A gritty BBC drama set in Liverpool, and based on the experiences of a former Merseyside Police officer, has been shortlisted for a long list of TV Bafta awards.
The Responder, along with This Is Going To Hurt, both lead the nominations this year with six each. The series, which aired last year, followed Martin Freeman's character Chris Carson, a morally compromised urgent response officer tackling a series of night shifts on the beat in Liverpool.
The show won plaudits for its gritty style and narrative, and was written by former police officer Tony Schumacher.
READ MORE: BBC's The Responder writer 'torments' fans with season two tease
At the time it was broadcast, Freeman revealed he spoke in a Scouse accent "for a year" in order to perfect his dialect.
When the ECHO spoke with writer Tony, who left Merseyside Police in 2006, ahead of the series' air date, he said: "Because of covid I wasn't actually on location with Martin much, but he rang me all the time. I'd be out and he'd ring me saying things like 'Eh Tony, how do you say cake?'
"He was determined to get it right, and because of that he stayed in the accent the whole time, even when we weren't filming.
"When lockdown lifted and you could do more, go to cafes and stuff, Martin loved it because he could pop a mask on and go to these places where normally he couldn't. And his Scouse accent helped."
Tony said Martin would pop to local beauty spots for walks, and head to coffee shops, staying under the radar with his new accent.
He continued: "It was great for him because he could go and have a brew and [between the face mask and the accent] nobody would know it was him. You know if you've managed to get past the old dears in cafes on Smithdown Road, you've nailed it."
When filming had ended, the cast and crew went out to celebrate, and it was then that Martin "became a cockney again". Tony added: "I'd actually got to the point where I forgot that was his real voice. Honestly, within five minutes of watching, you'll have forgotten he isn't a Scouser."
Bafta nominations for The Responder include Best Drama Series, Best Leading Actor (Martin Freeman as Chris Carson), Best Supporting Actor (Josh Finan as Marco), and Best Supporting Actress (Adelayo Adedayo as Rachel Hargreaves).
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