DSI Ian Buckells has been revealed as the mysterious Fourth Man ‘H’ in the hit BBC a series Line of Duty – otherwise known as Nigel Boyle, actor and Dulwich Harps GAA club footballer.
A corner back before moving up to the forwards, Boyle originally joined Robert Emmetts after first moving to London from Birmingham. When the football arm of Emmetts folded in 2012, he joined Dulwich Harps.
He’s been a member of Dulwich ever since, helping the club to McArdle Cup success in 2017. The same year the club also reached a junior county final, and a Division 3 League final.
Boyle played Buckells in the show’s first (released in 2012), fourth and sixth series. Sunday night’s finale to series six was watched by 12.8m viewers.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast on Monday morning (3 May), Boyle said that he had been sitting on the secret for more than a year.
“The only person I told was my wife, nobody else, I know how much is at stake,” said Boyle, whose family comes from the Roslea and Aghadrumsee area of Co Fermanagh.
“Even if you tell someone you trust with your life, they might tell someone they trust with their life and then suddenly more and more people know.
“When friends have asked me who ‘H’ is I’ve just said there isn’t an ‘H’!”
Originally from Moseley, Boyle now lives in Woolwich, London, with his wife Lainy and their three children Finnian, Declan, and Cora.
