Piers Morgan has joked that he is interested in a role in Line of Duty after the show’s creator compared his interview technique to a character on the show.
Line of Duty showrunner Jed Mercurio shared a clip on Twitter of Morgan interviewing Care Minister Helen Whateley on Good Morning Britain, during which the minister was grilled over news that the number of coronavirus tests has fallen in Britain.
Mercurio joked that Line of Duty’s senior investigating officer Ted Hastings, played by Adrian Dunbar, needed to channel Morgan’s questioning of Whateley.
“If Emily Maitlis was channelling Kate Fleming, then in #LineofDuty6 Ted Hastings needs to channel @piersmorgan,” he tweeted.
Morgan caught wind of Mercurio’s tweet, saying on Thursday morning’s Good Morning Britain that he was interested in a role on the crime drama.
“So, yesterday Jed Mercurio pops up on Twitter. He was watching our exchange with Helen Whately yesterday and he suddenly realised my interrogating skills reminded him of his own show,” Morgan said.
“He wanted Detective Hastings to take on my style. I love that. And it was liked by Vicky McClure. I think there’s a bandwagon to get me into Line Of Duty. I am available.”
Line of Duty: Series 5 (2019) - In pictures
After Morgan grilled Whately over coronavirus testing numbers on Wednesday, Whateley said the government is “ramping up” tests before scolding Morgan’s interruptions.
“I’ve been quite straight with you and others I have spoken to that we know people are dying in care homes and we know more people than usual are dying in care homes,” she said. “The problem is, you just keep on interrupting me.”
A previous clash between Morgan and Whately, in which he accused the minister of laughing during the interview, has reportedly sparked nearly 2000 complaints to Ofcom to date.
Morgan defended both interviews in a follow-up tweet.
“Apparently nearly 2000 people have now complained to @Ofcom about me grilling Care minister Helen Whateley too 'unfairly' when she couldn't answer even basic questions,” he said.
“If you think I should continue grilling ministers in the way I've been doing, please tell @OFCOM. Thanks."
Ofcom announced last week that it was "assessing the complaints against our broadcasting rules, but [is] yet to decide whether or not to investigate."
