Line of Duty Series Five - Reviewed by Maggie Woods

“An undercover cop appears to have
gone rogue, deeply involved with
dangerously cold-blooded criminals
who, while hijacking a confiscated drug
lorry being taken under police escort
to a special facility, are responsible for
the deaths and serious wounding of the
accompanying officers; but the crooks
could not know about the transporting
of the drugs unless there is a corrupt
police worker passing on information in
the fifth series of the gritty and highly
compulsive television drama Line of
Duty...”

TACKLING ANOTHER CASE OF POLICE CORRUPTION, AC-12 investigators Detective Inspector Kate Fleming (Vicky McClure) and Detective Sergeant Steve Arnott (Martin Compston) spring into action under orders from dour Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar), whose private life is in tatters as he is going through divorce proceedings with his wife Roisin (Andrea Irvine).

A lorry, containing confiscated drugs with a street value of millions of pounds, has been hijacked while travelling under police escort to a special facility. An accompanying officer, D S Jane Cafferty (Sian Reese-Williams), witnessed a possible tragedy but when she stopped the convoy to investigate, she realised it was a ruse by an Organised Crime Group (OCG) to hijack the valuable load. The drugs are back in the hands of criminals, three officers are killed and Jane is badly hurt.

“Cleverly using
twists and turns while
laden with shocks
and nail-biting tension,
the awe-inspiring
Line of Duty Series Five
continues to deliver
ultra-compulsive
viewing...”

Kate and Steve have to find and apprehend the criminals with their ruthless leader John Corbett (one of Britain's great acting talents, Stephen Graham), before they can carry out another heist; but as they investigate they know they are looking at police corruption. The mysterious "H" behind the crimes could well be one of their own in a senior position — maybe even Ted Hastings himself.

As the gang commit more high-profile heists and the body count rises, civilian administrator Vehan Malhotra (Maanuv Thiara) — who is being blackmailed — and his cousin, naļve young police officer Maneet Vindra (Maya Sondhi), come under scrutiny and Maneet puts her life on the line to try to right a wrong.

Corbett is trying to arrange a deal with another OCG, a gang involved with trafficking women for prostitution and Lisa McQueen (Rochenda Sandall), who is working alongside him, is finding her role increasingly distasteful.

Ted Hastings has his head turned and, while he is preoccupied, his wife is badly beaten. He has already been warned that his team is interfering with another operation known as Pear Tree and an undercover officer (UCO) is already in place. But has that person gone rogue? It could be that there is more than one!

A number of familiar faces mixed with new characters make up the splendid cast and Line of Duty Series Five leaves enough intrigue to ensure viewers remain hooked for the next series.

Is Ted really squeaky clean and who is the criminal mastermind known as "H"? H may be a code, rather than an initial, but Ted has enough reasons to need to make more money. Lauded as "the king of the crime dramas" by The Telegraph and cleverly using twists and turns while laden with shocks and nail-biting tension, the awe-inspiring Line of Duty Series Five continues to deliver ultra-compulsive viewing.

Filmed on location in Northern Ireland, Line of Duty Series Five also features: Alastair Natkiel as Lee Banks; Tomi May as Miroslav; Aiysha Hart asSam; Elizabeth Rider as DCC Andrea Wise; Gregory Piper as Ryan; Ace Bhatti as Sindwhani; Taj Atwal as Tatleen; Susan Vidler as Powell; and Barry Aird as Slater.

Composer is Carly Paradis; Director of Photography is Stephen Murphy; Written and Created by award-winning Jed Mercurio (Bodyguard); Produced by Ken Horn; and Directed by John Strickland.

Following its Sunday night primetime run on BBC One, the highly-acclaimed hit series is released on DVD in the UK as Line of Duty Series Five alongside the full Line of Duty Series One to Five Complete Box Set from Acorn Media International on 6 May 2019. Also available to buy digitally, to download and keep.

"Cleverly using twists and turns while laden with shocks and nail-biting tension, the awe-inspiring Line of Duty Series Five continues to deliver ultra-compulsive viewing" ***** — Maggie Woods, MotorBar

"Skilfully cranks up the suspense and if you don't let out at least three involuntary squeals, you're made of sterner stuff than most… as fiendishly addictive as ever" — The Telegraph

"As gripping as you're hoping… relentless in pace from the get go" — The Sun

"Only two things are guaranteed: surprises and those gripping interrogation scenes" — Pick of the Week, Mail On Sunday

"It's got balaclavas, it's got the mystery of the letter H, it's got spine-tingling interrogation… Line of Duty has the next five Sunday nights under house arrest" ***** Metro

"Fasten your seatbelts, people, as television's tensest cop show returns… welcome back" — The Observer

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