Entertainment
Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio says he knew series 6 finale ‘wouldn’t appeal to everyone’ as he reacts to ratings record
Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio has given his reaction to the incredible ratings for the series six finale, saying he knew the last episode ‘wouldn’t appeal to everyone’.
In Sunday night’s series finale, AC-12 learned that Ian Buckells (Nigel Boyle) was the so-called ‘fourth man’ connected to an organised crime group led by high-ranking police officers.
The episode absolutely smashed viewing records, with 12.8million fans tuning in – giving the crime drama its highest-ever overnight ratings. The finale had a peak viewing figure of 13.1million, according to the BBC.
The show’s creator shared his thoughts on the achievement on Twitter, acknowledging people’s frustration about how everything went down.
He wrote: ‘We’re honoured and flattered by the viewing figures for #LineofDuty6. We knew attempting to explore the real nature of corruption in our society wouldn’t appeal to everyone, but we do sincerely thank you all for watching. It’s been our privilege to share your Sunday nights.’
The BBC is yet to confirm if Line of Duty will return for a seventh series.
Reaction from viewers to the reveal was fierce with many refusing to accept that Buckells was the big bad they had been chasing over the last couple of series.
The concluding chapter also left the future of the anti-corruption unit hanging in the balance, with Hastings revealing he had deliberately blown the cover of an undercover officer in series five.
Actor Nigel revealed he found out he was H over the phone.
‘We’d had the first four scripts and started filming some of series six when we had to stop due to the first lockdown,’ he shared. ‘When we were about to resume filming, Jed sent me a text saying, “Are you free for a chat at some point today? Don’t worry it’s not that call.”
‘Which I took to mean that I wasn’t going to end up dead! But I was still quite nervous and not sure what he wanted to talk to me about.
‘He called me and said, “The scripts for the next episodes are going to be sent out imminently and so it’s time to tell you the secret that I’ve been keeping, you’re going to be revealed as someone rather significant…”.’
Line of Duty is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.
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