The Belfast-set police drama Blue Lights was one of the more arresting BBC series of 2023. Engrossing yet unsensational, it transcended the staid uniformity of procedural storytelling with its authentic tone. It looked beyond the usual line-up of bright-eyed rookies and disaffected veterans in favour of an ensemble of distinct, well-defined characters. Now, like the trio of probationary Northern Ireland police officers that it revolves around, the show enters its second year with expectations set high.
The first few episodes undoubtedly meet them. We pick things up again several months after the climactic events of the first season, in which the unit helped bring down a formidable crime family and mourned the loss of a murdered, much-loved colleague. While callow Tommy (Nathan Braniff), fiery Annie (Katherine Devlin) and compassionate Grace (Siân Brooke) have continued to grow into their roles, the city around them has slipped further into decay. The sudden collapse of the McIntyre organisation has created a dangerous power vacuum in the city’s volatile estates, engendering an internecine turf war between rival paramilitary gangs; while crime and drug abuse begin to surge, community centres and support networks face funding cuts and closures.
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Series creators Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson take time to contextualise their fiction within the very real tragedies of Belfast’s past and present. But Blue Lights is neither insistently political nor wearingly downbeat. Following Tommy, Annie and Grace on their professional and personal journeys, the show carefully balances uneasy tension and exhilarating action with moments of camaraderie and post-adrenaline reflection.
A nerve-fraying stand-off scene, for instance, is followed by an honest, realistic exchange between Grace and her quietly infatuated response partner Stevie (Martin McCann) about how his instinct to protect her undermines her authority. Later the two (who share baked goods and a wonderful rapport) are presented with an ethical dilemma that is deftly handled by both the characters and the show itself.
A couple of new additions to the ensemble — including Lee (Seamus O’Hara), an ambitious opportunist trying to take control of the estates, and Shane (Frank Blake), a swoon-worthy (but perhaps not trustworthy) new partner for Annie — keep things fresh on the streets and in the station.
★★★★☆
On BBC1 on April 15 at 9pm with new episodes airing weekly; on BBC iPlayer in full from April 15