Martin Compston Says Line Of Duty Could Continue After This Week's Finale

Jesus, Mary and Joseph (and the wee donkey), it's been a rollercoaster ride of a season for Line of Duty.

The sixth instalment of the BBC corrupt coppers drama has seen AC-12 run around in circles as they try and track down the now legendary 'H' - the 'Fourth Man' thought to be the key link between the police and the OCG.

Just as we thought the team has finally nailed the perp, yet another twist rears its head - leaving Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) and the team forced back to the start.

Now, time is running out for AC-12, with Ted being forced into early retirement, Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) facing his own suspension due to his injuries - and the department being merged due to budget constraints.

And while Sunday night's finale looks set to be explosive, we've been left wondering whether Jed Mercurio will be able to wrap up this compelling storyline in just one hour.

Now, Martin Compston, who plays lovable ladies' man Steve Arnott in the series, has given us a clue about what to expect from the up and coming finale - and the show's future overall.

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Speaking on the Shrine of Duty podcast, the unofficial podcast for the show which discusses fan reaction, theories and spoilers, the actor explained: "There are a lot of payoffs coming this Sunday.

"There are a lot of big answers coming, and I think it's deserved. You know, people have stuck with us for such a long time. I think there comes a point where the natural story arc that's been running all these years is coming to an end."

But the cheeky scamp refused to confirm whether we will find out H's true identity - so we may still be left in the dark after nearly 10 years.

Martin also discussed the possibility of a seventh series of the hit show. The most recent Line of Duty saw over 11 million viewers, with its sheer popularity making a seventh series seem surely inevitable.

However, Martin claimed this could be the final Line of Duty - and it's down to writer Jed Mercurio to decide whether to continue AC-12's cases.

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"Jed [Mercurio] always takes time after a series, like a couple of months," he said.

"He likes to take the emotion out of it and sit down and looks at all that."

"There are different elements this year. Usually, we're just looking at - do people want us back, because you don't want to overdo it. But there's also - when you get 10 years in, you start to think of legacy, and if it goes down that well in some ways it might be the perfect ending."

Martin continued: "We won't do [another series] just for the sake of doing it. That won't happen. Jed will only do it if he feels there's a story there to be told."

Whether this really is the end for AC-12, we can't say for sure. But regardless how Sunday's episode pans out, we can all agree Line of Duty is one of Britain's very best dramas.

Line of Duty concludes Sunday at 9pm on BBC One.

Topics: Drama, BBC, TV News, TV & Film, TV Entertainment, Line of Duty

Kimberley Bond

Kim is a journalist at Tyla, and has previously worked at the Evening Standard, Radio Times as well as several national newspapers. A showbiz obsessive and a television fanatic, Kim is particularly interested in celebrity gossip, A-list events and the latest releases on either the big or small screen. Contact her at [email protected]

@0xKimberley