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Line of Duty 'Kent boppers' joke goes viral after Sevenoaks rave thwarted

Reports of police shutting down a planned rave near Sevenoaks have been causing much amusement for fans of TV show Line of Duty.

The sixth series of the popular BBC drama, based around police anti-corruption unit AC-12, finished last Sunday, watched by more than 12 million people.

Adrian Dunbar as Ted Hastings in Line of Duty. Picture: BBC
Adrian Dunbar as Ted Hastings in Line of Duty. Picture: BBC

One of the show's main characters, AC-12 boss Superintendent Ted Hastings, played by Adrian Dunbar, is noted for frequently reminding colleagues that he is only interested in one thing - "catching bent coppers."

Last month an unlicensed music event was prevented from going ahead following reports a large group of people planned to meet near Sevenoaks.

Officers were able to seize music equipment before the event started after they were tipped-off that people had planned to meet at Polhill.

One user sharing the news on Twitter posted a picture of Dunbar as Hastings, with the tagline: “There's only one thing I'm interested in and that is catching Kent boppers”

The post has now received almost 30,000 'likes' and been repeated by thousands more users, with several variations emerging on the 'Kent boppers' theme.

The finale of Line of Duty on BBC One last Sunday was the most watched episode of any drama since modern records began in 2002 - not including soaps - according to the BBC. Viewers finally discovered the identity of criminal mastermind H.

The show, created by writer Jed Mercurio, also stars Martin Compston as Det Insp Steve Arnott and Vicky McClure as Det Insp Kate Fleming. The latest series featured Kelly Macdonald as Det Sgt Joanne Davidson. Last year Kent comedian Harry Hill also featured a video compilation of Hastings' frequent references to 'bent coppers' on his BBC show Harry Hill's World of TV.

Line of Duty first aired in 2012 and previous stars have included Lennie James, Keeley Hawes, Stephen Graham, Thandie Newton and Daniel Mays.

The Line of Duty cast. Picture: BBC TV (46959534)
The Line of Duty cast. Picture: BBC TV (46959534)

Two years ago, a Kent family obsessed with Line of Duty attracted the attention of its stars after a video tribute to the show went viral.

Mum Rebecca Harrison, of Rusthall, near Tunbridge Wells, was inspired to make a music video with husband Phil and sons Ivo and Noah, dancing to a remix of quotes from Hastings.

Vicky McClure posted a video in April last year thanking those working for Medway NHS Foundation Trust in a special video.

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