Line of Duty star Adrian Dunbar teases return of hit BBC drama

Line of Duty star Adrian Dunbar has unofficially confirmed that there will be another series of the acclaimed BBC crime drama.

Jed Mercurio, the show's creator and writer, has previously hinted at the possibility of future episodes but has not announced anything conclusive.

Actors Martin Compston, and Vicky McClure have also expressed interest in returning in recent months, then rumours blossomed further when Martin, Vicky and Adrian Dunbar reportedly met with show creator Jed to discuss a deal and filming dates for the series' seventh season earlier this year.

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Adrian Dunbar, who plays Superintendent Ted Hastings, spoke on Times Radio about a return for Line of Duty.

He said: "I hope so. Looks like it. All the signals and everything is kind of, you know, (positive) but as somebody said, until the script hits the desk you can't be 100% sure. So we're all hoping that someone somewhere will make an announcement and say, yes, it's happening. And we can all take it from there. I can tell you one thing...the day they announce it, it's going to burn up the internet."

Speaking about his character Superintendent Ted Hastings, Dunbar said: "To end up creating what is an iconic character on British television and also within an iconic TV show would have been a huge ambition of mine. And so to do it is a very humbling and very satisfying experience. So that's how I'd describe it. It's been, it's something that kind of when you think about it keeps you warm. It's very, very nice."

And this isn’t the first time that Dunbar has teased Line of Duty fans. Earlier this year he appeared on Good Morning Britain, where Susanna Reid questioned him about the show saying the series needs to return.

He said: "I think so, Vicky [McClure] thinks so, Martin [Compston] thinks so. Everybody thinks so. It'll be down to the BBC and Doctor Jed Mercurio I think, when and whether we do it."

He then shared that they were "all up for it" and "keeping their fingers crossed", as he concluded: “Hopefully somebody will make a decision at some point and everybody will go 'Oh they're off again!'"

But, speaking to The Daily Mirror in April, Martin Compston was more pessimistic. He said: "I'm sorry. They're some of my closest friends, we all love Jed [Mercurio], and we'd all love to work together at some point, but there are no immediate plans."

He then repeated: "It's just getting us all together and stuff. We'd like to but, yeah, these things are a bit complicated. But there are no immediate plans."

Line of Duty received a whopping 96% Rotten Tomatoes score and is one of the BBC's most popular shows.

There has currently been no official confirmation of a Line of Duty comeback.