Blue Lights season one spoilers below
Firefights, tension and danger: Blue Lights is back for its second season.
The BBC police procedural drama, which first aired last year, followed a group of recently-graduated police recruits on the streets of Belfast. With the memory of the Troubles still raw in people’s minds, violence can – and did – erupt at any moment, which in season one led to tragic consequences.
In season two, co-creator Declan Lawn isn’t letting up: he’s promised "absolute chaos on the streets for our officers", as well as an exploration of the "relentless, grinding daily pressure” of policing in Northern Ireland.
Here’s what to know about the returning cast – as well as the new faces joining them.
Siân Brooke plays Constable Grace Ellis
Grace Ellis is the show’s protagonist. “Grace is beginning to harden on the job, and is adjusting to life without her son, Cal, who has moved away for university, but she remains an idealist at heart,” the show’s synopsis says, adding that she’s struggling to keep her personal and private lives separate.
The person who plays her, Siân Brooke, is a Welsh actor. Born Siân Phillips in 1980 to a police officer father and teacher mother, she decided to go into acting at a young age. With the name Siân Phillips already taken, she adopted the name Brooke after an English Civil War general who was killed at Lichfield, where she grew up. She’s starred in some of the biggest British shows of the last decade – including Sherlock (2017), Doctor Foster (2017), Good Omens (2019), Trying (2020) and House of the Dragon (2022).
Joanne Crawford plays Sergeant Helen McNally
Previously the team's second-in-command, Helen has now been promoted to Inspector after the departure of David Johnston. Now, she’s being forced to choose between what’s best for her officers and what’s best for the organisation. “Helen is in a bind because expectations of her are extremely high and decision-making has been taken out of her hands,” Crawford has said of the new season.
Crawford herself hails from Northern Ireland and trained at Ulster University; in addition to Blue Lights, she appeared in Line of Duty as Fairbank’s solicitor and had roles in 2016 film We Have Always Lived in the Castle and in 2024 film Small Things Like These.
Hannah McClean plays Jen Robinson
After the death of Constable Gerry Cliff in season one, Jen has left the PSNI to start work as a trainee solicitor. However, she’s still not dealt with the trauma from the shooting, and her idealism soon leads her into trouble.
Irish actor McClean hails from Ballymoney but has lived in the UK for the last ten years – which she says makes it “odd to go home and see police carrying firearms.” In addition to Blue Lights, she also appeared in the 2017 comedy series Sick Note alongside Nick Frost and Lindsay Lohan.
Martin McCann plays Constable Stephen 'Stevie' Neil
As Grace's training officer, Stevie is used to dealing with the tough side of the job. However, soon his positive attitude is being tested, as trauma from the past bubbles to the surface. And in an extra twist, he’s also nursing strong feelings for Grace.
Neil himself has been acting for decades – indeed, in 2020 he was listed on The Irish Times’ list of Ireland’s greatest film actors. Born in 1983 in Belfast, his first drama club was a cross-community group for both Catholic and Protestant children. He’s since appeared in 2010 blockbuster miniseries The Pacific, 2015 apocalyptic film The Survivalist and Nordic noir series Marcella.
Andi Osho plays Sergeant Sandra Cliff
Though Sandra is originally from London, the custody sergeant has stayed with her family in the force after the death of her husband Gerry – but finds herself questioning that as season two commences.
Osho herself is a comedian and actor from London. Born in Plaistow in 1973 to Nigerian parents, she worked in TV production before moving to standup comedy. At the same time, she was honing her acting skills, and over the years has appeared in several stage roles as well as in Death in Paradise in 2020.
She’s a playwright and one of the founding members of the London writing group Vowel Movement – and to cap it off, she even appeared in the OG police show Line of Duty as a murdered journalist, Gail Vella.
Katherine Devlin plays Constable Annie Conlon
The impulsive Annie Conlon is now settling into life in Blackthorn Station with the rest of the section – but this series she finds herself having to leave home due to a death threat.
Devlin grew up in County Tyrone and trained at the Welsh College of Music and Drama, where she graduated in 2021. Since then, she’s appeared in the 2019 film The Dig and an episode of the hit series Vikings.
Nathan Braniff plays Constable Tommy Foster
The section’s fast-track probationer, Tommy has paired his analytical skills with time at a fitness regime, which has boosted his confidence. This season sees him being drawn into the secret world of intelligence policing, which in turn will put him in danger.
Braniff was born and raised in Belfast, where his family ran a fish and chip shop. He’s another fresh face: Blue Lights is his first major acting role. To research for the show, he examined how the "body language of how police handle themselves in certain scenarios" and has talked about trying to show "the human side" of the force, including "their good bits and bad bits”.
Desmond Eastwood plays DI Murray Canning
He left Blackthorn, but now Canning is back. On his agenda: leading a Paramilitary Crime Taskforce investigation into loyalist paramilitaries. He’s under immense pressure to find and stop drugs flowing to Belfast – and aims to achieve it by any means necessary.
Desmond Eastwood has been in the acting business since 2014 but has only recently broken through to the mainstream. Born in Belfast and trained in Dublin, he’s perhaps best known for his turn as Niall in the BBC hit drama Normal People – and also appeared as Benny in an episode of Derry Girls.
Seamus O’Hara plays Lee Thompson
A military veteran and an east Belfast Protestant, Lee Thompson has returned home after serving in the army to help his sister run the family pub. Feeling exploited by the gangs who run the estate, as well as the people who have let it happen, he wants to make changes.
O’Hara is another Northern Ireland local: born in County Antrim in 1990. He started off with BBC NI drama 6Degrees and has gone onto appear in Game of Thrones, Line of Duty and even 2023 film Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves opposite Chris Pine.
