Line of Duty's Adrian Dunbar stars in new ITV detective drama Ridley
Line of Duty star Adrian Dunbar has revealed that fans of the show still shout "Jesus, Mary and Joseph and the wee donkey" at him in the street.
The 56-year-old is best known for his iconic performance as Ted Hastings in the BBC cop series, but now the Northern Irish actor is turning his hand to another role.
Dunbar is starring in ITV's latest detective drama Ridley, where he will play the title role as retired Detective Inspector Alex Ridley.
Filmed across Northern England, Dunbar stars alongside fellow Northern Irish actor Bronagh Waugh, best known for The Fall, who plays his partner DI Carol Farman.
Speaking about the role, he said: "A lot of it is going to be very familiar - me being a cop. It's set against this great Lancashire back-drop.
"I really loved going back to Manchester for the first time in a long time - it's got a good buzz about it."
The cast also includes Corrie's Terence Maynard, George Bukhari, from The A Word and The Crown's Georgie Glen.
The series focuses on the charismatic retired cop who is enlisted by his former assistant DI Carol Farman as a consultant on a complex and compelling murder case.
Turning to her old mentor for support, Carol is keen to access Ridley’s unique insight into crime-solving which has served them so well in the past.
Dunbar says he wanted to play Ridley because of the interesting laters to his personality.
He said: "He’s complicated in many ways, quite a distance away from anything I’ve played before, even though it’s me, it looks like me, and there’s obviously echoes of Ted Hastings, because he’s a cop.
"But there are so many interesting layers to his personality, so many things in his background, his history, especially with all the different places that he goes to and the different things he has to deal with.
"The complications of the guy, I think, was the main thing that attracted me to it."
Jonathan Fisher of West Road Pictures says: "A huge amount of work goes into originating a series of this nature, and we’ve been fortunate to work with an incredibly collaborative and dedicated team.
"It’s been a joy working closely with Adrian Dunbar on this project. Adrian has brought a real passion and authenticity to the eponymous role, alongside a talented and diverse ensemble of supporting characters."
The two-hour premiere of Ridley is airing on ITV1 on Sunday 28 August at 8pm.
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