THE long wait for series six of the BBC One’s smash-hit crime drama Line of Duty is over!
Fans will recall that last time, AC-12 took down a vile Organised Crime Group, while – in a season shocker – Supt Ted Hastings was arrested for corruption.
When is Line of Duty season six on TV?
Line Of Duty series six kicks off from 9pm on BBC One on Sunday March 21, 2021.
The current series has seven episodes – the longest series to date.
It introduces a new protagonist, DCI Joanne Davidson – Trainspotting star Kelly Macdonald.
She’s shown leading the team while they probe the mysterious, unsolved murder of a reporter.
Filming for the latest episodes began in Belfast, Northern Ireland, back in February 2020, as Martin Compston confirmed on his Instagram page.
Vicky McClure, Compston and Adrian Dunbar were pictured reunited ahead of series six.
However, the coronavirus pandemic halted filming when the UK went into lockdown in March 2020.
There was talk that the filming may be completely overhauled, but it was confirmed that the cast returned to Belfast to continue filming in October 2020.
To the delight of fans McClure and Compston have been posting footage of themselves goofing around on set.
Creator Jed Mercurio revealed plans for season six filming to finish “before Christmas” in order to guarantee a 2021 release.
Mercurio spoke more about the fate of the series during a Royal Television Society talk.
Who is in the cast of Line Of Duty season six?
DI Kate Fleming, Ted Hastings and Steve Arnott have returned for series six.
Kelly MacDonald is also joining the cast for the new series.
She is acting as Detective Chief Inspector Joanne Davidson, the senior investigating officer of an unsolved murder, who raises suspicions at AC-12.
Shalom Brune-Franklin, seen last year in BBC One’s political thriller Roadkill, will play Chloe Bishop, a new addition to the AC-12 team.
- Vicki McClure as DI Kate Fleming
- Adrian Dunbar as Superintendent Ted Hastings
- Martin Compston and DS Steve Arnott
- Kelly MacDonald as Detective Chief Inspector Joanne Davidson
What can we expect from season six?
WARNING: Contains spoilers from season five of Line Of Duty
Season five left fans reeling as it was revealed there were FOUR top corrupt coppers – Gill Biggeloe, ACC Hilton and DI “Dot” Cottan, with the final member remaining at large.
The cop team took down an Organised Crime Group (OCG), which featured undercover cop John Corbett (Stephen Graham), and continued to hunt for the mysterious ‘H’.
AC-12 chief Ted Hastings was exonerated – although given a warning – at the end of season five, as it was revealed that he wasn’t H.
But series creator Jed Mercurio doesn’t seem to rule out the possibility of Ted being the final “dot”.
Hasting’s behaviour was often suspicious, such as when he misspelled the word definitely as “definately”, exactly the same as the leader of the OCG.
Mercurio argues that mimicking previous messages is a “plausible” defence, although some still think it points to his guilt.
So perhaps season six will delve deeper into Hasting’s shenanigans especially as there’s no way to prove he was viewing porn on his deleted computer and not communicating with the OCG.
We could also expect to see the return of DCS Patricia Carmichael from AC-3.
She has vowed to take Hastings down, but could she be bent as well as one of her colleagues, Martina Tranter, who tried to kill Biggeloe?
And then there’s Ryan Pilkington.
He first appeared in the show in the first series – so it’s probably a good idea to reacquaint yourself with his actions there.
At the end of series five the OCG thug, makes it into the police force, so potentially another bent copper on the beat.
How did Line Of Duty season five end?
WARNING: Contains spoilers from season five of Line Of Duty
Despite top bods trying to pin it on Supt Ted Hastings, a shock twist revealed H is not one person, but a group of four bent people working within the police force.
DS Steve Arnott said: “The letter H in Morse code is four dots. H is not an initial – it’s a clue.
“Four dots. Four caddies. Four police staff in league with organised crime.”
Police lawyer Gill Biggeloe was exposed as the bent copper who had been working alongside Cottan and Hilton who were brought down previously.
But the fourth member is still unknown.
The main focus of the episode saw an unkempt Hastings being questioned by his nemesis, DCS Patricia Carmichael, played by Anna Maxwell Martin.
With 30 minutes left, Arnott and DC Kate Fleming crack the case and discover that they have been looking for several people all along.
As the truth comes out about Gill, she attempts to contact the OCG on her burner phone but no one comes to her rescue and she is arrested.
But towards the very end of the episode, it’s evidently clear that the fourth bent copper is still walking free as PC Tranter, who had been working with Carmichael, takes Gill to the loo.
The officer whips out a knife and attempts to kill Gill – but the blade goes through her hand instead.
Arnott storms into the bathroom and shoots Tranter, who had been given the order to silence Gill following her arrest.
One member of the OCG, Lisa, is seen getting a new ID and working with schools.
Her former OCG pal Ryan becomes a student police officer.
Operation Pear Tree is closed and both Fleming and Arnott receive a commendation for their role in events.
Retired DCI Mark Moffatt is found guilty of bribery after Gill’s confession – and she is given a new ID.
Moffat claims the money found in Hastings room is only half the amount, but then we see Hastings approaching bent copper John Corbett’s widow with an envelope that probably contains the outstanding £50,000.
Corbett had previously worked undercover with the OCG, but had lost contact with his handlers.
A formal misconduct hearing into unauthorised undercover operations finds Hastings guilty of discreditable conduct.
Following a final written warning, Hastings continues to command AC-12.
