ACTOR James Nesbitt has joined the cast of Line of Duty after making a surprise cameo in the latest episode.
In Sunday night's programme, Nesbitt made a brief, blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance as a retired officer named Marcus Thurwel.
When Steve Arnott typed Marcus Thurwel's name into a police database and brought up his profile - an image of Coleraine-born Nesbitt popped onto the screen.
Another image showed Nesbitt's character in Spain, with Arnott revealing that Thurwell retired and moved abroad.
Nesbitt has worked with Line of Duty creator Jed Mercurio on the BBC programme Bloodlands and jokingly complained in February that he was "always slightly galled" that he had never been considered for a role on the show.
Nesbitt told Radio Times magazine that his casting came about after he bumped into Mercurio at a party.
"I said, `come on Jed, when are we going to get a chance to work together?’ Even though Line of Duty had been shot here for years I was never considered for it, which has always slightly galled me," he said.
While he did not speak in the episode and his photo was only glanced at, fans are already speculating that his character could have a major impact on future episodes.
