Line of Duty slammed for lack of diversity revealed in behind-the-scenes crew photo 

Line of Duty’s creators have been criticised for not hiring any black, asian or mixed crew after a photo of the entirely white team was posted on Twitter.

A photo thanking the cast and crew of BBC’s Line of Duty, which racked up nine million viewers for Sunday’s finale, was slammed by diversity campaigners.

Despite 56 members of the cast and crew posing for a photo on the show’s set in Northern Ireland, no one appears to be from an ethnic minority background.

Marverine Cole, a TV producer and Channel 5 newsreader, led the shocked reaction as those who saw the picture realised the crew were all white.

She tweeted: ‘I love this show. I truly do. But is this really the entire crew for this show?! If so why weren’t you able to source any black or Asian or mixed crew World Production [the show’s maker]?

‘There are swathes of trained BAME [black, Asian, minority ethnic] production crew in this country.’

Marverine Cole, a TV producer and Channel 5 newsreader, led the shocked reaction as those who saw the picture quickly realised the lack of diversity

DandI, which campaigns for greater diversity, said it was ‘great to see the crew behind Line of Duty but not the best example of diversity and inclusion.’

Novelist Bernardine Evaristo said on Twitter: ‘Good to see diversity in the BBC is alive and well with a crew that’s 85 per male and 100 per cent white.’

And lawyer and activist Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu said: ‘Why are there only white people & no BAME in the cast/crew pic? In age of diversity and inclusion equality in opportunities and outcomes, this line up of Line Of Duty is disappointing.’ 

The BBC prides itself on its diversity and has been criticised in the past for advertising positions within the organisation to solely black, Asian, mixed ethnicity, or lower socio-economic applicants. 

Lawyer and activist Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu said: ‘Why are there only white people & no BAME in the cast/crew pic? In age of diversity and inclusion equality in opportunities and outcomes, this line up of Line Of Duty is disappointing’

In Line of Duty, out of a cast list of 23 key characters, five are from BAME backgrounds.

And a TV producer said filming in Northern Ireland could have ‘something to do’ with the absence of diversity.

They defended the show’s creator Jed Mercurio saying: ‘I think it’s unfair and Jed has done a lot to promote minorities in different ways. 

‘The onscreen use of minorities is good. Furthermore it may have something to do with the fact that they shoot it in Northern Ireland.’

The picture was posted to the Line of Duty Twitter page to thank the cast and crew for their work ‘ahead of Sunday’s final episode’

Deborah Williams, chief executive of the Creative Diversity Network, told the Express diversity was about more than hiring BAME crew but admitted there was a problem.

She said: ‘Diversity isn’t just about race: being gay, disabled, trans or religious might not be obvious from just looking at a photograph.

‘Our monitoring shows while on-screen roles by-and-large represent the diversity of the UK population, there is a lot more work to do to ensure people who make programmes are equally representative.’

Novelist Bernardine Evaristo Tweeted: ‘Good to see diversity in the BBC is alive and well with a crew that’s 85 per male and 100 per cent white’

The Creative Diversity Network are funded by the UK’s major broadcasters, including the BBC, to promote and celebrate diversity. 

A BBC spokesman said: ‘The BBC is committed to improving diversity both on and off screen.

‘This includes reflecting the diversity of the UK and its nations and regions. Line of Duty is filmed in Northern Ireland.’