Who’s the real wrong ‘un?

So, I’m watching an episode of DCI Banks on BritBox last night and within minutes this actor turns up.

Remember him? No? I’ve written about him before. His name is Derek Riddell and he always plays a wrong ’un. Ah, ha, I thought, gotcha. He has to be the killer.

But a few minutes later this actor shows up.

His name is James Callis and, if you know your British telly, you’ll know he pretty much always plays a wrong ’un. Oh, dear, this is a bit confusing.

The last time I wrote about Riddell he’d popped up in a show and while he did indeed turn out to be a wrong ’un, he wasn’t the wrong ’un. Hmm. Was this a casting double bluff? Could be.

Spoiler alert: If you’re ever likely to watch this episode, Innocent Graves, in series two, you should stop reading now. 

By the end of part one, the Callis character had been arrested and he did indeed look guilty as hell. But it was only the end of part one.

Part two opened with him in court and the declaration of a mistrial due to dodgy evidence gathering. The police were convinced he was their man and went back to square one to build a case.

But what of the Riddell character? He hadn’t had a great deal to do in part one. Why was he there? I mean, he always plays a wrong ’un, right?

Well, of course, my initial theory proved correct. The Callis character, whilst guilty of many things, was not the killer. The Riddell character was the wrong ’un.

Well played, DCI Banks casting director!