Line of Duty fans given first look at season 7 of hit BBC crime drama - The Independent
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Robert Carlyle’s turn as a specialist rifle officer in Line of Duty series seven has been revealed in first-look images.
The Scottish actor, 65, plays Detective Constable Shaun Massie, a guest lead in the new run of the BBC drama coming in the new year.
Carlyle is known for roles in hit movies Trainspotting and The Full Monty.
The pictures released Thursday for the new series show him armed and in police uniform as part of tactical operations unit 7 (TO-7).
His character, a veteran marksman described as a “gruff loner”, will be tasked with taking down organised crime groups.
Everything changes, however, when his boss, DI Dominic Gough, is accused of being a sexual predator.
Gough is played by series newcomer Tom Weston-Jones, best known for starring in Warrior and Sanditon.
The TO-7 unit also comprises This City Is Ours actress Laura Aikman as DC Paula Beckman, This Town's Levi Brown as DC Luke Tobin, and You actress Amy-Leigh Hickman as DC Nira Rashid.
Martin Compton, Vicky McClure and Adrian Dunbar all reprise their roles as anti-corruption unit AC-12 officers Steve Arnott, Kate Fleming and Ted Hastings respectively, in Jed Mercurio's hit crime thriller.
The new series follows the unit after it was disbanded and rebranded as the Inspectorate of Police Standards, as the team are assigned their most sensitive case so far.
Mark Bonnar returns as former Deputy Chief Constable Mike Dryden, while Owen Teale reprises his role as Chief Constable Philip Osborne.
Perry Fitzpatrick will be back as DS Chris Lomax, along with Christina Chong as DI Nicky Rogerson.
Carlyle follows previous Line of Duty guest series leads, including his Trainspotting co-star Kelly Macdonald, Adolescence actor Stephen Graham and Westworld actor Thandiwe Newton.
Line of Duty series seven will air on BBC One and BBC iPlayer in the new year.
In September, Dunbar gave fans a hint at what to expect from the new series.
Previous years have seen his character Hastings utter such phrases as “Now we’re sucking diesel”, “I didn’t float up the Lagan in a bubble”, and “Jesus, Mary and Joseph and the wee donkey”, with some of his expressions entering the lexicon of Line of Duty fanatics.
Speaking on the BBC’s Red Lines podcast during an interview at Belfast's Lyric Theatre, Dunbar said that there were more such phrases being lined up for the show’s forthcoming return.
“I’ve got a couple coming along this time in this series,” he said.
“I say something like, ‘Come on, guys, don’t stall the digger’. ‘Don’t stall the digger’ is going to be my new one.”
Alluding to the way that his past quotes have been merchandised – with fans buying items such as shirts and mugs with Hasting’s phrases on – Dunbar quipped: “There’ll be a mug for that, too.”
