Line of Duty's hotly anticipated new series to hit screens sooner than expected as BBC bosses bring air date forward
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Line of Duty's hotly anticipated new series is set to hit screens sooner than expected – and fans don't have long to wait.
BBC bosses have traditionally released the show in March but the seventh season of the police corruption thriller is reportedly airing in late January.
Vicky McClure, 43, Martin Compston, 42, and Adrian Dunbar, 68, wrapped up filming back in July after four months on set.
A TV insider told The Sun: 'This will be welcome news for fans who have already been waiting five years for the next instalment in the story of AC-12.
'They will have been expecting this to land in late March and moving the show is a vote of confidence in the new series as January is when the Beeb likes to showcase its big dramas.
'Other shows, such as Sherlock, started off being broadcast in the summer, then shifted to January. It's also when it debuted The Night Manager. Rumour has it that bosses have viewed early edits of the new run and are delighted with what they see.'
Line of Duty's hotly anticipated new series is set to hit screens sooner than expected - and fans don't have long to wait (Adrian Dunbar, Vicky McClure and Martin Compston L-R)
The Daily Mail has approached the BBC for comment.
Cast-members Vicky, Martin and Adrian shot new scenes as AC-12, some five years after an anti-climactic sixth series divided viewers.
Fans were largely disappointed by the controversial ending, during which bumbling Detective Superintendent Ian Buckells, played by Nigel Boyle, was unmasked as 'H' – the shadowy criminal mastermind behind an intricate network of police corruption.
But in recent weeks, creator Jed Mercurio has given fans a taste of what to expect from the seventh series.
Taking to Instagram earlier this year, Jed shared a shot of Dunbar, dressed in full police uniform, looking out across a busy office as he prepared to film his latest scenes as Superintendent Ted Hastings.
'There's only one thing I'm interested in and one thing only and that's bent coppers,' read an accompanying caption – one of Hastings' best known quotes.
The popular police drama originally aired on BBC Two, before moving to BBC One from its fourth series onwards.
In February, it was revealed that Bafta-winning star Robert Carlyle had been cast as guest character Detective Constable Shaun Massie.
Series seven of Line Of Duty will follow the familiar faces of AC-12 after it has been disbanded and rebranded as the Inspectorate of Police Standards.
Vicky, 43, Martin, 42, and Adrian, 67, wrapped up filming back in July after four months on set
The actress posted a snap on Instagram with her co-stars after finishing filming
The iconic police trio looked happier than ever after reuniting for the highly-anticipated series
The anti-corruption unit will be seen working harder than ever as Steve Arnott, Kate Fleming and Ted Hastings are assigned their most sensitive case so far.
The synopsis teases: 'Detective Constable Shaun Massie is a Specialist Rifle Officer (SRO), a veteran marksman, operating with Tactical Operations Unit 7 (TO-7) to take down Organised Crime Groups.
'A gruff loner, Massie keeps himself to himself, but when his boss, TO-7's commanding officer DI Dominic Gough, is accused of being a sexual predator, Massie's otherwise detached demeanour changes drastically'.
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