Blue Lights series 3 has come to an emotional ending, with co-creators Declan Lawn and Adam Patterson describing it as the “darkest” yet. It dealt with the sexual exploitation of children in our care system, as well as middle-class crime.

Like previous series, the new episodes highlighted the worst of human behaviour – alongside the very best. If you didn’t let out a strangled sob when the man with dementia took up his guitar and played Gerry Cliff’s favourite song, are you even a sentient being!? As for Shane’s ‘welcome back to work’ party, well we must have had something in our eye.

In the latest episodes, all of our favourite Blackthorn response officers faced some personal crisis. Grace came clean about her troubled childhood in care, while Annie grieved after her mum’s death.

Aisling struggled to cope after witnessing an horrific car accident, and Tommy was devastated when he tried to help her – but ended up pushing her away. Of course, on top of their personal trials, they all faced danger every day at work.

As for Shane, well, the secret Westlife fan went through the biggest ordeal of all. Here’s the ending of Blue Lights series 3 unpacked, including who was the hitman, and what happened to Dana Morgan, Donal Fogerty, and the McIntyres.

***Warning: spoilers from the Blue Lights series 3 ending ahead***

Blue Lights series 3 ending explained

Blue Lights series 3 plunged viewers into “the dark world lurking beneath the surface of middle-class life”, and “the world of the accountants and lawyers who facilitate organised crime”.

At the end of the penultimate episode, viewers learnt the upsetting news that Shane Bradley may have lost the use of one of his legs after being stabbed in the upper thigh by a psychotic woman.

Of course, episode 5 saw Grace and Sean bring in gang accountant George McLelland for questioning. But this led Dana Morgan to take drastic measures to silence him… We watched with our hearts in our mouths as dissidents closed in on the accountant. Obviously we didn’t care what happened to that lowlife, but we would RIOT if Grace – who was driving George home from the police station – got hurt in the crossfire.

In episode six, Grace and Sean were under serious threat, while Lindsay’s testimony exposed the Ginleys. Colly took a risk to go after Dana Morgan, and Fogerty decided Tina was no longer useful… Read on to find out exactly what happened to Tina McIntyre, Donal Fogerty, and Dana Morgan.

What happened at the end of BBC crime drama?

In the final episode of the crime drama, Fogerty got his comeuppance – and not before time. When police released Mo McIntyre, Fogerty realised Mo’s mum Tina had been working with the police. She fed them info, so they didn’t block Mo’s early release.

With Dana’s blessing, Fogerty arranged to meet Tina with one intention only – to kill her. He told her: “It’s you or your young fella.”

Tina was supposed to inform Paul ‘Colly’ Collins about the time and place of the meet. Then Colly could have arrested them both, and released her later as part of the deal.

But Tina had other ideas. She met Fogerty alone. As Fogerty ordered his henchman to shoot Tina dead, someone shot him instead – and seconds later Fogerty too. Tina had got rid of her enemies, and told her hired hitman: “I’m going to war.”

Frankly, no one was going to mourn Donal Fogerty, apart from the Ginleys who “considered him family”. As Stevie said in the closing minutes of the final episode: “May Fogerty rest in pieces.”

Who was the hitman who killed Fogerty and accomplice?

The hitman who killed Fogerty and his accomplice for Tina McIntyre was none other than Lee Thompson. Viewers will remember Lee as the main antagonist from series 2.

The character, played by Seamus O’Hara, was a former soldier and a pub owner from east Belfast who became embroiled in a loyalist feud and drug gang activity. He eventually wrestled control of the Mount Eden Estate. But not for long. By the end of the series, he had been displaced and sent packing. But police did not have enough evidence to arrest him.

At the end of series 3, having carried out the hit for Tina McIntyre, he offered to become a “soldier” for her in the future. So this may not be the last we’ve seen of him!

Blue Lights series 3 ending: What happened to Dana Morgan?

Dana was still up to mischief in the Blue Lights ending. She was still walking free, despite pulling all the strings in the criminal underworld of Belfast. Although, thanks to Tommy Foster, her club was finally about to be investigated.

