# List of Line of Duty episodes

Line of Duty is a British police procedural and serial drama television series created and written by Jed Mercurio for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Mercurio originally pitched the programme to BBC One, but was turned down and directed towards BBC Two, which commissioned the series nine months later. It premiered on 26 June 2012 with a five-episode first series which concluded on 24 July. The programme performed well and quickly earned a commission for a second series. The six-episode second series aired from 2 February to 19 March 2014. Although viewing figures were slightly lower than the first, BBC Two commissioned a third and fourth series of the programme. The third began broadcasting on 24 March 2016 and finished six weeks later on 28 April. Series three surpassed the viewership of the first series and was the most viewed series on BBC Two in over ten years, leading to the commissioning of a fifth series.
Around the time of the commissioning of the new series, a restructuring of BBC television networks occurred, causing ownership over BBC One and BBC Two to become consolidated under Charlotte Moore. Following these changes, the decision was made to promote Line of Duty to BBC One for the fourth series onwards. Series four aired from 26 March to 30 April 2017 followed by the fifth from 31 March to 5 May 2019. Following the fourth, the programme was also commissioned for series six. A special mini-episode written by the Dawson Brothers aired on 13 March 2020 in support of Sport Relief. An additional episode was produced for the sixth and final series of the show; the series began airing on 21 March 2021 with its finale being broadcast on 2 May. Viewing figures increased significantly over the course of the series, leading to record breaking broadcasts and causing Line of Duty to become the highest-rated drama since modern records began in 2002. The series has since been the subject of critical acclaim, receiving nominations for several awards and gaining a large cult following.
The series primarily follows the actions of Anti-Corruption Unit 12 (AC-12), a task force located within the fictional Central Police Constabulary. AC-12 is led by Superintendent Ted Hastings, portrayed by Adrian Dunbar. Martin Compston and Vicky McClure also starred in all six series as AC-12 officers Steve Arnott and Kate Fleming, respectively. Each series features an additional actor who portrays a police officer that is being investigated by AC-12. These roles were performed by Lennie James, Keely Hawes, Daniel Mays, Thandie Newton, Stephen Graham, and Kelly Macdonald. Other starring cast members include Craig Parkinson, Jessica Raine, Jason Watkins, and Anna Maxwell Martin. Over the course of the programme, an overarching storyline develops that connects numerous characters to an organised crime group which is found to be involved in a large conspiracy with high-ranking officers of the police department. Produced by World Productions, the series was primarily filmed in Belfast although filming for the first series took place in Birmingham. It was distributed internationally by Content Media Group, which was eventually purchased by Kew Media Distribution, and ultimately ITV Studios following Kew Media's collapse.
During the course of the programme, 36 episodes of Line of Duty aired over six series, between 26 June 2012 and 2 May 2021.

## Series overview

Line of Duty series overview :
| Series | Episodes | Episodes | Originally aired | Originally aired | Originally aired | Average viewership (in millions) |
| Series | Episodes | Episodes | First aired | Last aired | Network | Average viewership (in millions) |
| 1 | 5 | 5 | 26 June 2012 (2012-06-26) | 24 July 2012 (2012-07-24) | BBC Two | 3.80 |
| 2 | 6 | 6 | 12 February 2014 (2014-02-12) | 19 March 2014 (2014-03-19) | BBC Two | 3.43 |
| 3 | 6 | 6 | 24 March 2016 (2016-03-24) | 28 April 2016 (2016-04-28) | BBC Two | 4.81 |
| 4 | 6 | 6 | 26 March 2017 (2017-03-26) | 30 April 2017 (2017-04-30) | BBC One | 8.24 |
| 5 | 6 | 6 | 31 March 2019 (2019-03-31) | 5 May 2019 (2019-05-05) | BBC One | 11.10 |
| Sport Relief special | Sport Relief special | Sport Relief special | 13 March 2020 (2020-03-13) | 13 March 2020 (2020-03-13) | BBC One | — |
| 6 | 7 | 7 | 21 March 2021 (2021-03-21) | 2 May 2021 (2021-05-02) | BBC One | 13.67 |

## Episodes
### Series 1 (2012)

Line of Duty series 1 episodes :
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 1 | 1 | "Episode 1" "A Disastrous Affair" | David Caffrey | 26 June 2012 (2012-06-26) | 3.76 |
| 2 | 2 | "Episode 2" "The Assault" | David Caffrey | 3 July 2012 (2012-07-03) | 3.84 |
| 3 | 3 | "Episode 3" "In the Trap" | David Caffrey | 10 July 2012 (2012-07-10) | 3.80 |
| 4 | 4 | "Episode 4" "Terror" | Douglas Mackinnon | 17 July 2012 (2012-07-17) | 3.87 |
| 5 | 5 | "Episode 5" "The Probation" | Douglas Mackinnon | 24 July 2012 (2012-07-24) | 3.72 |

