The actor on the aftermath of season 1’s finale and how the cast are worried that they could be next.
**Warning: This article contains spoilers for Blue Lights season 1.**
Compelling Belfast-based police procedural Blue Lights is finally back for season 2 but lead star Siân Brooke has said viewers still haven’t forgiven the show for killing off a fan-favourite in its uncompromising season 1 finale – and suggested that more shocking twists are yet to come.
The acclaimed drama follows social-worker-turned-probationary PSNI officer Grace Ellis (Brooke) and her fellow recruits Annie (Katherine Devlin) and Tommy (Nathan Braniff) as they enter the high-pressure environment and complex world of policing in Belfast – confronting violent gangs, checking cars for explosives and intercepting undercover agents.
The final episode saw Richard Dormer’s beloved veteran cop Gerry being killed after he was shot multiple times by gangster Sully, leaving his colleagues including wife Sandra (Andi Osho) bereaved.
Brooke revealed that she is always concerned Grace could be next, and that she and her co-stars immediately scoured the season 2 scripts to check if they survive. “It’s a worry that you might be next, and you never know,” the Sherlock actor told RadioTimes.com.
“After series 1 with Gerry – you just don’t know what’s going to happen. If I had a pound for every time someone said, ‘Why did they kill off Gerry?’ and, ‘Are Stevie [Martin McCann] and Grace going to get together?’, I would be a millionaire!
“When series 2 landed on our laps we were all looking through it, thinking, am I going to survive? But you’ll have to wait and see!”
Having mentioned a romantic connection between Grace and Stevie, can fans expect anything more than Grace attempting to recreate his favourite tupperware of home-baked treats?
“In series 2, they’ve decided to follow their heads not their hearts and concentrate on their job,” she said. “But whether they’re successful in that, you’ll have to find out!”
Brooke did reveal that series 2 will delve further into the complexities of the criminal underworld, while Grace, Annie and Tommy are no longer the wide-eyed rookies of series 1, but experienced first responders.
“They are the first on the scene and they have to do the job of the police and also counselling, all of that and what that entails,” Brooke explained.
“I would say as a series, the writers have so brilliantly expanded that world into the criminal underworld, so that’s going to be an exciting ride for the audience to see where that weaves and to see these characters that people have taken to their heart and see how they respond.”
Created by Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson, Blue Lights has been commissioned for a third and fourth season, and Brooke says it was always pitched with the intention of being a long-running show, a bit like Line of Duty.
“Declan and Adam have always been so positive about the possibility of where this could go, and excited about it. It has been such a collaborative job, in terms of the dialogue and talking about storylines so yes, it will be interesting to see where it goes.”
Meanwhile, Brooke understands exactly what it’s like to have a character killed off prematurely – her Queen Aemma Arryn in HBO’s House of the Dragon died in a bloodthirsty birth scene in episode 1.
Despite her gory death, there has been speculation that Queen Aemma could return as a vision or a ghost when season 2 begins in June, so will Brooke be back?
She explained: “Oh my gosh, you’re going to get me into a whole heap of trouble, I can’t tell you anything about anything! If I am, I’m looking forward to it! It was quite an intense couple of days. The level of craftsmanship that goes into that show, it’s so next level.
“We were able to rehearse the birth scene for a whole day, which never really happens on TV. It was really technical trying to get all the blood pumping through a vat, with a bucket and a hose and everything. I wish I had been in it longer!”
In the meantime, Brooke will definitely be returning for season 4 of Apple TV’s Trying, and will feature in Rapman’s much-anticipated new superhero Netflix series Supacell.
Blue Lights season 2 is available now on BBC iPlayer, while the first episode will air at 9pm on BBC One on Monday 15th April
Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to see what’s on tonight. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.