Viewers will know that Dana was NOT working for Fogerty, the Ginleys, or the McIntyres. Nope, they were all working for HER. And, in the series finale, Dana was about to start working with Tina McIntyre after Fogerty’s death.

Thanks to the evidence found on George’s phone – illegally acquired by Shane (more on that below) – they discovered that the husband of Chief Superintendent Nicola Robinson was part of the private members’ club. So Tommy realised that could be the link to how dissidents discovered Nicola’s address and targeted her vehicle with a car bomb. Together with the fact that accountant George McLelland had overdosed on cocaine there, Tommy started to realise that the club could be central to the gangs.

Of course, he was right. Colly agreed to start looking into Dana and the club. So this could well be the plot of series 4.

Writer and creator Declan Lawn told us: “Series three looks at a different side of Belfast. Private members’ clubs where people do what they want. Big houses with high security gates in which residents feel above the law. In many ways it’s about white-collar criminals who consider themselves to be beyond the reach of our response officers.”

Where did the Blue Lights series ending leave ‘The Gamekeeper’ Tina McIntyre and her son?

Mo McIntyre was released in episode 6 of Blue Lights – much to Sandra’s horror. Of course, Mo had been present, not to mention complicit, in the death of her husband Gerry Cliff. His early release was largely thanks to Tina McIntyre’s ‘deal’ with Colly. Working as an informant for the police, for as long as it suited her of course!

As soon as Mo was out of prison, Tina quickly changed tack. She had Fogerty killed and took over his part of the business. While she declared “war”, she told her son to “get off the island”.

In the final moments of the Blue Lights series 3 ending, Dana and Tina McIntyre met up. Dana would protect Tina McIntyre from the Ginleys if it meant protecting the cocaine “supply line”. The two women agreed to work together. Tina resumed her position at the top, replacing Fogerty, and told Dana: “I have a plan. Things are going to be different.”

Meanwhile, Colly realised his working relationship with Tina – codename The Gatekeeper – was over and had been one sided all along, He’d been used, and admitted he’d “misread” her.

Of course, unlike sloppy Fogerty, Tina would run a tight ship. Which would make it harder for the police to pin anything on them.

Did Stevie and Grace stay together or break up?

Stevie and Grace took viewers on quite the emotional rollercoaster ride this series. Having got together at the end of series 2 – hooray! – their relationship hit a bump one year on in series 3.

During heartbreaking scenes with vulnerable Lindsay, Grace admitted she’d also been raised in care. She revealed her mother had been an addict who neglected her and, when her dad died when she was 14, Grace went to a care home.

This was something she’d never told Stevie – or anyone else for that matter. Stevie, hurt that she’d “lied to him” about her past, questioned their relationship. He said: “Maybe it’s all just too much. Maybe at our age you can only ask so much of someone, and maybe sometimes it’s too much.”

However, after she survived the attempted attack on George’s life – and potentially her own – Stevie realised what he could have lost. After a bone-crushing hug (sob!), Stevie told Grace: “I was stuck. I was stuck because I thought I was safe. Thought we could just do the job, go home, and be happy. But that’s not how it works, is it? There’s no such thing as being safe. Not here, but also not anywhere.”

He added: “Things are always going to change. And this could be gone in a moment. And I guess instead of trying to run from it, but to realise how class it is.”

When Grace apologised for not having told Stevie “ages ago”, he said it “doesn’t matter”. He added: “Nothing else matters. Not the past. Not the future. This is what matters. Unless you’ve got more mad shit to tell me.”

Reader, she called him a “dickhead”, and he kissed her. And they lived happily ever after. Until Blue Lights series 4 anyway.

Were Shane and Tommy sacked after ombudsman report?

Huge relief here, as neither Shane Bradley or Tommy Foster were sacked or suspended for their misconduct. In the last episode of Blue Lights series 3, the “ice-queen” ombudsman told Tommy that she had “discontinued” the investigation. Frankly, it would have been a cruel blow for Shane, having just been stabbed in the line of duty.

