Line of Duty fans were left “traumatised” after a massive twist saw a major character killed off.
Undercover officer John Corbett, played by Stephen Graham, was brutally murdered after the organised crime gang he was involved with worked out his true identity.
Viewers were left in disbelief at the murder scenes, which saw Corbett have his throat cut after being lured to a fake assault.
“OH MY GOD NO!!!!!!! WASN’T EXPECTING THAT. THIS SHOW!!! #LineOfDuty,” tweeted one viewer.
Another wrote: “OMG!! I just screamed my whole street down!! No!!! #LineOfDuty."
“What? What? WHAAT !! #LineofDuty this is no good to my health,” commented somebody else.
But other fans claimed they knew a major twist was imminent after writer Jed Mercurio killed off a main character midway through smash hit drama Bodyguard last year.
One observant viewer noted that they “saw that coming” while others branded it “obvious” that it was a set up.
The scene was so horrific it left actress Rochenda Sandall, who plays gang boss Lisa McQueen, with “b***** nightmares”.
She told the Mirror: “It’s very kind of like dramatic and live because what happens is someone's there, the art department are there pumping blood so the blood squirts and it really does look like you’ve hit the actual artery and stuff.
“Stephen had to do a few more re-shoots from the back of his neck, or something like that. So he did that and then we all went home and decompressed and had b***** nightmares.”
Series five of Line of Duty will conclude in two weeks time with a 90-minute episode, the longest the show has ever seen.
Plot details for the series finale are limited, but the synopsis promises that “secrets will be revealed”, with many expecting to finally find out the identity of mysterious figure 'H'.
Line of Duty continues Sundays at 9pm on BBC One
