Line of Duty returns as BBC confirms seventh season: ‘Mother of God!’

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Fans of catching bent coppers, mind-bending acronyms and dodgy waistcoats – rejoice! Line of Duty, one of the most successful BBC dramas of all time, is officially returning for a seventh season.

Jed Mercurio’s hit thriller will start filming in Belfast in spring 2026, with lead stars Martin Compston, Vicky McClure and Adrian Dunbar all reprising their roles as police officers hunting down their corrupt colleagues.

Line of Duty last aired in 2021, with the series six finale becoming the biggest drama episode – excluding soaps – since modern records began in 2002, as 17 million viewers tuned in across 28 days. The series averaged a huge 16 million viewers across its run.

The season six finale was controversial with fans, with many disappointed by the long-awaited reveal that Nigel Boyle’s DSI Ian Buckells was “H”, the corrupt copper at the centre of AC-12’s search all along.

In the new six-part series, police anti-corruption unit AC-12 has been disbanded and rebranded as the Inspectorate of Police Standards. Per the BBC, “anticorruption work has never been more difficult and in this challenging climate Steve Arnott (Compston) Kate Fleming (McClure) and Ted Hastings (Dunbar) are assigned their most sensitive case so far”.

The press release continues: “Detective Inspector Dominic Gough, a charismatic officer winning plaudits for a string of takedowns of organised crime, is accused of abusing his position of trust to act as a sexual predator. But is Gough’s case a deliberate distraction from a bigger threat still operating in the shadows?”

Vicky McClure and Martin Compston in ‘Line of Duty’ (BBC/World Productions)

It has not yet been announced who will play Dominic Gough. Previous guest stars to appear in Line of Duty since it began in 2012 include Stephen Graham, Thandiwe Newton, Lennie James and Anna Maxwell Martin.

The news comes after Dunbar, who plays Ted “Mother of God!” Hastings in the show, teased the drama’s return last summer, saying: “Jed is writing. We’ve talked to the BBC.”

Celebrating the return of the series, creator Mercurio said: “Everyone involved in Line of Duty feels enormous gratitude to the show’s fans. We’re privileged to have had so many of you follow the ups and downs of AC-12 over six previous seasons and we couldn’t be more delighted to be returning for a seventh. Corruption in this country is supposed to have come to an end while Line of Duty was off air so I’ve been forced to use my imagination.”

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Compston, whose character Steve Arnott has become synonymous with his signature waistcoat look, said: “Line of Duty has been a job of a lifetime… I can’t wait to pull the waistcoat on again and get the team back together.”

McClure added that she is “so excited”, while Dunbar said: “As we count down the AC-12 days of Christmas, what a joy it is to know that the Three Amigos will be back filming together next year.”