisa Mellor Apr 23, 2017
Major spoilers ahead in our look at Line Of Duty series 4’s best, most eventful episode yet…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Better Call Saul season 3 episode 2 review: Witness Better Call Saul season 3 episode 1 review: Mabel The subtle rise of good prequels
When you come at Ted Hastings, you’d best not miss, son.
Just look at the man: the demeanour of a king, the alert, piercing eyes of a hawk. From the polish on his shoes to the side parting on his neatly combed hair, everything about Ted says ‘unimpeachable’. He’s five feet eleven of rock-hard morals who acts to the letter of the law. To the letter.
Hilton doesn’t stand a chance, does he?
I pray to the TV Gods he doesn’t. In Line Of Duty’s storm of moral murk and slippery wrong-doing, Ted Hastings is our rock, a stalwart...
Major spoilers ahead in our look at Line Of Duty series 4’s best, most eventful episode yet…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Better Call Saul season 3 episode 2 review: Witness Better Call Saul season 3 episode 1 review: Mabel The subtle rise of good prequels
When you come at Ted Hastings, you’d best not miss, son.
Just look at the man: the demeanour of a king, the alert, piercing eyes of a hawk. From the polish on his shoes to the side parting on his neatly combed hair, everything about Ted says ‘unimpeachable’. He’s five feet eleven of rock-hard morals who acts to the letter of the law. To the letter.
Hilton doesn’t stand a chance, does he?
I pray to the TV Gods he doesn’t. In Line Of Duty’s storm of moral murk and slippery wrong-doing, Ted Hastings is our rock, a stalwart...
- 4/23/2017
- Den of Geek
Louisa Mellor Apr 19, 2017
Paul Higgins plays Line Of Duty’s PR-obsessed Acc Hilton, but is there more to him than it seems? Rampant speculation and spoilers...
Warning: contains spoilers for Line Of Duty series one, two, three and four (until episode four). And some wild speculation.
See related The Last Kingdom series 2 episode 5 review The Last Kingdom series 2 episode 4 review The Last Kingdom series 2 episode 3 review The Last Kingdom series 2: politics, battles and arselings
“How do you know when an executive officer is telling lies? His lips move.” So said Si Ted Hastings reporting back after lunching with Acc Hilton in Line Of Duty series four episode one. It was a characteristically wry comment from Hastings, a character who brooks no truck with bent coppers and PR-manipulators like Hilton. Was it, though, more than that? Was Ted calling Hilton a liar a crucial clue as to what’s really...
Paul Higgins plays Line Of Duty’s PR-obsessed Acc Hilton, but is there more to him than it seems? Rampant speculation and spoilers...
Warning: contains spoilers for Line Of Duty series one, two, three and four (until episode four). And some wild speculation.
See related The Last Kingdom series 2 episode 5 review The Last Kingdom series 2 episode 4 review The Last Kingdom series 2 episode 3 review The Last Kingdom series 2: politics, battles and arselings
“How do you know when an executive officer is telling lies? His lips move.” So said Si Ted Hastings reporting back after lunching with Acc Hilton in Line Of Duty series four episode one. It was a characteristically wry comment from Hastings, a character who brooks no truck with bent coppers and PR-manipulators like Hilton. Was it, though, more than that? Was Ted calling Hilton a liar a crucial clue as to what’s really...
- 4/18/2017
- Den of Geek
Louisa Mellor Apr 2, 2017
Spoilers ahead in our review of the latest eventful Line Of Duty series 4 episode…
This review contains spoilers.
See related The quiet brilliance of Mackenzie Crook's Detectorists
We’re waist-deep in it now, Line Of Duty’s fast-flowing river of ‘Huh?’, ‘But I thought…?’ and ‘Well, blimey’. Dig your feet in for purchase, there’s work to be done.
This week’s episode turned more tables than Jesus at a temple-based bureau de change. First, we were led to think that Roz Huntley—or bits of her—were decomposing in a forest pond. Then hey presto, there she was, back at work, torso intact and with barely a scratch on her.
There was one scratch on her, a wound inflicted by Tim Ifield as the last gasp act of a true forensic scientist. Knowing he was a goner, Tim tried to get his killer’s skin...
