In the grey light of a Belfast winter, cameras have begun rolling on the fourth series of Blue Lights, the BBC drama that found its audience almost the moment it arrived. Angela Griffin — an actor of thirty years who came to directing not through privilege but through process — returns to the helm, embodying something the show itself seems to understand well: that competence is earned quietly, and that the work, when it finally begins, has a way of feeling inevitable.
Blue Lights series 4 filming underway with Angela Griffin directing
It felt like the most natural thing I'd ever done
Mark
So Angela Griffin has directed before—on Waterloo Road, right? Why does she still call herself a baby at directing?
Mimi
She's acted for over thirty years, but she's only recently started directing. Those are two completely different skill sets. She was genuinely worried she'd bitten off more than she could chew when she took on Blue Lights series three.
Luke
But once she started, she said it felt natural. That's a pretty quick turnaround from doubt to confidence. Do we know if that's just her being gracious in an interview, or if there's actual evidence she's doing well at it?
Mimi
The BBC brought her back for series four, which is a pretty concrete vote of confidence. And she went through a normal hiring process—no favors, no connections. They chose her on merit.
Mark
That's interesting. She emphasizes that she didn't know anyone in Belfast, didn't have an in. Why does that matter so much to her?
Mimi
Because she's trying to establish herself as a director on her own terms. She doesn't want people thinking she got the job because of her acting reputation. She wants to be taken seriously as a craftsperson.
Luke
Fair enough. But we should note—we don't actually have quotes from anyone at the BBC saying why they hired her. We have her account of the process, which is valuable, but it's one perspective.
Mark
The show itself—it's doing well enough that they greenlit series four before series three even finished. That's a strong signal.
Mimi
Exactly. BAFTA award-winning, audiences across the UK, and it's only been on air since 2023. For a police drama set in post-conflict Northern Ireland, that's significant cultural traction.
Luke
The source material doesn't give us viewership numbers or specific BAFTA categories, just that it won. And "audiences across the UK" is vague. But yes, the fact that series four is greenlit and in production is concrete.
Mark
What's the actual work like, from what she's saying?
Mimi
She breaks it into three parts—prep, shoot, and edit. But the shoot is where it all comes alive for her. That's when the planning meets the reality, when the crew and cast collaborate to realize what was imagined on paper.
O Pulso
- A beloved drama is back in production before many viewers have even finished watching its previous series, a sign of rare institutional confidence from the BBC.
- Angela Griffin, still describing herself as a beginner director despite decades on screen, carries the quiet tension of someone who nearly talked herself out of a role she was made for.
- The post-conflict Northern Ireland setting gives the show a gravity that separates it from standard procedural fare, and that weight is drawing in new audiences even as the next chapter is being filmed.
- Griffin's Instagram dispatch from a cold, wet Belfast set — clapperboard in hand, crew around her — landed as both a production announcement and a small testament to the joy of collaborative making.
- Viewer response was swift and warm, with fans old and new signaling that the appetite for Blue Lights remains well ahead of the supply.
In the grey light of a Belfast winter, cameras have begun rolling on the fourth series of Blue Lights, the BBC drama that found its audience almost the moment it arrived. Angela Griffin — an actor of thirty years who came to directing not through privilege but through process — returns to the helm, embodying something the show itself seems to understand well: that competence is earned quietly, and that the work, when it finally begins, has a way of feeling inevitable.
Production on the fourth series of Blue Lights is underway, with Angela Griffin returning to direct after helming episodes of series three. The BBC drama, set among the police of post-conflict Northern Ireland, has moved with unusual speed since its 2023 debut — winning BAFTA recognition and earning a fourth commission before its third series had finished airing.
Griffin announced the start of filming on Instagram, posting a photograph of her director's clapperboard alongside candid notes about the weather and the work. Her path to the role was not one of connections or shortcuts. She knew no one in Belfast, had never worked there, and came through the standard hiring process. Speaking to Radio Times, she admitted she had worried she had taken on too much — until the work itself began and felt, she said, like the most natural thing she had ever done.
In her post, Griffin described directing in three phases — preparation, the shoot, and the edit — each offering its own way to shape a story. The shoot, she wrote, is her favourite: the moment when planning gives way to collaboration, and the result always surpasses what she had imagined. Rain, wind, and cold notwithstanding.
The response from viewers was immediate. Longtime fans and those still catching up on earlier series alike expressed enthusiasm, suggesting that Blue Lights has built the kind of audience that doesn't wait to be told when to care.
Production has begun on the fourth series of Blue Lights, the BBC police drama that has become one of the broadcaster's most successful recent commissions. Angela Griffin, an actress known for decades of work in British television—Coronation Street, Waterloo Road, Casualty, Lewis—is returning to direct episodes after helming parts of series three. She announced the start of filming through Instagram over the weekend, posting a photograph of her director's clapperboard alongside a note about the weather and the work ahead.
The show itself has traveled a remarkable distance in a short time. It premiered in 2023 and immediately found an audience, winning BAFTA recognition and sustaining enough momentum that the BBC greenlit a fourth series before the third had even finished airing. The drama centers on the police force in post-conflict Northern Ireland, a setting that gives the ensemble cast and their stories a particular weight. Audiences across the UK have responded to both the procedural elements and the character work, and Griffin herself was a fan of the show before she ever took on a directing role in it.
Griffin's path to the director's chair on Blue Lights was not a shortcut. She has spent more than three decades as an actor, but she describes herself as still very much a beginner when it comes to directing. When she spoke recently to Radio Times, she was candid about her uncertainty stepping into the role. She worried she had taken on more than she could manage. Yet once the actual work began, she said, it felt like the most natural thing she had ever done. Notably, she emphasized that she did not secure the directing job through personal connections or favors. She knew no one in Belfast, had never worked there, and went through the standard hiring process like any other candidate.
In her Instagram post from the first week of shooting, Griffin broke down the three phases of directing work: preparation, the shoot itself, and the edit. Each one, she wrote, allows you to shape the story. But the shoot—the moment when the crew, cast, and all the weeks of planning come together on set—is her favorite part, regardless of the rain and wind and cold that Northern Ireland was serving up that particular week. She described the collaboration as magical, and noted that the reality of what they were creating together always exceeded what she had imagined during the planning stages.
The response from viewers on social media was immediate and enthusiastic. Supporters of the show expressed their eagerness for the new series, with several commenting that they had only recently discovered Blue Lights and were already invested in what comes next. One viewer noted they had just finished the previous series and were delighted to see Griffin working on the continuation. The appetite for more appears strong, both among longtime fans and those still catching up.
Citações Notáveis
I've acted for over 30 years but I am so new to the directing industry. When the process started, it felt like the most natural thing I'd ever done.— Angela Griffin, speaking to Radio Times
There were no favours. There was no getting in round the back route—I didn't know anybody at all and I'd never worked in Belfast.— Angela Griffin, on how she secured the directing role
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