This article was originally published in The Dundee Courier on 6 May 2017.
LINE OF DUTY: Sunday, BBC One
BRITAIN’S NUCLEAR
BOMB: THE INSIDE STORY: Wednesday, BBC Four
Jed
Mercurio is a crafty swine. I swear he must write LINE OF DUTY while cackling up his sleeve, like a cruel child who
can’t resist incinerating ants with an elaborate rig of magnifying glasses.
The
latest series of his incomparably entertaining cop drama climaxed with the
blatant suggestion that gruffly lovable police chief Ted Hastings might somehow
be involved with the overarching thread of deeply sordid establishment
corruption.
Mercurio
timed this twist to perfection, as Hastings – played by the excellent Irish
actor Adrian Dunbar – has gradually secured his place in the pantheon of
much-loved fictional TV sleuths.
A
no-nonsense copper in the old-school mould, his paternal decency and dogged determination
has transformed him into a kind of wish-fulfilment folk hero. It’s comforting to
believe that reliable policemen such as Hastings still exist – if, indeed, they
ever did – to protect us from the evil deeds of all-powerful elites.
Hastings
curtly undermining a smug suspect by calling them “fella” or gently referring
to a young female murder victim as “that wee girl” - he's no more sexist than your affable, well-meaning dad - has become a source of
national pride, as well as a fun-for-all-the-family drinking game. What’s not
to love about the man?
Well,
this blanket adoration has clearly become too cosy as far as Mercurio is
concerned. He’s occasionally dropped hints that Hastings might not be as trustworthy
as he seems, but that’s always felt like the kind of red herring misdirection
he’s so fond of.
When
the dodgy senior police officer – played with a dodgy English accent by
Scottish actor Paul Higgins - attempted to frame Hastings in the penultimate
episode, we didn’t believe it for a second. He was obviously trying to divert
attention from himself. Turns out there may be some truth to his accusation
after all.
Despite knowing that two more series have been commissioned, I actually wouldn’t mind if Mercurio
left us with the tantalising fear that Hastings was behind everything from the
start. That might seem like a cheap trick – it probably is – but it would still
work as a sly summation of the show’s cynical, paranoid message. No one can be
trusted.
As
for the rest of this year’s storyline, it unfolded – somewhat disappointingly –
more or less as expected. Roz murdered Tim, but not as part of any grand
involvement with Balaclava Man/Men.
The
main buzz from Roz’s weary confession came from imagining that her oily lawyer,
played by Patrick Baladi, was Neil from The
Office failing hilariously after training as a lawyer post-sacking from
Wernham-Hogg.
I
hope, when they make the final series, the ultimate twist
is that Hastings is one of the few trusted ‘70s/’80s establishment figures who
wasn’t a wrong ‘un. Now that would be subversive, fella.
Space
precludes me from rewarding BRITAIN’S
NUCLEAR BOMB: THE INSIDE STORY with the detailed praise it deserves, so I
urge you to watch this fascinating documentary on iPlayer.
As
the world teeters on the brink once again, it whisked us back to a simpler,
gentler time when nuclear Armageddon first became a harrowing reality. Our first
atomic bomb was invented, tried and tested by men – now dapper, aged and
charming – who still lived in fear of post-war German retaliation.
If they could've foreseen Brexit, we'd all be dead by now.
Despite
the literally devastating subject matter, the programme managed to scrape some
dark, dry humour from our typically parochial flirtation with the
apocalypse. They almost destroyed Dorking during test runs.
Almost restores
your faith in hapless British ingenuity, doesn’t it?
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