Spoilers ahead in our review of the latest eventful Line Of Duty series 4 episode…
This review contains spoilers.
See related The quiet brilliance of Mackenzie Crook's Detectorists
We’re waist-deep in it now, Line Of Duty’s fast-flowing river of ‘Huh?’, ‘But I thought…?’ and ‘Well, blimey’. Dig your feet in for purchase, there’s work to be done.
This week’s episode turned more tables than Jesus at a temple-based bureau de change. First, we were led to think that Roz Huntley—or bits of her—were decomposing in a forest pond. Then hey presto, there she was, back at work, torso intact and with barely a scratch on her.
There was one scratch on her, a wound inflicted by Tim Ifield as the last gasp act of a true forensic scientist. Knowing he was a goner, Tim tried to get his killer’s skin...
- 3/31/2017
- Den of Geek
Louisa Mellor Mar 26, 2017
Line Of Duty series 4 hits the ground running with a terrifically confident opening episode. Major spoilers ahead…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Marvel Studios movies: UK release date calendar Thor: Ragnarok - Natalie Portman's absence explained Guardians Of The Galaxy 2: 7 new international posters land
A confession: when Thandie Newton’s head hit that kitchen worktop my faith wavered. Line Of Duty’s heavily trailed new lead isn’t going to make it past episode one again? Surely not?
Surely not, and shame on me for entertaining the idea that writer Jed Mercurio (who also directed the first two episodes of series three) didn’t have this all wrapped up as tightly as Ted Hastings’ sandwiches. Newton’s eyes flicked open as Jason Watkins loomed over her with that reciprocating saw and all doubt vanished from my mind.
It was the most breath-taking cliff-hanger yet.
Line Of Duty series 4 hits the ground running with a terrifically confident opening episode. Major spoilers ahead…
This review contains spoilers.
See related Marvel Studios movies: UK release date calendar Thor: Ragnarok - Natalie Portman's absence explained Guardians Of The Galaxy 2: 7 new international posters land
A confession: when Thandie Newton’s head hit that kitchen worktop my faith wavered. Line Of Duty’s heavily trailed new lead isn’t going to make it past episode one again? Surely not?
Surely not, and shame on me for entertaining the idea that writer Jed Mercurio (who also directed the first two episodes of series three) didn’t have this all wrapped up as tightly as Ted Hastings’ sandwiches. Newton’s eyes flicked open as Jason Watkins loomed over her with that reciprocating saw and all doubt vanished from my mind.
It was the most breath-taking cliff-hanger yet.
- 3/26/2017
- Den of Geek
Den Of Geek Dec 22, 2016
Game Of Thrones, Black Mirror, Stranger Things, Westworld... Did your favourite TV episode of 2016 make the cut?
Earlier this month, twenty-five of Den Of Geek's writers nominated up to five of their favourite television episodes of the year, ranked in order of preference. Points were allocated. Favourites emerged. And the sanity of the site's TV editor was offered once again as a festive sacrifice to the God of Microsoft Excel worksheets.
See related Justin Kurzel interview: Assassin’s Creed
Over sixty individual episodes were nominated in total, and below are the fifteen that placed highest overall...
15. Scream season 2 episode 10 – The Vanishing
This show has hit a beautiful stride over the past two episodes, and we’re now set up for what could be a top-notch finale. While we’ve been given plenty of clues—some of which I’m sure will be forehead-slappers after the killer...
Game Of Thrones, Black Mirror, Stranger Things, Westworld... Did your favourite TV episode of 2016 make the cut?
Earlier this month, twenty-five of Den Of Geek's writers nominated up to five of their favourite television episodes of the year, ranked in order of preference. Points were allocated. Favourites emerged. And the sanity of the site's TV editor was offered once again as a festive sacrifice to the God of Microsoft Excel worksheets.
See related Justin Kurzel interview: Assassin’s Creed
Over sixty individual episodes were nominated in total, and below are the fifteen that placed highest overall...
15. Scream season 2 episode 10 – The Vanishing
This show has hit a beautiful stride over the past two episodes, and we’re now set up for what could be a top-notch finale. While we’ve been given plenty of clues—some of which I’m sure will be forehead-slappers after the killer...
