BBC has released a statement addressing a remark made on Line of Duty by Ted Hastings.
The BBC One drama returned at 9pm on Sunday evening with Hastings, played by Adrian Dunbar, back on our screens overseeing AC12 with Steve Arnott, played by Martin Compston.
The first episode centred on Terry Boyle, a man with Down's Syndrome, and his arrest on suspicion of being involved in the murder of journalist Gail Vella. Boyle was played by Tommy Jessop.
The character was referred to as an "oddball" by Superintendent Hastings, as Birmingham Live reports. Explaining the comment, the BBC said: "Superintendent Ted Hastings' comments were not in reference to the character Terry Boyle's disability - Ted Hastings had never met Terry Boyle.
"Hastings was looking only at the evidence against Boyle, namely the press cuttings of Gail Vella found in his flat. The word 'oddball' means an eccentric person and has no meaning or connotation of disability and Hastings was referring to the stalker/obsessed fan theory of Gail Vella's murder."
Other cast members returning included Vicky McClure, the East Midlands actress from This is England who plays Kate Fleming.
The ongoing sixth series airs each Sunday evening at 9pm with episodes available on the BBC iPlayer after broadcast.
McClure, Dunbar and Compston are joined by newcomer Joanna Davidson, who is played by Trainspotting and Boardwalk Empire star Kelly McDonald.
The series was created by Jed Mercurio and shot its first season in Birmingham.
