Move aside, Line of Duty! BBC has announced a new crime drama starring Martin Freeman, and it sounds like it is going to be amazing. Set in Liverpool and based on creator Tony Schumacher's own experiences as a former police officer, Responder will look at modern day policing as it follows police officer Chris over six night shifts in the city.
© Photo: Getty ImagesMartin will star in the BBC series as Chris
The synopsis reads: "Whilst trying to save his marriage and keep his head above water as a police officer, Chris is forced to take on a new rookie partner Rachel. The antagonism between them immediately threatens to make their new partnership unworkable and both soon discover that survival in this high pressure, relentless night time world, will depend on them either helping or destroying each other... It’s as much about life on the streets of Liverpool as it is about the police – and in Chris we have the perfect crisis-stricken, morally compromised, unconventional cop character to follow through this chaotic world."
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Speaking about the series, the Sherlock actor said: "Tony Schumacher's script for The Responder resonated with me immediately. It felt like nothing that I'd read or seen. Great to work with Laurence and Chris at Dancing Ledge again and finding a home at the BBC has been a wonderful start to the journey."
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Chatting about swapping his police work for writing, Tony added: "If you had told me six years ago that I would be working with the BBC, a company of the calibre of Dancing Ledge, and an actor with the talent of Martin Freeman, I would have thrown you out of my taxi for being drunk. And yet here I am, surrounded and supported by all these great people, and able to launch this story on one of the greatest TV channels in the world. It turns out that dreams can come true after all." Fans might have a while to wait for the six-part drama, as filming has yet to begin.
