It feels like we’ve been waiting a very, very long time for our beloved Line Of Duty to return to our TV screens, doesn’t it?

Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, production on the BBC police drama was halted last year in a bid to adhere to social distancing and lockdown rules.

The break, though, has actually benefited us all, as it’s allowed writer Jed Mercurio to add an extra episode. 

And now, in a hot-off-the-press release penned by AC-12’s Superintendent Ted Hastings himself (apparently), it’s been confirmed that a new copper is joining the team, too. 

“I am writing to inform you that DC Chloe Bishop will be joining AC-12 to assist in their important work on a tricky upcoming case,” reads the note from Hastings.

“This action will be effective immediately.” 

Bishop will be played by none other than Shalom Brune-Franklin, aka the same talented actor who brought Private Maisie Richards to life in the BBC series Our Girl.

She also starred alongside Hugh Laurie in political thriller Roadkill last year, as well as Netflix fantasy series, Cursed.

Little is known about her character, or the role she will play in Line Of Duty’s ongoing storyline, but one can’t help but wonder how she will get along with Hastings (Adrian Dunbar), DI Kate Fleming (Vicky McClure), and DS Steve Arnett (Martin Compston).

All we can hope is that Bishop proves herself a decent copper, because the team needs someone strong and capable on their side if they’re to have any hope of figuring out who mystery troublemaker H is.

Earlier this week, Adrian Dunbar – who plays Hastings in the series – confirmed that viewers don’t have much longer to wait for the sixth series.

“Like everybody else, we locked down in March when we had a bit of episode one and two done and then we came back but this time we shot it all out of sequence,” he explained during an appearance on The One Show.

“It was difficult… but they’ve got another episode out of it so instead of six episodes, we are going to have seven episodes, which is kind of extraordinary.” 

Dunbar added that the new episodes will premiere on BBC One “sometime in the next two or three months.”

“I am dying to see it with everybody else as sometimes it gets a bit confusing but it will all be fixed in the edit as they say,” he said.

Line Of Duty will return to the BBC in spring 2021. 

Images: BBC