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Whether due to spoiler phobia, poor impulse control, or an unquenchable need to know what treat Stevie will be serving next out of his magic lunchbox, some Blue Lights fans have already binge-watched all six episodes of series two. To those people we say, breathe out. More is coming.
Two months before series two arrived on BBC One and iPlayer, the corporation confirmed that it had ordered two further series of Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson’s Belfast-set police drama. Like the first two, series three and four will each have the regulation six-episodes, and if all goes to plan, we might reasonably expect them to air respectively in spring 2025 and spring 2026.
Series one arrived to acclaim last March and quickly bagsied itself high-ranking spots on ‘The Best TV of 2023’ round-ups come the end of the year. It’s the story of three rookie recruits to the Police Service of Northern Ireland doing their best to serve a community riven by conflict, drugs and understandable mistrust of authorities. Sherlock’s Siân Brooke plays social worker-turned-cop Grace, with Katherine Devlin and Nathan Braniff as fellow new recruits Annie and Tommy.
Those three may have been our way in, but Blue Lights is a very much an ensemble drama. Indeed, viewers who initially came for the Line of Duty-style tension and thorny political context stayed for the characters and their relationships. In series one, Richard Dormer became a popular favourite as response officer Gerry, while fans rooted for widower Stevie to confess his feelings for patrol partner Grace.
Series two, which is set one year on from the first, develops the characters’ personal lives even further, following the aftermath of a new fling for Annie, and the first steps of a relationship for young Tommy. Gerry’s wife Sandra (Andi Osho) goes on her own journey following series one, while Stevie and Grace… well, spoilers.
All of that plays out against the backdrop of a gangland crime plot involving a new player operating on an impoverished Belfast estate. Can a drug dealer help a local community instead of leeching off it? That’s one of several questions asked in this thoughtful series about policing quandaries and the specific political background of a post-Good Friday Agreement Northern Ireland. It’s a tough drama, but also a warm one built on human dilemmas and connections, and praise be that we’re getting at least two more series.
Blue Lights series two airs on Mondays at 9pm on BBC One. All episodes are available to stream now on BBC iPlayer.
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