Did that Line of Duty episode two cliffhanger really just implicate Adrian Dunbar’s AC-12 leader Superintendent Ted Hastings as a member of a syndicate of corrupt coppers? We think not, thanks to some contradictory evidence put forward by a few eagle-eyed viewers…
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In a tense interview scene at the close of the BBC1 drama’s second instalment, we saw corrupt sergeant Jane Cafferty asked to identify the police officer who had recruited her into a series of criminal conspiracies.
Placed on the desk in front of her were photos of cops from AC-12’s ‘who is H’ investigation board – CC Hilton, DI Matthew “Dot” Cotton (AKA The Caddy), DS Jeremy Cole and Manish Prasad (both series two) and CS Patrick Fairbank (series three) – alongside another image taken from a drawer of current AC-12 officers.
But who was the unseen photo of? And which of the faces did Cafferty point to? At first, it seemed we’d have to wait until next week to find out.
However, after a bit of detective work of their own, some viewers think that although Hastings was indeed placed in front of Cafferty, it was in fact the photo of DI Matthew ‘Dot’ Cottan (Craig Parkinson) that she picked out.
I’m not obsessed with #LineOfDuty, *but*… pic.twitter.com/DBMJiC9Mze
— Gibbins (@H29Gibbins) April 7, 2019
#LineOfDuty Don't panic….its not Ted. Dot Cottons picture is placed bottom right of table (Blue collared shirt….grey and white backdrop.) Cafferty then points to bottom right. In Ted we trust. (Yes, we rewound 10 times🤓😂) 🧐 pic.twitter.com/CZhOGwKB2S
— James Williamson (@JWph0tOgraphy) April 7, 2019
Just in case you were wondering.
From TL to BR.
DC Jeremy Cole (dead)
DS Manish Prasad (alive, given immunity)
ACC Derek Hilton (dead)
Ch Supt Patrick Fairbank (alive, in jail)
?? (presumably Ted)
DI Matthew Cottan (dead)She picks bottom right: Dot.#LineOfDuty #TedHastings pic.twitter.com/mWws6aQrx2
— Tom Green 📻 (@TomDGreen) April 8, 2019
Spoiler Alert!
In case anyone is wondering who Jane Cafferty identified… KF6 is DI Matthew "Dot" Cottan, not Superintendent Ted Hastings (KF5) #LineOfDuty pic.twitter.com/yvJDc8iwB6
— Angelo Brieussel (@AngeloBrieussel) April 8, 2019
If the screenshots do indeed show Cottan as Cafferty’s corrupt copper contact then it looks like Hastings’ shifty behaviour during the interview may just have been a Ted herring after all.
However, it doesn’t change the fact that DI Kate Fleming (Vicky McClure) apparently chose to place Hastings in the line-up in the first place.
Even if he’s not the officer who recruited Cafferty, could he still be the mysterious ‘H’ at the top of the chain of corrupt officers?
Ted, a bent copper? Mother of God, we hope not.
Line of Duty continues Sunday at 9pm on BBC1
from Radio Times http://bit.ly/2U4KYJk