- 12/19/2016
- Den of Geek
Rob Leane Louisa Mellor Mar 17, 2017
The Line Of Duty series 4 start date has been set for Sunday the 26th of March...
Line Of Duty series 4 release date
The premiere date for Line Of Duty series 4 has now been confirmed: CultBox tells us that the BBC's excellent crime drama will return to our screens on Sunday the 26th of March at 9pm.
See related Daniel Espinosa interview: action sequences, sound design, and directing Safe House Line Of Duty series 4 trailer
Here's the trailer for Line Of Duty series 4...
Line Of Duty series 4 cast
"Ever more diabolical twists" is what Line Of Duty creator Jed Mercurio is promising for series 4 of police thriller Line Of Duty. "We're all looking forward to tormenting the nation" he said in the BBC's official press release back when the new run was announced.
To assist with this torment, they're bringing in English actress Thandie Newton (Crash,...
The Line Of Duty series 4 start date has been set for Sunday the 26th of March...
Line Of Duty series 4 release date
The premiere date for Line Of Duty series 4 has now been confirmed: CultBox tells us that the BBC's excellent crime drama will return to our screens on Sunday the 26th of March at 9pm.
See related Daniel Espinosa interview: action sequences, sound design, and directing Safe House Line Of Duty series 4 trailer
Here's the trailer for Line Of Duty series 4...
Line Of Duty series 4 cast
"Ever more diabolical twists" is what Line Of Duty creator Jed Mercurio is promising for series 4 of police thriller Line Of Duty. "We're all looking forward to tormenting the nation" he said in the BBC's official press release back when the new run was announced.
To assist with this torment, they're bringing in English actress Thandie Newton (Crash,...
- 4/29/2016
- Den of Geek
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Line Of Duty cements its status as the most thrilling drama on television with a stunning finale to a stunning series…
This review contains spoilers.
Like many a modern idiot, around my wrist is a special watch that monitors my heart-rate. It syncs with my phone and shows me a graph of what my pulse is doing at any given moment. If I were ever to kill someone, I suspect it could be used to incriminate me. Murder must play havoc on the cardiovascular system.
Fifteen minutes before the end of Line Of Duty’s series three finale, you’ll see a significant spike on the graph. My body was sitting lazily on the sofa; my heart was doing laps of the park. This might be the first occasion on which I hand over my TV reviewing responsibilities to a Fitbit.
There can’t have been a...
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Line Of Duty cements its status as the most thrilling drama on television with a stunning finale to a stunning series…
This review contains spoilers.
Like many a modern idiot, around my wrist is a special watch that monitors my heart-rate. It syncs with my phone and shows me a graph of what my pulse is doing at any given moment. If I were ever to kill someone, I suspect it could be used to incriminate me. Murder must play havoc on the cardiovascular system.
Fifteen minutes before the end of Line Of Duty’s series three finale, you’ll see a significant spike on the graph. My body was sitting lazily on the sofa; my heart was doing laps of the park. This might be the first occasion on which I hand over my TV reviewing responsibilities to a Fitbit.
There can’t have been a...
- 4/28/2016
- Den of Geek
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We spoke to the Line Of Duty creator about series 3, Lindsay Denton, The Caddy, Jimmy Savile, tension, thrillers and more…
Warning: contains spoilers for Line Of Duty series 3, episode 5 (Nb interview took place before the finale aired. Here's a spoiler-filled post-finale chat).
As Line Of Duty viewers might expect from the man who’s turned the police interview into an art-form, Jed Mercurio is a very measured, practiced interviewee. He gives precise, categorical answers unfurred by the usual hesitations and rambling false starts. Bring up the perception that Line Of Duty’s series two finale was hard to follow and he explains, patiently, that the most reliable evidence we have suggests otherwise. He speaks fluently in terms of suppositions, anecdotal evidence, arithmetical means and statistical outliers. When he completes a given response, he simply stops talking.
Mercurio’s voice only became heated twice in the next six thousand words.
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We spoke to the Line Of Duty creator about series 3, Lindsay Denton, The Caddy, Jimmy Savile, tension, thrillers and more…
Warning: contains spoilers for Line Of Duty series 3, episode 5 (Nb interview took place before the finale aired. Here's a spoiler-filled post-finale chat).
As Line Of Duty viewers might expect from the man who’s turned the police interview into an art-form, Jed Mercurio is a very measured, practiced interviewee. He gives precise, categorical answers unfurred by the usual hesitations and rambling false starts. Bring up the perception that Line Of Duty’s series two finale was hard to follow and he explains, patiently, that the most reliable evidence we have suggests otherwise. He speaks fluently in terms of suppositions, anecdotal evidence, arithmetical means and statistical outliers. When he completes a given response, he simply stops talking.
Mercurio’s voice only became heated twice in the next six thousand words.
- 4/28/2016
- Den of Geek
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Line Of Duty series 3’s penultimate episode is a gripping hour of drama that doesn’t fail to shock. Major spoilers...
This review contains spoilers.
Jed Mercurio says he doesn’t write tragedy, but what else could you call tonight’s episode? It unfolded like a Greek play, from the opening commendation ceremony—a scene scarcely more ironic had Mark Antony popped in to present Cottan with the award for most ‘honourable man’—to the death of Lindsay Denton, a conflicted hero whose fatal flaw finally proved such.
Denton’s tragic error was taking a shortcut to what she perceived as justice. You could say her fate was sealed the moment she broke faith with the law to see Tommy Hunter punished. Everything that happened to her since the ambush resulted from that mistake and her subsequent denial. She was Oedipus. With a fringe.
Like all tragic heroes,...
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Line Of Duty series 3’s penultimate episode is a gripping hour of drama that doesn’t fail to shock. Major spoilers...
This review contains spoilers.
Jed Mercurio says he doesn’t write tragedy, but what else could you call tonight’s episode? It unfolded like a Greek play, from the opening commendation ceremony—a scene scarcely more ironic had Mark Antony popped in to present Cottan with the award for most ‘honourable man’—to the death of Lindsay Denton, a conflicted hero whose fatal flaw finally proved such.
Denton’s tragic error was taking a shortcut to what she perceived as justice. You could say her fate was sealed the moment she broke faith with the law to see Tommy Hunter punished. Everything that happened to her since the ambush resulted from that mistake and her subsequent denial. She was Oedipus. With a fringe.
Like all tragic heroes,...
- 4/21/2016
- Den of Geek
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Is this the beginning of the end for Steve? Line Of Duty series 3’s queasy twists keep coming…
This review contains spoilers.
The destructive potential of blind workplace loyalty is laid bare in Jed Mercurio’s work, from his terrific hospital drama, Bodies, which showed doctors closing ranks in the face of mistakes and complaints, to Line Of Duty, which exposes the most damaging end result of devotion to a work clique.
Mercurio’s writing in this series shows how understandings forged on the golf course, over matey pints and slices of the wife’s Victoria Sponge all grease the wheels of much darker manoeuvres.
Professional loyalty is a quality prized by coppers and criminals alike. It makes even the most principled of men, as Ted Hastings was cast this week when he refused to break his marriage vows, complicit. Acts presented as harmless favours between colleagues or,...
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Is this the beginning of the end for Steve? Line Of Duty series 3’s queasy twists keep coming…
This review contains spoilers.
The destructive potential of blind workplace loyalty is laid bare in Jed Mercurio’s work, from his terrific hospital drama, Bodies, which showed doctors closing ranks in the face of mistakes and complaints, to Line Of Duty, which exposes the most damaging end result of devotion to a work clique.
Mercurio’s writing in this series shows how understandings forged on the golf course, over matey pints and slices of the wife’s Victoria Sponge all grease the wheels of much darker manoeuvres.
Professional loyalty is a quality prized by coppers and criminals alike. It makes even the most principled of men, as Ted Hastings was cast this week when he refused to break his marriage vows, complicit. Acts presented as harmless favours between colleagues or,...
- 4/14/2016
- Den of Geek
Doctor Who, Sherlock, Game Of Thrones and more... As nominated by Den Of Geek writers, here are our favourite TV episodes of 2014
Whatever else it's brought with it, 2014 has been an exemplary year for television. There's so much good stuff around that keeping on top of it has become a job of work. How many of us have started silently dreading hearing enthused recommendations from pals about new series? Who else has developed a nervous tick whenever they hear the words "Have you been watching...". There's simply Too. Much. TV.
Too much, however, is better than not enough. Too much enables debate, and better than that, it enables the ultimate geek pursuit: list-making. A fortnight ago, we asked our writers to nominate their favourite television episodes of the year and have been busily collating their votes and happily clicking Excel buttons ever since.
Here are the results: Den Of Geek...
Whatever else it's brought with it, 2014 has been an exemplary year for television. There's so much good stuff around that keeping on top of it has become a job of work. How many of us have started silently dreading hearing enthused recommendations from pals about new series? Who else has developed a nervous tick whenever they hear the words "Have you been watching...". There's simply Too. Much. TV.
Too much, however, is better than not enough. Too much enables debate, and better than that, it enables the ultimate geek pursuit: list-making. A fortnight ago, we asked our writers to nominate their favourite television episodes of the year and have been busily collating their votes and happily clicking Excel buttons ever since.
Here are the results: Den Of Geek...
- 12/18/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Review Louisa Mellor 19 Mar 2014 - 22:00
Line Of Duty’s second series has been superlative crime drama, keeping us guessing until the very last…
This review contains spoilers.
After a pleasurably tortuous few weeks with Line Of Duty’s second series, we finally have answers. What we don’t have after tonight’s quietly revelatory finale is closure, the satisfying feeling that the baddies were caught, the goodies were rewarded, and justice was done.
Line Of Duty’s moral tangles linger stubbornly after the final credits have rolled. Watching the cell door slam on Di Denton for a second time didn’t feel like a victory. Yes, she’d taken a bung, conspired to hand a witness over to his enemies, and sat quietly while Dryden was arrested, but she didn’t plan the murders of her fellow officers, and her motivation in disposing of Tommy was to protect Carly Kirk and others like her.
Line Of Duty’s second series has been superlative crime drama, keeping us guessing until the very last…
This review contains spoilers.
After a pleasurably tortuous few weeks with Line Of Duty’s second series, we finally have answers. What we don’t have after tonight’s quietly revelatory finale is closure, the satisfying feeling that the baddies were caught, the goodies were rewarded, and justice was done.
Line Of Duty’s moral tangles linger stubbornly after the final credits have rolled. Watching the cell door slam on Di Denton for a second time didn’t feel like a victory. Yes, she’d taken a bung, conspired to hand a witness over to his enemies, and sat quietly while Dryden was arrested, but she didn’t plan the murders of her fellow officers, and her motivation in disposing of Tommy was to protect Carly Kirk and others like her.
- 3/18/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Not since Broadchurch has there been a UK drama series that has captured our imagination as much as Jed Mercurio's head-spinning, heart-pumping crime series Line of Duty.
As someone pointed out on Twitter last night, it's that rare sort of TV show that actually has you leaning towards your TV set in the hope that you can find out what's going to happen next just a few seconds quicker.
While Broadchurch adapted the classic TV whodunnit format and increased the scale, Line of Duty has been a much more complex series, weaving together a seemingly never-ending conveyor belt of bent coppers and two major crimes - the ambush and murder of four police and a witness, and the disappearance and murder of Carly Kirk.
While the big events provide the obvious hook, it's the dense layering of minor details which make Line of Duty such a joy. Dryden vs...
As someone pointed out on Twitter last night, it's that rare sort of TV show that actually has you leaning towards your TV set in the hope that you can find out what's going to happen next just a few seconds quicker.
While Broadchurch adapted the classic TV whodunnit format and increased the scale, Line of Duty has been a much more complex series, weaving together a seemingly never-ending conveyor belt of bent coppers and two major crimes - the ambush and murder of four police and a witness, and the disappearance and murder of Carly Kirk.
While the big events provide the obvious hook, it's the dense layering of minor details which make Line of Duty such a joy. Dryden vs...
- 3/13/2014
- Digital Spy
Review Louisa Mellor 12 Mar 2014 - 22:00
It’s the penultimate episode of this superlative crime series and it’s all change on the theory front…
This review contains spoilers.
Line Of Duty’s second run has been a series of optical illusions. You know the ones: duck is rabbit, Marilyn Monroe is Albert Einstein, young woman looking away is old lady in headscarf, innocent victim is scheming villain… This week’s final shot of Denton sipping Chablis and watching the news of Dryden’s arrest was a page from a Magic Eye book. Let your eyes defocus and out of ‘innocent woman with wine’ looms a cackling she-devil with horns, tail, and glossy fringe. We’ve all been taken in. It was her! Wasn’t it?
That rather depends on the nature of the ‘it’. Was Denton’s expression the look of someone in their rightful place watching justice carried out,...
It’s the penultimate episode of this superlative crime series and it’s all change on the theory front…
This review contains spoilers.
Line Of Duty’s second run has been a series of optical illusions. You know the ones: duck is rabbit, Marilyn Monroe is Albert Einstein, young woman looking away is old lady in headscarf, innocent victim is scheming villain… This week’s final shot of Denton sipping Chablis and watching the news of Dryden’s arrest was a page from a Magic Eye book. Let your eyes defocus and out of ‘innocent woman with wine’ looms a cackling she-devil with horns, tail, and glossy fringe. We’ve all been taken in. It was her! Wasn’t it?
That rather depends on the nature of the ‘it’. Was Denton’s expression the look of someone in their rightful place watching justice carried out,...
- 3/12/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Line of Duty
Acorn Media have released a slew of hit shows this year but Line of Duty is arguably the best drama DVD release of 2013. Line of Duty is a cop show that forces you to re-examine the role of the police force. Not everything is black and white and when there are quotas to be met, even good cops can be pressured into entering the large grey area that exists between right and wrong. Dci Gates (Lennie James) is one such man. Publicly revered as one of the capital’s top cops, he’s a man with underworld connections and a former lover who threatens to pull him off his pedestal. Gates has his fans but his remarkably high conviction rate has also aroused some suspicion. Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) tasks the squeaky clean Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) with looking into Gates’ affairs. Arnott doesn...
Acorn Media have released a slew of hit shows this year but Line of Duty is arguably the best drama DVD release of 2013. Line of Duty is a cop show that forces you to re-examine the role of the police force. Not everything is black and white and when there are quotas to be met, even good cops can be pressured into entering the large grey area that exists between right and wrong. Dci Gates (Lennie James) is one such man. Publicly revered as one of the capital’s top cops, he’s a man with underworld connections and a former lover who threatens to pull him off his pedestal. Gates has his fans but his remarkably high conviction rate has also aroused some suspicion. Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) tasks the squeaky clean Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) with looking into Gates’ affairs. Arnott doesn...
- 10/27/2013
- by Edited by K Kinsella
BBC Line of Duty
Episode one of Jed Mercurio’s much anticipated new drama Line of Duty will hit British TV screens on 26 June although the time slots for the remaining four episodes have yet to be confirmed. The star-studded five part series will tackle the controversial issue of police corruption. Writer Jed Mercurio controversially refers to Line of Duty as a “21st century commentary on policing.”
Martin Compston (Monarch of the Glen) plays DS Steve Arnott who refuses to take part in an effort to cover up a botched terrorism raid. Lennie James plays Dci Tony Gates – a cop with a seemingly impeccable record who has a darker side to his nature. Despite his positive public persona, Gates is linked to the underworld through his ex-girlfriend Jackie Laverty (Gina McKee). However, any investigation of Gates is unlikely to go to far given the unswerving loyalty of cops like Nigel Morton (Neil Morrissey). Nevertheless,...
Episode one of Jed Mercurio’s much anticipated new drama Line of Duty will hit British TV screens on 26 June although the time slots for the remaining four episodes have yet to be confirmed. The star-studded five part series will tackle the controversial issue of police corruption. Writer Jed Mercurio controversially refers to Line of Duty as a “21st century commentary on policing.”
Martin Compston (Monarch of the Glen) plays DS Steve Arnott who refuses to take part in an effort to cover up a botched terrorism raid. Lennie James plays Dci Tony Gates – a cop with a seemingly impeccable record who has a darker side to his nature. Despite his positive public persona, Gates is linked to the underworld through his ex-girlfriend Jackie Laverty (Gina McKee). However, any investigation of Gates is unlikely to go to far given the unswerving loyalty of cops like Nigel Morton (Neil Morrissey). Nevertheless,...
- 6/15/2012
- by Edited by K Kinsella
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