Five years ago a whopping 17 million viewers tuned in to learn H’s identity in the Line Of Duty finale.
After nine years and six series the BBC drama promised to answer the question on everyone’s lips as the show came to an end with a bumper 90-minute special.
However, the finale did not deliver as promised, with fans left furious when it emerged the elusive ‘fourth man’, who had been colluding with the organised crime group (OCG), was none other than DSU Ian Buckells (Nigel Boyle).
Even the cast were left ‘disappointed’ with the reveal, with Adrian Dunbar – who played Superintendent Ted Hastings – confessing: ‘When you find out it is this idiot, Buckles, it is so frustrating’.
Yet perhaps even more frustrating than the reveal itself, were the questions that were left unanswered – with viewers left confused by the gaping plot holes in the series.
Now, with Line Of Duty set to return after a five-year hiatus, Daily Mail reveals the questions and plot holes that creator Jed Mercurio must solve in order to redeem the show.
The Line Of Duty questions that 17 MILLION viewers need answering as drama returns five years after ‘underwhelming’ finale (pictured: Adrian Dunbar, Vicky McClure and Martin Compston as AC-12’s Superintendent Ted Hastings, DI Kate Fleming and DI Steve Arnott)
Fans were left furious when it emerged the elusive ‘fourth man’, who had been colluding with the organised crime group (OCG), was none other than DSU Ian Buckells (Nigel Boyle)
But first – what actually happened in Line Of Duty series six?
Line Of Duty’s sixth season centered on AC-12’s investigation into the murder of journalist Gail Vella (Andi Osho) – a case that exposed a vast network of corrupt police officers.
Martin Compston, Vicky McClure and Adrian Dunbar reprised their roles as Steve Arnott, Kate Fleming and Ted Hasting for the series as they looked into DCI Joanne Davidson (Kelly Macdonald) who was the Senior Investigating Officer on the case.
Through their investigation, AC-12 learnt that DCI Davidson had orchestrated Gail’s murder, before unveiling DCI Buckells as H.
However, despite making the arrests, AC-12’s position remained weaker than ever, with DI Arnott battling a crippling painkiller addiction, while a restructuring of anti-corruption units left the team with less powers.
Why did H want Jo Davidson dead after she took the heat off him?
One storyline that left many scratching their heads was why H tried to kill DCI Davidson (Kelly Macdonald) after she’d apparently done him a favour by taking the heat off him
DCI Davidson had effectively helped H’s cause by identifying former Chief Superintendent Patrick Fairbank (George Costigan) as ‘a bent copper’?
One storyline that left many scratching their heads was why H tried to kill DCI Davidson after she’d apparently done him a favour by taking the heat off him.
During the finale, Davidson claimed her adopted dad Chief Superintendent Patrick Fairbank (George Costigan) – now ravaged by the early stages of dementia was a ‘bent copper’ – a move that temporarily took AC-12 off the scent of Buckells.
DI Steve Arnott and hard-working DS Chloe Bishop (Shalom Brune-Franklin) then decided to haul in ex copper Fairbank – a regular face in the early series of the show – upon learning that he was part of the same team involved in the murder of Lawrence Christopher.
However, AC-12 failed to get any answers due to Fairbank’s deteriorating mental state, leaving Hastings fleeing the room in frustration as the case appeared to slip away.
By the series’ end, viewers were left still confused as to why Davidson had tried to blame her supposed father – given that she herself was being blackmailed, making her an easy target for the organised crime group after she ended up behind bars.
The question remains though, why did H try to orchestrate a grisly demise for Davidson, whisking her from her prison cell to a certain death in a fake prison van?
Was it simply because she was now deemed ‘a rat’ and must be picked off?
How did Arnott and Fleming intercept the van carrying DCI Davidson?
Davidson was bustled from her HMP Brentiss cell into a fake white prison van – with bent coppers at the wheel – but a split second later DI Arnott was behind the wheel
A moment of action that viewers couldn’t follow on screen left many wondering how it might actually have realistically happened.
After Davidson was bustled from her HMP Brentiss cell into a fake white prison van – with bent coppers at the wheel, it seemed certain she was destined for an untimely end as she was driven into the clutches of Buckells.
However, when a tracking helicopter watched the van duck under an underpass, there was an apparent off-screen interception, and AC-12 were suddenly, unfathomably, in control again.
When the van was, moments later, caught in a pincer movement by a pair of OCG Range Rovers on an unremarkable side street, it appeared that Davidson was now the subject of an intended fake hijacking – all part of Buckell’s grand plan to kill her.
