Ben insists that it’s great up north

BEN BATT says he was thrilled to show it really isn’t all “grim up north” in BBC’s new drama In The Dark.

Wigan-born Ben is Paul Hopkins, a cop who’s also the partner of MyAnna Buring’s lead detective Helen Weeks in the gritty series.

“I hope we’ve shown a variety of sides to Northern England,” says Ben, a familiar face from the likes of Shameless and Scott & Bailey.

“Being a proud Northerner myself, we’ve avoided many stereotypes.

“In The Dark shows the epic beauty of a village with the country pubs and quirky people who live in these very small towns, and then that hard-hitting, multicultural, multinational epic that is Manchester.

“It’s nice that we are giving a slight nod to what is actually really happening in the North of England and the variety up there.

“The locations really suit. It’s wonderful we were able to use them as a backdrop to these two great stories.”

Ben’s in demand for plenty of varied projects, but he insists that In The Dark had plenty to draw him to it.

“What made me really excited was how it immediately struck me as something that could be really different and quirky in its nature,” he insists.

“Not just another cop drama. If there’s an opportunity to be a part of something that’s different to what you’ve ever seen before, then you need to grab it with both hands.

“In the story, you don’t know where we are supposed to be putting our loyalties.

“We don’t agree with some of the things that Paul has done, or things that Helen has done. “When you get presented with that you wonder if you trust them.

“Then you see something later that makes you come full circle.” In The Dark, BBC 1, Tue,

9pm.