MISSING Line Of Duty? Fear not, because something similar is in the pipeline.
It may sound nothing like the cop show, but a large chunk of the cast in supernatural drama The Rig is lifted from the hit BBC1 series.
Martin Compston as Fulmer HamiltonAMAZON PRIME
Richard Pepple as Grant DunlinAMAZON PRIME
Owen Teale as Lars HuttonAMAZON PRIME
Rochenda Sandall as Cat BraithwaiteAMAZON PRIME
Mark Bonnar as Alwyn EvansAMAZON PRIME
Set among a group of oil workers in the North Sea, the six-parter includes actress Rochenda Sandall, who played gangster Lisa McQueen, Owen Teale (villainous Chief Constable Osborne) Mark Bonnar (bent copper Det Chief Con Mike Dryden) and Richard Pepple — AKA PS Kyle Ferringham.
Even Line Of Duty’s director, John Strickland, takes the reins again on The Rig.
But the most recognisable face on the show is Martin Compston, who played AC-12’s Det Insp Steve Arnott.
He said: “It’s mad. The last series of Line Of Duty on at the same time as filming on The Rig.
“We all had such a laugh on Line Of Duty together and this is such an ensemble piece.”
Martin, 38, knew signing up for the new drama, which launches on Prime Video next month, would draw comparisons with his previous TV starring role.
The sixth season of the BBC cop drama, which also stars Adrian Dunbar and Vicky McClure, ended in May 2021 — and there are no guarantees of a return, despite many devotees being dissatisfied with the conclusion.
But Martin had a very personal reason for getting on board to play The Rig’s Fulmer, the communications officer on board the fictional Kinloch Bravo platform 150 miles off the coast of Scotland.
Martin said: “My dad worked on the rigs and a close pal still does.
“My abiding memory is hearing of him in Aberdeen all the time.
“Me, my mum and my brother would carry him off the train when he got back because they would all be drinking like fish on the way home.
“My dad was lucky to have his family life, because a lot of people just drink for two weeks, spend all their money, then go back on the rig to dry out.
“It seemed glamorous because my dad just disappeared to this place offshore. Obviously when you learn more you realise it’s anything but glamorous.
“But there is a romantic side to working in the middle of nowhere, cut off from the world. The rigs are kind of beautiful.
“Someone described them as Dracula’s cathedral in the middle of the sea. They’re incredible feats of engineering.
“But they’re tinderboxes at times, technically and emotionally. It’s a very tight place to be in if you don’t get on with somebody.”
That hothouse environment is evident in The Rig when an accident happens on board as a sinister fog creeps in.
Crew boss Magnus, played by Iain Glen, must try to hold the team together amid the growing tension and paranoia.
The show features some pretty dazzling effects as a series of explosive incidents bring devastation to Kinloch Bravo.
For one explosion, in one scene Martin went to extreme lengths which nearly cost him dear.
He said: “It involves a stunt I’ve got, which was a rough couple of days filming, but it’s gold dust for an actor. If the ignition light goes out on the flame stack, they have to light it manually with a flare.
“It was funny to see these old videos of people firing flares at this huge thing, which then explodes. I got to do that – and it was great fun.
“But getting set on fire! It was a tough couple of days, getting tied up in harnesses and firing the flare gun. Doing that five or ten times then diving through a wall – and the fire didn’t go out one time.
“It’s good fun, but hard work.”
It wasn’t all hard work and no play, because Fulmer is in a relationship with the rig’s petrochemical geologist, Rose, played by Schitt’s Creek star Emily Hampshire.
Though that, in combination with the fact he doesn’t get his hands dirty like the rest of the workers, only dints his reputation with the crew even more.
He said: “Fulmer splits the two worlds. Day to day, he’s up in the office in the warmth, and his relationship with Rose is an open secret.
“When you’re working so close to someone where the options are quite limited in terms of who’s single and who you like, it can happen.
“Fulmer’s probably into it a bit more, and Rose is really career-driven. That scares him a bit because he feels like he’s going to be left behind, so he can be a bit nervous around her.
“If they didn’t work together, would they be together? It’s hard to say. But neither of them has time for the day-to-day politics of the rig, which is probably why they gravitate to each other.
“She’s not very well liked on the rig, but he keeps his head down and goes about his job. There’s a lot of testosterone and big egos, but he’s matured beyond that.”
As well as the character, there’s another reason why he was drawn to the new drama – it’s Scottishness.
Martin, who was born and raised in Greenock, near Glasgow, is a proud Scot who was thrilled to be the first actor to be asked to join the project, and the actor around whom the rest of the project was put together.
Other Scottish actors on the show include Mark Bonnar, Iain Glen and Emun Elliott, who are all from Edinburgh, as well as Molly Vevers, Stuart McQuarrie and newcomer Cameron Fulton.
Not only is it the first Prime Video show to be filmed entirely north of the border, it used to full effect the huge space that was the First Stage Studios in Leith, near Edinburgh.
That allowed them to build the sets, built after taking recces to Stena Spey oil rig near Orkney, and create epic scenes involving helicopter landings, explosions and violent storms.
Martin said: “I was really chuffed to be a part of it…It’s one of the most ambitious TV series to ever be filmed in Scotland.”
The Rig is on Prime Video from January 6.
Richard Pepple played PS Kyle Ferringham in Line of Duty
BBCOwen Teale as villainous Chief Constable Osborne[/caption]
PAFrom left: Martin Compston as DI Steve Arnott, Shalom Brune-Franklin as DC Chloe Bishop and Adrian Dunbar as Superintendent Ted Hastings[/caption]
BBCGangster Lisa McQueen as played by Rochenda Sandall[/caption]
Mark Bonnar took on the role of Deputy Chief Constable Michael Dryden in the showBBC
AMAZON PRIMEEmily Hampshire as Rose Mason and Martin Compston as Fulmer Hamilton in The Rig[/caption]
Line Of Duty’s director John Strickland takes the reins again on the new show
PA:Press AssociationThe Rig is on Prime Video from January 6[/caption] Read More