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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Ed McConnell

Queen 'big fan' of Line of Duty and watched it in Covid 'bubble' after Philip died

The Queen is a big fan of smash-hit police drama Line of Duty and watched it while she isolated at Windsor Castle.

The 95-year-old monarch is said to have enjoyed discussing the plot twists of the acronym-packed series with her closest staff.

She reportedly tuned into the hit drama while coping with the death of the Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip and the fall-out from Harry and Meghan's explosive interview with Oprah Winfrey.

As the six-season Sunday night BBC show gripped the nation Her Majesty chatted about the ins and outs of AC-12's mission to eradicate 'bent coppers' with master of the household Vice-Admiral Sir Tony Johnstone-Burt, The Sunday Times reports.

Jed Mercurio's Line of Duty follows the work of an anti-corruption unit as they track down the mysterious fourth man, once codenamed H, who is orchestrating an elaborate web of police corruption.

Line of Duty follows AC-12's mission to eradicate 'bent coppers' (BBC/World Productions/Steffan Hill)

Its complicated plot enthralled the nation, with many struggling to keep up with the numerous twists and turns, and the Queen joined 12.8 million people in watching May 2's finale.

During lockdown The Queen and her late husband were cared for by a group of aides known as 'HMS Bubble' overseen by 63-year-old Johnstone-Burt.

A royal source told The Sunday Times: “The Queen was very into Line of Duty and enjoyed discussing the plotlines with Tony.”

Line of Duty joins an eclectic mix of Royal favourites including The X Factor, Coronation Street, Dad's Army, light-hearted police series New Tricks, Midsomer Murders and period drama Downton Abbey.

It's said that Her Majesty likes to point out errors in the latter's plot.

In 2018 it was reported she had watched some of Netflix series The Crown and wasn't happy with how Philip had been portr ayed in one episode.

The Queen has an eclectic TV taste, including The X Factor, Dad's Army and Line of Duty (Getty Images)

In series two, Prince Charles attends boarding school and has a miserable time and Philip is depicted as having who wanted him to go.

She's also a big Dr Who fan, having followed it since its premier in 1963, and ordered a box set of the series for a summer holiday at Balmoral in 2005.

At the time she is said to have rated then-doctor Christopher Ecclestone as one of the best incarnations of the inter-galactic time lord.

Her fondness for ITV talent show The X Factor became clear on a trip to Ireland in 2011 when she congratulated then-contestant Mary Byrne, telling her: “You are the lady off The X Factor. Your song was fabulous.”

In May, when asked by a curious schoolboy, Prince Charles revealed The Queen had one TV at her primary residence and "maybe one or two elsewhere".

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