However, from the van emerged not the officers who’d previously been seen driving it, but a taser-carrying Arnott, with Fleming flinging open the doors of the back of the vehicle, also with her own taser in hand.
Somewhere along the way, the anti-corruption duo had managed to get inside the vehicle – probably under that underpass – but there was never any hint as to how it happened, with viewers not invited to be privy to the one of the most dramatic scenes in the episode.
Why was Jo Davidson allowed to start an idyllic new life?
After AC-12 deemed Davidson spent a lifetime being coerced into helping the OCG, she was considered a bent copper against her will and moved into Witness Protection with her girlfriend
The finale saw her image unpinned from the notice board in the AC-12 crime bubble – suggesting her involvement with the investigation was officially over
After AC-12 deemed that Davidson spent a lifetime being coerced into helping the OCG, she was considered a bent copper against her will and her prison cell at HMP Brentiss was promptly unlocked.
In episode five, a shocked Davidson learned that her depraved paedophile uncle Tommy Hunter (Brian McCardie), was actually her father – after a DNA match indicated inbreeding in the family – and that he’d forced her into a life of crime.
The finale saw her image unpinned from the notice board in the AC-12 crime bubble – suggesting her involvement with the investigation was officially over.
That is, despite the fact that earlier in the series she had lured DI Fleming to a deserted car park to face a nerve-jangling shoot out with bent copper Ryan Pilkington (Gregory Piper).
However, crimes aside, the epilogue then showed that she’d been moved into the Witness Protection scheme and was living the rural dream.
Dressed in a cosy knit, and with a Golden Retriever by her side, she was seen walking off from the idyllic rural cottage she shares with her new flame-haired girlfriend.
On social media, one viewer quipped: ‘Still unsure how Jo Davidson got off so lightly and ended up in Kate Winslet’s cottage from The Holiday.’
Some viewers suggested that it was too far-fetched that Davidson would simply be allowed to start a seemingly blissful new life without facing some retribution for her decades spent actively helping criminals.
Will Steve finally get together with Steph Corbett, or colleague Kate?
Throughout the series viewers saw Steve form a close bond with John Corbett’s widow Steph (Amy De Bhrún) even spending the night in her bed after continuing to struggle with back pain
As series six concluded, it was clear that Arnott and Fleming had never been closer, as she described him as being ‘the best’ during a meeting with Occupational Health
Throughout the series viewers saw Arnott form a close bond with John Corbett’s (Stephen Graham) widow Steph (Amy De Bhrún), even spending the night in her bed after continuing to struggle with back pain and his painkiller addiction.
But by the end of series six though, he was clearly doubting whether to pursue a relationship with her, given how she lied about a vast sum of cash given to her by Hastings.
As series six concluded, it was clear that Arnott and Fleming had never been closer, as she described him as being ‘the best’ during a meeting with Occupational Health, and hinted that she could be ready to return to AC-12.
Fans have long enjoyed the pair’s close friendship but perhaps series seven could lead to something more.
Over a drink and some lingering looks in the pub during last night’s episode, Fleming told her long-time partner in crime fighting: ‘You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone’, suggesting that it wasn’t just working for AC-12 that she was hoping to come back to.
Still fans were left hanging as to whether the line had more romantic connotations and the professional couple could become lovers.
Who is the REAL leader of the OCG?
Viewers were quick to note that Buckells didn’t wholly confirm whether he was the leader of the Organised Crime Group – instead pinning the blame on Tommy Hunter (Brian McCardie)
Despite the episode revealing that that Buckells was actually the so-called ‘Fourth Man,’ some viewers were quick to note that he didn’t wholly confirm whether he was the leader of the Organised Crime Group – leaving another question hanging in the air.
Instead, he pinned the blame on Tommy Hunter, who was killed back in series two – after being ambushed while being moved into witness protection and then later murdered in hospital – meaning Buckells’ claims seemed less and less likely.
The former head of the OCG, Tommy groomed Matthew ‘Dot’ Cottan (Craig Parkinson) as a teenager, before encouraging him to join the police as a mole for the crime gang.
Viewers will remember that Hunter had links to Ryan Pilkington (Gregory Piper) who worked for him as a juvenile delinquent, and almost undone AC-12 when he pulled a gun on Fleming.
So, with Hunter long gone and Buckells not offering up a definitive answer, the question still remains whether another corrupt officer or criminal is still pulling the strings in the OCG, and Buckells’ role as a middle-man means they could still be out to cause trouble for AC-12.
What will happen to AC-12?
