FROM Line of Duty to Bodyguard, Jed Mercurio is the man to thank for penning some of the most popular shows of the century.
He will be appearing at the first reunion of the show’s stars since it ended, as he joins Martin Compston and Vicky McClure, as well as showrunner Jed Mercurio, to dish the dirt and raise money for a good cause, with a recording of the event exclusively available to subscribers of this title.
To find out more about how you can watch the show please click HERE!
Line of Duty was the most-watched TV drama of 2021, enticing 15.9 million viewers to tune in and see H finally unmasked in the sixth season finale.
The stars of the show included Martin Compston, Adrian Dunbar and Vicky McClure – and he will be appearing alongside all three at a reunion event subscribers to this title will have exclusive access to.
Mercurio’s suspenseful tales involving organised crime groups and armed officers have left many on the edge of their seats, and his masterful storytelling earned the Best Drama Series prize at the TV Choice Awards UK last year.
A curator of multimedia entertainment, Mercurio has also taken his talents offscreen, authoring several books and cowriting graphic novel Sleeper with the writer and actor Prasanna Puwanarajah.
However, Mercurio did not start his youth set on becoming a critically acclaimed screenwriter – the 56-year-old started out by working in a different industry altogether.
Inspired by what he saw in hospital dramas growing up in Staffordshire, Mercurio graduated from the University of Birmingham Medical School in 1991 and practiced as a doctor for three years.
He then went on to join the Royal Air Force and intended to specialise in aviation medicine: “I had a baptism of fire,” he told the Independent. “What I encountered was nothing like what medical drama on TV had foretold.”
Instead, Mercurio replied to an advert placed in the British Medical Journal by the BBC and, luckily for Line of Duty fans, began his screenwriting career.
Initially, he wrote from experience and created the BBC hospital drama Cardiac Arrest (1994), followed by dark medical drama Bodies (2004).
Since then, Mercurio’s tales filled with politics and crime have left fans confident in his ability to leave them wanting more: exemplified by his newest danger-filled show which debuted to rave reviews and the confirmation of a second season.
The new six-part series, Trigger Point, follows the dangerous lives of counterterrorism and bomb disposal police officers and stars Vicky McClure, who will also appear in our Line of Duty reunion.
Mercurio’s contribution to Sunday evening entertainment was recognised in 2021, when he collected an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) from Princess Anne at Windsor Castle for his services to television drama.
Writing on Twitter, he said he was “humbled” and “honoured”, especially among others who he said had “achieved so much more, in particular, for their charity work and in the Covid pandemic”.
Mercurio did his own bit for charity during Covid-19, by taking to social media to encourage fans to bid in a charity auction which raised around £97.5k help provide free PPE for healthcare staff.
The showrunner has also given back to the entertainment community, offering free online writing classes for aspiring screenwriters, passing on the tricks of the trade that he has learned from his 25 years in the industry.
His advice to those hoping to emulate his success has been frank: “You need to work hard at your writing, you need to keep trying.
“You constantly need to be generating material, and eventually if you keep doing that, you’ll be successful.”
Mercurio has been quiet on whether Line of Duty would return to thrill fans for another series, but perhaps the reunion will coax out some new information about the future of the widely loved series.
How can I watch the Line of Duty Reunion?
The exclusive video will only be available to our subscribers.
You can pay as little as £1 for your first month and that fee will go directly to Martin's favourite charity, Ardgowan Hospice.
To sign up, visit our subscribe page here and take advantage of our latest amazing offers.
Our exclusive recording of the event will be available to subscribers HERE from Thursday March 24.
For those who already subscribe, you will also receive exclusive access to the video.
Subscriptions can be cancelled at any time.
If you would like to make a further donation to Ardgowan Hospice, you can do so HERE.
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