Martin Compston: Balaclava Man is "most dangerous adversary" yet

14 December 2018, 14:46 | Updated: 14 December 2018, 17:12

The Scottish actor has told Radio X's Gordon Smart what to expect from Stephen Graham's villainous character.

Martin Compston has praised his friend and Line of Duty co-star Stephen Graham, and teased new details about his role as Balaclava Man.

Speaking to Radio X's Gordon Smart about the actor, Compston - who plays Steve Arnott in the hit BBC crime thriller - said: "This is the most excited I've ever been. Stevie Graham... he's an old friend, but he's also been an inspiration to me and just shown you can be a short actor and still successful."

He added: "He's just a force of nature."

Line of Duty actors Martin Compston and Stephen Graham. Picture: Ian Lawrence/WireImage & Kevin Cummins/Getty Images

Speaking about the This Is England star's villainous role in Line of Duty, Compston revealed: "I think probably the only thing I can say about it is Stevie's probably the most out and out criminal we've ever faced in it, so he's by and large on a basic violence level the most dangerous adversary we've ever had."

First look at Stephen Graham in Line Of Duty Season 5. Picture: Press/ BBC One

Teasing what to expect from the series on the whole, Compston shared that it would be "explosive".

"With the show naturally getting bigger and bigger and moving to BBC One, there's more set pieces and more action sequences so it's pretty explosive."

Asked if there's more guns and drama, Compston joked: "I've been trying get a gun for years, Vicky (McClure)'s been hanging off the back off lorries with a machine gun and I'm just getting chucked down stairs".

"I've got a fairly decent waistcoat budget," he joked. "Even Gareth Southgate's trying to get in on the act and copy me!"

Watch the trailer for Line of Duty series 5 below:

Compston also sung the praises of his fellow Scotsman Gerry Cinnamon, calling him one of the best artists of the last 10 years.

Speaking to Radio X's Gordon Smart, he said: "The boy is just phenomenal, one of the biggest singer-songwriters of the decade. He just sings from the heart..."

Talking about Cinnamon's hugely successful TRNSMT 2018 set, Compston gushed: "It was great to see him in that big a crowd in that company."

"And he seems a top lad," he added. "He seems a very down to earth guy, so I'm chuffed to bits for him".

Listen to the interview here: