LINE of Duty viewers have been keeping an eye on Chief Constable Philip Osborne due to his suspicious activities.
But is he the bent cop known only by the letter ‘H’?
Is Line of Duty’s Philip Osborne H?
Line Of Duty‘s Philip Osborne, played by Owen Teale, 59, is the Chief Constable of Central Police – a promotion which Superintendent Ted Hastings calls an “outrage”.
The cop is widely suspected to be The Fourth Man due to his history of cover-ups and OCG links – here’s why he could be the elusive ‘H’.
Lies from the start
Philip Osborne was introduced in the first series of the hit police drama as leader of the Counter Terrorism Unit of Central Police.
He was suspicious from the start – telling his team to lie in court to cover up the unlawful killing of Karim Ali.
In the final episode of season one, Osborne attributes the Borogrove Estate murders to terrorists, when it was actually the OCG responsible.
He popped up again in the sixth series as AC-12 scrolled through archive footage, in which he appeared lying about the inquiry into Ali.
AC-12 is seen reviewing unaired footage of Osborne being interviewed by journalist Gail Vella, who was later murdered.
In the interview, Vella presses Osborne on dodgy police figures, eventually prompting him to storm away from the interview.
Superintendent Ted Hastings seems to suspect Osborne, asking the arrested detective Jo Davidson during her interrogation if the “fourth man” is the chief constable.
Hampering AC-12’s investigation
Osborne appointed the suspicious AC-3 chief Patricia Carmichael to head up operations.
He halted funding for their surveillance operations, essentially giving Jo Davidson and Ryan Pilkington free reign to do what they like.
What the fans think
Osborne is the number one suspect with fans, according to a YouGov poll of 1,232 viewers.
A total of 22 per cent though the chief constable was the corrupt cop in the upper echelons of the police force.
Detective Chief Superintendent Patricia Carmichael was the second most popular having been picked by 19 per cent of viewers.
AC-12’s own Superintendent Ted Hastings and Deputy Chief Constable Andrea Wise came equal third with 6 per cent of the vote.
Just 4 per cent of viewers thought Marcus Thurwell is the criminal mastermind, with the same amount opting for the show’s former Police and Crime Commissioner Rohan Sindwhani.
Many viewers, 19 per cent, according to the poll, though said they had no idea who ‘H’ was.
One fan’s theory read: “Whilst Osborne being the last ‘H’ doesn’t necessarily change the circumstances of the Karim coverup, it does diminish it (imo) [in my opinion] given that Osborne was already involved in organised crime, as well as the possible connection between the OCG and counter-terrorism (the false link between the Greek Lane murders and Islamic terrorists in S1 etc).”
Another wrote: “#LineOfDuty Chief Constable Philip Osborne is the driver in all this. He is the link to the OCG I’m sure of it. He was dodgy from series 1.”
The Line of Duty season six finale is available to watch on BBC One, Sunday May 2nd at 9pm.