### Series 2 (2014)

Line of Duty series 2 episodes :
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 6 | 1 | "Episode 1" "The Ambush" | Douglas Mackinnon | 12 February 2014 (2014-02-12) | 2.74 |
| 7 | 2 | "Episode 2" "Carly" | Douglas Mackinnon | 19 February 2014 (2014-02-19) | 3.21 |
| 8 | 3 | "Episode 3" "Behind Bars" | Douglas Mackinnon | 26 February 2014 (2014-02-26) | 3.34 |
| 9 | 4 | "Episode 4" "Blood Money" | Daniel Nettheim | 5 March 2014 (2014-03-05) | 3.46 |
| 10 | 5 | "Episode 5" "Last Words" | Daniel Nettheim | 12 March 2014 (2014-03-12) | 3.73 |
| 11 | 6 | "Episode 6" "The Caddy" | Daniel Nettheim | 19 March 2014 (2014-03-19) | 4.12 |

### Series 3 (2016)

Line of Duty series 3 episodes :
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 12 | 1 | "Episode 1" "Monsters" | Michael Keillor | 24 March 2016 (2016-03-24) | 3.31 |
| 13 | 2 | "Episode 2" "The Process" | Michael Keillor | 31 March 2016 (2016-03-31) | 5.11 |
| 14 | 3 | "Episode 3" "Snake Pit" | Michael Keillor | 7 April 2016 (2016-04-07) | 4.97 |
| 15 | 4 | "Episode 4" "Negative Pressure" | John Strickland | 14 April 2016 (2016-04-14) | 4.82 |
| 16 | 5 | "Episode 5" "The List" | John Strickland | 21 April 2016 (2016-04-21) | 5.09 |
| 17 | 6 | "Episode 6" "Breach" | John Strickland | 28 April 2016 (2016-04-28) | 5.58 |

### Series 4 (2017)

Line of Duty series 4 episodes :
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 18 | 1 | "Episode 1" "In the Shadow of Truth" | Jed Mercurio | 26 March 2017 (2017-03-26) | 7.40 |
| 19 | 2 | "Episode 2" "Who Sows the Wind" | Jed Mercurio | 2 April 2017 (2017-04-02) | 7.26 |
| 20 | 3 | "Episode 3" "In the Trap" | John Strickland | 9 April 2017 (2017-04-09) | 7.37 |
| 21 | 4 | "Episode 4" "Moral Superiority" | John Strickland | 16 April 2017 (2017-04-16) | 8.48 |
| 22 | 5 | "Episode 5" "Lying Nest" | John Strickland | 23 April 2017 (2017-04-23) | 9.03 |
| 23 | 6 | "Episode 6" "Royal Hunting Ground" | John Strickland | 30 April 2017 (2017-04-30) | 9.92 |

### Series 5 (2019)

Line of Duty series 5 episodes :
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 24 | 1 | "Episode 1" "Operation Pear Tree" | John Strickland | 31 March 2019 (2019-03-31) | 11.37 |
| 25 | 2 | "Episode 2" "The Head of Medusa" | John Strickland | 7 April 2019 (2019-04-07) | 10.30 |
| 26 | 3 | "Episode 3" "Code Zero" | John Strickland | 14 April 2019 (2019-04-14) | 10.34 |
| 27 | 4 | "Episode 4" "The Betrayal" | John Strickland | 21 April 2019 (2019-04-21) | 10.46 |
| 28 | 5 | "Episode 5" "On Your Own" | Sue Tully | 28 April 2019 (2019-04-28) | 11.42 |
| 29 | 6 | "Episode 6" "The Intrigue" | Sue Tully | 5 May 2019 (2019-05-05) | 12.69 |

### Sport Relief special (2020)

Line of Duty Sport Relief special episode :
| No. | Title | Written by | Original air date |
| 1 | "Line of Duty Sport Relief Special" | Dawson Brothers | 13 March 2020 (2020-03-13) |

### Series 6 (2021)

Line of Duty series 6 episodes :
| No. overall | No. in series | Title | Directed by | Original air date | UK viewers (millions) |
| 30 | 1 | "Episode 1" | Daniel Nettheim | 21 March 2021 (2021-03-21) | 13.49 |
| 31 | 2 | "Episode 2" | Daniel Nettheim | 28 March 2021 (2021-03-28) | 12.45 |
| 32 | 3 | "Episode 3" | Gareth Bryn | 4 April 2021 (2021-04-04) | 12.58 |
| 33 | 4 | "Episode 4" | Gareth Bryn | 11 April 2021 (2021-04-11) | 12.77 |
| 34 | 5 | "Episode 5" | Jennie Darnell | 18 April 2021 (2021-04-18) | 13.72 |
| 35 | 6 | "Episode 6" | Jennie Darnell | 25 April 2021 (2021-04-25) | 14.89 |
| 36 | 7 | "Episode 7" | Jennie Darnell | 2 May 2021 (2021-05-02) | 15.79 |

## Viewing figures

| Series | Series | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Episode number | Average |
| Series | Series | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Average |
| | 1 | 3.76 | 3.84 | 3.80 | 3.87 | 3.72 | – | – | 3.80 |
| | 2 | 2.74 | 3.21 | 3.34 | 3.46 | 3.73 | 4.12 | – | 3.43 |
| | 3 | 3.31 | 5.11 | 4.97 | 4.82 | 5.09 | 5.58 | – | 4.81 |
| | 4 | 7.40 | 7.26 | 7.37 | 8.48 | 9.03 | 9.92 | – | 8.24 |
| | 5 | 11.37 | 10.30 | 10.34 | 10.46 | 11.42 | 12.69 | – | 11.10 |
| | 6 | 13.49 | 12.45 | 12.58 | 12.77 | 13.72 | 14.89 | 15.79 | 13.67 |