She made her return as DI Kate Fleming in the highly-anticipated sixth series of BBC One crime drama Line of Duty on Sunday.
And show star Vicky McClure has admitted that despite considering her co-stars Adrian Dunbar and Martin Compston as ‘family’, they sometimes have dramatic bust-ups as she remarked: ‘Of course we’ve p****d each other off’.
Speaking about the dynamic behind-the-scenes, the actress, 37, explained that at times things can get quite heated between the trio on the set, but their fall-outs are ‘never something so bad it’s not repairable.’
Spilling the tea: Vicky McClure has admitted that despite considering her co-stars Adrian Dunbar and Martin Compston as ‘family’, they sometimes have dramatic bust-ups
On screen, Vicky’s character Kate, DS Steve Arnott (Compston) and Supt Ted Hastings (Dunbar) make quite the formidable team, having spent years catching ‘bent coppers’ as part of police anti-corruption unit AC-12.
And despite being great pals in real life, Vicky revealed that there sometime can be tension between the three, though she brushes it off as ‘no big drama’.
Speaking to The Mirror, she said: ‘You can have a laugh and if anything it’s Adie who gets the brunt of it having to put up with me and Martin acting like a pair of school kids around him. There’s a perfect dynamic.
‘The reality of it is of course we have, of course we have p***** each other off. It would be wrong of me to say “that has never happened” as that would be a lie.’
Tense: Speaking about the dynamic behind-the-scenes, the actress, 37, explained that at times things can get quite heated between the trio on the set, but their fall-outs are ‘never something so bad it’s not repairable’
She continued: ‘But in the same way it is with family, it’s never something so bad it’s not repairable. I might not have had any sleep that night.’
She went on to say that tension may arise if her co-stars had little sleep or ‘loads of lines to learn’ and are ‘knackered’, adding that there’s ‘a lot going on’.
It comes after Line Of Duty’s series six premiere became Britain’s third most watched show of the year on Sunday, with nearly 10million viewers tuning in for the return of AC-12.
Ups and downs: Despite being great pals in real life, Vicky revealed that there sometime can be tension between the three, though she brushes it off as ‘no big drama’ (pictured in 2019)
Truth: ‘The reality of it is of course we have, of course we have p***** each other off. It would be wrong of me to say “that has never happened” as that would be a lie’
The new series saw the formerly tight-knit Anti-Corruption unit in a state of disarray, as a new murder investigation with DCI Joanne Davidson (Kelly MacDonald) at the epicentre, took hold of the force.
Fans were instantly hooked with the BBC One show averaging 9.57million viewers, a 44.5 per cent share of the ratings.
At its peak between 9pm and 9.15pm, the show was watched by an even more mammoth 9.69million viewers.
Still friends: ‘But in the same way it is with family, it’s never something so bad it’s not repairable. I might not have had any sleep that night’ (pictured in 2019)
The drama’s premiere episode became the third most watched programme of the year, behind Boris Johnson’s address in January to announce the third lockdown with 24.2million (BBC1, BBC News, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky News combined), and Harry and Meghan’s interview with 11.3million on ITV on March 8.
Line Of Duty’s ratings triumph bumped down The Masked Singer finale into fourth place, with 8.6million tuning in to the ITV show in February.
Sunday’s audience beat the finale of series five which got a 9.1million average in May 2019.
Wow! Line Of Duty’s series six premiere became the third most watched show of the year on Sunday, with nearly 10million viewers tuning in for the return of AC-12
Mother of God! Fans were instantly hooked with the BBC One show averaging 9.57million viewers, a 44.5% share of the ratings (above Martin Compston and Adrian Dunbar)
It also beat the first episode of series five which drew an average audience of 7.8million in March 2019.
The episode also surpassed the opening episode of Jed Mercurio’s other show Bodyguard -which got a 6.6million average in September 2018.
The hit BBC show delighted viewers with several plot twists and even taught them a new acronym, with many hilariously mishearing it for something much cruder.
And although only being introduced in the first episode, new character Detective Chief Inspector Joanne Davidson certainly made her mark and left many fans with more questions than answers.
Third place: The only programmes that have beaten Line Of Duty in 2021 are Boris Johnson’s January lockdown address (left) with 24.2million and Harry and Meghan’s interview with 11.3 million
New guard: The hotly anticipated new series saw the formerly tight-knit Anti-Corruption unit in a state of disarray, as a new murder investigation with DCI Joanne Davidson (Kelly MacDonald) at the epicentre, took hold of the force