Despite finally uncovering the identity of H through a long paper trail of corrupt officers, fans were surprised to learn the organisation’s powers had been significantly weakened
Despite finally uncovering the identity of H through a long paper trail of corrupt officers, fans were surprised to learn the organisation’s powers had been significantly weakened.
Fleming hinted she’d be open to taking her job back alongside Arnott and Hastings, who vowed to appeal his forced retirement despite confessing to DCS Patricia Carmichael (Anna Maxwell Martin) he’d revealed Corbett’s identity as an Undercover Officer.
Arnott hinted he may take a break from active duty to overcome his addiction to painkillers, despite he and Fleming appearing closer than ever as she told Occupational Health that he was ‘the best.’
How exactly was Steph Corbett involved?
Aside from the mystery £50k, fans are still in the dark about whether Steph could have any further involvement in the OCG, especially given her presence in the sixth series
When Hastings uttered the lines: ‘a young woman with two wee girls, who would’ve been left destitute because her husband was killed in the line of duty’, it clarified that he’d handed over the cash to Steph, John’s widow.
However, whether Steph has any further involvement in the OCG, especially given her ongoing presence in the sixth series, remains unclear.
There were theories ahead of the finale that she could have a secret link to Marcus Thurwell (James Nesbitt).
Yet given her appearance stretched to little more than a voicemail, how the character of Steph was portrayed has left several unanswered questions – and suggests she may be back.
Who forged Fleming’s and DS Chris Lomax’s signature – and is Lomax dodgy?
DS Chris Lomax appeared to be Hillside Lane’s straight man but the questions left hanging over how his signature was forged suggests he may not be clean as a whistle after all
Early in the finale, DC Bishop revealed that the report ordering Davidson’s transfer from her prison cell to Hillside Lane police station had been forged by an OCG
DS Chris Lomax (Perry Fitzpatrick) appeared to be Hillside Lane’s straight man… but the questions left hanging over how his signature was forged suggests he may not be clean as a whistle after all.
The discrepancies over signatures begs the question – can DS Lomax, an officer in the Murder Investigation Team (MIT), be trusted too?
Early in the finale, DC Bishop revealed that the report ordering Davidson’s transfer from her prison cell to Hillside Lane police station had been forged by an OCG, with a mystery member faking the signatures of both Kate and Lomax to gain access to her cell.
Given Buckells was still in prison at the time, it was unclear who was behind the plot to have Davidson killed, as she clearly knew too much about the OCG, and whether it could have been another officer who ordered her death.
And the fact that Lomax was at Hillside Lane to receive former crime boss Tommy Hunter’s son Darren could suggest he’s not quite as spotless as he appears.
Is Chief Constable Osborne bent?
It’s possible that Chief Constable Osborne (Owen Teale) could be involved in the OCG after openly dismissed any claims of corruption on the force, despite AC-12’s discoveries
For years CC Phillip Osborne (Owen Teale) has been a prime suspect in AC-12’s investigations of corruption, and it was revealed that he worked on the Lawrence Christopher murder case with now-deceased Marcus Thurwell, and ‘H’ Buckells.
In a televised conference, Osborne commended the work of his officers in locating Gail Vella’s murder, but once again dismissed any institutional police corruption as ‘an outrageous lie.’
Given he is clearly willing to dispel any credible leads AC-12 may have, it’s possible he could be involved in an OCG, and may carry on doing their dirty work for years to come.
Will DCI Patricia Carmichael expose Hastings’ wrong doing?
Viewers were left hoping DCS Patricia Carmichael (Anna Maxwell Martin) had some glimmer of compassion after Hastings decided to make a confession
She’s become one of the show’s most maligned characters, but viewers were left hoping that Carmichael had some glimmer of compassion after Hastings decided to make a confession.
Clearly still a lawful man despite years working in corruption, Ted admitted that he did reveal to Lee Banks that John Corbett was working undercover in organised crime, indirectly leading to his death.
Carmichael simply asked: ‘What do you want me to do with that information?’ leading to one of Hastings’ best speeches yet, declaring: ‘Whatever you do, you do it because you carry the fire…’
As Hastings made his exit, Carmichael’s stoic expression hinted she is less keen to report him then viewers may think…
Will Hastings succeed in appealing his forced retirement?
During his final meeting with Carmichal, Hasting also revealed he is planning to appeal against being forced to retire from active duty
During his final meeting with Carmichal, Hasting also revealed he is planning to appeal against being forced to retire from active duty, despite finally putting one of the team’s longest-serving mysteries to bed.
It was clear from the start that he wasn’t ready to step down, so it remains to be seen whether he’ll succeed in keeping his job, and AC-12, going strong to fight corruption another day.
