LINE of Duty fans were thrilled tonight when Adrian Dunbar made his Have I Got News For You debut.
The TV star treated them to plenty of quips from the cop drama that has captivated the nation.
Adrian, 62, plays Superintendent Ted Hastings in the hit series and he was reason alone to tune in for many LOD fans.
The panellists were the deadpan comedian Katherine Ryan and the Sunday Times political editor Tim Shipman, along with team captains Ian Hislop and Paul Merton.
Adrian received a warm welcome on Twitter after he kicked off hosting duties with an acronym-filled round-up of the week’s news.
He was referring to the decision to not recommend age restrictions for the AstraZeneca vaccine after concerns it causes blood clots.
But, the actor said in his bamboozling opener: “One vaccine development this week is that AZ (AstraZeneca vaccine) has been backed by the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency), an EMA (European Medicines Agency) using data from the ONS (Office for National Statistics) and the PHE (Public Health England) to support the JCV (Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation)”
He added: “I mean… hang on… I only said yes to this show to get away from b****y acronyms!”
It certainly didn’t take long for HIGNFY’s latest host to make a joke about bent coppers and a dodgy police convoy – referencing the plot of series two.
In another nod to his role, he reacted to the clip of Sir Keir Starmer joking in the House of Commons that Line of Duty’s AC12 was needed for a “sleaze inquiry” after David Cameron’s Greensill scandal.
After Prime Minister Boris Johnson replied in the clip: “Yes we are getting on with rooting out bent coppers.”
An expressionless Adrian said: “Very good there, Boris… Well done for picking up the torch there…”
HIGNFY viewers loved his appreciation for his character Ted Hastings and reacted in their droves on Twitter.
One wrote: “Brilliant episode of #HIGNFY tonight Adrian Dunbar was brilliant hosting. Fella let’s hope hope he can bring the lobbying corruption scandal to justice”
Another raved: “Wow! Adrian Dunbar was an exceptional quiz host tonight….MORE please BBC 
Loved all the LineofDuty puns !!!”
The hit police drama Line of Duty was almost cancelled after just one season, its star Adrian Dunbar revealed.
Almost 10 million watched the series six opener last month on BBC One. But Adrian, who plays Supt Ted Hastings, said viewing figures were low even for series two on BBC2 “before it caught fire”. He added: “It was touch and go whether we were going to get a second series in the first place.”
Fellow star Craig Parkinson, who played the corrupt “caddy”, said on his Two Shot podcast that it started out as “such a small little thing” but they all “knew how incredible it was”.
