The First Look At Line Of Duty Season 6 Is Just As Epic As We Hoped

“Kelly [Macdonald] is a great laugh and an incredible actor,” says McClure. “We were really grateful to have a new guest lead that fits straight into the Line of Duty family.”

“I remember receiving an email that said ‘LOD6’ and I thought oh it’s an audition for a show called ‘Lod’” recalls Brune-Franklin. “It didn’t click in my head that it was Line of Duty. I opened the email and I saw the words ‘Anti-Corruption Unit 12’ and I shrieked. I was such a fan of the show, and it was such a surreal experience to get to walk onto the set of something you are already such a huge fan of.”

“At the start of the series, she’s quite a lonely figure,” says Macdonald of her character, DCI Joanne Davidson. “She’s struggling, and we don’t quite know why that is.”

“I remember walking onto set, and seeing the glass box [interview room], and there was part of me that wanted to fan girl and scream,” says Brune-Franklin. “The other half was thinking that I had been hired to do a job, you need to calm down, and do justice to the scene. I was quite surprised at how quickly I felt I was part of it.”

“[Filming during the pandemic] came with lots of challenges,” says McClure. “The filming schedule was difficult to get our heads around. The masks, testing and hygiene very quickly became the norm. It was hard not being able to go home at weekends, but it helped that we were with really good friends.”

Writer and executive producer Jed Mercurio described Hillside Lane Police Station as one of “the main locations” for this series. “It’s actually a police station that is mentioned way back in series one – Matthew Cottan served here before he joined Kingsgate station where he was on the same team as DCI Tony Gates. It’s the home station for our guest lead DCI Joanne Davidson.”

When asked how he would describe DCI Joanne Davidson, Mercurio said: “As the most enigmatic adversary that AC-12 have faced to date.”

Despite appearing very serious in this picture, McClure maintains she was the class clown on set. “We have a laugh everyday as we either forget our lines, fluff them or say something stupid,” she explains. “I can’t think of anything overly specific as its such a regular occurrence. To be honest, it usually involves Adrian Dunbar.”

Interview room scenes filled Macdonald with “the most dread” she explains. “But actually I really enjoyed them. One of the interview scenes is bigger than anything I’ve ever done before. We filmed it over two days and on the first day, the cameras were only on my character. I was told there were 50 cameras set up on me just in that one day, which is mind blowing.”

“I think he’s another year older, but not another year wiser,” says Dunbar of Hastings. “We are still on the search for the network of corrupt coppers. Are we any closer to them? Hopefully! Let’s face it – time is running out a bit for Ted.”

“He definitely sees himself as a bit of a Sherlock Holmes with a waistcoat,” says Compston of Arnott. “At the beginning of the series, Steve is still a DS. So, still no promotion but he is chasing. Steve thrives on the thrill of the chase, and the adventure of it, so he’s a bit lost and having issues both physically and mentally.”