Hit BBC Crime Drama 'Line of Duty' Officially Returning For Season 7 — Years After That Divisive Finale
If you've been waiting to hear "Mother of God" again, today's your day. After years of rumors, the BBC has confirmed that Line of Duty is coming back for season 7.
And yes, the original AC-12 trio is back: Martin Compston (movies and tv series) (Steve Arnott (movies and tv series)), Vicky McClure (movies and tv series) (Kate Fleming), and Adrian Dunbar (movies and tv series) (Ted Hastings (movies and tv series)). Creator Jed Mercurio (movies and tv series) is steering the ship again. Six episodes. Cameras rolling in Belfast this spring.
Why this return hits a nerve
Season 6 pulled in massive numbers during lockdown, then split fans right down the middle. The "H" reveal wasn't a mastermind twist; it was a bleak note about incompetence and systems failing upward. Some loved the realism. Others wanted a big, cinematic villain.
Either way, it stuck. People argued about that ending for weeks. Honestly, they never stopped.
What season 7 is actually about
The last time we saw AC-12, their powers were shrinking. The new season leans into that reality. The team is handed their "most sensitive case so far" — investigating a high-profile, widely liked detective accused of being a sexual predator.
The BBC's synopsis teases a bigger game: "Is [Detective Inspector] Gough's case a deliberate distraction from a bigger threat still operating in the shadows?" That's classic Line of Duty — the surface case, and the rot underneath.
The numbers that made this a no-brainer
The season 6 finale drew 17 million viewers in 28 days — the biggest audience for a non-soap drama episode since 2002, according to the BBC. That's rare air. And the show didn't just live on the Isle of Twitter debates; it traveled. BritBox, Acorn TV, and Prime Video helped it build an international following.
Who's back, who might show up
The core three are locked. Mercurio's in. And while casting beyond that is still under wraps, this series has a habit of landing heavy hitters: Lennie James (movies and tv series), Keeley Hawes (movies and tv series), Thandiwe Newton (movies and tv series), Stephen Graham (movies and tv series). Don't be shocked if season 7 brings a few familiar faces — or a new name everyone's talking about by episode two.
What Mercurio's saying
He's grateful — and cheeky. "We're privileged to have had so many of you follow the ups and downs of AC-12 over six previous seasons and we couldn't be more delighted to be returning for a seventh," he said.
Then this: "Corruption in this country is supposed to have come to an end while Line of Duty was off air so I've been forced to use my imagination." You can hear the grin in that line.
Here's what this could mean
Expect a tighter, more grounded story — the kind that sits uncomfortably close to real headlines. AC-12 working with less authority, more roadblocks, and bigger PR blowback. It's not just who did what anymore; it's who still cares enough to stop it when the system doesn't.
Maybe the finale that split the audience ends up being the point season 7 builds on. Not neat. Not clean. But truer to how these stories play out in real offices, with real consequences.
When and where to watch
Filming starts in Belfast this spring, with more details to come from the BBC. For now, the back catalog is easy to find: all episodes are on BritBox in the US and on BBC iPlayer in the UK.
If you want the official word straight from the source, the BBC's announcement is here: BBC Media Centre. And UK viewers can catch up on the series via BBC iPlayer.
