The moment PC David Rathband was shot and blinded by Raoul Moat gave ITV's new drama about the killer one of its most harrowing scenes as it launched on Sunday night. And viewers were shocked to see the actor in the role of the late police officer.
The night after he gunned down Christopher Brown, the new boyfriend of his ex Samantha Stobbart and having waged war on Northumbria Police, Moat approached the patrol car PC Rathband was sitting in on foot, before firing at the officer and blinding him.
While he survived the incident, PC Rathband struggled to come to terms with his life changing injuries and took his own life in 2012.
The Hunt for Raoul Moat continues on Monday night, when viewers will see a dramatisation of the frantic moments in the immediate aftermath of Moat shooting PC Rathband, before the show moves onto the 37-year-old' gunman's escape to Northumberland, with the hello of two accomplices.
READ MORE: Hunt for Raoul Moat leaves ITV viewers with 'issue' over casting
The ITV drama's cast is headed up by Matt Stokoe as Moat, with Lee Ingelby also taking a central role as Chief Supt. Neil Adamson, David's colleagues and the cop at the head of the huge search operation to track down Moat back in 2010.
Those who tuned into Sunday's first episode were startled when they realised the actor playing PC Rathband was Dan Skinner of Yonderland fame, who is also famous for playing the comedic character Angelos Epithemiou, a an alter-ego Dan has been performing as at stand up shows across the country for years, as well as being a regular on Shooting Stars.
Reacting to seeing him on screen in a very unlikely role, one fan tweeted: "Angelos Epithemiou as PC David Rathband. This is wild," with a second asking: "was that dan skinner/ @Epithemiou playing david rathband?"
Dan was back on screen on Monday, in a really moving scene with Lee, as PC Rathband lay in a hospital bed, trying to come to terms with the fact he'd been told by doctors he might never see again.
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