Viewers will know that in the very first episode of the latest series, Shane broke every rule in the book during one of his shifts. Having found out that the wealthy elite were using an encrypted messaging app to buy and sell cocaine, he knew finding a phone with this app installed was key to the investigation.

When accountant George McLelland overdosed on this 90% pure coke at Dana’s private members’ club, it was Shane and Tommy who arrived on the scene. Once George was recovering in hospital, Shane couldn’t resist opening his phone. He used George’s sleeping face to gain access, only to find the app had been wiped.

All highly illegal. And it had all been caught on CCTV. While Shane had crossed a line, Tommy was in trouble for not having reported it.

But, luckily for the two response officers, the case against them was dropped. The severely-fringed ombudsman told Tommy: “It’s over. Because George McLelland didn’t file this complaint. His solicitor did. He filed the complaint at 8am, but Mr McLelland didn’t regain consciousness until 11am. So let’s just call it a procedural issues.”

Did Shane return to work?

Yes, Shane returned to work, albeit on a crutch. In the penultimate episode, Shane had been stabbed in the upper thigh during an altercation with a psychotic woman in a restaurant. Although it looked like he might lose the use of his leg, Shane did recover feeling in his legs and was soon hobbling about with that cheeky grin on his face.

Despite his dad’s best attempts to convince Shane to quit policing and join the family business in Dublin, Shane chose to stay in Belfast – thanks to a little pep talk from Annie. Yep, we cried too.

Blue Lights series 3 ending: What is Operation Harvest?

Blue Lights series 3 did not have a happy ending. Yes, Stevie and Grace were loved up and buying a house together. And yes, none of our faves died. But Dana’s dodgy club was still operational, Tina McIntyre was back in business, and cocaine was still being bought and sold via the encrypted app. Not just drugs, either. But girls, often young.

Colly told Helen that a new operation would look into Dana’s private members’ club. He had also persuaded Chief Superintendent Nicola Robinson that the response officers needed to work with C3. After all, the officers have eyes and hears everywhere on the beat. After all, it was Tommy who had figured out that Dana’s club was the missing link between the drugs, gangs, and encrypted messaging app.

Chief Superintendent Nicola Robinson told Helen: “I’ve been thinking for some time about Intelligence. It seems to me the old ways won’t work anymore. I mean, surveillance, sources, they have their place. But our best asset is response. They have their noses in the gutter, and we’ve never really taken them seriously.”

She continued: “What if we have someone seeing the big picture, but also managing the small one? Maybe we could draw it all together. I want you to run it.”

The alarm in Inspector Helen McNally’s eyes said it all. She hated the way Colly and C3 operated – and didn’t want any part of it. Something she’d made clear repeatedly throughout the series.

But, Colly and the Chief Superintendent joined forces to strong-arm Helen. Nicola told her she’d recommended her for the rank of Chief Inspector, and proposed she ran the new initiative called Operation Harvest. But it didn’t look much like Helen had a choice at all.

What else happened in the Blue Lights series 3 ending?

• Vulnerable Lindsay Singleton testified against accountant George McLelland, and other men complicit in sex trafficking. She escaped the clutches of Fogerty and the gang, and was last seen sitting her exams with her future ahead of her.
• It looked like accountant George McLelland would be changed with rape, possession of indecent images, and sex trafficking of a minor. However, there was potential that he’d turn grass and expose Dana and her private members’ club.
• Although we didn’t see Aisling again, we knew she was convalescing in a residential clinic in Berkshire which dealt with PTSD. While there, she had no access to phones or TV. We’ll have to wait until series 4 to discover if we’ll ever see her again.
• The four hitmen for hire who targeted George in the car were all arrested. But they’d “do 20 years before they talked to the cops”.

Read more: Borderline on ITV is an Irish crime drama about a ‘formidable crime-fighting partnership’ which is perfect for Blue Lights fans

Blue Lights airs on Monday nights on ITV1 from September 29, 2025, and drops as a boxset that day.